N44-7 Stylus Damaged. How to source?

Saket

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Hello Friends

Bad news...the stylus for my M44-7 got damaged somehow. It did not have even 50 hours on it:sad: Now the playback is not smooth and sound is distorted. The replacement stylus for the cartridge is Shure N44-7. Please let me know how to source the stylus. Its available on NGH for about Rs. 2K. Any more pointers for acquiring it?

Regards,
Saket
 
Hello Friends

Bad news...the stylus for my M44-7 got damaged somehow. It did not have even 50 hours on it:sad: Now the playback is not smooth and sound is distorted. The replacement stylus for the cartridge is Shure N44-7. Please let me know how to source the stylus. Its available on NGH for about Rs. 2K. Any more pointers for acquiring it?

Regards,
Saket

Oh damn! Sorry to hear that :sad:

Check this out :

Buy Online | Lowest Price | Free Shipping| Shure N447 Replacement Stylus for M447 Cartridge - Buy online at the guaranteed lowest price in India - BAJAAO - Buy online and Review Musical Instruments, Pro Audio, Studio, P.A. Audio Equipment in India

They offer free shipping. I've ordered few things from bajaao before and its very good. They take about a week time though.

By the way, how did you damage it?
 
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Oh damn! Sorry to hear that :sad:

Check this out :

Buy Online | Lowest Price | Free Shipping| Shure N447 Replacement Stylus for M447 Cartridge - Buy online at the guaranteed lowest price in India - BAJAAO - Buy online and Review Musical Instruments, Pro Audio, Studio, P.A. Audio Equipment in India

They offer free shipping. I've ordered few things from bajaao before and its very good. They take about a week time though.

By the way, how did you damage it?

Thanks...price looks good, however shipping time is stated to be 12-15 days:sad:
Do they accept cash on delivery?

Edit: Damaged while laying my TLC on it! (read cleaning)
 
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Thanks...price looks good, however shipping time is stated to be 12-15 days:sad:
Do they accept cash on delivery?

Edit: Damaged while laying my TLC on it! (read cleaning)

Call them and ask if they have it readily in stock. If they do then you'll receive it within a week. They write 12-15 days to be on the safer side. I got mine within a week. Anyway when you call, also ask them about the time it would take to deliver it to Ranchi.

And they do not accept cash on delivery. Credit/debit card, Net Banking, and a few others are accepted.
 
Hi Saket,
You can get it from Kolkata also . But you need to pick it up . May not have any delivery fecility ..

Thanks
Subinoy
 
Hi Saket,
You can get it from Kolkata also . But you need to pick it up . May not have any delivery fecility ..

Thanks
Subinoy

Thanks Subinoy. Not getting anything on Google regarding Kolkata; though heard about a shop 'Dey's Musical' from an FM. Am in the process of gathering information on best price and quick shipping.
 
Sorry to hear about the damage, Pls use only the OEM N44-7 stylus, there are many duplicates and less expensive alternates available but the N44-7 is the best bet.
 
Sorry to hear about the damage, Pls use only the OEM N44-7 stylus, there are many duplicates and less expensive alternates available but the N44-7 is the best bet.

Reuben, can a cartridge damage result in distorted sound? or a bad cart would ideally have no output?

Regarding the stylus, I am not exploring any other option than the OEM:), so N44-7 it is.
 
Hello Friends

Bad news...the stylus for my M44-7 got damaged somehow. It did not have even 50 hours on it:sad: Now the playback is not smooth and sound is distorted. The replacement stylus for the cartridge is Shure N44-7. Please let me know how to source the stylus. Its available on NGH for about Rs. 2K. Any more pointers for acquiring it?

Regards,
Saket

For the sake of learning for those who use turntables, can you share (if its not a problem), the details on how the damage happened (root cause and the circumstances). That would be very helpful for a lot of us so we'd know what to avoid while handling our turntables.
 
