broken dreams - new cartridge help please!

Can you expand on why you would suggest someone should buy a used cartridge over a retipped cartridge?

@big_greg

J.Carr explained it on this forum much better than me. But i will try again.

Just because you, me or anyone else have no idea about canculations made by the original cartridge designed for a certain high-end model - this is the reason why certain type of cantilever and stylus has been used (most of them are exclussively made for one particular brand and not available to anyone else, never ).

You can "upgrade" only cheap/average cartridges when you change one cantilever to another, or one stylus type to another. But your retipper can’t upgrade a state of the art high-end cartridge made by well knowd cartridge designers, just becase your retipped has no clue about many aspect of the original design, material and more important a calculation to match them together.

The right way to "retip" or "refurbish" a high-end cartridge is to send it to the original manufacturer and original designer who can work on it.

If you work on it with somebody else then you have no idea what you will get and it’s no longer an original cartridge. Maybe you will like it, maybe not, but this is not the original cartridge (cantilever, stylus mass, lengh, thickness can be way different compared to the original).

It’s funny when people are so concerned about cartridge alignment and micron difference between the protractors, vta or sra, but can accept a third-party cantilever or stylus instead of the original (sometimes unique) stylus/cantilever combo on their MC cartridges.

I don’t care what a honest retipper will tell me, i know that he does not have an access to the original materials available only to the original manufacturer. Also i’ve seen a pictures of retipped cartridges under microscope and compared them to the originals. The originals are way more accurate (or completely different).

And if we’re talking about just re-tip (on existing cantilever) then you will see the enormous amount of glue added by the retipper.

This is why i think it’s better to buy another cartridge NEW or LIGHTLY USED if the cost of the retip/refurbish by the original manufacturer is too much for a user.

So many great MC or MM cartridges available on the market for under $1k (new or used), this is why i think an OP could simply try another cartridge made by well known designer.

Some good points.

I've had my Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood retipped twice, once by Soundsmith and once by Andy Kim. In both instances it seemed to perform and sound the same, but of course time passed and my audio memory isn't that great.  It's true different materials were used. I think that some might consider the ability to choose a different cantilever material a plus.

I bought a used Van Den Hul cartridge that arrived with no diamond on the stylus. I sent that to Van Den Hul and not only did he retip it, he completely rebuilt it. Definitely a different level of work and done by the creator, A J Van Den Hul himself.

@big_greg 

Yes, the story about VdH cartridge refurbidhed by VdH himself is a good example of my theory, because the SoundSmith or even less qualified retippers (there are a bunch of them around) in this case is the worst scenario for this High-End cartridge. VdH is using exclussive materials for his High-End cartridges. He's expensive, but you know why. 

Trying completely different cartridge is also good idea, because there are many cartridges of any kind that we never tried yet. 

Hi folks,
thanks for the further dialog. I did explore trying to get the cartridge repaired by Transfiguration, but I cannot get a response from them. Unfortunately,  I have heard that Mr Seiji Yoshioka, the master crafter of Transfiguration cartridges, has died, which may make it impossible to repair. 
So, what to do with a cartridge that retails for $2450 that has a broken stylus? I can't afford a new one, but didn't want to give up on this one. I have sent it to Steve Leung at VAS. He is going to replace with a boron line contact cantilever. I understand that it is not the original, but I am hoping it will sound better than any cartridge I could get for under $500.
I think it is also wise to acquire another new cartridge at some point as a backup and for comparison. I do want to stick with low output MC to pair with my EAR 834P.
I will report back on how things go. It will be another 1-2 weeks before I get it back.

I understand that it is not the original, but I am hoping it will sound better than any cartridge I could get for under $500.

Why do you think so ? Last year i’ve bought on ebay Dynavector 23RS MR with Ruby cantilever NOS and Dynavector KARAT 17DS MR with Diamond cantilever for about $500 each. Diamond is the most expensive and exotic cantilever. Both carts are fully original, both with MicroReach tips. Both are LOMC made in the 80’s.

The quality can be superb even for a relatively low price, you never know how cheap you can buy unused vintage cartridge online.

Instead you paid $500 just for the cantilever/stylus and repair fee. Of cource it’s up to you, but the price for repair job and materials is equal to the price of the new cartridge. I have no idea why people think that $500 for repair with third-party parts (not the original) is cheap in this case?