I just bought a new stylus and now it sounds like there is too much input coming from it; when the music on the LP gets loud (vocals "s" or "p" sounds, cymbal crash, or just general increase in the dynamics/volume of the recording) I get tons of loud static at those spots just like what happens if you have ever recorded a cassette tape and had the input set too high. The cartridge is a Shure V15 type III and my previous stylus that sounded fine was a Shure VN35E which was Shure's replacement stylus. The new stylus is from Ed Saunders and was meant to go with this cartridge and replace the VN35E. Has anybody ever experienced this issue before? I have already written the company I bought the needle from but have not heard back yet. Many thanks..
The stylus assembly simply contains the moving parts of the cartridge. If the suspension, cantilever and stylus are all in good shape, that's about all there is to a stylus assembly.
There is nothing about the stylus assembly itself which should alter the Voltage output of the cartridge body. That spec is related to the magnets and poles and is fixed with the cartridge body. Therefore, it's very, very doubtful your new stylus assembly could be causing overloading of the phono pre amp.
There could be several issues here and which you need to address will be rather difficult to assess and then take up with the seller.
While a stylus assembly should simply slide into place, the V-15 III is a forty year old cartridge and OEM assemblies from Shure are, I believe, no longer available. This leaves you in a situation similar to a vintage automobile owner who needs a new front fender. You are somewhat forced into buying from a retailer who is selling a product they buy from a secondary vendor.
Inexpensive V-15 stylus assemblies have always been a bit of a problem in the industry with a reputation for poor fit and not always great sound. I can't tell you whether this is a description of your stylus or not. You'll need to take up the issue with your retailer and determine just what they will do to handle the specific situation. Many retailers will not return stylus assemblies since there are unscrupulous individuals who try to pull something over on the dealer. Contact your retailer.
Check the cantilever of the stylus assembly to make sure you didn't damage it in any way during installation. It needs to be absolutely straight and exit the stylus suspension at a 90 degree angle.
It's not for you to check but, suspensions do eventually dry up and will not track well. This comes down to how the assembly was manufactured and how long it has been in storage at the retailer. You really have to trust the dealer to provide goods which are in working order.
It's possible the stylus proper wasn't mounted properly into the end of the cantilever which would cause mistracking.
That's a very slim chance though and you would need a stylus microscope to determine whether this might be the cause of your problem.
It's much more likely you have either slightly misaligned the cartridge body while installing the assembly or the tonearm needs to be re-balanced for the new stylus assembly.
If your tonearm has a removable headshell, make certain it sits properly in its mounting.
Check the alignment of the cartridge body (and the stylus assembly) in the arm/headshell with a decent gauge and double check the arm's balance. Then reset the tracking force and anti-skate.
DO NOT ATTEMPT TRACKING THE V-15 AT THE LOW END OF ITS TRACKING RANGE!!!
The cartridge was designed (forty years ago) when a totally different type of tonearm was in fashion and it's not a great match for most of today's arms.
TRACK THE CARTRIDGE AT THE HIGH END OF THE RECOMMENDED RANGE WHICH WOULD BE APROX. 1 1/2 GRAMS!
YOU WILL DO FAR MORE DAMAGE TO YOUR LP'S AND HAVE MORE STYLUS WEAR WHEN YOU TRACK A STYLUS TOO LIGHT VS TOO HEAVY.
THIS IS VERY IMPORTANT, SET THE TRACKING FORCE TO 1 1/2 GRAMS AFTER REBALANCING THE ARM FOR NEUTRAL STATIC BALANCE. Adjust anti-skating in accordance.
Also, the original V-15's had a brush on the front of the stylus assembly. This needs to be removed and you must then rebalance the arm and reset tracking force and anti-skate.
If that doesn't solve the problem, remove the stylus assembly from the body of the cartridge and re-insert it making sure it fits snugly in place and is square to the cartridge body in all directions.
If your problem still exists, then you have a complaint against the retailer.
Thanks so much for your help with this. I did the things you suggested and the symptoms are gone. The stylus mysteriously broke during a time when a house-sitter was present and it now looks like they fooled with the counter weight as well because it was very out of adjustment (stylus not pushing down enough on record). The house-sitters have little children so it may have been purely an accident...just little hands being where they shouldn't be. In any case, I will make the turntable off limits and remove the headshell next time! I know what you mean about being the owner of an antique car...this turntable is a Thorens TD 165 that my dad passed on to me...it is old and very cool, but I know that it will be really tough to find parts if anything other than a stylus ever fails. Thanks again!