That cartridge is a Denon 103D. Low-output mc with an elliptical stylus. I have one in my collection. Excellent sound quality! Alas, no longer in production. Send it out for a new stylus/cantilever.Or buy a new Hana LS (low-output Shibata stylus) mc.
Help with cartridge
With the world turned off, I finally got my Michell Gyrodec SE going. It has some model of a Rega arm, and a cartridge I cannot identify. Not sure how to post photos here?
Due to several cross country moves, the stylus is bent. I do know it is a low output moving coil. I need to either replace the cartridge or fix the stylus if possible. It is tan with a red line going from the head to the slight V down by the stylus. Any suggestions would help as I feel I have a jigsaw puzzle without the lid right now.
The rest of the system is all tubes including the Wright phono stage, with a step up unit.
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What is your tonearm ? Do you know effective mass of the arm you're using ? Cartridge and tonearm must be matched, read it. In any situation, since the cantilever/stylus is bent, just buy another cartridge, you can find great MM and MI for about $450 with advanced stylus profile. You can fix almost any cartridge, but it will cost more than a new cartridge if your sample is Denon 103 or something cheap like that, in this situation it's better to buy another cartridge (better one). |
Could also be a DL-103S as the DL-103D looks the same. You will need to remove the cart and look at the model number on top. Not sure where you are located but I would check with VAS in Cliffwood, NJ for a price on getting it repaired. I just had two DL-103 carts upgraded by him and it was about 50% of a replacement cartridge cost. Chakster, why all the hatred for the Denon DL-103 series of carts? They have a huge following and for good reason. I don't know of any other cartridge that dates back to 1962 and is still popular. They have a really good generator and with modest cost can be turned into a cartridge that can satisfy even the most discriminating user. Maybe the warm musical sound is not for you and you like the clinical sound of other cartridges but that is not my or a lot of other users cup of tea. BillWojo |
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