It's What's In The Grooves That Count - (Record Stylus)

[45cellar]

I have been seriously collecting Records for Approximately 44 years.

In that time, I have played my collection on Various Equipment - (Three or four different decks) at home mainly.

On reading this >>> <<<

and web articles like this from >>> Vinyl Engine <<<

Should I be concerned ?

Well, On reflection, the humble stylus could be responsible for some (Audible) Grading Irregularities.

Talking, within a grade or two (Audible)

Any thoughts ?

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To be totally honest, If I were to secure a L-O-N-G Time Want, from any source In 2013

Grading / Vs Cost would be a factor, but I ask myself, could I for the same price find a better copy?

And on whos Equipment would this grading be decided?

The many years I have been searching for this record Vs Cost / Condition, must be kept real.

Am I going to send it back because it ain't 100% (On My Deck) or am I going to take a more measured view.

Definitely not talking Sows Ear condition for Silk Purse price.

[Tiberius]

As long as the stylus is in good condition I wouldn't be overly concerned.

Many of the profiles mentioned in the article (forum) in your second link are for very "high end" styli, hence not really applicable to your average dj or collector of vinyl, although obviously the points raised are valid. There's so much info on the net it's easy to get bogged down with it all. The fundamentals are condition of the stylus & the turntable set dead level. If the turntable isn't level then any settings applied ie tracking force etc are flawed.

As for grading, it's a very subjective matter as we all know, everyone's hearing is different, & eyesight too! Clearly the materials used in manufacture, (vinyl/styrene,) and their quality, will typically have a greater bearing for the average guy in the street than the choice/type of stylus used. Bearing in mind we are normally talking about the evidence of crackles/pops/surface noise etc when grading rather than frequency response/fidelity. Naturally if someone has graded a used records audio quality on their old Dansette and you get the record home and play it on your Linn Sondek you might feel it plays at a lesser grade than stated....can't imagine this happens much in practice.

Finally, (mono) records graded for audio quality either in the mono setting, or with a cartridge wired for mono, will generally sound worse when listened to in stereo. I've had records where one channel has been wiped out (constant distortion) to the point of being unbearable when played in stereo but much better & listenable when played in mono.

Edited March 2, 2013 by tiberius

[45cellar]

Many Thanks for your thoughts on this.

Years ago when purchasing a Record Stylus, the shop would sometimes look at my old Stylus under Magnification before selling me a new one.

Often wondered what they were looking for regarding wear.

Back then the Stylus that I remember had more to it and could almost be seen without any Magnification.

Possibly due to most recordings being in Mono because of Equipment used. i.e. Dansette.

I know that my eyesight Isn't the same, but the Stylus of recent years is so tiny.

This brings me to think that Mono had a lot going for it.

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A few years ago I Sold a Psychedelic Rarity for £1500, It was as Mint as anything I had seen.

The buyer sent it back saying that it was below grading and I refunded them.

Sold it later at the same grade with no problem and the second buyer agreeing with the condition.

[Tiberius]

Most likely the buyer simply had a change of heart in the case of your £1500 record.

I've got a small quantity of a particular record here, all new old stock, so technically M-. However, they all look & play different due to the crap 70's vinyl having varying degrees of pimples & dimples. Add to this the odd couple having scuffs, one has more obvious marks, although have never been previously handled outside the distributor. This particular 45 always plays with varying degrees of light background noise, worse on some than others. This is evident inconsistently across the entire batch on my equipment & would be noticeable on a different system irrespective of stylus etc. Obviously some records are consistently good so this isn't a problem, but a lot of the stuff we are interested in is lo-fi in the extreme whatever you play it on.

Then there's the pile of old 50's pop hand me downs in a box at my parents. Played to death for 30 odd years by the various young members of the family on an old Bush (Dansette type) record player. Stacked 8 45's high, one record dropping onto the next for repeated plays. Then the process repeated with the whole stack of 8 lifted off and turned over. The tone arm at some ridiculous angle when the last one is playing. Those same 45's often played at 33rpm, or 78rpm, depending on mood. I think dad bought a new "needle"........once.

I've played these records on my current system and they play unbelievably great.....it's very hard to quantify how a record will last. (Admittedly there is no styrene among them!!)

Edited March 2, 2013 by tiberius