Replacement pickups, needles, stylii and belts These manufacturers and/or resellers make & sell generic replacement pickups, styli and/or belts for turntables, especially important for items where the original manufacturer is no longer with us or no longer making record player related products. For original styli please see the Pickups section itself, for pickup replacement for generic magnetic pickups we recommend budget Ortofon cartridges like the OM-5 rather that the "generic" ones the suppliers below provide. Not only are they better they are also in most cases cheaper. AstaticManufactures and sells a huge range of styli and replacement pickups, has recently stated to sell directly to end users via their homepage Expert Stylus Make specialised stylii for playback of 78'rpm records etc. Diamond Stylus Manufacturers of replacement styli for a variety of pickups, also sells some replacement pickups Mr. Stylus Has a huge range of replacement stylii, belts and pickups, especially noteworthy is their range of replacement pickups both original and OEM, that includes some very hard to find crystal and ceramic types. Catalogue also available in English Turntable Basics Sells all kinds of turntable accessories but noticeably sells replacement belts for turntables for USD 10 rather than the absurd USD 40 or so that some of the web based suppliers are charging Elex Atelier Specialices in Turntable belts but also stocks Pickups and related stuff. Radio Shack Stocks quite a range a replacement styli and cartridges, see here. Ceitron This company has pickups at really keen prices but more importantly belts at much lower prices than those that the specialist charge Ken's Electronics This company has also has belts at much lower prices than those that the specialist are flogging them at, also has some stylii Bic Belts Enrique Dépannage (France) Has a good selection of stylii in particular for mainland European makes Greenweld Electronic Retailer of surplus electronic goods, has stocks of belts for the lover end European turntables such as Philips, use the search facility for finding them as the pages are a bit difficult to traverse. Quad Styli The US company Garage-a-records has stocks of styli for quadraphonic pickups. 78rpm.com Sells tyli and pickups for use with 78 rpm records. Altai Stocks and distributes styli and pickups for low end consumer and semipro eqp. Needle doctor A nice store that sells a lot of styli and has a range of cartridges, including a nice stock of our favorite Ortofon, but sadly not the most budget range. Neddletins.co.uk For Gramophones only, sells and collects the tins rather than the needles per se, but he can fix you up with a new box if you need it. Fun site to browse also Miðbæarradíó (Ísland) Small electronic shop that has stylii and pickups in stock and can order what they do not have, excellent service Tonacord (Germany) PhonoPhono (Germany) Primarily a reseller of pickups etc.., especially esoteric units but they also stock replacement stylii for all the brands that they sell, and the homepage is a treasure-trove for the phono nut so visit it anyway. Catalogue also available in English Savalander Audio Goodwins (UK) Please send any factual corrections, dead links, information and/or links that you feel that should be on this page to the page maintainer but please note that I do not have an Internet access at the moment so there may be some time before I can answer.
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Farchild
Seen a few crystal based mono and stereo carts from them, but one of their models the stereo SM1 appears to be either a MC or MI design and is quite sought after by some collectors.
Fidelity Research
Legendary Japanese maker of MC pickups in the 70's and early 80's, while their pickups were price-wise more in line with the likes of Supex and the European producers of pickups that with the high end "I can't believe this price" Japanese ones like Koetsu or Myabi the company still had a reputation second to none when it came to sound quality of their higher end pickups. Amongst their models were the low output FR1 also available in a MkII version around 1980 or so and in a MkIII version a little later (the MKIII version appears to have been a high output part however, or at the least available in a high output version). The FR-7f cart was integrated into a headshell. The MC 201 is another low output cart from the early 80's and there was an improved version of it called MC 202 (or FR-202 ?), these models are not as sought after as the FR-1 however so I assume that they were cheaper and/or inferior or perhaps it's just a coincidence.
The technical specification of the FR1 MkII are : Frequency response : 20Hz~20Khz +0.5dB -0db, 20Hz~45KHz +5dB -4dB. Output : 0,1 mV or 0.5mV @ 5cm/sec. Tracking force : 1,5 to 2 grams. Channel separation : -27dB or better @ 1KHz~20KHz, -18dB or better @ 30KHz. Channel balance : Less than +-1dB @ 1KHz. Recommended tracking force : 2 grams. Compliance : 10 x 10-6 cm/dyne. Weight : 10,5 grams. Load Impedance : 30 ohms.
The technical specification of the FR1 MkIII and the FR1 MKIII F are : Frequency response : 20Hz~20Khz +0.5dB -0db 20KHz~45KHZ +5dB -4dB. Output @ 5cm/sec : 5 mV. Recommended tracking force : 2 grams. Channel separation : 27dB or better at 1 to 20KHz and -18db at 30KHz. Channel balance : Less than +-1dB @ 1KHz. Compliance : 10 x 10-6 cm/dyne. Weight : 10 grams. Load Impedance : 10 ohms .
Final Labratory
Made a high end MC cart in the 70's, there is a picture of it on their homepage but attempts to get technical info on them have not been successful.