For the sake of learning for those who use turntables, can you share (if its not a problem), the details on how the damage happened (root cause and the circumstances). That would be very helpful for a lot of us so we'd know what to avoid while handling our turntables.

Let me recount the horror!
While normal playing, I noticed that the right channel was dominating the left one. Silght distortion on the left channel was also there. Checked with another TT to confirm the issue. Checked the alignment, anti skate and tracking weight to confirm everything is right. Had a look at the stylus and found that it was not in the centre. It was slightly stretched outwards. I am attaching a picture (not my stylus). I tried to position it in the centre by slightly pushing it towards centre but that inflicted a ding on the tubular cantilever. That was it. The worse thing is that the stylus barely had 43-44 hours on it. I hope its not the cart itself.

Let me know your thoughts on
Reuben, can a cartridge damage result in distorted sound? or a bad cart would ideally have no output?

Regarding the stylus, I am not exploring any other option than the OEM:), so N44-7 it is.
 
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Let me recount the horror!
While normal playing, I noticed that the right channel was dominating the left one. Silght distortion on the left channel was also there. Checked with another TT to confirm the issue. Checked the alignment, anti skate and tracking weight to confirm everything is right. Had a look at the stylus and found that it was not in the centre. It was slightly stretched outwards. I am attaching a picture (not my stylus). I tried to position it in the centre by slightly pushing it towards centre but that inflicted a ding on the tubular cantilever. That was it. The worse thing is that the stylus barely had 43-44 hours on it. I hope its not the cart itself.

Let me know your thoughts on

Nope, nothing should be wrong with your cart. I have seen 4 stylii in such a condition since my childhood. 2 were damaged, one each by my brother and I when we were little children and the other 2 were ironically damaged, one each by my brother's son and my son (so its all in the family I guess).

Here is my take on how this can happen (not really relating to physical damage caused by children):

When cleaning Shure stylii (not sure about other brands as I've not much experience with them), please ensure that you use the original Shure stylus cleaning brush (this comes in the pack, usually when you purchase a Shure cart). The cleaning motion should be from back to front, dont use front to back and never use side to side. Ensure that the brush is dry before use. The strokes should be very light. You may have a clogged stylus at times but never attempt to use force. If the dust does not come off by gentle dusting, use a marginally damp brush (distilled water) and stop once the dust comes off.

Also after use, always flip your stylus protection gaurd into position.

From a calibration perspective, dont go over prescribed tracking weights and high anti-skate force settings.

Lastly, never attempt to physically touch or bend the cantilever. The results can be catastrophic.
 
I recall buying a replacement stylus from Electronic Emporium, Mumbai for about 1300. Of course the exchange rates have gone north since then, but you can ask them (9820901941). I recall that they are usually ready to ship.

PS: some years back I found that the stylus of my M44-7 was slightly bent to one side though it caused no audible effect. A fine nose plier I used to straighten it was enough to crumple the aluminium cantilever and render it useless forever. So it takes an expert to make such repairs.
 
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I recall buying a replacement stylus from Electronic Emporium, Mumbai for about 1300. Of course the exchange rates have gone north since then, but you can ask them (9820901941). I recall that they are usually ready to ship.

PS: some years back I found that the stylus of my M44-7 was slightly bent to one side though it caused no audible effect. A fine nose plier I used to straighten it was enough to crumple the aluminium cantilever and render it useless forever. So it takes an expert to make such repairs.

I called up Jerry from Electronic Emporium. He quoted Rs. 1750+14% VAT which is almost 2K. Bajaao.com is selling for 1750 all inclusive but shipping time is higher. A local Shure dealer here quoted atrociously high at about Rs 2800/-.

I finally ordered from NGH for Rs. 1989/- all inclusive. I have made a few purchases from him and his service is prompt & good.
To have some soothing effect after this damage, I have also ordered a long cherished Veer Zaara 3 LP set for 2K (actual price is 3K).:rolleyes: Total damages about Rs. 4K. Just keeping my fingers crossed that the cartridge is okay.

