Stylus profiles for mono records

Any thoughts?

Stylus profiles for modern mono and reissues vary from .7 mil spherical (most common I think) to elliptical. Ortofon even has a mono fine line. It might be more important to get a true mono cart and not one that bridges the channels.

Mono signals are lateral, but there will still be vertical motion of the stylus. If this vertical motion is reproduced it can cause phase or possibly amplitude anomalies in the response. A true mono cart is said to give a fuller sound.

Look at a photo of a Denon DL102 and you'll see it only has 2 long pins in back. Both sets of wires can be hooked up to these. If you want to spend more money the Miyajima line is highly regarded. There are a lot of stereo carts out there with the channels strapped. These aren't true mono.
Regards,

.7 mil was the standard for microgroove recordings until the elliptical tip came to be. I tend to think that may still be preferred over anything else for monaural discs.

Unless you have any micro-groove records, you should be able to use any modern mono cartridge with a spherical, elliptical or fine line stylus. A true mono cartridge like the Denon DL-102 will provide you with 1-channel "true mono" output if you are using a single channel system.

If you will be playing these LPs through your stereo system, a "dual mono" cartridge like the Ortofon 2M Mono, the new Quintet Mono or the Cadenza Mono will provide 2-channel mono output. Several manufacturers also offer these cartridges: Audio Technica, Grado Shelter and others.

*Disclaimer - I am an Ortofon dealer*