"Peter Larsen" wrote in message
...
kiwianalog wrote:
Hi, I bought a 2ndhand kenwood kd-55f turntable from a shop a couple
of weeks ago and was told by the guy that it had an audio technica
needle,
"Cartridge" generally includes "needle" as a component thereof, and not
all needles are designed to be detachable.
I knew almost nothing at the time but was sceptical but he
assured me this is what it was but despite that I am now almost
convinced it is not such a thing as there are no markings on it
It looks like the general shape of things Audio Technica, and it does
not appear improbable that Kenwood would have used A-T oem.
of any kind and i am not even sure that the needle can be removed
from the cartridge which would be a very bad sign.
Why would that be bad?
Anyhow if someone can confirm whether it is a audio technica and even
better
what exactly it is it would be greatly appreciated. The link to a photo
is
below.
http://www.pbase.com/kiwianalog/image/70416766
Cartridges are like brake disks, you replace them occasionally, and
doing just that is likely to be a good idea if you do not know age and
wear status - note that wear and/or deterioration of suspension is more
likely to be an issue than wear on the diamond.
Ortofon, Shure, Rega, etc. all come to mind. I am a great fan of high
output MC's .... the only reason for not wanting to get one could imo
be budget considerations, MM's cost less to buy and may offer needle
assembly replaceability, and while I prefer to advocate Ortofon I would
be misleading you if I did not also say that I have liked the overall
sound of the Rega cartridged I have heard welll considering their price
range.
Peter Larsen
Thanks, the cartridge looks contaminated with some sort of gunk although I
don't know if that affects operation because as far as I know there is no
electrical contact between the needle and cartridge.