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

Reading Namiki website i discovered new type of cantilever available today:

Zirconia cantilever (Pipe) , well this is the only pipe cantilever (except for aluminum) available today to my knowledge, correct me if i’m wrong. This is something new.

"Because the material’s relative density is comparatively high at 6.0, we make full use of our technology to process it into a pipe shape. This cantilever plays a charming sound that is different from other materials."

Physical properties for currently available cantilevers described here.

**Any new cartridges with Zirconia Pipe cantilever available on the market ?

BTW: Browsing Namiki website, to my surprise, on top of the page i recognized that "unique cantilever" of my ex ZYX Premium 4D cartridge. In many of my posts i have mentioned this construction as something special, because the MR diamond is press-fit and the cantilever described by ZYX as Boron. Now i think that joint pipe for stylus tip (press-fit) was made of Zirconia and the rest is Boron Rod.

Since they are both hollow PIPES (black color) i assume they are Zirconia (no other black pipes from namiki).
This is what Nakatsuka-San using in Airy III and Premium 4D ZYX models (owned both models).




128x128chakster
neonknight
392 posts
 
There has been some discussion by various users of the new cantilever used in the SAS line. Results are mixed But it does appear there is a resonance at 10 to 12k that cannot be resolved. Some feel boron is still preferable.

https://audiokarma.org/forums/index.php?threads/newest-jico-stuff.859161/
chakster's avatar
chakster OP
6,144 posts
 
Thanks for the link @neonknight

They are testing various JICO replacement styli on Shute MM:

Thomas_AA (from Sweden) said:

"Here is the comparison where the boron is in black and the zirconia in red. This is white noise from the Elipson test record. The loading is 130 pF and 47 kOhm. As seen the zirconia has a high Q resonance but then also keeps level after the resonant peak. A bit odd and not the same behaviour of the boron rod.

My favourite loading for the boron is however 600 pF and 36 (or 33) kOhm, seen below. I do loose >16 kHz, but then I can’t really hear those frequencies. The benefit is a less dip in the 2-8 kHz region and a dampened peaking. This setting gives -0.5/+2 dB up to ca 16 kHz, which is good for me. Note that the colors are switched, the boron is red and the zirconia is black. I cannot really dampen the hump in the zirconia with this loading.

If you like a bit brighter sound, you would benefit with a zirconia stylus.Tracking and distortion appears to be on par with the boron and better than my original MR stylus ever was.

Now, if there only was a way to get hold of BORON TUBE cantilevers, JICO would be able to push the resonance just a bit higher."




lohanimal
659 posts
 
I see the logic of zirconia in hollow pipe - far stronger structure than a solid rod. But are we talking the metal (zirconium) or the ceramic (zirconia) - Zirconia is often used in bearings (i know this from radio control car racing)
My point being that ceramics are a more crystalline structure and can shatter (it can happend with zirconia bearings) - the zirconia is often used just as a coating. If it is zirconium alloy - how much is zirconium. Titanium is a funny material for cartridges and tonearms - the reason being that it is resilient and bendy - know this from mountain biking - that's why titanium front forks are rubbish as they don't give precise handling - that said when used in the main frame they are very light and comfortable.
tigerdog's avatar
tigerdog
9 posts
 
i am late to this thread.  the links to photos of Jico styli traces in dropbox.  the images are no longer available - can someone post a saved copy here?
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