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Welcome Licorice Pizza (LP) lovers! Setup guides and Vinyl FAQ.

Even in the 50s there were proponents for smaller tip radii...

as photomicrographs revealed that a .5mil tip could trace a mono groove far better and inflict less damage to heavily modulated grooves than a 1mil tip. But .5mil appears to be have been too small for general use and .7mil is now the standard size.

However, despite the RIAA standard, groove shape and size varied from company to company, state of wear of the cutting stylus, the plating process of the master and stampers. So there really aren't "wide groove" LPs as a standard.

Like the 78s I also play, treat each record differently, some will play better with a .7mil, others with a 1mil. But beware that your 1mil may not track transients well.

I have a set of original Shure M44 styli - not the highest-fi by any standards, but in the same body I can compare .5, .6, .7 and 1mil styli on the same record. I haven't tried it yet as I need sacrificial good quality LPs.

I hope this helps - remember - if it sounds right to you it is right.


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