Need advice for a replacement phono cartridge

So, the cleaners destroyed my phono cartridge yesterday while dusting even though I’d cautioned them against dusting my stereo.

Same story pops up regularly. Telling them not to dust the table does nothing. Guys, the only way to protect your cartridge is to SECURE access to it (or the whole turntable) before cleaners come over. Arms with removable headshells or arm wands are handy since they can be locked in a drawer. Sorry for your loss :(

Herb from Stereophile loved the Benz SL (iron-cross, wood body) with Little Loco, so any of their iron-cross models should be a great match. I have Zebrawood L and Ebony L - they’re excellent, and regularly available new for a really good deal in the classifieds here. The higher end models (Ruby, Gullwing, LPS) use a less efficient ruby plate and may not be a good match for the Loco (they certainly don’t work well with a SUT).

I also love Koetsu; they’re a little sweeter than Benz but cost more too. Should also be a good match for LL. Ortofon is good too, though I find their MC models have a little more variance in sonic balance than other brands (Cadenza Bronze, A90, Windfeld Ti here). 

Personally I think it’s crazy to wait several months "or so" for a 3rd party retip - either going without, or buying a "cheap" interim cart in the meantime. There are lots of great options that take less time than creating a full human being.

Since Transfiguration is apparently out of business, I’d pick a new cartridge (like a Benz iron cross & wood body model, or any Koetsu) and sell the old one as-is for its new owner to decide on their favorite re-tipper. Unfortunately you won’t get "full value" for the busted cartridge unless you already have it at a re-tipper for a damage assessment. So consider that, as well. I’d look at VAS NY since he has good turnaround time and proudly posts pics & audio of his rebuild work (which is quite extensive) to Facebook.

And I’m sure SS does great work, but over the years I’ve also seen a lot of "just 5 hours since rebuilt by SS, sounds great!" cartridges for sale, too. I’m not waiting 7 months to find out why lol.

@michobr59 

I took my Koetsu Rosewood Sig Platinum over to a friend’s VPI HR-X with 3D Reference arm and it sounded wonderful - exactly like it should. I was wary about the effective mass too, but it didn’t matter. Note though, he had the dual pivot so that might be a good idea to get. Koetsus seem to like the stability.

If it fits your budget, Koetsu is a wonderful choice! 

@mijostyn 

That's why I mentioned the dual-pivot option. It seems to be a key component of getting Koetsus to work well on VPI's 3D arm. It's not really a "unipivot" anymore. I lent another friend a Jade; he reported mixed results on the stock 3D 10" and later added the dual-pivot to good effect. Now he has a Fatboy gimbal (40th Anniversary table) that's even better, but maintains the dual-pivot was quite good. I wasn't there to hear these options, though. 

I heard my RSP on another friend's 12" 3D Reference + dual-pivot, and it sounded like it should - did pretty much all the Koetsu "stuff" like back home on my FR64fx. 

@ghdprentice 

+1 on Koetsu cartridges. They're lovely! I got the "seven year itch" to try other cartridge brands, which I enjoy too, but now 12 years since my first Koetsu I always end up coming back to them as my longtime favorite, and remember why they were so intoxicating in the first place.