Stylus Profile Discussion

I have no idea whatsoever what the stylus profile is on my Koetsu. Just to show how much it matters.

This is probably just about the last thing you need to worry about. Oh, you can get bogged down in this all day long. Just watch, as this thread goes on and on and on, never getting anywhere. Because there is no there there. Not in terms of what you asked. Not in any terms that really matter.

What matters is how the thing sounds. What stylus profile has to do with that you can let me know after reading the pages and pages this question will generate. Let me know if you learn anything. Anything at all.

What matters is how the thing sounds. Anyone telling you they can tell how its gonna sound from stylus profile (or cantilever construction, or metallic purity, or gauss, or pretty much any of the bajillion stories we've been told to swallow) is full of it. 

Just read the reviews, read the user comments, make sure there's enough output for whatever phono stage you're using, and buy the one you like. Regardless of whatever the dang stylus profile is.

Here ya go!
https://www.sound-smith.com/articles/stylus-shape-information

Advanced stylus profile setup problem is a myth. I have no problem to align any stylus profile, this is what a good tonearm/headshell can handle. The less sensitive is only conical, but it is also the worst and the cheapest. In my opinion a cartridge alignment with electronic microscope and some very special exotic devices is not necessary. Your arm must have VTA on the fly, a good bonus is headshell with azimuth adjustment. Dr.Feickert protractor is a must have for any turntable and cartridge. The most complicated profile in my collection was Replicant-100 and i did not notice any different in setup process at all. The best profiles last much longer (up to 2000 hrs), so i don’t understand why do i need those cheap profiles in high-end system if they last only about 300-500hrs and does not read the grooves correctly even properly aligned?

Agreed. I have Shibata, extended line contact, Paratrace and Microscanner and never worried any more than dialing in VTA when it came to setting them up.