The AT95E..

[avole]

Back to the topic. The HE styli freely available for the AT95 are a worthwhile upgrade. I'm less convinced about the shibata, which is more detailed but does show up some deficiencies in the AT95. It is, after all, a budget cartridge.

[cue-burn]

Not sure how much (if any) better the "Special Edition" is, but I should be getting mine in the mail today! Replacing the stock ATP-2 cart on my AT PL-120.

http://www.musicdirect.com/p-562-audio- ... ridge.aspx

[MCrowley]

Would be interested to know what the difference in quality is with that Special Edition. From what I can see the specs don't seem any different to the original, good price though.
Can I just jump in here with a question that's come up for me through reading this discussion?
I've currently got a standard AT95E installed and I'm enjoying it for the most part, it's a very good cart. However, reading this thread makes me want to get the hyperelliptical stylus and see what it sounds like.
Then I also thought would it be better to buy this or just get the next cart up, the AT-120E? Seems to me like the 120 has better specs all round compared to the 95 in terms or frequency range, output and compliance. Which do people think would be a better buy?
Another thing to take into consideration is that I'm using a Sansui SR222 Mk II (yes, I am on a severe budget) which has a heavyweight Rega R200 imitation/style tonearm. Do you think the AT120 would be able to perform with a heavy tonearm, seeing as it has a low tracking weight?
Thanks in advance.

[Alec124c41]

Hey, don't knock that SR-222. It is a pretty decent system.
And I don't think that arm is as heavy as you think it is.

Cheers,
Alec[/i]

[funflyer]

AT95 and Clearaudio

A couple of years ago, I bought a used Aurum Beta S - sold as needing a new stylus. The price was right($100)and I figured I'd send it to SoundSmith at some point to get an upgrade/rebuild. On receipt, I examined it and mounted it - yes the stylus was well past its prime. Never got around to the SS option, and then discovered this and other threads about the apparent AT heritage of Clearaudio MM cartridges. So, a few months ago, I ordered an AT95SA stylus. After it arrived, I trimmed the wings as described and replaced the Aurum stylus with the AT Shibata. First test was on a secondary system (Thorens 126 II, stock arm.) It took a bit of adjusting as the Aurum is very heavy and not really suited to the Thorens arm. Sound was good, but not earthshattering.

A few days ago- thinking the beast needed a second chance - I remounted the AT-Aurum in a spare armwand for my primary turntable (ET2 on Michell Gyrodec) and WOW! What a synergistic combination. Fast, detailed, extended range, enormous soundstage, and not a hint of sibilance. It has (at least temporarily) supplanted my favorite Ortofon MC30Super (and I've been playing with lots of highly rated vintage MMs recently without finding anything I liked better than the Ortofon.) Enjoying this cheap option enormously!

[Judas68fr]

a quick message to flag this topic. I do have an AT95E too (on both of my TTs), and I'm curious to read this thread, and maybe get some tricks to tweak them a bit.

For my part I'm happy with these carts. Maybe not the highest end ones, but with them I enjoy my LPs a lot (dynamic and good sounding).

[sergio_s]

I'm getting crazy with this cart.

Although I really like how does it sound, with some (new) records it terribly suffers of sibilance issues.

Cart mounted on technics sl-1200, 2 grams tracking force and antiskate, 2 VTA and aligned with the technics alignment tool.

May I have a faulty one?

[Trackside]

Try the technics alignment template on the tools section and if the cart is new it will need at least 10 hours playing for the suspension to loosen up and soften the HF's

[sergio_s]

I have tried it yesterday, but I found impossible to track the arc with any setting...!

Then I re-aligned it with the "white-little-plastic-thing". This evening I'll try with the Stevenson universal protractor.

Concerning the initial break-in, I've done it for about 20 hours, maybe it was not enough.

[Hepokatti]

I have tried it yesterday, but I found impossible to track the arc with any setting...!

Few questions;

-Do you have an original Technics headshell?
If my memory serves me right, you should be able to align AT95E to follow the arc with the original headshell. You just have to move the cartridge almost to the farthest end of the headshell. There are longer headshells available, but given the SUBTLE tracking difference between t.gauge and baerwald (the difference may not be subtle with finer diamonds), I think new headshell is not worth it.

-Did you make it sure that your protractor is printed correctly?

[sergio_s]

- No the cart is mounted on a third parties shell (similar to the technics' one)

- Yes, the protractor is printed without scaling

Here's two pics of my cart after the alignment with the original technics tool:

[Hepokatti]

Hard to say, but it looks like "normal" size headshell, so it should be possible to align it to follow the arc. I'm sure you know how to align, but repetition is never bad;

- Loosen the cartridge screws a desired amount. Some people prefer to losen them just a little bit so they can wiggle the cartridge, but this will scratch the headshell a bit. Up to you.
- Move the cartridge further in the headshell, so its almost at the "tip" of the headshell.
- Lower the needle/spin the protractor to hit the first C' point (make sure turntable is level, antiskating is set to 0, and VTF around 1g)
- Make sure not to move protractor anymore -> Cue up, and cue down in few points following the arc and see if the stylus is in front or behind of the arc-line. If the stylus is behind the arc-line near "spindle C point", then you have to move the cartridge forward (towards the camera if we use or photos as reference) and vice versa.
- After the stylus follows the arc, twist the cartridge very slightly (if needed) to align it with the two grids.

I'm sure you knew all this, but just in case.. if this doesn't work, then you can use the 52mm rule (Technics gauge) and just listen the records. As I said, rough diamonds like the one in AT95 are not that alignment dependent. Furthermore, You may require a bit longer break-in time, but the sound will never be THAT great no matter how much you adjust and play around. It is a very cheap cartridge after all, albeit unbeatable in price/quality ratio.

You can try the aftermarket HE or Shibata styli also, but especially the Shibata is a bit on the expensive side. In theory they should reduce sibilance and distortion to minimum, but they require more precise alignment. I have no personal experience with them, so you better check with someone else who has.

[sergio_s]

Thanks for your detailed reply.

You're wrong when you say that I know how to align with protractors, but thank you for trusting me

This evening I'll retry that following your instructions.

As I said, rough diamonds like the one in AT95 are not that alignment dependent.

For this reason I thought that the alignment with the Technics gauge could be enough to reach good results.

Furthermore, You may require a bit longer break-in time, but the sound will never be THAT great no matter how much you adjust and play around. It is a very cheap cartridge after all, albeit unbeatable in price/quality ratio.

Hope to have some improvements.
Or I'll keep this cart for old records and go for an AT120E or something else...

[sergio_s]

Evening update:
I've spent about half an hour to align the cart, now it follows the arc from C' to C perfectly and is aligned to both grids.

Well, I must admit that there is an improvement, but there's still a little sibilance, maybe I'm treating with some bad pressed records, because with other LPs I get a pleasing sound without any distortion...

However, thank you Hepokatti to help me understanding how to do with the protractor.