Styli

What is a Stylus / What am I buying?

First lets identify what you are looking for. A record player consists of a platter and base onto which a tone arm is attached. The tone arm holds a head shell on to which a cartridge or head is mounted. The styli typically slide into the cartridge. We will from now on refer to needles, stylus or tip as the styli.

A picture is worth 1000 words

You will be presented with an image or images with our codes. A visual match up will be your best identification tool. You may have submitted a brand only in which case we will have narrowed the possibilities from 500 to 5 or 10 a visual match with the styli in your hand should confirm the exact replacement you need. Remember colours will vary or the cartridge / styli on you system may not be the original.

The site:

Search engine: Use this to input any data you have to identify your styli.
Help request: Submit your data and a digital picture and our experts will find your styli.
Browse By Brand: Select record player brand name and be presented with their range of styli.

Copies or Originals:

Am i buying a copy or an Original OEM?

All styli on our website are copies, with the following Exceptions:

1) Where a Brand name or Logo Appears on the image.
2) All items above 'N 800' are original OEM stock.

Aren't copies Lower Quality?

Not necessarily no, Lumen styli are made in the UK, and in 28 years we have had very few complaints. In 99% of all product, there is no audible difference between our copies and originals, often, they rate higher.
One example is the Stanton Al500 series. Our N 323 is preferred by radio stations here in Auckland above the originals. One in particular which plays Remixed music 24/7 swears by them.
In the case of most Shure models, the difference is only about 2-5% where the price difference is about 60%.
Nowadays, Shure 'originals' are being made in Mexico, and have had complaints of reproduction quality from the cantilever being too heavy.
In other brands, quite often the styli used by the manufacturers were made under contract in the same factories making unbranded copies.

Rule of thumb: provided copies come from either the UK, Europe or Japan they will be fine, beware of bulk produced Chinese ones as sold by other online outlets.

If i am not satisfied with a copy can i return it?

If you ordered one of our copies, and you think it sounds worse that the original one, you may return it for a swap or a refund, please see our Return Policy

Finding it:

(Clicking on the links displays screenshot)

Either by the search function or from the “brands” listing  you come to the index page for the brand you need (3) which has 3 indexes to find your styli:  image index,  player index or  Cartridge index.
By clicking on the Image or the listing, each stylus has it’s own page  Your will see a price and you can click the “buy now” button  which takes you to a page displaying your product selection and price.

(New Zealanders see also notes)

Choosing the correct one:

How can i be sure to order correctly?

Before you go ordering a styli, there a couple of things you should check first,
Almost 100% of all returns made to us are for the following reason � a stylus was ordered according to the player model, even though the �cartridge� had been changed from the OEM supplied. For example you might have a Shure turntable with a �Audio-Technica� cartridge on it.

Here�s how to be safe:
1) Find your brand and model, then take a look at our picture, comparing it with your old stylus. If it�s looks the same then you will be safe to order it.
2) If different looking, this means the cartridge has at some stage been changed. Take a closer look at the cartridge itself, see if there are any numbers or a logo on it.
3) If there is anything on it, for example a brand or number, try searching for it via our search function, if nothing shows up try splitting up numbers and letters.
4) If nothing comes up at all, take a look at all images on our 'Top 20' page.. I say this because often when a cartridge has been changed, quite a common one will be used.
5) if you still can�t be sure, rest assured that we will make swaps if the wrong one is ordered.
6) if you can take and submit a picture to us, this will enable us to make recommendation to you.

Hope this helps!

Buying It - Order online

How can I order from you?

Orders can be placed directly on this website, our credit card transactions are processed through DPS Payment Express. Online ordering : once you have found the product you need, there is a 'buy now' button near the top right of the page. Clicking on the 'buy now' button will take you to a 'checkout' page where payment and delivery details are entered. After completing this screen your stylus will be dispatched asap And you should be listening to your records in a few days! Products are shipped well packaged and always reach you in good condition.

Shipping timetable and information

Please click here for information about shipping times and any delays.