I use headband (loupe) magnifiers with lights for some tasks, like very fine soldering and desoldering. But I don't find them useful for cartridge work for a couple of reasons:
1- most headband loupes are 10x or higher. That's too high to be useful for turntable work and the depth of field (zone of sharpness) is way too shallow. These types of magnifiers are great for working on flat-ish items but not so much for fore and aft 3D items.
2- too much light, and almost always in the wrong place. When mounting or aligning a cartridge you usually need the light source down low, not at eye level which will produce heavy shadows under the tonearm/headshell/cartridge.
Just my 2 cents worth. Others may disagree with me.
1- most headband loupes are 10x or higher. That's too high to be useful for turntable work and the depth of field (zone of sharpness) is way too shallow. These types of magnifiers are great for working on flat-ish items but not so much for fore and aft 3D items.
2- too much light, and almost always in the wrong place. When mounting or aligning a cartridge you usually need the light source down low, not at eye level which will produce heavy shadows under the tonearm/headshell/cartridge.
Just my 2 cents worth. Others may disagree with me.