Andy Kim - Needle Clinic

These are great reports, keep them coming.

These services need recognition, especially as there is a very cost-effective route into owning a high quality and design Cartridge, if the right donor model can be discovered for fair monies parted with.

All

I would like to provide my feedback about a fantastic experience with Andy Kim as well! I recently pulled out my old Accutrac 4000! for the past 30 years it was on display as a conversation piece.  Feeling a bit nostalgic, I connected it and found it worked perfectly except the stylus was in bad shape, but the original LMA 1 seemed to be ok.  after an exhaustive search I determined I could not find a replacement stylus or an original ADC cartridge.  Most suggested, replacing the cartridge completely and forgoing the functionality that made the Accutrac appealing 40 years ago.  This wasn't an option for me.  This led me to explore   retipping as an option. The initial contacts I made informed me I the process could take weeks to as much as a month to send in and expect a return.  Then I contacted Andy.  Andy responded promptly and was also local!  He retipped my original LMA 1 in 2 hours while I waited!  I suspect that others I contacted ship out the work as opposed to performing the work in house.  The new stylus (Micro Ridge Boron) now rivals my main Turntable (Music Hall IKura with a Orthron  2m Black cartridge)

Many tanks to Andy for his great work and prompt service!!

Great to see your report on the satisfaction being met as a result of having a Cartridge overhauled by a rebuild service.

The turnaround time when delivered in a short period is an absolute bonus, and my take on it is that  memories of what was temporarily separated from are strong and the benefits of the service undertaken are quite noticeable when recollecting and assessing the new performance on offer.  

My experience mirrors yours as well, with a Cartridge Rebuild from a different supplier of a rebuild Service.

In my case I was able to compare the the returned Cartridge to a identical model.

The returned Cartridge was mounted on a detachable Headshell.

Another Cartridge of the same Model with a few hundred hours of usage was also mounted onto a identical Detachable Headshell.

Both Cartridges were A/B Compared in a identical set up and the returned Cartridge from the rebuild service without any run in time, shone out as the better Cartridge over the original model, to the point that the Original Cartridge was said to be quite lacking in qualities as a comparison. 

The knowing that the rebuilt cartridge was to improve further was very satisfying.

This is a short review of the excellent and quick work done by Andy at Needle Clinic in LA. I sent him my Dynavector Karat 17D3 for re-tipping and had it back in less than a week sounding better than the original, particularly in terms of stereo signal balance and overall tracking. 
Andy was professional and clearly a total craftsman.
 

Just received and remounted my Benz LPS, which was "rebuilt" (new boron cantilever and line contact stylus) by Andy Kim. This is the third time I’ve used his services. I sent him this LPS due to high hours (almost 1000 hrs) and an unfortunate incident where I literally stabbed myself with its cantilever. (Ever have to clean flesh off a cartridge? It was surreal.) There was less than a one week TAT from me sending it off to Andy and getting it back. To be succinct, the LPS sounds fantastic and to my memory as good as it was when new. This is the third time I’ve used Andy’s services (Benz Gullwing, twice with Benz LPS) and again I am very pleased with his fine work. TBH I don’t see myself using Soundsmith again, not because SS are inferior, just because of the long TAT.

I have not used this service as of yet, or any other service based within the US.

I have discussed a particular rebuild design for a Cartridge I have, but have not got the offer to meet all of my requests.

From all the correspondences shared, I have no doubt, if the Cartridge was to be forwarded as a repair task only, the returned cartridge will have surpassed my expectations.   

As a side, The Services are not limited to rebuilds, and a lot can be gained by having a service only on a Cartridge.

I have heard Cartridges prior to and post an Inspection and Cleaning Treatment, there is a very noticeable difference. For those with a Cartridge left out in an exposed to room atmosphere set up, with not too many hours of usage and owned for a few years, I will heartily recommend sending it in for a Cleaning Treatment.  As a pre inspection before making a decision, have a look at the Stylus > Bobbin Interface where the Stylus enters the Cart's body, whatever is seen will invade further, and airborne metal particles will attach to the coils and magnets.

A friend had a channel imbalance due to metal on a coil.

 

@nicks25 some other options for you

Another alternative: Steve Leung of VAS (New York) regularly posts pics of rebuild / re-tip / adjustment work on his Facebook page. A lot of very high-end cartridges. The work looks quite good, and seems like he has very good turnaround. He also play tests to ensure no bad "surprises". If I ever want 3rd party work done he's the first one I'll contact. 

