Oyaide Head Shell (w/ 5N Silver headshell wire set) HS-CF

In 2007, we created HS-CF especially for lovers of analog audio.
Its 4mm thick headshell is made of CFRP. Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic, which is composed of seventeen layers of prepreg material. It smoothly attenuates interference from vibrations without altering the behavior of the stylus. The socket is made of aluminum with resin press fit inside.

The pins are gold-plated brass, and the lead wires are 5N pure silver which are insulated with a double layered silk covering. The rhodium plated lead tip is made of phosphor bronze.

The most essential thing for headshell is high structural rigidity yet lightweight and capability to attenuate unnecessary vibration. We selected CFRP, Carbon Fiber Reinforced Plastic, for HS-CF as the best material which satisfies such requirements.

Its 4mm thick shell part is composed of seventeen layers of prepreg material (carbon fiber). At the planning phase, we employed single directional alignment with an exception of the center layer in order to gain vibration damping property maximum. By the application of Epoxy resin as a matrix material, its mechanical strength property remains unchanged semipermanently. It is brought to completion by angle type casting to avoid adhesive joints and cutting operation by CNC machining.

The seventeen layers prepreg material is made from T700, highly rigid carbon fiber, manufactured by TORAY and “1K cloth” is employed as its surface material and is made from T300 carbon fiber which is also manufactured by TORAY.

0.2mm 5N pure silver wires are manufactured by advanced manufacturing processes such as continuous casting process in high-frequency electric furnace, cold rolling process, annealing operation and drawing process. They are stranded in seven lines to insure enough cross-sectional area and minimize its conductor resistance.

The employment of double layered silk covering insulator realizes clean signal transmission without static electrical charge. Although resinic materials such as PVC or FEP are easy to be negatively charged, in contrast, silk has electric resistivity to static charge and excellent electrical characteristic. Moreover, the glass fiber sleeve also has high insulation property and resistance to electrical static charge.

The rhodium plated lead tip is made of phosphor bronze and enhances degree of adhesion with contact pins.