Technics 1210 - Best Headshells/Carts and Styli?

SamAK

Title says it all really..

I am now the proud of a pair of the legendary 1210 mk2's, and first things first - I need new needles(or styli, whatever you like to call them)

Anyone got any advice? What do you use for club cueing/beatmatching?

The decks came with KAM heads and carts, both with utterly knackered styli.....right now i'm thinking of just replacing the styli for cheap just to get me up and running, and perhaps have a look at some Ortofon Concordes or similar in the new year!

As i'm a complete beginner to turntables and vinyl dj'ing, I thought it best to consult ye wise ladies and gents of Boards!


Thanks for viewing, and merry christmas!

ThirdMan

SamAK wrote: »

Title says it all really..

I am now the proud of a pair of the legendary 1210 mk2's, and first things first - I need new needles(or styli, whatever you like to call them)

Anyone got any advice? What do you use for club cueing/beatmatching?

The decks came with KAM heads and carts, both with utterly knackered styli.....right now i'm thinking of just replacing the styli for cheap just to get me up and running, and perhaps have a look at some Ortofon Concordes or similar in the new year!

As i'm a complete beginner to turntables and vinyl dj'ing, I thought it best to consult ye wise ladies and gents of Boards!


Thanks for viewing, and merry christmas!

You can't go wrong with the Shure models. They're the industry standard for turntablists, but there's also plenty of techno and house DJs that swear by them. They've got a big bottom end so if you're into bassy music of any variety then you won't be disappointed. The higher end Ortofon models have better sound overall, but they can be pricey. As a beginner DJ you're gonna be quite hard on whatever you use, so you'll want something competitively priced that can withstand the punishment. These are perfect. The M447s are more suitable for hip hop/turntablists, and the M44Gs are more suitable for house & techno DJ. But either one will be fine.

ThirdMan

Do your headshells look like these? They're practically identical to the standard Technics ones. You could just mount the Shures on them. There's no real need to buy new ones.

SamAK

ThirdMan wrote: »

Do your headshells look like these? They're practically identical to the standard Technics ones. You could just mount the Shures on them. There's no real need to buy new ones.

That's them, except mine are silver.

If there's no need to fork out $$ for new heads and carts then I think the most sensible option is to just get new styli and stick them straight on the KAMs, these are the ones that are on it..http://www.juno.co.uk/products/kam-ks1-stylus-replacement-stylus-for-kc1-cartridge/311054-01/

I'm not sure how compatible styli and cartridges are, but it'd be nice if I could just buy needles and keep using the old carts and heads. Those KC-1's seem to have been discontinued though..

And good point about me starting out, i'm gonna be spending quite a while getting to know the ropes so there's no point wearing out 170 quid Ortofons!

ThirdMan

SamAK wrote: »

That's them, except mine are silver.

If there's no need to fork out $$ for new heads and carts then I think the most sensible option is to just get new styli and stick them straight on the KAMs, these are the ones that are on it..http://www.juno.co.uk/products/kam-ks1-stylus-replacement-stylus-for-kc1-cartridge/311054-01/

I'm not sure how compatible styli and cartridges are, but it'd be nice if I could just buy needles and keep using the old carts and heads. Those KC-1's seem to have been discontinued though..

And good point about me starting out, i'm gonna be spending quite a while getting to know the ropes so there's no point wearing out 170 quid Ortofons!

You might find it hard finding replacement styli for the Kam carts. If that's the case just pick up the Shures. In fact, if you can afford it you should probably pick them up either way. When I bought my Technics there was a pair of budget Stanton carts/styli in them. They were okay, but the difference in sound and feel when I upgraded to the Shures was huge.

SamAK

Yeah, makes sense. No point in skimping on the most important component in the whole process, and no point going overboard either

...i'll have these - http://http://www.thomann.de/ie/shure_m44g_dj_system.htm

Price for the pair - 132 quid plus postage equals 147, which is perilously close to Ortofon money! But they'll more than do for now, and when I smash the needle by way of ham-fisted noobishness, it's only 25 euro to replace.


ThirdMan, thanks a mill, you've been extremely helpful!

ThirdMan

SamAK wrote: »

Yeah, makes sense. No point in skimping on the most important component in the whole process, and no point going overboard either

...i'll have these - http://http://www.thomann.de/ie/shure_m44g_dj_system.htm

Price for the pair - 132 quid plus postage equals 147, which is perilously close to Ortofon money! But they'll more than do for now, and when I smash the needle by way of ham-fisted noobishness, it's only 25 euro to replace.


ThirdMan, thanks a mill, you've been extremely helpful!

No worries. I'm happy to help. And yeah, it's a lot of money alright. But remember that you're still buying a professional product. So don't think of them as second best. Every carts/stylus has different pros and cons. None of them are perfect. Anyway, best of luck with your DJing!

milltown

He's right. The M44Gs are the business. I had an old pair of Stantons that sounded OK but were forever skipping when I was cuing up a record. The Shures sound fantastic and track brilliantly at lighter weights, so less chance of damaging the precious records.

SamAK

ThirdMan wrote: »

Every carts/stylus has different pros and cons.

I've been reading reviews of the M44G's, and they do sound like a good all rounder! One thing i've noticed is that there's very little discussion about headshells, which got me wondering - is there any benefit at all to changing heads, or is it purely for aesthetic reasons?

If they're just there to hold the cartridge and don't actually do anything then i'm definitely getting some standard Technics ones (because they look good, and match the deck :-D )

ThirdMan

SamAK wrote: »

I've been reading reviews of the M44G's, and they do sound like a good all rounder! One thing i've noticed is that there's very little discussion about headshells, which got me wondering - is there any benefit at all to changing heads, or is it purely for aesthetic reasons?

If they're just there to hold the cartridge and don't actually do anything then i'm definitely getting some standard Technics ones (because they look good, and match the deck :-D )

Yeah get the Technics one. As far as I know there's no difference between them, but it doesn't make sense having Kam heads on a Technics turntable.