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Stylus and Cartridge

The Stylus

The stylus is a cut diamond that sits in the groove of the record. As the record spins the stylus passes vibrations held within the groove of the vinyl into the cartridge (see below for more details).

Several types of styli are available, with the difference between them being their manufactured shape. Depending on the task in hand, some shapes are better than others for sound but others are better for stability of keeping the stylus in the groove when the vinyl is manually manipulated, through scratching as an example. There are four stylus types or shapes.

Microline Stylus
This stylus is cut to replicate the exact shape of that used by the cutting process on the original vinyl. With a new stylus and a quality turntable the stylus will reproduce the exact frequencies giving a true sound comparable to the original. The tracking on is accurate and all frequency bands are picked up due to the exact fit to the original groove. These are ridiculously expensive and are used by pro-hifi and vinyl lovers. Not much use to the DJ though.

Elliptical Stylus
This is oval in shape and wider at the front and sides reducing to a thinner section at the back. Its tear shaped is probably a good way to put it. This results in the stylus being thinner at the back nearest the headshell. It is most commonly used by DJs as it has good all round performance and is affordable too. The stylus sits bang in the middle of the groove, horizontally and vertically. It is the most widely available type of stylus.

Conical Stylus
This is the most simple and cheapest of all styli It sits in the middle of the groove as with the elliptical and touches the centre of the record groove walls. Because it doesn't use the whole depth of the groove it isn't particularly good for scratching.

Linear Contact Stylus
This has a higher surface area of contact in the vinyl groove walls and reflects the shape far better. Much better for scratching and turntablism as the stylus fits snuggly and almost "hugs" the groove. Due to this greater exposure to contact, certain styli and excessive scratching will wear down the groove over time.

Styli can be purchased separately from the cartridge as time goes on, meaning you don't have to replace the entire section. Good news on the wallet front, that one!

The Cartridge

This piece of equipment mounts onto the headshell at the front of the tone arm. It is basically the housing for the stylus and converts the vibrations from the stylus into electrical signals which in turn passes to the headshell and up through the tonearm, through the turntable which amplifies the signal before finally being transferred out to your hifi via those lovely hifi wires.

If you buy a cartridge it will come with a new stylus, so no need to purchase one separately. Once you have purchased a cartridge you only need purchase styli singularly as and when required, unless of course you decide to change your setup to cater more towards scratching as an example. The quality of cartridge and its responsiveness to frequency ranges will ultimately affect the sound you get from it. Certain styli are good for bass, others for a more general spread so is something worth considering when making your choice.

Some Extra Notes on Set up

It is important to remember that each part of your turntable needs to be maintained and setup correctly. Too much tracking force will increase record wear and hinder certain sound frequencies meaning the sound you get won't be as good. Simply bunging on a load of weight to stop it skipping while you are trying to scratch using the wrong type of stylus may sound like an easy option but could potentially knacker the stylus and the vinyl in the long run. Also, chances are the stylus won't remain stable in the groove no matter how much weight you push onto it due to its design and shape. See the Callibrating your Turntable for getting the most out of your current gear.

Stylus Wear and When to Change a Needle

We now understand how the stylus works and how it sits in the groove. Weight and tracking force applied and choice of stylus will determine how long it will last so there are no hard and fast rules. When a stylus is new it has polished smooth edges. As the new stylus sits in a groove it will touch the walls of the record will relatively little contact, but the wear on the stylus initially will be high. As the turntable rotates it wears down these contacts points making them bigger in terms of surface area. Stylus wear will slow as time goes on. If you don't ever change your stylus, the repetitive use will eventually grind this down so in extreme cases it can take on a chisel shape which is never a healthy option for those records you own that are now deleted and you can't buy anymore.

You may find that you experience loss of sound in one speaker or find that when playing a record the left or right speaker is always louder. This may be because of this extensive wear to one side. A groove of a record hold s the left channel of sound on the inside of the groove and the right channel on the outside. A mis-aligned cartridge not sitting in the record groove correctly will cause one side to wear down more than the other hence the loss of sound you may experience. Changing the stylus will normally sort this.

As a general rule I'd recommend changing your stylus annually but if you are heavy user of your decks then every 6-12 months depending how flush you are feeling!

Don't Throw Away Those Old Needles

You may just need them. If you are an avid vinyl hunter by now you will have discovered the second hand music shops that sell 2nd hand vinyl. It may be that the previous owner isn't quite as careful as you are, and hasn't cleaned the tunes in rather a long while. I keep a spare stylus and pop this on when I've bought something from someone else. You may find that if you have bought it off Ebay or something that it may be scratched and scuffed or just simply old and not maintained very well. You can use a worn stylus to play it still without killing or damaging your "good" carts by playing old vinyl.

If a record was as badly damaged as this you wouldn't use it to play out or in a set so you wouldn't need to change the stylus between mixes. It just means you have the option of listening to all your records no matter what condition without damaging any of your current equipment.

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