@roscoeiii ,I too am interested in hearing from people that have farmed out the rebuild or retip from an outside source and their impressions of the results. To get started I will list my take on the few I have done. All of these have been Soundsmith 2nd or 3rd level saphire/ruby rebuilds. She!ter 501, level 2, sounded slightly better than stock, Koetsu Goldline Black, level 2, sounded lot better than stock, Lyra Helkon, level 2, WOW, Shelter 901, level 3, another WOW, Dynavector DRT XV1s, level 3, this was a lateral move at best, when I do the DRT XV1s that I run now in another arm wand I will still use Soundsmith but use a retip instead. Am just waiting on my ZYX Universe to show distress and will be sending it to Soundsmith for a retip which I will consult with the owner. Will report back here after done and broken in.
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@chayro, yea the $ spent versus the quality of sound that you receive from the retip/rebuild is so wide that I would never be able to afford replacing the carts that I have now, just need to be informed if possible on the right way to go, as in my DRT XV1s it was still the second best cart I had owned at the time with the rebuid and that was compared to itself in stock form. I hope to have as much success with the Universe, it is such a special cart. |
FWIW, I just received notice from Soundsmith that they have completed the work on my ZYX Universe and it is on its way back to me, sent in for a retip but Peter said the original cantilever would not allow for the pressing of a new stylus through it so he replaced with his boron cantilever with the OLC stylus to best mimic the original parts. Will post impressions as I get the cart settled in for those who might be curious. Can't wait to get it up and running and after putting over 2200 hours on it before the work done I should be able to detect any differences to the sound character of the newly rebuilt Universe.
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@chakster,@nandric, you two guys never get tired of saying the same thing over and over again, for what it is worth, I got it as everyone else probably has got it as well, point made, now let's move on. I have had several cartridges rebuilt by SS with their Ruby/Optimum Line Contact diamond and they definitely sounded better than stock, these were a Shelter 901, Shelter 90X, Shelter 501, Lyra Helikon and a Lyra Helikin SL so I feel quite good about taking a chance that has saved me $5,000.00 in one attemp. And to @charter I will spend my money any way I see fit and you can spend yours anyway you see fit.
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@lewm, anyone can refute anything they want, in my system on my arm the two Lyras in question sounded better to my ears and that is not debateable, I have even gone as far as sending SS a Shelter 901 with plenty of life left to have it rebuilt to achieve the instant upgrade. Now with all this said I have had a Dynavector DRT XV1s rebuilt with the same ruby cantilever and OLC stylus and it was not as good as the original so when I wear out the DRT XV1s I have now in stock form I will have it retipped and hope for the best, it is a gamble but one I feel is worth trying. |
@chakster, so glad you don't have a problem with it, I can rest easy now. |
@chakster, the picture of the cantilever/stylus assembly you posted is for which ZYX? Thanks for posting that, a picture is worth a 1,000 words. |
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@lewm, if you are interested and since I believe you have the same Universe I do, original copper X model, I would be willing to send you mine after a brief break in to compare to your stock model. I value your thoughts on this matter and would be very interested in your take on the results. What say you?
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@lewm,I have the same cart on its way back from Sound smith with their boron cantilevered Line Contact diamond rebuild applied, I thought you could compare it to your stock cart and directly compare the two after I get a few hours on it.
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Chakster is exactly right, the cartridge I am offering to send you, after a brief breakin, is an original ZYX Universe with copper coils .24 output with the silver base that is on its way to me from Sound smith with a new Boron canti!ever and Line Contact stylus installed. This would give you the opportunity to directly compare a stock one to a soundsmith rebuilt one and report your findings to the masses.
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I should have the ZYX Universe here Thursday and after I run it in I will report back with the comparisons to the cart in stock form to which I put over 2,000 hours on and am familiar with.
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Received the ZYX Universe, copper coiled low output with the silver base back from Soundsmith a week ago Tuesday. The rebuild was their boron cantilever with the line contact stylus. Installed the cart on my VPI 10 inch 3D arm mounted on a Prime table with periphery ring clamp, BDR clamp or Stillpoints LPS clamp, Single motor flywheel assembly and SDS speed controller, set up was straight forward, VTA level, dressed the wiring for anti skate, set azimuth by eye and tracking set around 2.1 grams and at this point walked away and waited for some time later that eve to get started with this evaluation. Pulled 20 albums that I know very well and were recently familar with played with this cart before the rebuild so at this point felt I had set the table for a good evaluation. My normal process is to clean my stylus with a long bristled stylus brush to knock off any loose dust and then drop it into a jell based stylus cleaner and this was the first sign that things were going right, the Universe is the one cart I have owned where this is almost a silent cleaning when this protocal is used with it, very hard to hear the brush against the stylus. Played the first album and set back with a black Russian (drink) and just fell into a grove, after the first and into the second album I just started enjoying the music, 8 albums later I had to force myself to go to bed. Night 2, I adjusted the VTA a slight bit but back to level again since the suspension seems to have settled in. Long story short, I am very glad to have my Universe back, it is truly the one cart that when it is out of my system I am looking to get it back into my system as soon as possible and the rebuild seems to be very close to the stock one to my ears. Now I am not so naive to think that there is not some differences to the stock verses rebuilt Universes but to my ears and for my money ($462.00) I am looking over my shoulder thinking I really got away with something here and would recommend this rebuild to others as well. I have really been pleased with the 8 carts that I have had rebuilt by Soundsmith, all with the Ruby or Sapphire cantilevered rebuilds, except for the Dynavector DRT XV1s that was still an excellent cart but the tone changed so when the XV1s that I run now needs rebuilt it will get the Boron rebuild. The lesson I take away from this is that no matter what your having rebuilt or retipped, especially if it is one of the top tier carts like the Universe, XV1s or other top model that you consult with your trusted rebuilder to mimic as close as possible the parts being replaced. Enjoy the music, have a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. |
@chakster, @nandric, you two just don't give up and it makes both your points pointless, this is not about if the cartridges change with a rebuild but if the change is slight enough to warrant the choice of a rebuild/retip by an outside vender and you can still enjoy that cart to the fullest. I have stated before that sometimes it does not work out but when it does, money well spent. Some people just want to listen to a different cart every day, not me, I have narrowed things down to about 4 different carts and just want to enjoy them for as long as they still produce the sound that I have come to love and enjoy. The Universe is such a sweet cart and end of the road for me that if the rebuild had not worked out well I would already be in touch with Sora Sound working a deal to replace it, instead I am just playing album after album after album after album and sitting on my hands to keep from clapping. |
@chakster, no I do not intend to buy another, I have my Universe back and am very satisfied with it which was the point you must have missed and at this point you are really not adding anything to the conversation for those of us who are looking to keep a good thing going for a reasonable amount of $. |
@chakster, I guess my point is to you sir is, I could really care less if you get it, I do.
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