DizRotus Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 A vintage turntable I acquired has an Empire 2000 E/III cartridge, but the stylus is toast. I've done some online research, including the Vinyl Engine forum, to determine if a suitable replacement stylus is available and/or whether the cartridge is worth the investment. Any information regarding the cartridge and sources for a replacement stylus is much appreciated. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigdnfay1 Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 Same thing happened to me. picked up a Philips 212 with the empire 2000E/III. Here's what I found. empire specs.pdf Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bigdnfay1 Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 there is also an article in Adventures in HIFI:In praise of Empires Oct.25, 2012 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DizRotus Posted March 12, 2017 Author Share Posted March 12, 2017 Thanks for the reply @bigdnfay, and thanks for the specs. What did you do with yours? Did it have a serviceable stylus? If you replaced the stylus, where did you get it? If you used it, what did you think of the sound quality? I've read several favorable reviews on various forums, but a NOS replacement stylus is all but impossible to locate. Even Jico, apparently, no longer makes a replacement. Reactions to generics are varied. The Tonar replacement seems to be a viable possibility. One concern is the age of the body itself. Some have suggested that purchasing a whole NOS unit with 0 hours would be a gamble due to degradation of the suspension inside the cartridge body. The eBay prices for "NOS" units are in the hundreds of dollars, whereas the cost of a Tonar stylus is less than $30, so the gamble is much smaller. I only use my turntable to rip vinyl to FLAC files and I already have two excellent cartridges, so my motivation to play with this is minimal. I am motivated to keep a worthy cartridge (if that's what this is) in use by someone who will appreciate it. I'll probably risk the price of a Tonar stylus and evaluate the results. That said, if someone wants to take on this rescue, the cartridge body is theirs for $15 shipped to 48 contiguous states. There is no shortage of projects at the moment. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnA Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 I had one in college. Fair to middling sound, inexpensive (all I could afford) moderate tracking ability in a Decca London tonearm (Unipivot). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marvel Posted March 12, 2017 Share Posted March 12, 2017 5 hours ago, DizRotus said: There is no shortage of projects at the moment. Isn't that the truth! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DizRotus Posted March 13, 2017 Author Share Posted March 13, 2017 I'm thinking I don't want to mess with it. My offer of the cartridge body for $15 shipped to lower 48 stands. Eventually, I'll probably send it to eBay. I'd rather it get used than go to a landfill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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