At last, we get to the answer! If you are over 20, grandad, your ears will not appreciate a good stylus. And in any case, what you really need is a £30k digital system, and just listen to newly recorded classical music in some hi-res format.
Or just go buy the stylus, and a few lighty scratched £10 albums that you happily found in a real record shop, and enjoy life eh.
do we threaten you that much?
Not even slightly.
Keep on spending!
I've just bought another turntable
Ariston Q deck as it got great reviews back in the late 80's and it was made in Troon or thereabouts
Not quite a Linn or even a Systemdek my previous turntable but sounds good. May now treat it either to a new stylus or even more expensive cartridge
I want to compare it to my Project
Well, I needed a new stylus and I gambled on a cheap sixteen quid one off ebay. Boy was that a mistake. I can't justify £150, but I have now ordered the £45 one (Ortofon 10) that I should have got in the first place.
Anyone want a crappy, harsh sounding stylus to fit an Ortofon OM cartridge?
Is anyone going to tell me how long they last, or not?
(apologies if I missed a response amid all the fascinating discussion above)
I am on a B&W site on FaceBook. I am stunned at how much people will spend on hi-fi or worse - but updating really good hi-fi to get a minot incremental change which I think most ears wouldn't hear.
The interesting thing is that most of them don't seem to have a real interest in music - and there is an awful lot of love for ELO !
Is anyone going to tell me how long they last, or not?
Depends on the stylus and how you treat it, and the state of your records, I imagine.
Lolz #flying monkey corps.
Just did virtually the same. Bought a replacement cartridge and stylus for my SLQ202 from MAG for 30 odd quid and its shocking. Can't sort the sibilant, toppy sound of it out even with an equaliser. Can't be arsed to send it back, so hunting for recommendations for a decent one. I did buy a genuine replacement mat as well; initially thought that was a wrong 'un as well until I realised my original one had gone rigid with age.
30k is a lot to spend on a hifi. Do you dance to the music it plays or sit in a specially placed armchair ?
It's all relative - some people spend that on a car when about half the amount will do the job just as well but as with music, this ignores the fact that the utility offered by a more prestigious/luxury/performance car goes far beyond simply getting you from one place to another.
to answer your question though, the latter; I have no TV, just a really great place to experience music and feel the worries of the world melt away.
£30k is a lot for sure but I know people that have spent three or four times that and since they can afford it that's their choice and yes, the difference is vast (though for someone like me the room is the biggest limiting factor).
Unilet HiFi in new malden have some 25k turntables, horses for courses if you have the cash spend it. There must be a market for it they have been in business for years.
Sat here listening to Sandinista on a rega 1 which is about 300 quid, more than happy...
Answering the OP - if you can justify the cost and believe it will enhance your listening experience...yes.
Depends on the stylus and how you treat it
Thanks but I was looking for a timespan.
One year? Five years? 20 years?
@chakaping - 800-1000 hours of playing time depending on stylus type:conical, eliptical, microlinear etc.
