LP's too! And out of round, on LP's, which obviously won't center, ever. Best, John On Sun, Mar 1, 2015 at 11:22 AM, Tom Fine <[log in to unmask]> wrote: > Hi John: > > I agree about centering the disk. I've come to put more weight on this > fact in recent times, and have been surprised how many 78s were pressed > off-center. > > -- Tom > > ----- Original Message ----- From: "John Haley" <[log in to unmask]> > To: <[log in to unmask]> > Sent: Sunday, March 01, 2015 11:15 AM > > Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Busy Bee records > > > The advantage of modern styluses is that you can get them with truncated >> tips, which you definitely want, especially for restoration purposes. >> They >> generally play a 78 much cleaner than an original issue pointy tip that is >> hitting all the wear in the very bottom of the groove, which it seems can >> often be the most worn part of the groove. You can also get elliptical >> ones, which sometimes play better than conical. It's definitely a trial >> and error thing, as the history of the individual record matters a lot. >> >> Nauck sells all of these (see prior link that I posted), which is where I >> bought my array of styluses for restoration work. While I have not >> compared to styluses available elsewhere, these have worked really well >> for >> me. You can generally tell which of several styluses is "right" by which >> gives the strongest and least noisy result. Sometimes I play little >> samples using different styluses and record them all to .wav files, then >> take my time comparing by playing back the .wav files and comparing this >> against that. It is much easier to compare four or five samples this way, >> where the results are not obvious upon first playing. For regular >> commercial 78's, especially after the acoustic era, the starting point is >> usually a 2.75 TE (truncated elliptical). This is often the best one. >> For >> transcription discs, there is no standard. >> >> Thanks for the tip about the different kinds of Stanton 500 cartridges. I >> didn't know about the plastic-case ones. I just looked at mine, which I >> have had forever, and it has a gold metal case. >> >> Finding the best stylus is just the first step. Actually getting the 78 >> record centered perfectly comes first. Next it is imperative, really >> imperative, to work with phono-equalization curves at the preamp level to >> find the "right" match. It makes a huge difference. That's a whole >> 'nuther topic. >> >> Best, >> John >> >> >> >> >> On Sun, Mar 1, 2015 at 9:08 AM, Tom Fine <[log in to unmask]> >> wrote: >> >> Hi John: >>> >>> I agree with you that the Stanton 500 makes a good chasis for 78RPM >>> playback, but we should clarify that there are Stanton 500's with >>> metal-colored (I think actual stainless or aluminum) bodies and then >>> there >>> are white-colored plastic versions sold in the late years of China-based >>> "Stanton." I have both kinds, and the metal-colored one sounds much >>> better, >>> to my ears. I think the plastic one resonates or makes some other >>> frequency >>> anomoly due to its body design. >>> >>> Since "Stanton" no longer makes a model 500, the choice today is the >>> Shure >>> M78, which is based on the M44 and fitted with a conical wide-groove >>> stylus. I don't know this for fact but I'm pretty sure that the guys at >>> Expert Stylus in the UK would fit generic M44 stylus assemblies with >>> whatever tips a 78 collector desired. It's non-ideal, not as good as when >>> Shure itself made a high-quality 78 playback system with many needle >>> options (and real-deal Stanton did at the same time). But for 90+% of >>> wide-groove playing, it'll do the trick. >>> >>> -- Tom Fine >>> >>> ----- Original Message ----- From: "John Haley" <[log in to unmask]> >>> To: <[log in to unmask]> >>> Sent: Sunday, March 01, 2015 3:56 AM >>> Subject: Re: [ARSCLIST] Busy Bee records >>> >>> >>> >>> You can also buy styluses in various sizes from Nauck, here: >>> >>>> >>>> https://www117.safesecureweb.com/78rpm/Merchant2/merchant. >>>> mvc?Session_ID= >>>> 39a49a1bd245242e82a072ec55d8b371&Screen=PROD&Store_Code=NRC& >>>> Product_Code=112-113&Category_Code=112 >>>> >>>> and see the good advice toward the bottom of that page. Most people I >>>> know >>>> use a Stanton 500 cartridge to play 78's (as I do). >>>> >>>> Best, >>>> John H. Haley >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> On Sat, Feb 28, 2015 at 11:00 PM, Mark Hendrix < >>>> [log in to unmask] >>>> > >>>> wrote: >>>> >>>> Ben Roth wrote, "Does anyone know what type of stylus or cartridge >>>> should >>>> >>>>> be >>>>> used for Busy Bee records?" >>>>> >>>>> Hello, Ben, >>>>> >>>>> Here is some information that I hope will help. >>>>> >>>>> Cartridges: Shure M-44 (still manufactured) with the N44-C stylus (I >>>>> don't >>>>> know if this is still manufactured; the N 44/7 stylus is the LP >>>>> version) >>>>> or >>>>> the Stanton 500 series (no longer manufactured) with the Stanton >>>>> stylus >>>>> made for playing 78s (D5127 stylus, blue plastic stylus holder, also no >>>>> longer manufactured; the D5110, white plastic stylus holder, is the LP >>>>> version). >>>>> >>>>> Busy Bee disc records were lateral cut records designed to be played >>>>> with a >>>>> steel needle. These needles had a tip radius of approximately 3 mil, >>>>> where >>>>> 'mil' means 'one thousandth of an inch.' You will get the best sound >>>>> by >>>>> choosing a stylus that plays the portion of the groove that was NOT >>>>> touched >>>>> by the original playback equipment, so depending on how worn your >>>>> records >>>>> are, you need a variety of styli to ride above or below where the steel >>>>> needle traveled to get the best reproduction. >>>>> So, for styli: short answer: 2.3 mil, 2.7 mil, and 3.5 mil -sized styli >>>>> will >>>>> handle the majority of "78's" you will encounter. >>>>> >>>>> For general playback info from a collector's (and professional >>>>> remastering >>>>> engineer's) point of view, try the late Roger Beardsley's article at: >>>>> >>>>> <http://www.therecordcollector.org/articles/aguidetoplaying7.html> >>>>> >>>>> He recommends - a set of 2.0, 2.5, 3.0 and 3.5 mil (or alternatively >>>>> 2.0, >>>>> 2.8 and 3.2 mil) truncated elliptical styli should do for a start; you >>>>> will >>>>> rarely come across a record that does not sound acceptable with one of >>>>> these, although in some cases an 1.5 mil or a 4.0 mil improves the >>>>> reproduction noticeably. >>>>> >>>>> Here is where you can find Expert Stylus' recommendations: >>>>> >>>>> <http://www.78tours.com/Expert_Stylus_Company.htm> >>>>> I hope this is helpful. Best wishes, Mark Hendrix >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>> >>>> >> >>