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It's the stylus...

After 60 (not a typo) years of fooling around with audio I have finally come to the absolute conclusion that the stylus is the most critical part of any vinyl setup. I don't think this is in any way a revolutionary thing to say. It's just that I haven't personally seen anyone say it before. This is by no means saying that all the other elements are not critically important as well but without a superb stylus all the rest is almost completely meaningless. 

This is the place where you cannot afford to spend less or budget. Over the years an astonishing number of different terrific performing cartridges have been produced but without a truly superb stylus they really don't give anything to an otherwise exceptional vinyl setup.

Only because people may ask I currently have in my collection 14 turntables, 4 phono stages, an unknown number of preamps and integrateds with phono sections, countless cartridges and lots more. After that, as to what's most important, I could make the argument for phono stage, cartridge, preamp in that order but I really don't have a dog in that hunt. The stylus is king, all else follows. I do absolutely realize that having something crappy anywhere down the line will throw everything off and make what I am saying .meaningless. 
skywachr

Showing 2 responses by rauliruegas

rauliruegas
13,125 posts
 
Dear @skywachr : The designers of stylus tip shapes is what all are doing for some years but even if mimic the cutter head shape does not means will follows/mimic the LP groove modulations.

R.
rauliruegas
13,125 posts
 
Dear @skywachr : Years ago in a thread came out this kind of discussion where many audiophiles were in agreement with you: stylus is the most important " link ".

And  @jcarr  posted tha t( Lyra cartridges designer. ) it was not exactly that way and if the stylus is important the one that makes the higher differences for the better or worse is the cantilever and not the stylus: its building material or blend materials, length/dimensions, its shape and the like.

The groove modulations are pick-up for the stylus tip that's atached to the cantilever whom starts to vibrates according those modulations that the stylus pick-up but at the same time the cantilever develops additional " modulations/resonances/vibrations " that the transducer takes in the same way as if were true groove modulations.
Through the cantilever happens many things along those that obviously goes in heavy signal degradation and it does not matters if the stylus tip is the Replicant 100 or an conical one.

In the other side all those different stylus tip shapes in reality never can't pick-up the 100% of the whole information recorded in the groove modulations not on pivot tonearm designs but even not in the LT ones. 

There is no way ( no matters what ) that the cartridge stylus set up be in perfect match/even/mimic what the cutter head did it during the cutting recording process and with the best stylus tip as Gyger2 or Replicant 100 or Micro Ridge is even more difficult to been " there " that with more easy stylus tip as ellipthical type.

Certainly that @jcarr knows a lot more on the overall subject that almost any one of us including you and your experiences with all your TTs/tonearms and cartridges you own or owned through your audio life.

You can be sure that everything the same an ellipthical stylus tip on boron cantilever will sounds better than a line contact type in aluminum cantilever.

I remember very clear when I just changed in the Lyra Clavis daCapo cantilever with a new boron ( same stylus tip shape. ) instead the original ( the re-tipper advise was ruby instead of boron. Obviously I don't took his advise. ) cantilever and the sounds reproduction differences for the better were nigth and day. Latter on that same cartridge was re-tipped by VdH with boron and VdH stylus tip and things were just ok: almost the same.

I think @jcarr was rigth in this specific issue but..............is an open issue.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.


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