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I damanged my Shelter cartridge, next steps?....

Hi Folks:
Well, I managed to damage my Shelter 501 mkII by, well, bumping into it. So, to cut a long story short, the stylus is leaning to one side horizontally, and is pointing more steeply vertically (wider angle between end of stylus and body of cartridge). Finally, the stylus appeas to be more 'springy' and is not as rigid.

So, question is, can I salvage it? Should I try to orient it correctly, or can it be 'reseated'. The stylus does not appear to be bent or broken - just out of correct orientation, and a little loose. Anyway, I'd value advice on whether this can be fixed, and who I might bring it to for such a fix. The cartridge is about 2.2 years old and has about 250 hours on it.

Looking forward to hearing any recommendations on next steps. IF I have to replace the cartridge, I'd also welcome input on replacements. I've a teres 255 with OL Silver Arm. Preamp is Supratek Syrah.

Thanks!!!
John.
128x128outlier
outlier's avatar
outlier OP
381 posts
 
Hi Dirtyragamuffin - I'd definitely be keen to see if I can have the Shelter repaired - my sense from some comments though is that the cartridge is kaput now though. BUT - if anyone has ideas on where I might send it for review (and possible repair), I'm all ears. Certainly, that would be a great way for me to go, if the cost of repair is not prohibitive, and the resulting sonics not impaired..

FYI, I just ordered a Denon DL 103 from the UK (Doh! - should have waited and acted on the more local audiocubes tip.) Still, I'm in the market for investing in a stronger contender than the Denon if I see something special at the right price. Thanks again for the input guys.
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jyprez's avatar
jyprez
241 posts
 
I did the same thing once while trying to "dust off my TT. My condolences, it was a very bad day for me as well. Music direct gave me 50% off on a new 501 ($400) when I sent them the damaged unit (which I hadn't originally purchased from them).
dirtyragamuffin
213 posts
 
I'm not sure what Shelter's repair/retip policy is. When My old Clearaudio needed repair, I was quoted a "retip" price but was told that Clearuadio actually just takes the damaged one and sends out a new cart--though I wound up upgrading to the next model up at dealer cost.

But get the repair cost on that Shelter, if it can be repaired, and take a look at what other carts you can get for that price. If they're not as good as the Shelter, then you know what to do! :)
outlier's avatar
outlier OP
381 posts
 
Jyprez - that sounds like a fantastic deal you got on that replacement. That might be the best way for me to go, if I can avail of such a deal. Is there someone in particular I shoudl contact at Music Direct, do you think the offer would be a general policy that they apply, or do you think you were just lucky? Just seems like a super deal (very nice of them :-)

Does anyone know the website/contact email of Shelter in Japan? I purchased it direct from some store/site in Japan but can't for the live of me remember the store/site. I got the Shelter about two years ago. I guess I should explore a fix/retip with them. They might be nice to me like MusicDirect was nice to Jyprez. One can only hope :-)

Thanks again for the great suggestions and words of wisdom. I'm glad to know I'm not the only person to have broken a cartridge (although I have done this twice. Third time's a charm...;-)
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