Upgrade Denon 103 R to Shelter 501 II?


I own a Denon DL 103R on a Spacedeck with Space-arm. I have read much conflicting data on this cartridge. My question to those who have tried this cartridge and also either a Sumiko Blackbird and Shelter 501 II, is: Will either of these be a significant upgrade? (System: EE Mini-max phono-preamp, Jadis DA 88 Signature int amp, Merlin TSM-Mx speakers)
springbok10
Assuming you just got then Denon Saturday as well, I would a) definitely track it at the higher end of the VTF range at least until it is broken in and probably after as well and b) not make any judgements about its sound quality until you have at least 12-15 hours (or the equivalent of about 40 LP sides) on it.

While the Denon sounds pretty decent out of the box, it is a little aggressive, a little "steely" as some others have described it. At around 12-15 hours, though, it should dramatically improve and really come into its own. You'll notice that it will really smooth out in that time period. Some will say that it requires around 50 hours to fully break in and that may well be true, but in my experience, there is a real transformation at the 12-15 hour mark that makes any improvements in the 15-50 hour mark sound pretty subtle. At 12-15 hours, it's as if, all of a sudden the "light comes on".

And, as mentioned above, if your arm is a bit lightweight (as in the 9-12 range), increasing the mass by 5 grams or so is definitely going to help as well.

But if the Denon is new, you are in for a surprise shortly if you keep playing records on it.
Absolutely! 2.5 to 2.6 grams, and remember to take the optimistic numbers that a Shure tracking force gauge gives you into account.

I mention this latter point only because so many folks rely on the Shure coupled with the fact that you haven't mentioned how you measure your tracking force.

Cheers,
Thom @ Galibier
Tom - Are you aware of other inexpensive tracking force scales that are more accurate?

thanks
Tom, I am tracking it at 2.68 now - does sound better. I cannot weight the shell as I would need a longer brass counter-weight.

The tracking force guage I use is superb - the Digital Chinese direct order one - works like a charm - no hassle either.
Springbok10,

Sounds like the scale from ANS. That's a very good investment.

Don't worry in the least about VTA with the 103r. With that conical stylus you can be off by a mile and it won't sound any different. Just set it level and focus on VTF and azimuth.

The best arm I have heard so far with this cartridge was a Basis Vector, but I believe Thom uses it on a Triplanar. Didn't like being mounted on a Graham 2.2 at all. I'd try it on mine but the 103r I have developed a sporadic pop, like a discharge, in the left channel so I don't risk using it anymore.