I dont use my turntable much these days, it has a Ortofon 2M Bronze MM cartridge I installed oh 2-3 years ago. Of course the needle its self wont deteriorate with no use but what about other parts? What is other peoples experience here of infrequently used record players and their cartridges?
How long do cartridges last without use?
- Thread starter mercalia
- Start date
Tony L
Administrator
No hard and fast rule as rubber components age differently brand to brand, but certainly over a decade, usually many. I’ve got an old (1970s) Shure M95ED that is still absolutely fine and sounds great, though have read many stories of similar era VMS20E, M20FL etc collapsing. No way any 2M will have suffered yet, its just too new a design. It will be fine unless it has been stored in really bizarre environmental conditions.
The stories of suspensions collapsing seem to be in the minority. Most cartridges hold up fine, certainly for a few decades and often longer.
I suppose the problem is that you don't know. If the suspension gets stiffer the cart may not sound right but you won't know why. You might not even realise that it is the cartridge that is at fault.
I'd say that for at least twenty years, if the cartridge doesn't sag, the odds are that the cart is working perfectly.
I suppose the problem is that you don't know. If the suspension gets stiffer the cart may not sound right but you won't know why. You might not even realise that it is the cartridge that is at fault.
I'd say that for at least twenty years, if the cartridge doesn't sag, the odds are that the cart is working perfectly.
manicatel
pfm Member
Without wear & tear use or accidental damage, the next thing to go, as other have said will likely be the suspension. It’s no more than a small bit of rubber.
Being close a central heating radiator, or in direct sunlight, or conversely in a loft or cold garage will all have an affect on cartridge life. Humidity levels will also have a bearing.
With these variables, it’s tricky to put a number on it, but several years at a guess.
With yours at 2-3 years old, you should have at very least 5 years & probably a fair bit more life left in it.
When it does die, the replacement stylus is usually about 70% or so of the cost of a new complete cart.
Being close a central heating radiator, or in direct sunlight, or conversely in a loft or cold garage will all have an affect on cartridge life. Humidity levels will also have a bearing.
With these variables, it’s tricky to put a number on it, but several years at a guess.
With yours at 2-3 years old, you should have at very least 5 years & probably a fair bit more life left in it.
When it does die, the replacement stylus is usually about 70% or so of the cost of a new complete cart.
Eyebroughty
JohnC
Hi,
I have a Linn Karma on my LP12 and it sounds excellent when I play it, which is not that often, I bought it new, if I could find the box I would know what year I got it.
I also was helping a friend to sell some NOS cartridges on here a while back and they were all tried and tested over a couple of days on a very nice Technics Turntable and they all sounded great. Think I might have inherited them now, must check where they are.
However as Tony says above it seems to depend on many factors, however from my own experience with my Karma and these NOS ones they seem to last a while.
I do however know a couple of dealers who suggest that after two or three years of non playing or sitting in a box they are useless, so anyones guess I think.
Cheers
John
I have a Linn Karma on my LP12 and it sounds excellent when I play it, which is not that often, I bought it new, if I could find the box I would know what year I got it.
I also was helping a friend to sell some NOS cartridges on here a while back and they were all tried and tested over a couple of days on a very nice Technics Turntable and they all sounded great. Think I might have inherited them now, must check where they are.
However as Tony says above it seems to depend on many factors, however from my own experience with my Karma and these NOS ones they seem to last a while.
I do however know a couple of dealers who suggest that after two or three years of non playing or sitting in a box they are useless, so anyones guess I think.
Cheers
John
Tony L
Administrator
Dealers very often say things that translate into fresh sales...
Mike Reed
pfm Member
Let me see, now; I bought my Karma at Billie Vee's (are they still going?) around 1984/5, and shortly after I bought it, the Troika came out, so I was a bit peeved. Even if I'm a year out, it makes your Karma nearly 35 years old !
Craig B
Re:trophile
I have a lovely blue Ortofon MC20 here that was bought by a mate in 1977 (the year these were released), along with the MCA-76 (what we used to call a pre-preamplifier or head amp). These items were available separately, or the combination could be purchased in a single big white and red Ortofon box with big window on - some will recall the latter as a very purposeful looking sight in a dealers display case!
After the last discussion on here about cartridge/suspension life, I decided to give the old blue thing a go. Being an Ortofon, the MC20 outputs a mere 0.07mV (@1000Hz, 5cm/sec) on its own, with the head amp upping that to circa 5mV before going into a standard MM input. I have an old LK1 here as MC phono stage, which I suspect wouldn't quite cut it with such a low output cart. I needn't have worried, as, through the purpose designed MCA-76 (CD-4 filter off), the sound was absolutely lovely all the way to the lead-out grooves of a half dozen or so record sides. The tip is (or, at least was) a 40 x 8um nude fine-line, and really sounds none the worse for wear. Apparently, my friend had chopped and changed between various cartridges, all of which have landed in my spares box. Time and opportunity will tell how well the best of Empire, Grado, Shure, Stanton/Pickering, and a few others, have fared over these many decades within a still ever so slightly fragrant cigar box.
After the last discussion on here about cartridge/suspension life, I decided to give the old blue thing a go. Being an Ortofon, the MC20 outputs a mere 0.07mV (@1000Hz, 5cm/sec) on its own, with the head amp upping that to circa 5mV before going into a standard MM input. I have an old LK1 here as MC phono stage, which I suspect wouldn't quite cut it with such a low output cart. I needn't have worried, as, through the purpose designed MCA-76 (CD-4 filter off), the sound was absolutely lovely all the way to the lead-out grooves of a half dozen or so record sides. The tip is (or, at least was) a 40 x 8um nude fine-line, and really sounds none the worse for wear. Apparently, my friend had chopped and changed between various cartridges, all of which have landed in my spares box. Time and opportunity will tell how well the best of Empire, Grado, Shure, Stanton/Pickering, and a few others, have fared over these many decades within a still ever so slightly fragrant cigar box.
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This is one of several reasons I own a bunch of test records - unless microscopic inspection leaves me confident that NOS are -that's the first thing to try-if it won't track a test record -not much reason to go further. But if it does -pretty good odds that even some pretty old styli are OK to consider retiping. It's true that really old (1950's-early 60's ?) MM carts suffered from elastomers aging/hardening. This problem was recognized and dealt with by most cart manufacturers. I have more experience with Shure and Grado carts -own a bunch of decades old styli which have not aged into hardening yet-track well and in a few cases actually do seem to be NOS . I worry about tip wear - not elastomer hardening.