[orthobiz]

Talking with Bill at fixmydual about how some of my records from high school, played on my 1215S have lots of crackles and pops. (hey, who knew about record cleaning back then??)

Anyway, he said a hyper-elliptical stylus, like some Audio Technicas, will track deeper in the groove because they are more narrow. Thus, avoiding some of the past sins of my boyhood.

Is this true? Or is he trying to make me feel bad that I didn't buy John's Dual 701 because now I need a TT with a regular AND a hyper-elliptical stylus?

Paul

[Wayner]

Yes, it is true. That is why I recommend the AT440MLa for many who are looking for a great tracking, low cost MM cartridge.

Wayner  aa

[orthobiz]

My Linn Adikt has a Gyger II stylus but I can find no specifications regarding its elliptical size. Anybody know if it's hyper-elliptical?
The Audio Technica seems to have a special shape to the stylus, so maybe it's more than just the size?
Man, what I dont' know would fill a book called "Everything You Need To Know About Audio"

Paul

[JCC]

If you have an old cartridge with lots of "Snap, Crackle, Pop" I recommend that you send it to The Soundsmith.

I had my ZYX RS-10 overhauled. The Soundsmith replaced the stylus with a new Ruby Stylus and an Nude "Optimized Contour" Contact Line Diamond. Voila - A massive improvement in sound.

And a plus was that records with lots of static sound good. This is because the new diamond matches the cutting tool, and thus goes deeper in the groove.

[TheChairGuy]

Is this true? Or is he trying to make me feel bad that I didn't buy John's Dual 701 because now I need a TT with a regular AND a hyper-elliptical stylus?

Paul

Yes...and, yes

John

[Toka]

A lot of things can factor into surface noise, and yes, a different stylus profile can be one thing that will avoid/minimize it...worth a shot!

[vinylkid58]

My Linn Adikt has a Gyger II stylus but I can find no specifications regarding its elliptical size. Anybody know if it's hyper-elliptical?

It's advertised as a line-contact stylus, not an elliptical.

Jeff

[jrtrent]

Anyway, he said a hyper-elliptical stylus, like some Audio Technicas, will track deeper in the groove because they are more narrow. Thus, avoiding some of the past sins of my boyhood.

Is this true? Or is he trying to make me feel bad that I didn't buy John's Dual 701 because now I need a TT with a regular AND a hyper-elliptical stylus?

As mentioned, your Linn Adikt has a line contact stylus already.  The purpose of a line contact stylus is to allow better tracking of high frequencies and congested inner grooves by using a smaller front to back radius while reducing the pressure on the vinyl by spreading the contact area vertically.  But in spreading the contact area vertically, it's almost impossible not to come in contact with previous wear patterns.  For example, if a record has been worn using a .2 X .7 mil elliptical, switching to a .2 X .8 mil elliptical might give cleaner sound because the broader cross-section will make it ride a little higher on the groove wall, missing the worn path underneath, while a line contact stylus will still hit it.  I've also gotten cleaner sound by switching to a conical stylus, possibly because conicals are more subject to the "pinch effect," which causes them to ride up the groove wall a bit when the going gets tough.

From a recent thread:  My experience with line contact or microline styli has not been very positive with respect to noisy records. I think the problem is that they have so much vertical contact that no matter where the damage is, it's sure to hit it. This footnote from a Stereophile article matches my experience:

http://www.stereophile.com/reference/170/index7.html
Footnote 12: Changing to a different cartridge can sometime work sonic wonders with old records, due to the new stylus riding on a different, relatively undamaged part of the groove wall. On the other hand, changing to a cartridge with a long-contact profile, Microridge or van den Hul, for example, can often increase surface noise and the reading of groove damage due to the stylus's being in contact with more of the groove wall.—JA