I had a similar experience.  My cartridge was done and back in the mail the same day.  It sounds wonderful.

Andy is great! 

I bent my apheta 3,  he repaired & shipped  it back the same day he received it. 

Sounds fantastic. 

He is excellent.

I just wanted to chime in really quick about a retip of a Shelter 901 I just got back from Andy. I inspected it under a high powered USB microscope and work is really superb, perfect alignment and very clean replacement with a micro ridge nude stylus, sapphire/boron cantilever that appears to be much lower in mass than the original. As expected, detail retrieval has increased while retaining the core signature sound of the cartridge. I'm extremely happy with the work and recommend him highly.

He also turned this around in astonishing time (about a day); he apparently works on every cartridge himself and doesn't farm anything out. His queue at the moment appears to be low so if you have any work that needs done now is a great time to get it done.

@lewm If you're saying that the total cost of the DL-103 and the re-tip is a better value than many other new cartridges, we are in total agreement.

I won't post what he said here, but Andy has a strong opinion about the Zu "upgrade".  

But you also got a big upgrade on the original cantilever and stylus offered on a new DL103R, which was a great idea.  I am not meaning to disagree or cause discord. I have dealt with Andy in the past, and the experience was a good one with a short waiting time.

I was only pointing out the total cost to someone starting out from scratch.

I was commenting on the quality, timeliness, and affordability of Andy's service, not recommending that someone send a new perfectly good cartridge to have it re-tipped.  

If someone has a cartridge that isn't working properly, Andy's (and other retippers) services offer great value in comparison to purchasing a new cart.

Indubitably. (I think that’s correct spelling.)

@lewm,

👍. 
Spot on statement. In fact, this statement can be applicable to other audio equipment besides cartridges.

Zu Audio replaced plastic cartridge body with their own better quality (they made several different variations over the years, first was aluminum). Their best grade Denon (with upgraded body) is just a perfectly matched output (L/R channels) sample selected from a bunch of original Denon 103. The cost for latest and best mk II is $799 on their site. 

Basically, Zu DL-103 is just calibrated sample with heavy cartridge body, the rest if just original Denon 103. 

What is new on their site is this option. 


  

 

I have no doubt what you say is true. I was only pointing out the total cost to someone starting out from scratch. As compared to the higher cost of your other cartridge. Although the audiophile  press would have us think otherwise, the relationship between cost of a cartridge and sound quality is often askew.

@lewm I'm not sure I understand your question or the logic behind it.  Any re-tip is the cost of the cartridge plus the re-tip. 

The cost of the re-tip however is a fraction of the cost of a new cartridge of similar quality.  In this case, the cartridge was included with a turntable that I paid $500 for, so it didn't cost me much, if anything. 

Again, I have no idea what it sounded like before, but I have to believe it's an improvement.  I wasn't expecting much and was more than pleasantly surprised.  I do have a couple of Denon DL-301 MK2 cartridges, which is a higher model than the DL-103 and the re-tipped Zu Denon is in a completely different league.

 But isn’t the total cost of the Zu plus re-tip more like $1000? And it’s now nothing like the original Zu as regards cantilever and stylus. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. It’s probably way better than the original ever was.

I know this thread is a little old, but wanted to share a recent experience with Andy Kim.  Some time back I bought a Technics SL 1200 MK2 that came with a Zu Denon DL-103.  To put it bluntly, it sounded like crap, lots of distortion in the left channel.  I tried another cartridge and the table sounded great.  The Zu Denon went in a box in the closet and sat there for a few months.  I ran across it one day and decided to send it to Andy to see if he could bring it back to life.

He received it on a Saturday.  I received an email Sunday saying it was almost done, and an explanation that there was a bunch of junk inside the body that he had to spend hours carefully digging out.  He outfitted it with a new micro ridge nude stylus and sapphire cantilever.  He shipped it out the next day.

Fast turnaround, check!

