Cartridge life really only 3 years??


Hi. I am a long-time audiophile, but have just re-discovered vinyl after thirty years. Wow. What a difference equipment can make! I bought a nice turntable with very low hours on the cartridge. It is a MC cartridge. A local trusted audio dealer (who does not sell cartridges, by the way) told me that I should change the cartridge to get the most out of the sound, as cartridges lose their performance after about 3 years, whether used or not. True???
klipschking

Showing 1 response by david12

The body and suspension will be fine, the stylus is another matter. Different cartridges seem to have different life expectency, some quote 1000, up to 3000 hours, before the stylus is degraded enough, to damage your precious vinyl.
Then do'nt throw it away, get it retipped. there are a number of excellent companies providing retipping services. Many cartridges can be retipped more expensively by the manufacturer. Some reasonably cheaply, such as Benz Micro, some at near the cost of a new cartridge, such as koetsu, but with Koetsu, it is, effectively, a new cartridge