New Acutex 412 LPM

This past Monday an Acutex 412 LPM (NOS) I ordered from an Italian EBay vendor arrived. I purchased it at 50% off and after reading other forms about Acutex and already owning a rebadged Piezo YM-320, and finding it to be a gem, I was anxious to try it and soon had it mounted to a head shell and spun an LP on my mid-seventies Yamaha YP 701.

From the first needle drop this cartridge blew me away. Bass? This cart is a base monster! All the words that describe a good cartridge come to mind. The clarity, depth and separation of the 412 is stunning. Even with my somewhat diminished middle aged hearing I can detect subtleties from my albums I’ve not heard before. This cart is as detailed as my Empire 245 but without the fatigue that accompanies that particular offering.

The cart at a teensy 4g mass was a challenge to balance on the Yamaha but a Stanton head shell with an added 2g mass did the trick. All week I’ve listened to one recording after another just to hear what this cartridge can do. Oh, BTW, this Acutex was the first unused cartridge I’ve ever bought. And, what a good choice it was!
 
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I got an M312 III STR from the same vendor and I really like it a lot. It all started with an orphaned M206 II I found, complete with LPM "Saturn V" headshell, in the bottom of a box containing a Pioneer PL-200. After years of neglect, I finally got a NOS N210 II E stylus for it and was so impressed that I immediately ordered the M312 III STR. I wasn't disappointed.

They do tend to need a heavy headshell. I'm using the 9g Technics "MK1" headshell on my MK2 table to add a couple of grams. It works fine but if you want to see a really light cartridge, check out the 200 series. Not being a tri-pole design, they're even lighter. Using the 11g LPM headshell, it's barely possible to set the VTF at 2.1g with the counterweight run all the way in.

I'm curious to know what the difference is between the M412 and the M312. I don't know the specs on the 412. Did you get a spec sheet with your cartridge?

I believe it has the same STR tip as the 312 but it has a different cantilever, longer and thinner than the 412. The two bodies are pretty different internally as well. I'm wondering whether there's a significant performance difference.

John
 
I did get a spec sheet:

Freq Resp. 20KHz-35
Ch. Sep. 28 dB at 1 KHz and 25 dB at 10Khz
Output 3.5 mV
DC Resis. 710 ohm
Load Resis. 47 Kohm
Tracking 1.5-2.3

I'm tracking mine at 2 g

From what I've read some (many?) prefer the 312 saying it less strident. But the 412, to me, is not at all strident/fatiguing. I have a few that sound that way such as the a fore mentioned Empire 245. My Shure M95 ED strikes me as that way as well.
 
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I did get a spec sheet:

Freq Resp. 20KHz-35
Ch. Sep. 28 dB at 1 KHz and 25 dB at 10Khz
Output 3.5 mV
DC Resis. 710 ohm
Load Resis. 47 Kohm
Tracking 1.5-2.3

I'm tracking mine at 2 g

From what I've read some (many?) prefer the 312 saying it less strident. But the 412, to me, is not at all strident/fatiguing. I have a few that sound that way such as the a fore mentioned Empire 245. My Shure M95 ED strikes me as that way as well.

Congrats! I have a 312, 315 and a 415. I find the 415 quite strident and hard to tame, regardless of the headshell and arm combination's I've tried.

I'm going from memory here as I'm not at home right now, but the Resistance/Impedance on the 312 is 580 ohms and the channel separation is at 30db/27db @ 1khz/10khz compared to the specs you've got posted there

The cantilever construction, I prefer the 312, as I recall the 412/415 have a short stocky cantilever, which as boreas has told me in the past, is slightly harder to get right, from an engineering perspective.

Look forward to more of your findings!
 
I did get a spec sheet:

Freq Resp. 20KHz-35
Ch. Sep. 28 dB at 1 KHz and 25 dB at 10Khz
Output 3.5 mV
DC Resis. 710 ohm
Load Resis. 47 Kohm
Tracking 1.5-2.3

The M312 III STR is as follows:

F.R. 20Hz - 35KHz
Ch. Sep. 30dB @ 1KHz, B @ 10KHz
DCR 580 ohms
Res. 47Kohms
Tracking 1.5g - 2.3g
Compliance 24 x 10-6

I'm tracking mine at 2 g

Me, at 1.8g.

What are the compliance figures for yours?

From what I've read some (many?) prefer the 312 saying it less strident. But the 412, to me, is not at all strident/fatiguing.

Thanks! You just saved me some money! ;)

I have a few that sound that way such as the a fore mentioned Empire 245. My Shure M95 ED strikes me as that way as well.

Hmmmm.... That's not at all my impression of the Shure. Not to derail the thread but do you have an original stylus?

Thanks for posting those specs!

John
 
Congrats! I have a 312, 315 and a 415. I find the 415 quite strident and hard to tame, regardless of the headshell and arm combination's I've tried.

I'm going from memory here as I'm not at home right now, but the Resistance/Impedance on the 312 is 580 ohms and the channel separation is at 30db/27db @ 1khz/10khz compared to the specs you've got posted there

The cantilever construction, I prefer the 312, as I recall the 412/415 have a short stocky cantilever, which as boreas has told me in the past, is slightly harder to get right, from an engineering perspective.

Look forward to more of your findings!

The 412 stylus is shorter than the 312 from what I can see in the pictures of both. I am so very tempted to buy a 312 for comparison.
 
The 412 stylus is shorter than the 312 from what I can see in the pictures of both. I am so very tempted to buy a 312 for comparison.

Wouldn't hurt to grab a few more for replacement styli down the line, who knows when we'll be able to buy them again once they're all sold!
 
