Ortofon 2m Blue 100th Anniversary Edition Replacement Stylus

julho 03, 2022 Postar um comentário

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Hi
I wonder if you can give some advice. I have a Carbon Debut DC with Ortofon Red. This week I upgraded my Phono and also replaced the stylus with a Ortofon Blue.

All settings are supposed to be the same (e.g. tracking weight. phono capacitance setting etc) and I have checked alignment etc.

I am noticing a lot of distortion. e.g. A track has a passage of music that should have output in the left channel, and silence in right. What actually happens is that I get a very distorted image of the left channel coming through the right channel. It is a harsh distorted sound.

If I but the Red stylus back on, it is fine.

My immediate reaction is that it is a faulty stylus; however I am aware of my limited knowledge.

Also, the stylus was well packaged, however there was no seal on the box. Is this usual for Ortofon needles.

Thanks
Andrew
Hi!
I may have the answer...I have a new Pro-ject Esprit turntable, which came with an Ortofon 2M Red cartridge. I tried twice to place a Blue stylus on it and got distortions.

I eventually contacted Ortofon directly to see if they were aware of the problem. They informed me if I purchased the stylus from an authorized Ortofon dealer, I could send it to them and they would replace it under warranty. When I said I bought them both from Amazon, they let me know Amazon is not actually an authorized dealer...meaning I was actually getting the styli from 3rd party vendors, and who knows where they got them from.

It also occurred to me that the boxes the styli came in are not sealed, so really, no way to tell if you're actually getting a new stylus, as you can re-attach the stylus guard without much trouble.

I got my money back from Amazon and purchased another Blue from an authorized dealer, knowing they got it directly from Ortofon, and no more issues.

Hope this helps!
I almost wonder if people are scamming Amazon and sending back worn styli, or if Ortofon had a bad run that Amazon happens to have stock of. There was a thread somewhere awhile back where a guy purchased a Denon MC cart and the cart inside the box was a cheapo Numark Groove Tool or something similar. Who knows...
I had the same when I bought a 2M Blue stylus from some audio shop through Amazon UK. Sounded really bad and the distortion would occur on any tracking force over something like 0.6g.
On inspection it was clear the suspension was shot and the trader was kind of a dick about it and told me to get in touch with Ortofon. Once Ortofon confirmed it was faulty (pretty obvious) I sent it back to the seller. Even then I had to chase them up for the refund after not hearing from them for a couple of weeks.
I bought another from elsewhere and it sounded great.
Anyway seems like a thing with buying 2M Blues online as I've read about similar occurrences. Might be a QC thing, might be bad sellers. Get it returned for a replacement.

Last edited: Mar 11, 2019
In the US, Amazon is apparently an authorized retailer for Ortofon.

You will note that under the product description, in blue, are the words "by Ortofon".

Just clarifying this for customer's in the U.S.
I thought so too, but if you look on the right, it says sold by "AVA Trade" and fulfilled by Amazon....
I bought mine at an authorized brick and mortar dealer here in canada for 200$. They even put it on my table an set everything up.... why buy on amazon when if you have a local dealer that gives you this service?
Hello,
I have read a few posts and know I am not alone with this issue.

I had a problem with a replacement Blue stylus I purchased in August. It slid onto the cartridge body with no resistance whatsoever, and felt extremely loose like it could slip off under its own weight.
I usually have to force the stylus onto the cartridge body using my thumb and forefinger to gently seat the stylus into its proper position.

I ordered over the phone from a reputable dealer in a nearby city ( Edmonton ). He was reluctant to admit a loose stylus was even possible, and dismissive of the idea, blaming my cartridge ( the cartridge I had originally purchased from him ).
I returned the stylus to the shop, they said it played well on a turntable in their shop, refusing to make a refund. I maintained that the stylus did not fit properly. The stylus was sent to Ortofon Canada for assessment.
I never heard back the details in the report from Ortofon.
I was eventually given a refund ( after 3 months of emails and phone calls ).

I assumed this was a problem with an individual stylus.

I still needed a new stylus.
In January I ordered an Ortofon 2M Blue 100th anniversary stylus hoping for better results. It arrived quickly. It is much looser than the previous one I had to return. You can actually wiggle it on the cartridge body when it is almost fully seated. It will play one song well, sounding as is should, and starts to audibly come loose during the second track. The only way this stylus could possibly be useable would be to glue it in place on the cartridge body.

Looking closely at the stylus bodies of the new replacement and my existing stylus, the mould marks are different, and and the grooves / ridges on the interior of each stylus are different. The plastic is a different colour.
I had to significantly adjust my VTF because the new stylus is much lighter.

I returned the stylus immediately. I hope this seller is not as hard to deal with as the last one. Again the seller claimed there was no flaw prompting a series of emails and phone calls. I contacted Ortofon, in Denmark, directly with the details, they did not comment. They referred me back to the Canadian retailer and distributer.

The question now is how do I safely order a new replacement 2M Blue Stylus, or for that matter any Ortofon product. I live in a remote location making in store inspection difficult. Ortofon quality control issues now seem to be much more common than in the past.

I have been very happy with my original Ortofon 2M Blue up until now.

Once bitten, twice . . . , more than disappointed
I did eventually get a refund on the second stylus. There are evidently Quality Control issues on Ortofon Replacement Stylus.

Peter Lynch

Last edited: Mar 31, 2019
I'm wondering if one or the other is counterfeit?