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Does size really matter? :-

I've seen stylus size discussed in regards to 78s and mono records, but never as it pertains to our good old stereo LPs. I was recently looking at cartridge specs, and was astonished by the difference in the size of the styli. Let's take, for example, 3 cartridges I'm considering:

Sumiko Blackbird Elliptical 0.3 x 0.7 mm

Dynavector 17D2MKll Karat Square .06 x .06 mm

Zyx Bloom Line Contact 6 x 35 um

Converting the first two to um from mm, we get this:

Sumiko 300 x 700

Dynavector 60 x 60

Zyx 6 x 35

This indicates the Sumiko is 50x wider and 20x longer than the Zyx! The Dynavector is between them. Even allowing for the different stylus profiles, this seems like an enormous difference in stylus size. Am I missing something?

I've read in other threads that the Zyx owners talk about the Zyx getting deeper into the groove, retrieving more info and, more importantly, contacting a section of the groove that, in the case of used records, previous styli haven't touched. Considering the above figures, these statements now make much more sense.

My big question is, why don't more manufacturers use the smaller styli? Are there advantages to larger styli that I'm missing? It doesn't seem like cost should be a factor, as the Zyx above is a US$490 cartridge. Do the smaller styli wear quicker? Easier to break? Harder to align?

Just wanting to get A'goner's thoughts. If there's a previous thread, please point me to it - I did a search, but didn't come up with anything relevant. Thanks.

David
armstrod
armstrod OP
619 posts
 
Nsgarch,

Occasionally my accounting education proves useful. :-)

Thanks for the info on different stylus profiles. I guess then the question is how comparable the stylus dimensions are when the styli have varying profiles. Dougdeacon has seen clear differences with his own (microscopically enhanced) eyes, so the absolute size difference is undeniable. How that translates at the point of groove contact carries far more variables.

Dougdeacon, I'm sure the stylus size and profile is part of what makes a Zyx different, and logic says a stylus that much smaller would be more difficult to manufacture. As I pointed out, though, Zyx seems to be using that same size stylus on the Bloom at $490, so it's clearly possible to do it on an affordable cartridge. Are there any other cartridges you know of, affordable or not, that use a stylus as small as the Zyx? I did a quick check through cartridgedb.com and didn't find anything even close.
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Are there any other cartridges you know of, affordable or not, that use a stylus as small as the Zyx?
The Lyra Olympos (discontinued) stylus was longer but it looked similarly narrow to my naked eye, but I never saw the specs. Current top Lyra's like the Titan might use something similar. Check VdH and Dynavector too.

The ZYX stylus is measured in a somewhat odd way because it's shaped in an odd way. If you cut a horizontal cross-section through the stylus at groove contact height, it would look something like an ellipse with a little ridge sticking straight out from each of the narrow ends. The end of this ridge is all that contacts the groove wall.

In the booklet that comes with the Airy 2, Airy 3 and UNIverse ZYX quotes the radius of these ridge ends as 3um, so 6um in diameter. The radii of the main part of the ellipse would be much larger, but it doesn't touch anything and the size isn't quoted AFAIK.
opalchip
355 posts
 
I have a call into Sumiko to verify but - I'd be willing to bet (you name the amount) that someone read "mil" and figured that's the same as "mm" when setting up the website.

Since one mil is equal to about .025 mm. - Considering that the groove width of a modern stereo lp is nominally between .7 mils (as measured halfway down the groove wall), a .3 MILLIMETER stylus would be roughly 17 times the width of the groove itself.
opalchip
355 posts
 
CONFIRMED by Sumiko - the measurement is .3 x .7 MILS (thousandths of an inch) not mm. They will be changing their info.
armstrod OP
619 posts
 
Dougdeacon,

Maybe I lack imagination, but I'm having a hard time picturing the shape of the Zyx stylus you describe. Any chance you could upload the pictures your friend took of the Zyx and the others? It would be educational for all of us.

As to other manufacturers, you're correct that Lyra and VdH use styli similar in size to the Zyx, with the Lyra Dorian the least expensive at $750 USD. The Dynavectors claim a line contact stylus, but their quoted size is much larger that the Zyx, Lyra and VdH.

I have a feeling there's a Zyx Bloom in my future...
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