I didn't mount it right away, even though I was anxious to hear how it sounded.  I recently purchased a new (to me) Acoustic Signature Wow XL turntable and initially mounted my Kiseki Blue NS ($2100 retail) cartridge on that.  It sounded wonderful, but at this point I was really anxious to try out the Zu.  I fell in love with the Zu immediately, it's very dyanmic and a little more "punchy" than the Kiseki.  I couldn't believe that this $400 (original retail price) could sound this good.  The Kiseki and some of my other more expensive cartridges are a little more "refined" around the edges of the music, but none are as fun or as involving as the Zu.

Great sound, check!

He charged a little extra for all the time spent cleaning up the guts of the cartridge, but it was very reasonable.  I have a basically new high-end cartridge for less than 25% of the cost of the Kiseki Blue NS.  

Great value, check!

I don't have a frame of reference as to what the Zu Denon sounded like before the re-tip, but I can compare it favorably to other more expensive cartridges I own including the Kiseki Blue NS, Soundsmith Aida 2, Van Den Hul MC Special Two, and Hana SL.  I haven't had any desire to take it off the Wow XL, which is my main table.

This isn't the first cartridge I've had done by Andy, he also repaired my Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood and did a really nice job with that also.

It was the best explanation what is a third party re-tip and what's going on then you put a different cantilever instead of the original: 

  When a Lyra cartridge that doesn't play or sound right is returned to us, and it can be brought back to appropriate performance levels without replacing components (other than the washi paper dust cover), we typically don't charge anything.

This includes suspension readjustments, trackabiity adjustments, low-rider adjustments, replacement of the washi paper, stylus / cantilever / magnet cleaning, etc.

Such work is a routine occurance, and I believe that this would have covered Bruce's Kleos, had he returned it to us.

OTOH, Lyra does not retip its phono cartridges - we only do rebuilds (and adjustments as mentioned in the first paragraph). If a Lyra cartridge is worn to an extensive degree and/or damaged, it will be fully rebuilt to the latest (most advanced) production specification for that particular model, or replaced with a brand-new cartridge.

Regarding Sound-Smith, the styli that they use are several times larger (heavier) than what Lyra uses, and Sound-Smith's preferred ruby/sapphire cantilevers also have nearly two times the mass of the boron that Lyra uses, also Sound-Smith uses a different, simpler bonding method to secure the stylus to the cantilever (that requires the cantilever to be prepared differently).

To provide some numbers that you can compare to, the Kleos uses a diamond stylus that measures 0.08w x 0.12l x 0.5h (mm), with the playing surface comprised of a minor radius of 3um and a major radius of 70um. The Delos stylus is smaller (shorter), but has similarly-dimensioned playing surfaces (2.5um x 75um).

hth, jonathan carr

After speaking with Soundsmith, it doesnt matter what CA put on my GF, as CA won't make it available to any other third parties for repair.  

Soundsmith designed their own Boron cantilever to match as closely as possible to CA and other top end Boron Cantilever cartridges.

As most probably know, CA won't repair themselves, but simply give you  $6k credit towards a $15k retail price.   

  Th $9k cost for trade in is out of my budget, so I'm going with the $450 Soundsmith Boron option.

You will have to ask CA. Gyger S is not newer per se, so unless I am mis-remembering the bit about Micro HD, it would just be a supplier change for whatever reasons...

thanks solypsa.   Wasnt aware there were different Stylus versions on the GFS.

My GFS was bought new in 2016.  Was the Gyger S in production then?

I will ask CA if you don't know. 

Current spec for gfs on Clearaudio site states stylus as Gyger S. Previous spec was micro HD iirc. You just need to know which you have and ask them directly!

Does anyone know if the Boron Stylus used by Needle Clinic and the Soundsmith are the same as the OEM Boron  /Stylus of a ClearAudio Goldfinger Statement?

I've managed to break the stylus off my Clearaudio Virtuoso Wood, not once, but twice.  The first time I sent it to Soundsmith and the second I sent it to Andy Kim.  Both were competent and the cartridge sounded great after the retip.  Andy was a lot faster and it was a bonus that he was "local" (here in WA state).  I've learned to be super careful with the Virtuoso and hopefully the next retip will be due to wear, not operator error.

He is very good.  Had him do a Benz Glider for me a few years ago.  sounded better than the original Benz.

Just look at it as not getting the discount on the cart, if you purchased it as a package.

