How Often Do You Change Your Cartridge

Audiophilehi

Audiophilehi

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Joined
Apr 5, 2013
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706
Location
Staten Island, New York
Hi I have my Lyra Helikon cartridges over 10 years. I really couldn’t tell you how many hours on them. The stereo cartridge definitely more than the mono.
They are definitely not abused and look fine.


As I’m sure the aging of the cartridge and performance would be gradual so it might not stand out if it’s really time to move on to another.


So my question to all is how often do you change your cartridge?
 
The passage of time is not the issue, it's the # of hours you played records. Do an estimate based on how many hours per day or week on average you may have used it, and and you may get some useful answers. Another approach is to have someone with experience examine the stylus under a microscope. They should be able to estimate the # of hours left. One thousand hours before re-tipping seems to be the normal expectation.
 
I have to respectfully disagree that hours of actual playing time are the only contributing factor in cartridge aging. Suspension materials age from the passage of time which can affect their flexibility and cantilever damping. Some more modern suspension materials better maintain their characteristics over an extended length of time compared to older designs, but they can still exhibit a shift in their performance characteristics. Naturally this type of aging can vary between different designs and manufacturers based on the materials they choose to use, but such aging can be a factor in performance even with a cartridge that may have minimal hours of run time. Suspension component aging cannot necessarily be determined by a visual inspection, although you can sometimes notice it when a cartridge is riding significantly lower than when it was new. Even if it's riding at the proper height older cartridges with aged suspensions can have compromised performance potential.
 
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