New Zirconia Pipe Cantilever .. What's up with that ?

With all my respect to SoundSmith this is not the last brand in the world, i have far more interest in vintage cartridges from the giants of industry and their own research made when analog was a king (not digital). Most of them stopped making cartridges or completely disappeared from the market along with those special cantilevers like Boron Pipe or my favorite Beryllium (or exotic Ceramic pipe), but NOS cartridges are not disappeared from the market and i'm happy about it.   

But it is interesting to see something new from Namiki or Ogura, finally, like the Zirconia Pipe Cantilever. Seems like nobody knows what i'm talking about :( 

Even Titanium Pipe is no longer available? 
 
Even if someone would like to design a cartridge using much wider choice of materials it is simply impossible today, but it was possible 30 years ago.    

I can't remember any cartridge from my 50 samples of different design (MM,MI,MF, LOMC, HOMC ...) that does not track well, except for some SPU and probably Ikeda cantilever-less design (if the record is not flat). I test them with Hi-Fi News Test LP, 99% of my cartridges are fine on all high modulated grooves. 

Most people think that the answer for everything is SoundSmith and his Ruby cantilever with optimized Contact Line stylus (mounted instead of any other cantilever when it't time to retip a worn cartridge or replace a bent cantilever). J.Carr explained why it's not always good idea. Peter himself will give you very diplomatic answer and will never tell you what it better (fair enough), you can only decide for yourself (i prefer originals). 

Since i'm not in America it's must easier for me to buy another NOS vintage cartridge with some great cantilever (often not available from Namiki or Ogura for modern cart manufacturers anymore) and top class stylus instead or refurbishing any of my old ones with SoundSmith in USA. 

For me, personally, the world of cartridges is much wider/deeper than just one great manufacturer from USA. 

 

Essentialist world view think in terms of parts and their importance.
The opposite view is the so called ''holistic''. There are no ''essential
parts'' but all parts together make the whole while whole is ''more''
than the parts. ''More'' is meant in metaphorical sense. 

I did not mean to suggest that Peter is the “last word” if such a thing exists.  He is however an authority and I mentioned him only because I happen to have one of his cartridges with a ruby cantilever.  I did not buy it for the cantilever.  Nor did I buy it for ease of stylus and cantilever replacement. That was not the topic of your thread.  I prefer originals as well.  
To me tracking ability is more than staying in the groove of a warped record. It is all about responding to the modulations within the grooves.  I believe stylus, suspension and compliance are more important in this regard. 

My original reply to your thread was a reaction to the different physical properties of minerals used to make the cantilevers, the short stiff posts. My opinion is this difference is way down the list of what makes a good cartridge. You  are emphasizing that it is a new pipe construction which to me is a different issue. Fine.

You have more knowledge and experience with cartridges than I, so I defer.  However I doubt that you organize and rate your fifty transducers based on which mineral is used to construct the cantilever. This is the point I was trying to make.

Finally, why is it currently impossible to make the vintage type of cantilevers that you admire?  Seems odd to me.

All the best.

Finally, why is it currently impossible to make the vintage type of cantilevers that you admire?  Seems odd to me.

@flatblackround 

1) I wish to know why, before Zicronia Pipe appeared in the list of available cantilevers from Namiki and Ogura there was a Boron Pipe in the 70's, as you might know Technics P100c mk4 has ultra low moving mass.

This is what Technics invented in the 70's and improved in the 80's making cartridges like 205c mk4 (my pair) with very special Boron Pipe cantilever. It's nothing but a grown crystals of Pure Boron into a pipe configuration. A tip mounting hole made using a laser beam. This is pretty much the same that another Japanese company made with Grace LEVEL II but with at least one serious advantage over the Technics. The difference is the type of the low mass stylus tip. Grace LEVEL II BR/MR is Boron Pipe with MicroRidge. When you comparing Elliptical with MicroRidge you know that Elliptical simply can't win. Furthermore, type of the cantilever and the whole moving mass is very important according to this Technics research: "Somewhere in the high frequencies, every cartridge has an undesirable resonance point. Undesirable because there the frequency response curve climbs a sudden peak. If that peak is in the audible range, your records sound not as intended. That resonance frequency is determined by the total effective moving mass of the vibrating system - the summed masses of the diamond stylus and, most importantly, the cantilever and magnet, etc. To shift that harmful resonance frequency up into the high supersonics, the effective moving mass must be reduced to the lowest possible minimum. Also, too much effective moving mass increases the mechanical impedance, thereby negatively affecting the cartridge's tracing ability." Cartridges i am talking about are both have very low moving mass and similar exotic hollow pipe cantilevers. But Grace LEVEL II has much better suspension/damper compared to Technics 205c mk4 or 100cmk4 (technics damper material became very soft in time and i've seen about 7 samples with this disease). But i never seen any bad sample of Grace LEVEL II, damper is always fine! Grace has a much better LC-OFC coil wire (utilized in LEVEL II or F14 models). 

2) The reason why Beryllium cantilevers are no longer available is this:

"According to NIOSH (the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health, 2011), "workers exposed to particles, fumes, mists and solutions from beryllium-containing materials may develop beryllium sensitization or chronic beryllium disease, a potentially disabling or even fatal respiratory disease."

In top top-10 cartridges i have many with beryllium cantilevers like Victor X-1II or Pioneer PC-1000 mkII and AT-ML180 OCC (rare beryllium version). 

Let me quote another member regarding Audio-Technica cartridges: 

There was a thread on Audiogon quite a while ago in which a former engineer from Audio Technica was participating. He wrote a rather in depth post as to why Beryllium was the go to material for cantilevers and the panic that ensued at AT when the EPA came down with the order that it no longer be used due to the dangerous toxic dust released when machining the material. He stated that the engineering department underwent a lot of R&D to find a suitable replacement material and Boron was what they determined would be closest, however it was still a compromise. Apparently Beryllium allows for the largest frequency excursion without distortion and also permits better channel separation and signal to noise ratios. This is why it was so good." - @simpikins5

@nandric is right that  parts together make the whole while whole is ''more'' than the parts. We like vintage MM and MI cartridges because of the sound, not because of the parts. But when we think why they are better than others we can't ignore parts when it's clear that some of those parts are no longer available (such as different cantilevers made of beryllium or boron pipe ... and more).   

If the cartridge tracks well and is neutral I could care less what it is made of. Having said this I will side with Johnathan Carr on this one. Rigidity balanced with low mass are the hallmarks of a good cantilever. Anything heavier will play havoc with tracking. Titanium would make a lousy cantilever It is way too springy. I could not be used for bicycle forks for this reason. Could you make a cantilever out of carbon fiber? I'm not sure you could make fibers that small. 
You can keep your NOS cartridges. I'll take the new ones thank you.