aussievintage 3,881 Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 I just received a couple of new styluses. There has been talk for some time about these cheaper nude ellipticals hitting the market. Apparently available from different suppliers, such as EVG. These are Analogis Black Diamond brand. They are square shank nude diamonds. I got two, one for my AT3600 carts and one for AT95 carts. Just looked at the AT3600 one under the microscope - pictures below. Will plug it in for a listen next. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
mloutfie 1,013 Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 cheap? Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted October 27, 2020 Author Share Posted October 27, 2020 6 minutes ago, mloutfie said: cheap? For a nude elliptical yep. $60 and $65 australian. That's less than half the price of the equivalent stylus for an AT VM95. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted October 27, 2020 Author Share Posted October 27, 2020 (edited) First track report After a quick realignment because I bumped the cartridge out of place I dropped it on the first track. Nice! Clean and detailed sound. First impression is it's better than the LP Gear elliptical - which has a few hours on it - so I must stick the old one under the microscope later. A couple of photos - playing that first track, and the packaging they came in. I guess a quick plug is allowed, I got these through @cafe latte. I think I am going to be very happy with them. Edited October 27, 2020 by aussievintage 2 Link to post Share on other sites
Ian McP 5,572 Posted October 27, 2020 Share Posted October 27, 2020 https://mrstylus.com/en/new-analogis-black-diamond/ Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted October 27, 2020 Author Share Posted October 27, 2020 (edited) 2 hours ago, Ian McP said: https://mrstylus.com/en/new-analogis-black-diamond/ Thanks for that link. Interesting observations on the one I am listening to know "Test Audio Technica ATN 3651 E green (AUDIO TECHNICA ATN 91, ATN 3600 L, DUAL DN 235, DUAL DN 239): In terms of sound, it is far more “tidy” in the vocal range than the original needle, the stage is more clearly depicted and the bass range gains in precision." That's compared to the original which is of course, a 0.6 mil conical. One record side finished as I type. Time to flip the record.... Edited October 27, 2020 by aussievintage Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted October 27, 2020 Author Share Posted October 27, 2020 Just checked the old stylus that I am comparing this new one too. It's from LP Gear, and you can see it's the fake elliptical type that uses a flat cut to approximate the elliptical shape. You can also see it is a carbon fibre cantilever. Doesn't look worn. I guess the improvement I think I am hearing is due to the shape and cantilever material. I'm betting it's more to do with the shape. Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted October 27, 2020 Author Share Posted October 27, 2020 So, after an afternoon of constantly spinning a variety of stuff, no doubt this is a NICE stylus. Some reviews I read talked about the detail. Yes, detail is very good. It reproduces triangles and hard attack high piano notes, xylophone notes, and drum rattles, very realistically with no smearing. Some reviews talked about bass definition. Maybe. I played a Telarc recording of a Church organ, and the low notes were pure and full, until, in typical Telarc fashion they pushed it too far, and the AT3600 with new stylus struggled. Low cello notes were clean, as was double bass. In summary, I stay with my initial impression - clean and detailed. Better than I had hoped. Some of the detail reminded me of the first time I listened to a micro-line/ridge stylus. Not too shabby for a low-end stylus. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted October 27, 2020 Author Share Posted October 27, 2020 Just a couple of shots of the other stylus I bought. The AT95 stylus. Of course it looks very similar Link to post Share on other sites
mloutfie 1,013 Posted October 28, 2020 Share Posted October 28, 2020 is there local supplier for this or does it have get from Europe? Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted October 28, 2020 Author Share Posted October 28, 2020 1 hour ago, mloutfie said: is there local supplier for this or does it have get from Europe? I got mine from @cafe latte. He's in Queensland. Link to post Share on other sites
cafe latte 191 Posted October 29, 2020 Share Posted October 29, 2020 On 28/10/2020 at 12:43 PM, aussievintage said: I got mine from @cafe latte. He's in Queensland. PM me if you need anything Chris Link to post Share on other sites
