Need a headshell and needle for Luman PX-99

[nownownow]

Hi there! I am a new member, and I own a Luxman PX-99 turntable http://www.vinylengine.com/library/luxman/px-99.shtml Unfortunately, the headsheild connectors at the end of one the wires is worn off, so I've had to solder it onto the cartridge ( I believe that it's an Audio Technica CN5625AL, although I'm not sure,as I bought in a little electronics store a long time ago). Does anyone know, first, where I could get a new headshell that would work with this turntable, and also what a decent needle would be that would work with it?

Also, I have kind of a rookie question. I've noticed that on some of my records, when singers make "s" sounds, theres a lot of hissing, even though they've been thoroughly cleaned and demagnetized. Would anybody know if this would be damage caused by a bad needle, or just from normal wear? Also is there anything that could be done (another way of cleaning, adjusting the tonearm,etc.) that might rid the records of this? Or, could this just be from using a needle that is of lower quality?

[smeg68]

You soldered the bare wire to the cartridge?

You're lucky it still works at all, you would normally expect this to overheat the coil. Fortunatley it's a cheap cart so all is not lost.

The Luxman turntable you have uses a Luxman only headshell. Best bet is to buy some new cartridge tags from an ebay seller and solder that to the bare wire. The actual headshell will probably pop up every now and again on ebay, keep an eye out for one.

The arm and turntable are worthy of a good cartridge - it's a fairly low mass design so a medium to high compliance cart would be the best bet - check out the Goldring, Ortofon and Grado ranges of MM carts.

That 'S' sound spitty distortion you are hearing is called Sibilance. It's a sure sign of a cartridge that is mistracking, either because it is poorly set up or is a bad match for the arm. Your cart has a conical tip and is fairly low compliance so is probably not the best match for the arm. Might be aligned wrong as well.

[nownownow]

Thanks a lot. Any recommendations on the right kind of needle/cartridge for this? The manuals I've read for it don't mention anything about replacement cartriges or needles.

[nownownow]

I'm trying to decide between several different MM cartidges for this TT: Ortofon 2M Red, Audio Technica AT120E/T, the Lp Deft 2, and the (most cost effective) Shure 'Audiophile' M97xE. Does anyone know which might be the best match for this Luxman? I really can't afford more than $100, so this seems to be the best selection in that price range.