AT331 source?

[proufo]

Hello to all.

The Quadfather indicates in his valuable postings that the AT331 is $45.

I found it at Needle Doctor for $89!!!

www.needledoctor.com/show...temnum=142

Is there an alternate source for this cart?

AT also doubled the price of their moving-coil recently.

 

[MCunningham]

Here's the best source for it I have. I paid 58.95 for mine a year ago, so it's gone up in price by $5.00 (now listed at $63.95). Even with international shipping, it still comes in cheaper than the price you have, plus they also take PayPal.

mike

Elex Atelier

 

[quadjoe]

Hi !

I bought my AT331Lp at www.garage-a-records.com for 59.95 plus S & H. They also have lots and lots of accessories and turntables as well. (I also purchased a Grado Prestige Blue cartridge which I have found will also work for CD-4 from them.)

 

[The Quadfather]

I bought the AT331LP at J&R Music World as I recall. I don't know if it's still the same price.

The Quadfather

 

[proufo]

Hello and thanks to all for the info.

Do you guys glue the universal mount to the body of the cart?

Thanks in advance.

 

[The Quadfather]

Glue the cart to the universal mount? No, wouldn't think of it. The cartridge comes with a retaining bolt for the U-mount. If you ever want to mount the cartridge on a P mount turntable, you'll wish you didn't glue it. Of course, if it's cheap to buy another one, that might not be a problem but if the pins get dirty, you'll need to be able to remove it.

The Quadfather

 

[quadjoe]

I agree with Quadfather, it's a bad idea to glue the cart to the universal mount. I use mine in a p-mount tonearm so the universal mounting adapter is still in the box. I like the simplicity of the p-mount system as there are no adjustments to make and the sysetm assures correct alignment of the stylus.

 

[vinylguy4]

I got mine at a local record store at the end of 2000. Price was $51.49. I believe they still have them in stock but
I haven't checked the price lately.
Same store had the Brian Ferry DVD-A

Vinylguy4

 

[winopener]

About the 1/2 inch mount on the Pmount cart, it's really worth to notice that if the tonearm of your deck doesn't have a vertical regulation, you may find yourself stuck in a middle: for example, i can't mount the 331 on a Garrard Zero because the stylus will be below the wheel. No problem with a Thorens deck.
BTW, i've found that the 1/2 inch adapter no need glue: it's hard enough to push inside the cart, and one it's there i doubt you can take it off without cracking it.
To sum it short, if you have a Pmount deck, go for it; if you have a normal 1/2 inch deck, be very careful to have enough room of regulation for the cart *and* the adapter.

 

[The Quadfather]

My Marantz 6300 has a half inch mount. I have no trouble with it. It does have a vertical heigth adjustment for the gimbal on the tonearm. In fact, just about everything is adjustable. A nightmare for a novice, but heaven for an old technician who grew up in the quad era.

The Quadfather

 

[proufo]

Ed Saunders, the guy that offers home-brewed CD-4 carts (the one the quadfather tested) is offfering the AT331 for US$49 with free shipping:

cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI...1356075557

No id is provided but the picture and specs are for the 331.

Best regards.

 

[berninahusq]

Hi Winopener,

I just recently bought a Garrard Zero 100 and was going to purchase an AT331 and pair it up with the Zero because of Quadfather's high recommendation.

I didn't quite understand the problems using the AT331 with the Zero. Can you please elaborate?

Thanks--Ed

 

[The Quadfather]

The AT331LP can be had from J&R Music World for the price of $44.88 . The web page is www.jandr.com . Once you get into the website, just type in AT331LP, using the website search engine, and it will bring it up. Happy Hunting!

The Quadfather

 

[winopener]

The special tonearm that is mounted on the Garrard Zero has (at least on my model) no adjustment for the height of the tonearm - it has been build when the cart were on the same height.
The problem is that the 331 has the same height as a 1/2 inch mount cart *without* the adapter.
Add the adapter to the 331 to make it fit for a 1/2 inch shell, and the cart is +- 5 mm. more.
Since the toneram on the Zero doesn't have any vertical regulation, you end with the stylus that is well below the wheel, and the only way to play something would be to have the tonearm that from the fulcre to the cart goes *up*. Of course all the tracking angles of the stilus are wrong and so on.

What may be useful is if you can find (Quadfather remeber what was the model) the same cart but NATIVE 1/2 inch - i think it was the Trackmaster 8 or something similar. I spotted it some times on ebay when i had already on order the 331...

 

[The Quadfather]

The Trackmaster 8 is identical to the AT331LP. It only differs in being white instead of grey with a red stylus. They are both convertable from P mount to 1/2 inch mount. They are about average height for a 1/2 inch mount, so I don't know what the Garrard zero turntable was made for, maybe they had their own special cart. I would suggest getting another turntable. There are many fine turntables just looking for a home that don't have that problem. Save the orphan turntables! (hee hee)

The Quadfather

 

[berninahusq]

Ah no...please don't tell me to get another turntable...I've always wanted a Zero since they came out, but being in high school then, couldn't afford it. And now finally getting one a couple weeks ago after all these years... The Zero is so cool! I just sent off a check today for $100 for a 45 spindle, a long spindle and another cartridge shell.

Is there another quad cartridge that does not have all those issues that the AT331 does, or should I take my Grado F1+ or AT15Sa off my Technics SL-1650 headshells and put the one that works best it on the Zero?

Since I found you guys on the quadraphonicquad yahoo group last year I have been reliving my "Quad" days always searching for those elusive Quad SQ LPs which I was mildly impressed with until I got a Tate. Am I going through the 7-year itch?

Thanks Winopener and Quadfather...Ed

 

[The Quadfather]

If you are going to listen just to SQ, you don't need a special cart. However, I don't know of a cart that will work with that table and do CD-4 too, but I'm not an expert on the Zero either. Look for a linear contact stylus and an extended frequency response. Apparently it doesn't have to go all the way out to 45 KHZ to work, but it wouldn't hurt. Also, I don't know if the Zero is a CD-4 compatible turntable. It requires low capacitance tonearm and signal wiring. I think the Marantz 6300 is pretty cool. It doesn't have the thingy that keeps the cartridge aligned with the record, but it gets the job done anyway. Maybe you could have two turntables, one to play SQ, and QS, Stereo, and to be cool, and one for Quadradiscs. (grin) Happy Hunting!

The Quadfather

 

[AllAroundSurround]

I use my CD4 Setup T-T to play back CD4/ SQ /QS for encoding to d.t.s. No need to get another t-t just for Sq/QS the CD4 setup is perfect for the other formats !

 

[The Quadfather]

... if you can find a CD-4 cart for it. I wish you well in that search.

The Quadfather

 

[proufo]

In the 70s I had two separate TTs, one for stereo/matrix and another for CD-4.

One of the TTs was a Zero100. I think it was a good idea but so cheaply implemented!

Has anyone here modded a Zero100?

Another cool idea I learned of recently is a variable overhang tonearm. Sounds like something I'd like to explore for the second incarnation of my Teres TT. First incarnation is still in utero though.

I'd guess these ideas do not get popular as their real-world advantages are perhaps irrelevant. But they sure are ellegant.