Shure V15 IV aftermarket replacement stylus

The V15 IV, which is the only one I really liked of the V15 series, seems to be among the few they (Shure) have discontinued styli for. They still offer a replacement for the mk. III, and the mk V's are discontinued but old stock is still around. In addition, I have researched this, and the original Mk IV styli that can still be found are at much higher than normal risk of having dried out suspensions unless they've been stored in an airtight container. So they can be had on Ebay - but they're an expensive crapshoot. SOmeone, in fact, posted on Audiogon about having gotten a bummer one off Ebay a few months ago. And my recent Ebay experiences as a Buyer have not been overwhelmingly great either.

So it seems that the aftermarket brands are the only sensible alternative IF they sound good. I'm hoping someone out there has tried one. BTW Elex Atelier is one of the sellers of the Japanese made aftermarket brand.

The MKV stylus is still available for replacement and I believe will work well with the IV. If you call Shure customer service you will find as I did they things lying about that they don't advertise.

The Shure V15 III stylus is a direct replacement for the Shure V15 IV cartridge. It fits perfectly. The only difference is that it does not have the little brush (dynamic stabilizer, as Shure calls it). However, that is something that many users don't like and don't use.

Dick Schneiders

Hi again - Thanks for the suggestions so far - just spoke to Shure Parts & Cust. Service, and there are no VN35mr (V15 III stylus) left in stock. None on the internet either.

The MkV might fit, but I also have a V15Vmr (and 4 brand new styli stockpiled for it) - but don't really like the sound of that stylus much - kind of lifeless compared to the IV (IMHO).

Canadian Astatic used to have high quality aftermarket stylus available for something like $25 - $35 US dollars apiece. Jerry Raskin's Needle Doctor used to sell the same stylus for something like $90 or so. Hope this helps.... Sean
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http://www.canadianastatic.com/