cafe latte 191 Posted October 29, 2020 Share Posted October 29, 2020 On 27/10/2020 at 12:22 PM, aussievintage said: First track report After a quick realignment because I bumped the cartridge out of place I dropped it on the first track. Nice! Clean and detailed sound. First impression is it's better than the LP Gear elliptical - which has a few hours on it - so I must stick the old one under the microscope later. A couple of photos - playing that first track, and the packaging they came in. I guess a quick plug is allowed, I got these through @cafe latte. I think I am going to be very happy with them. I love these stylus, only issue is QC is a bit poor and some are coming miss aligned so I am opening everything and having to check every one under microscope. They tell me that they have sorted the issues but we will see, I will keep checking everything just to be sure. I really like the AT3600 one, also the AT95 one is great, much smoother highs than the original AT95e. Love to hear you review of these stylus Chris 1 Link to post Share on other sites
wasabijim 702 Posted October 30, 2020 Share Posted October 30, 2020 @cafe latte any ATN 12 EX on hand? Link to post Share on other sites
cafe latte 191 Posted October 30, 2020 Share Posted October 30, 2020 4 hours ago, wasabijim said: @cafe latte any ATN 12 EX on hand? I will check tomorrow when I am home. Chris 1 Link to post Share on other sites
cafe latte 191 Posted October 31, 2020 Share Posted October 31, 2020 (edited) On 30/10/2020 at 2:17 PM, wasabijim said: @cafe latte any ATN 12 EX on hand? No, but I have an order waiting to leave this week. ATN 12XE (typo I guess on the list) is showing as in stock if you like I will add some to my order? Let me know my email is allclearaudio@gmail.com. Chris Edited October 31, 2020 by cafe latte 1 Link to post Share on other sites
wasabijim 702 Posted October 31, 2020 Share Posted October 31, 2020 ball park $$? say $60-odd like the other 2 discussed earlier Link to post Share on other sites
cafe latte 191 Posted October 31, 2020 Share Posted October 31, 2020 9 hours ago, wasabijim said: ball park $$? say $60-odd like the other 2 discussed earlier That one is a little more expensive, but still cheap, I will PM you. Chris 1 Link to post Share on other sites
wasabijim 702 Posted November 1, 2020 Share Posted November 1, 2020 On 01/11/2020 at 8:09 AM, cafe latte said: That one is a little more expensive, but still cheap, I will PM you. Chris interest piqued PM sent 1 Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted November 8, 2020 Author Share Posted November 8, 2020 OK, I have given it a good long time and many records. I am prepared to render my own final verdict on these new styluses. They are good enough, but I mean that in a super positive way. I mean that they are good enough that I doubt I can justify throwing money at microline/microridge styluses, the cheapest of which is about $300. At about $60, these styluses are doing virtually the same good job. How? I don't know. I have not experienced a properly ground nude elliptical before. Previous ellipticals I have tried, have all been those conicals with the flats ground in them, that they call elliptical. Something about these true ellipticals seems to easily exceed those types in extracting fine detail and avoiding IGD. So when it comes time to replace my styluses, I hope these Black Diamonds are still on the market. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
wartman 88 Posted November 8, 2020 Share Posted November 8, 2020 I purchased two of these from @cafe latte for my A&R Cambridge cartridges a few weeks ago. I haven't tried them yet, but will also give some feedback when I do. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
wasabijim 702 Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 any progress, activity thoughts on experience with the newly acquired items? Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted November 26, 2020 Author Share Posted November 26, 2020 55 minutes ago, wasabijim said: any progress, activity thoughts on experience with the newly acquired items? Still very happy with mine. It's actually going to be hard to justify a $300 microline next time. 2 Link to post Share on other sites
wartman 88 Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 Sadly, haven't had a chance to audition mine yet. Link to post Share on other sites
wasabijim 702 Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 what no vinyl spinning? that is very sad (unless you mean to say you've not installed it yet) Link to post Share on other sites
Batty 5,088 Posted November 26, 2020 Share Posted November 26, 2020 I have just ordered one for my V15 III, around $80 inc shipping and 16% tax. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
fodderstomf 41 Posted December 26, 2020 Share Posted December 26, 2020 sounds great anyone seen any for a vm95e ? Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted December 26, 2020 Author Share Posted December 26, 2020 12 hours ago, fodderstomf said: sounds great anyone seen any for a vm95e ? I believe it's simple to cut the plastic back to get an AT95 stylus to fit 1 Link to post Share on other sites
fodderstomf 41 Posted December 27, 2020 Share Posted December 27, 2020 9 hours ago, aussievintage said: I believe it's simple to cut the plastic back to get an AT95 stylus to fit this guy has tried it all with pics https://www.vinylengine.com/turntable_forum/viewtopic.php?f=19&t=108123 Link to post Share on other sites
OLLY 42 Posted December 28, 2020 Share Posted December 28, 2020 (edited) I wish the Black Diamonds were available for the AT15XE. Unfortunately I will have to wait and hope sometime in the future. Edited December 28, 2020 by OLLY Link to post Share on other sites