I recently bought a Rega Planar 8 w/ the Apheta 2 cartridge and somehow bent the stylus so it didn't track properly (don't let your friends use your expensive turntables!).  Through this forum, I contacted Andy.  We had a three minute conversation and he said he would upgrade the cartridge w/ a micro ridge stylus and recondition suspension for $450.  After viewing the badly bent style Andy increased the price to $500.  It was worth the increase in price since the upgrade is equal to the higher model Rega Aphelion mc cartridge (retails for 5k).  Andy repaired everything and returned within a few days of receipt.  Seems to be working as advertised.  Learned my lesson and happy with Andy's superior service.  Hope to have many years of enjoyment playing vinyl w/ Andy's help!

I just had my Rega Ania stylus/cantilever repaired by Andy Kim - http://www.phonocartridgeretipping.com/ - and it sounds like a different cartridge in all the right ways. I opted for his microridge stylus and sapphire/boron cantilever upgrade, and the difference is very noticeable. The sound is even warmer than before and there is definitely more detail than the stock Ania stylus.
I would not hesitate to have him repair or upgrade my cartridges ... and he turned it around in 2 days and was super responsive to deal with. Who does that these days???
Thanks so much, Andy ... you are awesome.

I would honestly say that considering what I have is an original glider, I believe it actually sounds better than it ever did.

Don't have any experience with his cartridge repair but he did do a restoration of an old Omega watch for me.  I was very happy with his work, price and delivery time.
 Personally, I would send him a cartridge to fix without hesitation.

Andy appears to use a smaller better diamond than was used in the original glider.  Tracks incredible!

@bifwynne not everybody are so happy about Andy's work, read JP Jones comment in this thread https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/fabulous-technics-epc-100-series-re-tip?highlight=technics%2B...

Yes the stylus is smaller on mine as well.  Seems to track fine

I recently had the cantilever replaced in my Fidelity Research FR1. I chose to go with the original materials, aluminum with line contact diamond. Turnaround was 4 weeks and it sounds excellent. I must say though that the diamond is a lot smaller than the original.   

I recently sent an original Benz glider to Andy.  Turnaround was about a month.  He replaced my cantilever and stylus.  Looks the same as old.  Stylus is a little different.  Sounds great.  So far only 10 or so hours.  Sounds like a Benz glider to me. 

Want to share more success with Andy. He fixed my Shelter 5000 superbly at less than half the quoted cost of another company. Great communication as well.

A+

Ive had nothing be outstanding success with Andy. More than not a stylus cleaning was all that was necessary for the 7 or 8 cartridges i have sent him. First class work and communication.

Well I just got a quote from Andy to retip a Vitruoso for half the price of Soundsmith back east. Is what he is offering comparable to the Soundsmith? The quote that soundsmith gave me which I believe is just a standard charge which was for a Ruby tipped stylus. It seems all of you are quite satisfied with his work which is a good thing for me since I am only 250 miles away from his location.

Nandric,

It has been done my comrade.
BTW: For those of you that are trying to contact Andy with no response, he will is out of town for a week.
Regards,

Thanks Don, However I would appreciate if you posted this good news in my thread 'Technics 205 suspension'. There is no single responce there while my question is as specific as your answer. The 'Andy thread' is more, uh, general.

Thanks Griffithds! That is great news.

I have just received word from Andy that he was successful in the repair of the suspension on the Technics U205C MK III.
This should be great news for anyone that owns this cartridge because there are no replacements other than Jico.
Total cost was $67 and I am all smiles!

Just got back my Benz LPS reconditioned by Andy. Sounds terrific. A very happy customer.

Jcoehler...thank you very much for the info! I'll follow
what you did. I really appreciate your help! I'll let
everyone know how it turns out.

UPDATE: I used the email address that Jcoehler provided and
within just a few hours my Delos is already on the way to
Audioquest, then onto Japan for inspection/repair.
Audioquest has been EXCELLENT to work with.

I'll keep everyone posted as to it's progress.

Jcoehler, thanks again for the info!!!

@Mofimadness - I was the second owner of this Delos and the warranty was never brought up. I'm not sure if they went by serial number or what to determine. I coordinated everything through Alasdair at AudioQuest - Apatrick@audioquest.com.

I simply stated my concern and from there an RMA form was forwarded which I completed. I was then returned a PDF with RMA Number which I printed and returned to AudioQuest who then sent on to Lyra in Japan. It was right at 8 weeks from me shipping to AudioQuest to having it back.