Fonofilm See --> Discontinued Ortofon Pickups
Garrott Brothers
Made the P-77, a mid range MM pickup that had a reputation as a giant killer in the late 80's and early 90's (now sold as "Optim" with a line contact stylus?).
GE
Made some of the earliest variants of MM cartridges out there, these had a flip-over or turnable LP/78'rpm stylus like the crystal cartridges they replaced, while most of them have a standard mount it's questionable if you would want one in your system since it required an extra hole in your headshell (for the stylus switch), perhaps one of the later ones like the Golden Tresure that did not have a flip-over stylus are usable.
Glanz
German company that made mostly budget carts but there were some decent models from them as well, amongst their budget carts were the MG-70R and amongst the better ones the GMC 10EH.
Goldbug See --> Mark Corp. Pickups
Goldmund
Not to be confused with the company that currently trades using this brand, this was a British company that made budget crystal cartridges with a flip-over 78/LP stylus, early 60's ?.
Goldring
The moving magnet line that the company was selling in the 80's and up to the introduction of the current 1000 line was the 900 Series, it featured amongst others the G900 a fairly budget cart with an spherical stylus and a freq. response of 20Hz~20KHz, you could also get it as G900E with an elliptical stylus, slightly more upmarket was the G950, the audio spec was 10Hz~25KHz and while it also had a spherical stylus as standard there was also a G950E version with an elliptical stylus, the line prior to this one was I belive the 800 series that included models such as G820 Super E but sadly we have lost all the info we had on them. Amongst their earlier carts was an upmarket ceramic cartridge called CS91/E (or CS91/E Transcritption Stereo Ceramic to give it's full name) that had an elliptical stylus (there was also a CS91 with a spherical ?) and is supposedly one of the better examples of its type (not as good as the later Micro-Acoustic carts though) and the company has been making carts since the early 50's at the least since electronic reproducers from the company sometimes show up for sale.
Grace
Had a range of MC and MM cartridges, the most sought after models are the F9-E, a MM model that is a time honoured classic that had a cantilever made out of ruby and the F10 & F11 Series of MC cartridges, the F10P that had a medium output (0,7 or 0,8 mV or so) and a spherical stylus, the F10L variant however had a line contact stylus, other carts from that lineup such as the F11P I have not been able to find concrete info on. There was nota bene also a version of the F9 with a line contact stylus called F-9L and that model could be bought with an integrated headshell as SF-90. There was also a classic MC called F45D that Japanese enthusiasts talk about at times but I have not been able to find any info on it.
The technical specification of the F9-E are : Frequency response: 10Hz~45Khz Output @5cm/sec, 45°: 3,5 mV @ 1KHz. Tracking force: 0,5 to 2 grams. Reccommended Tracking force: 1,2 grams. Channel balance: Less than +-0,5dB @ 1KHz. Compliance: 26 x 10-6 cm/dyne. Stylus: Elliptical. Weight: 6 grams. Impedance: 1700 ohms.
The technical specification of the SF-90 are : Frequency response: 10Hz~40Khz Output @5cm/sec, 45°: 5,5 mV @ 1KHz. Tracking force: 0,5 to 2 grams. Reccommended Tracking force: 1,2 grams. Channel separation: -30dB @1KHz or better. Channel balance: Less than +-0,5dB @ 1KHz. Compliance: 20e-6 cm/dyne. Effective Moving Mass: 0,4mV. Stylus: Lx Line Contact. Weight: 15,5 grams. Impedance: 1700 ohms @ 1KHz. Resistance: 30 - 100 ohms.
Highphonic
Produced a line of cartridges from the early 80's into the early 90's, these are lightweight MC designs in no small part due to the use of aluminium in the body and are all very low output, highly Denon influenced, not surpricing given the company's origin. Their initial line of pickups introduced in or around 1984 compromised the MC 2E which had a US RRP of 195 USD, the MC A-3 whose RRP was 250 USD, the MC R-5 that had an USD 395 RRP, the MC A-6 Signature whose RRP was USD 495 but was considered to be very close sonically to the MC D-15 Signature at the time despite the latters whopping USD 1200 RRP and almost outlandish specifications, note that in Japan there was available a cheaper version of this cart in the form of the MC D-15 also listed as D1500, I have no idea on the differences between the 2 and there were other models that I lack the specifications for altogether such as the MC D-10. Note that their pickups are named after the material used in the cantilever, A for aluminium or alumnium based alloys, R for ruby and D for diamond.
The technical specification of the MC A-2e are : Frequency response: ~38KHz Reccommended Tracking force: 1,2 grams. Channel balance: Less than +-0,6dB @ 1KHz. Channel separation: -30dB @1KHz or better, -25dB @10KHz or better. Stylus: Elliptical. Cantilever: Aluminium.
The technical specification of the MC A-3 are : Frequency response: ~50KHz Reccommended Tracking force: 1,1 grams. Channel balance: Less than +-0,6dB @ 1KHz. Channel separation: -30dB @1KHz or better, -27dB @10KHz or better. Stylus: "Third generation" line contact. Cantilever: Heat treated Aluminum, Magnesium, Titanium and Silicon Carbide Alloy.
