Retipping Miyajima mono cartridge

Andy Chong of Cartridge Clinic is rather a contraversial decision to take your cart to. Although many have said good things I know for a fact he doesn't often repair the carts himself but rather ships them to China to one of his repairers.
How do I know this, I sent my Clearaudio Insider because the cantilever snapped off and he said he could fix it when even Clearaudio didnt want to do it. So 3 weeks later and no cart I pressed him for some details of when it was going to be done. He was stalling and couldnt say exactly when so I did a suprise visit to the shop and demanded to see my cart, guess what... he couldn't because it was in China!!!! He didn't tell me until I wore him out asking where it was. Unbelieveable!!
So two weeks later I get it and install it on my table, the cart was totally unbalanced in volume and grainy sounding. Tries and tried slight changes but it was obvious the cart was just F$%^&*d. So I call him up and explain how it is, he says a lot of BS and offers me $100 off the $900 bill and to take go elsewhere if I don't like it!
Stay away from that shop!!!!    

"Bob is the implication here that those who use conical styli in their mono cartridges presumably don't want to make their cartridges sound as good as possible, such as Miyajima?"

Hi Veridian, No. Not at all. I just wanted to offer the OP a particular point of view (not necessarily my own). I didn't mean to imply that any approach was inherently superior to any other. Since the OP asked about line-contacts, I just thought the viewpoint of a respected manufacturer might be helpful as a consideration in the decision-making process. I agree that there are no right or wrong approaches.
-Bob

I can't see why a conical profile would have any difference in life span versus other profiles. But they are any number of variables involved. Poor set-up, improper cleaning and care, dirty records, cheap stylus, etc. Any of these things will greatly reduce stylus life from the ideal.

My experience with stylus life, no matter the profile, is they last far longer than is commonly reported. Things do wear and change but the most important factor is has the stylus worn enough to cause permanent damage to the record?

Some people will tell you a stylus is shot at 1,000 hours or less. I routinely run my cartridges well beyond 1,000 hours with no damage to my vinyl. I keep my records and stylus clean but I am not fanatical on this point.

The best person to ask is the importer for Miyajima. A great guy, a wealth of knowledge concerning all things analog and he will give you the straight story. He is far more interested in a satisfied customer than selling a cartridge, or re-tipping, before it is required.

"Dnath, not to sound snitty but have you considered at the time those "vintage mono LPs" were produced that only conical styli were common?"

Understandable, which is why I try to only buy very close to NM, seldom played. Groove wear and damage is all too common on those early Savoy, Blue Note and Prestige albums.

Kentaja, how many hours do you think the conical is good for? This is another thing I've read- conicals have significantly less life span than the others. All the records are wet cleaned with an RCM using AIVS fluid.

Viridian, I didn't mean to come off as inflammatory. I've done lots of searching and there isn't much information on high end conicals in the higher end cartridges; in fact the Miyajima mono stylus profile is almost never discussed. Most information is relayed about vintage or cheaper conical carts.

Probably of no concern to the OP but a line contact stylus can damage records pressed on styrene. Many mono LPs and 45s from the 50s and 60s are styrene.
I would rather have an "all rounder" conical, personally.

Yet a respected cartridge maker who presumably wants to make mono cartridges that sound as good possible and who chooses the mono stylus shape based on extensive listening comparisons is hardly someone to be summarily dismissed as a factor for consideration.
-Bob

Soundsmith does an excellent job rebuilding cartridges. I have had Peter do several for me and I am always satisfied with the result. But......

The cartridge will sound different versus a factory rebuild. With some thing like the Miyajima I think it would be a shame to change the character of the cartridge. The Miyajima sound is simply the most magical sound one will ever hear.

Conical stylus on mono LPs is exactly what the doctor ordered. The line contact will be no easier on the vinyl versus the conical. The vintage mono albums were pressed with the conical stylus profile in mind.

Do the right thing and send the cartridge back to the importer for a proper rebuild.

Good luck!

Lyra's Jonathan Carr has stated that extensive testing revealed that the best mono performance was derived from a line-contact stylus (if I understand his remarks correctly). I believe all Lyra mono cartridges now use a line-contact stylus.
-Bob

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?eanlg&1273328104&openfrom&10&4#10

Dnath, not to sound snitty but have you considered at the time those "vintage mono LPs" were produced that only conical styli were common?