long lasting cart


I listen to records about 30 to 40 hours a week in my home office. I have a Music Hall 5.1 with a Nagaoka mp 200. Thinking about a Soundsmith zepher ll. But it would only last 6 months. So maybe ?????
ttocs1269
@bob540

yes, you can

i’ve heard it before from many record collectors, they don’t understand why anyone need a decent speakers, amps, turntables, cartridges ... If if they wish to have it then just don't buy it for some reason. All they need is records! Some of them are very deep into records, and they got very rare originals (and good taste in music too), but they’re listening great records on the cheapest equipment, most of them always claiming they will not be able to hear any difference between their $100 cartridges with worn styli and some decent $300 cartridges.

However, when i played some of their favorite records in my system everyone hear a better resolution, greater dynamics, deeper and wider soundstage and so on and on ...

I could bring a cartridge and a phono stage to a friends too, once they hear the difference in their own system people often ask for the same cartridge or same phono stage, they don’t want to go back to the sound they have been living with.

Improvement is great, but it is very important to make sure there is an improvement and then you’re hooked.

There is no miracle, if you understand how it works (inside a phono cartridge) then it’s impossible to deny an obvious things. Stylus shape is one of the most important thing for accurate reproduction of vinyl media.

A cartridge with $300-500 price tag is fun to have, it is all about fun after all. A $3000 cartridge is definitely for fanatics, but a $300-500 cartridge is affordable, one LP re-issue cost $30 today, original record cost $100 easily, some rare records cost way over $300 and it’s just a piece of plastic.

A cartridge is not a piece of plastic and $300-500 cartridge is quite normal today. Replacement stylus with the most advanced profile can cost $300-400 for such cartridge, but this is 2000hrs of satisfaction and pure joy.




something to clarify, not all special styli last 2000hrs, especially if fitted to low-medium price cartidges. 600-1000hrs is the max you can get till diamond changes shape seriously and assuming that suspension does not go first. Apart from diamond shape other factors like polishing have their influence on playing time.

Stylus can be bonded or nude, all nude styli are high quality and very well polished (imo), a cartridge with advanced profile is not cheap by default, especially if the stylus mounted on advanced cantilever. If you meant current retail price (when you sayin' "low-medium price cartridges") then it's modern cartridges and nearly all those styli came from very few  companies (Namiki, Ogura ... in Japan). 

All low priced modern cartridges does not have advanced diamonds, not even nude diamonds when it comes to various modern MM, but i don't know what is "low price" for you, because when we're talking about LOMC the price range is so wide (up to the sky). 

The stylus life span depends on profile type, and those with a life span up to 2000hrs are Micro Ridge, F.Gyger, VdH, Replicant 100 etc 

Shibata or Line Contact does not live that long, it is true. 

But Elliptical does not live even 600 hrs
and conical life span is shorter than elliptical

No matter what, but it's more reasonable to look for a cartridges with Shibata at least (or better profiles) for practical reason. Especially LOMC cartridges.

  
I bought an Ortofon Quintet Red a few months ago and it sounds amazingly good (Linn Basik/Akito)...I'll be watching it closely to see if it dies after 600 hours (I maybe have 50 hours on it...it's just warming up), but at 350 bucks...well...I'll get another one.