PS: some years back I found that the stylus of my M44-7 was slightly bent to one side though it caused no audible effect. A fine nose plier I used to straighten it was enough to crumple the aluminium cantilever and render it useless forever. So it takes an expert to make such repairs.

Same story! Just that my fingers were enough rather than the plier. I hope nobody attempts this stunt on stylii anymore. Damage- 2k; lesson learnt for entire life- Invaluable!
I think that the N44-7 stylus has a tendency to bend outwards slightly due to the force of the playing record which pulls the stylus inwards towards the centre groove. I have no idea about stylus of other magnetic cartridges, but in ceramic carts, since the stylus is almost clamped to the cartridge, I have not experienced it.

Regards,
Saket
 
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Unfortunately, I have noticed that generally, buying a original replacement stylus is usually almost as expensive as buying a new cart itself. This is quite true if you are shopping in the United States. In some cases, the replacement stylus may be more expensive than the cart/stylus combo itself. I have noticed that this low cost carts (especially the OEM Japanese carts like Technics). The M44-7 may be marginal in this sense so it may still make sense to buy a replacement stylus after all.
 
Unfortunately, I have noticed that generally, buying a original replacement stylus is usually almost as expensive as buying a new cart itself. This is quite true if you are shopping in the United States. In some cases, the replacement stylus may be more expensive than the cart/stylus combo itself. I have noticed that this low cost carts (especially the OEM Japanese carts like Technics). The M44-7 may be marginal in this sense so it may still make sense to buy a replacement stylus after all.

Thankfully, it's not the case with M44-7. The Cartridge is currently selling for around 5K. I ordered the stylus for Rs. 1989/-. Thankfully there is still a difference of 3K.:) The M97Xe is selling for about 8-8.5K...blame the INR!
 
At Bajao.com the 97 XE is selling for almost 10,000. I was in Singapore the whole of last week, got time only yesterday to go to Adelphi Mall. The whole mall is practically for AV items. I went to shop Roxy Audio and bought a Shure 97 XE (Full toolkit included in a new box) for SGD 140 which translates to INR 6720 at the present exchange rate of INR 48 to a SGD. They are having other carts also but M44-7 was not available at present but I am sure it would be much cheaper over there.
 
Hello Folks!

The OE N44-7 stylus was received yesterday. Got it on in the evening and the player sang to its previous glory!:clapping: Amazed that how much just a small ding on the cantilever surface can affect the SQ. Now the sound is just as perfect and now there is no channel imbalance too. Have set the anti-skate a little higher from before. Currently tracking at 2 gms. with anti-skate at 2.5.


At Bajao.com the 97 XE is selling for almost 10,000. I was in Singapore the whole of last week, got time only yesterday to go to Adelphi Mall. The whole mall is practically for AV items. I went to shop Roxy Audio and bought a Shure 97 XE (Full toolkit included in a new box) for SGD 140 which translates to INR 6720 at the present exchange rate of INR 48 to a SGD. They are having other carts also but M44-7 was not available at present but I am sure it would be much cheaper over there.

There are huge differences in prices of the phono cartridges & stylii from different sources. Another online store is selling it for 8.5K, while my local Shure dealer quoted about 7.8K for the M97Xe. The least quote I got was about 7K from Mumbai.
 
At Bajao.com the 97 XE is selling for almost 10,000. I was in Singapore the whole of last week, got time only yesterday to go to Adelphi Mall. The whole mall is practically for AV items. I went to shop Roxy Audio and bought a Shure 97 XE (Full toolkit included in a new box) for SGD 140 which translates to INR 6720 at the present exchange rate of INR 48 to a SGD. They are having other carts also but M44-7 was not available at present but I am sure it would be much cheaper over there.

honestly, not worth buying carts in India.
 
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