Mono Stereo 10 Posted January 1 Share Posted January 1 @aussievintage @cafe latteQuestion regarding Stanley Engineering wood bodies for AT cartridges Does the AT95e wooden body fit a AT3600L ‘generator’ metal body.? Thanks Derek Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted January 1 Author Share Posted January 1 10 minutes ago, Mono Stereo said: Does the AT95e wooden body fit a AT3600L ‘generator’ metal body.? I doubt it - the two bodies are a different size and shape. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
cafe latte 191 Posted January 2 Share Posted January 2 On 27/10/2020 at 11:56 AM, aussievintage said: I just received a couple of new styluses. There has been talk for some time about these cheaper nude ellipticals hitting the market. Apparently available from different suppliers, such as EVG. These are Analogis Black Diamond brand. They are square shank nude diamonds. I got two, one for my AT3600 carts and one for AT95 carts. Just looked at the AT3600 one under the microscope - pictures below. Will plug it in for a listen next. Worth noting in conversation with black diamond (also seen it myself) that some stylus look faulty but are not. I will try to explain.. Imagine the machine picking up the square shank but it picks it up slightly to the side, then the profile is ground to the tip. What you see is the front view looks very odd with tip tip looking off to the side and one side has a long slope (long side) and the other has a short side. Many have been returned as faulty apparently like this but the tip is perfect which is what touches the record. What is not acceptable is rotationally misaligned. Chris Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted January 2 Author Share Posted January 2 (edited) 10 minutes ago, cafe latte said: tip looking off to the side and one side has a long slope (long side) Yes, and you can see that in one of my photos. That stylus performs excellently. 10 minutes ago, cafe latte said: What is not acceptable is rotationally misaligned. Yep, the plane of the ellipse or ridge, or whatever shape, needs to be square on to the record movement past it. Edited January 2 by aussievintage Link to post Share on other sites
cafe latte 191 Posted January 2 Share Posted January 2 5 minutes ago, aussievintage said: Yes, and you can see that in one of my photos. That stylus performs excellently. Yep, the plane of the ellipse or ridge, or whatever shape, needs to be square on to the record movement past it. Some are a lot worse than that, your pic is slight, but even the ones with a very very long side and a short side are fine and long as they are square. Chris 1 Link to post Share on other sites
cafe latte 191 Posted January 2 Share Posted January 2 10 minutes ago, aussievintage said: Yes, and you can see that in one of my photos. That stylus performs excellently. Yep, the plane of the ellipse or ridge, or whatever shape, needs to be square on to the record movement past it. Here is a pic of one I rejected as tip was not perfectly pointing down, but the grind was fine but it looked terrible, but important tip is perfect. It was sent back but not for the grind. 1 Link to post Share on other sites
Mono Stereo 10 Posted January 16 Share Posted January 16 On 28/10/2020 at 1:43 PM, aussievintage said: I got mine from @cafe latte. He's in Queensland. Btw...based on this thread, I have ordered the Analogis nude ellipticals for the AT3600L and 95e cartridges. Dealing with @cafe latte was a pleasure with excellent service, communication and a very fair price. The styli sound excellent and fit was excellent 👌 Derek 2 Link to post Share on other sites
aussievintage 3,881 Posted January 16 Author Share Posted January 16 14 hours ago, Mono Stereo said: Btw...based on this thread, I have ordered the Analogis nude ellipticals for the AT3600L and 95e cartridges. Dealing with @cafe latte was a pleasure with excellent service, communication and a very fair price. The styli sound excellent and fit was excellent 👌 Derek Yes, these nude ellipticals are so much better than the typical replacement elliptical you get from most sources. Link to post Share on other sites
fodderstomf 41 Posted January 17 Share Posted January 17 which did you prefer AT3600L or 95e ? Link to post Share on other sites
Mono Stereo 10 Posted January 17 Share Posted January 17 2 hours ago, fodderstomf said: which did you prefer AT3600L or 95e ? I have not installed the 95e yet, that will be installed in a Stanley Engineering Cocobolo wood body which i will do in a few weeks time - as i need to learn how to cut the stylus carefully out of its casing, by watching more youtube videos. However, going back to the 3600L, which i really like, I have been comparing the LP Gear CF3600LE - carbon cantilever with simple ‘cut’ eliptical. This stylus has a fuller midbass, and very good treble extension; whereas the Black diamond has a clearer but somehow less ‘thick’ midband, possibly due to aluminium cantilever. It is a 10-15 sec stylus swap Being both so affordable, the LP Gear would suit a brighter system, and the Black diamond a warmer n possibly valve system. my 2 cents Derek Link to post Share on other sites
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