The technical specification of the MC R-5 are : Frequency response: ~55KHz Output @5cm/sec, 45°: 0,11 mV @ 1KHz. Reccommended Tracking force: 1,1 grams. Channel balance: Less than +-0,6dB @ 1KHz. Channel separation: -30dB @1KHz or better, -30dB @10KHz or better. Stylus: "Third generation" line contact. Cantilever: Ruby.
The technical specification of the MC A-6 Signature are : Frequency response: ~65KHz Output @5cm/sec, 45°: 0,12 mV @ 1KHz. Reccommended Tracking force: 1 grams. Channel balance: Less than +-0,4dB @ 1KHz. Channel separation: -34dB @1KHz or better, -30dB @10KHz or better. Compliance: 17 x 10e-6 cm/dyne. Stylus: "Third generation" line contact. Cantilever: Tapered heat treated Aluminum, Magnesium, Titanium and Silicon Carbide Alloy. Load: 100 ohm. Weight: 6,5 grams.
The technical specification of the MC D-15 Signature are : Frequency response: ~85KHz Reccommended Tracking force: 0,9 grams. Channel balance: Less than +-0,2dB @ 1KHz. Channel separation: -35dB @1KHz or better, -32dB @10KHz or better. Stylus: "Third generation" line contact. Cantilever: Tapered Diamond.
IMS
Budget replacement cartridges.
JAMO
These MM pickups appear to have been sold by the USA subsidiary of the company, I cannot find any trace of this Danish company ever having sold those in Europe or elsewhere (perhaps I need to get hold of some old copy's of Hi-Fi & Elektronik and start reading), anyway a NOS retailer in the USA is advertising the T4P mount IM-15P, a budget replacement unit with a spherical stylus and a reasonable freq. rsp. of 20Hz~20KHz, the standard mounted MF-10 and MF-40 however both have an elliptical stylus and while the 40 has the same audio specification as the IM-15P the 10 model has a somewhat more reasonable frequency range of 20Hz~30KHz.
Jelco
Had the Model D MM in the late 70's and early 80's, it's integrated into a headshell and had an reputation in it's day as a bargain (it only cost something like 39 DM in stores), and indeed the specifications are excellent, but since it was mostly intended for use in DJ situations only had a spherical stylus (would be fun to know if there ever was a model with a better stylus).
The technical specification of the Model D are : Frequency response: 10Hz~27Khz Output @5cm/sec: 3 mV @ 1KHz. Tracking force: 1,5 to 3 grams. Channel separation: 26dB or better. Channel balance: Less than +-0,7dB @ 1KHz. Compliance: 22 x 10-6 cm/dyne. Stylus: Jelco Spherical 15µm. Impedance: 47kohms.
JVC
Apart from those cheap'n'cheerful designs that the company sold with their turntables they did for a time market a range of MC pickups that got quite good reviews, details escape me.
Kiseki
Japanese made MC cartridges that have been described as "Koetsu lookalikes", amongst the models were the Purpleheart Sapphire and Blue, despite the origin of the carts and the name the owner of the trademark was apparently a Dutch hi-fi dealer.
Koetsu
Started making carts in the late 70's and production continued until the early 90's when Yoshiaki Sugano, the founder of the company decided he was to old to continue making them, his son restarted the production of the carts in the latter half of the 90's and the current lineup of Koetsu Pickups is mostly the same as it has been since the early 80's but with improvements on the coils. The Onyx is a predecessor to the current Onyx Platinium (their current top of the line model) and while the older model is not quite up to the class of the current model sound wise its nevertheless excellent, it also has the typical Koetsu characteristic of a low impedance of 2 ohms or so (and a 0,2mV output), if you send an old Onyx for a rebuild to the company you can also get an upgrade to the current spec coils (as the name implies made out of platinum). The cheaper Rosewood model differs from the current Red mostly in appearance it's slightly shorter and thinner but has similar audio specification but older Rosewood Signature models are identical in appearance to the current models, note that the 80's models of those 2 while having as noted a similar spec have and older type of coil assembly and are usually not considered as good as the current models. When buying a used Koetsu demand to see AND get the letter that came with it, Sugano-san did not provide a printed manual and an output plot like most manufacturers but with all their carts he sent a beautifully calligraphed letter were he described the building of the cart, not only is this a work of art in itself (and valuable BTW) but it's also the only proof that the pickup is authentic and not a clone (there may be as many clones out there as there are real units), DO NOT accept a copy, while there may be the case that some cheaper models like the black came without this letter they did at the least come with documentation that prove it's authenticity. As for owners of older carts from the company in need of a retip note that the company does not retip old carts but rebuilds them from scratch with new components, the price for this is not unreasonable (USD 600 or so last time I checked but ask your local importer) and can for early 80's models actually be an excellent upgrade path, it's should be noted that for models like the Black this is possibly higher than the resale value of the cartridge on the second hand market so perhaps those with that model should rather look at a 3rd party retippers.
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