[Vintage-Audio] Re Shure M91ED and N91ED

[Duane Fischer, W8DBF]

Hello All, 	
	
Thanks to a good friend who took pity on me, I have made arrangements to get a
NOS Shure M91ED cartridge and N91ED stylus.	
	
Monday evening I removed the one year old N91ED stylus I had purchased new five
years before and saved until needed. I installed it in July of 2004.	
	
Now I thought it very odd that it failed in one year, when the previous one had
been working for twelve years! No, I am not too cheap to buy a new stylus, it
simply did not need one! Truthfully, since I bought the Sony 5520 turntable in
August 1974 I have only had to change the stylus once. 	
	
I can still play the original vinyl that I purchased new for $3.49 in the
sixties.	
	
here is what I need to know:	
	
What is the recommended tracking weight for the Shure N91ED stylus? 	
	
Has there been any manufacturing changes made during the past ten to fifteen
years that would shortn an ED stylus life?			
	
How common, or likely, is it for a tone arm to move slightly, just enough to
change the tracking angle on the stylus to produce either distortion or a pop on
some bass notes? Keeping in mind, that the turntable is totally covered in its
protective heavy plastic enclosure, is never moved from its location inside the
stereo console. Only the plastic cover is opened to play a record. There is no
way anything can strike the tonearm.	
	
I am asking because it was suggested to me that that was the problem and not a
damaged or defective stylus.	
	
Does anyone know of a satisfactory replacement cartridge and stylus combination
for the Shure M91ED and N91ED?	
	
FYI: I almost never let the turntable cue a record. I do it manually. 	
	
Confession: I just remembered that about two months ago I did misjudge the angle
and bumped the tone arm downward when I reached for it. That is, I pushed it
down toward the record before i knocked it backtoward the center of the record.
The record was not damaged, probably because of the .75 gram tracking weight, or
dumb luck! 	
	
Could this have ruined the new stylus?	
	
Heck I did this several times over fifteen years with the other stylus and it
was never affected.	
	
thanks all.	
	
Duane W8DBF