The M312 III STR is as follows:

F.R. 20Hz - 35KHz
Ch. Sep. 30dB @ 1KHz, B @ 10KHz
DCR 580 ohms
Res. 47Kohms
Tracking 1.5g - 2.3g
Compliance 24 x 10-6



Me, at 1.8g.

What are the compliance figures for yours?



Thanks! You just saved me some money! ;)



Hmmmm.... That's not at all my impression of the Shure. Not to derail the thread but do you have an original stylus?

Thanks for posting those specs!

John

Opps-ee-daisy ....The channel separation I quoted was wrong. It should read 30 dB and 27 dB.

Compliance is listed as 24x10(-6).

I do not have an OEM stylus but a Jico. I do have OEM and Jico styli for my other Shure models (M75, M91, M91ED, M93, V15 II, and V15 IV) and found the Jicos to be excellent alternatives. Only with the M95 have I found it not to be. And it is the only Shure I don't have an OEM stylus for comparison.

As I said above I am very tempted to buy a 312. :music:
 
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I haven't seen the 412 stylus available anywhere on its own, but I have seen the 312 stylus going for $158 at
http://www.turntableneedles.com/Acutex-M312-Stylus_p_3845.html

Needless to say, getting it from the same ebay vendor you got your cart from, you get the whole cart, which you can stash away for the future, for much less

Honestly, that is why I think I will buy a 312. I might not put it away but rotate it through my TTs and it should still be fine for as long as I am around. :D

Gerard
 
Indeed!

What is the going price of such styli? And vendors who have them?

It's actually cheaper to buy an entire cartridge from Italy than to buy replacement styli from the vendor(s) who have them. TurntableNeedles sells the N312 III STR stylus for around $150.00 I think. Adelcom has an "N312 STR" for a little over $100.00 but, since there's no photo, I don't really know whether it's an LPM or not. I think it probably is since they also list, with photo, an "N312 IIIE" for the flat-nose type (but the description's weird). As far as I know, nobody has styli for the 400 series.

John
 
It's actually cheaper to buy an entire cartridge from Italy than to buy replacement styli from the vendor(s) who have them. TurntableNeedles sells the N312 III STR stylus for around $150.00 I think. Adelcom has an "N312 STR" for a little over $100.00 but, since there's no photo, I don't really know whether it's an LPM or not. I think it probably is since they also list, with photo, an "N312 IIIE" for the flat-nose type (but the description's weird). As far as I know, nobody has styli for the 400 series.

John

Yes. I just did a quick search and found that to be the case. I could buy two complete cartridges for about the same as 1 stylus. The choice is easy. When I made that post only a few minutes ago I had no idea what a stylus would likely cost. I should have had some idea. OEM styli for classic and extinct cartridge makers are getting very pricy. The only recent experience I've had with OEM styli was my purchase of a Piezo YM-320 stylus from William Thakker, Germany, for 39 Euros. A good price for an OEM stylus.
 
Yes. I just did a quick search and found that to be the case. I could buy two complete cartridges for about the same as 1 stylus. The choice is easy.

There's an eBay listing right now, ending in a couple of hours, for a single N.O.S. N312 III STR. It has an opening price of $75.00 with no bidders. So, if you jump on that, you can get a stylus for a 312 for only about a buck more than the entire cartridge from Italy. Such a deal! ;)

John
 
There's an eBay listing right now, ending in a couple of hours, for a single N.O.S. N312 III STR. It has an opening price of $75.00 with no bidders. So, if you jump on that, you can get a stylus for a 312 for only about a buck more than the entire cartridge from Italy. Such a deal! ;)

John


Hmmm ... I don't see such a listing. But, then again, so many do not come up when shopping from Canada. :scratch2:
 
Oh, and careful of the generic replacement styli for these LPM cartridges being offered by European vendors. They will NOT WORK! They're for Pioneer cartridges and a number of other private label cartridges..... I think made by Piezo/Azden. They look quite similar but they don't fit.

John
 
Hmmm ... I don't see such a listing. But, then again, so many do not come up when shopping from Canada. :scratch2:

On the left side of the eBay search results, select "Worldwide". It and a number of other listings should magically appear. :)

John
 
Oh, and careful of the generic replacement styli for these LPM cartridges being offered by European vendors. They will NOT WORK! They're for Pioneer cartridges and a number of other private label cartridges..... I think made by Piezo/Azden. They look quite similar but they don't fit.

John

Yeah I've heard the same thing, I was looking for a conical to throw on my LPM 312 for 45s

This message from Turntableneedles explains:

"ACUTEX CARTRIDGES: this 733-d7 needle is touted across the internet as the substitute for several Acutex models. Now that we have aquired several original Acutex needle models, we have discovered that this 733-d7 will not do the job in the Acutex product line."

http://www.turntableneedles.com/Needle-733-D7_p_1345.html
 
Oh, and careful of the generic replacement styli for these LPM cartridges being offered by European vendors. They will NOT WORK! They're for Pioneer cartridges and a number of other private label cartridges..... I think made by Piezo/Azden. They look quite similar but they don't fit.

John

A very good point. My Piezo cartridge is labeled as something called a "Spectrum" and it looks like an old square body Acutex 308 but the stylus for that is completely different. Only through much digging and help from knowledgeable people here at AK did I find that while that Spectrum cartridge looked like an Acutex 308 it took the stylus of a Piezo YM-320 which is very different. Geesh! :dunno:

And, that rather unappealing looking cartridge with the new stylus turned out to be a real keeper!
 
On the left side of the eBay search results, select "Worldwide". It and a number of other listings should magically appear. :)

John

I've done that and no luck. :scratch2:

For some reason some sellers do not come up. Most likely due to their stating they do not ship to far away places like Canada :D
 
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