Vivid Line or Shibata

[Jim Creek]

I bought a genuine Pickering D625 replacement stylus. They are still available in the UK. The cost is about $100 shipped. PayPay takes care of the currency conversion.

http://www.pickeringuk.com/styli.html

Mine is sweet and detailed, highly recommended.

 

[malden]

Well, that is eye-opening information. Does that include SAS, Malden?

I have not purchased any SAS stylus, so my comments do not apply to them. I have been avoiding them because I don't think any of my tonearms are up to the task.

 

[cafe latte]

Looking for a new stylus for my 681eee. I originally fitted a Jico Shibata which sounded terrible with bad sibilance. Recently bought a microscope and the reason for the bad sound is now obvious as the Jico Shibata is like a piece of coal full of flaws not to mention it having a HUGE amount of glue. Just for this reason alone I will be getting the Vivid line LP gear stylus.
Chris

 

[twiiii]

I loved the advanced shapes of the Grace F9e and the 881 and 981 Stanton cartridges. The V-15 V MR was a superb tracker. The Fine line/ shapes of my current Dynavectors really reduce groove noise even more than the Stantons and Shures did in the past. Though I admit the V-15 V's could almost track anything. I just don't have tracking issues with my 20 X 2 and 10 x 5. at 2.3 grams. They are superb at the 90 band on my Ortofon test record. I do use a linear arm which helps.

 

[bimasta]

I've learned so much from this still-brief thread. So much knowledge, and it's based on firsthand empirical experience. Opinion and conjecture, "I read somewhere" or "someone told me", have little to no value for me.

That said, this question triggered a little pet peeve of mine (and no disrespect to the poster, he's asking a common question):

Is my system worthy of the "shibata" diamond?

I've used some very good cartridges on far less good tonearm/turntables. In widespread and popular theory, such cartridges require a $5k arm on a $5K turntable. REQUIRE.

But they sound damn good. The improvements are dramatic, beyond question, everyone will hear them.

Am I hearing "the best" these cartridge/styli can deliver? Of course not! And I'll say it again in case some nit-picker (yes, there are some on AK) jumps on me: I don't even claim I'm getting the best or even near it. But the benefits are still very real.

If you have, or can get a cart/stylus better than the rest of your system, use it.

Unless, OBVIOUSLY, the arm/table is SO BAD it can damage the cartridge.

IIRC, Linn's first principle was "start with the source", and upgrade the rest as you can. The first source is the stylus, then the cantilever, then the magnet/coil structure, then the body. So hesitating to use a good cartridge because other parts of the system aren't good enough "in theory or opinion", is a misconception.

This is based on firsthand empirical experience. Believe it if you like, reject it if you like.

 

[steven94]

If I remember correctly needlestein recommended the pickering d 1200 from lpgear and what made better was the tie wire. this is one of the few generics that has it. It's a bonded .0002 x.0007 and tracks at .75 to 1.25

 

[cafe latte]

If I remember correctly needlestein recommended the pickering d 1200 from lpgear and what made better was the tie wire. this is one of the few generics that has it. It's a bonded .0002 x.0007 and tracks at .75 to 1.25

Can this be fitted to the 681eee or do I need to get the vivid line for the 681? I thought they were the same but they are listed seperate?
Cheers
Chris

 

[patient_ot]

LPGear doesn't always play straight. So you never know what you'll get. "Vivid Line" is just a marketing term they use and really means nothing. It could be a true hyperelliptical (e.g. .2 x .3) on some their styli or nothing more than .2 x .7 elliptical. Likewise, some models might have a tie wire and some might not. Also, there is a lot of speculation insofar as who makes them. It could very well be Jico or it could be some other supplier. It probably depends on the model you are buying and what LPG has on hand at any given time.

 

[bobins08]

If I remember correctly needlestein recommended the pickering d 1200 from lpgear and what made better was the tie wire. this is one of the few generics that has it. It's a bonded .0002 x.0007 and tracks at .75 to 1.25

No. Needlestein recommends the Pickering D1200 from Jico. He had a thread about a D 12000 bought direct from Jico. The tie wire is a Jico feature and if you buy from a second party you may not get one.

I have this advice in my notes and I will be buying one direct from Jico.

 

[patient_ot]

Looking for a new stylus for my 681eee. I originally fitted a Jico Shibata which sounded terrible with bad sibilance. Recently bought a microscope and the reason for the bad sound is now obvious as the Jico Shibata is like a piece of coal full of flaws not to mention it having a HUGE amount of glue. Just for this reason alone I will be getting the Vivid line LP gear stylus.
Chris

That sucks you had bad luck with Jico. The one stylus I have from them sounds quite nice but I have never inspected it under a microscope. Just so you know buying from LPG may not solve your problem, since some of their stuff may be made by Jico but spec'd to lower standards.

 

[arts]

No. Needlestein recommends the Pickering D1200 from Jico. He had a thread about a D 12000 bought direct from Jico. The tie wire is a Jico feature and if you buy from a second party you may not get one.

I have this advice in my notes and I will be buying one direct from Jico.

It was on his experience/advice that I bought my D1200 & D6800EEE directly from JICO. They are tie-wire types.

 

[cafe latte]

My two Shibata I got from Jico one for an 881 and the other for a 681 were a joke quality wise, no way will I buy from them again, I can accept a one off issue but not two duds out of two.
Also I sent them an email explaining the issue which they ignored which is another good reason to avoid further business with them.
Chris

 

[Bob in WI]

My two Shibata I got from Jico one for an 881 and the other for a 681 were a joke quality wise, no way will I buy from them again, I can accept a one off issue but not two duds out of two.
Also I sent them an email explaining the issue which they ignored which is another good reason to avoid further business with them.
Chris

That has not been my experience. I have Jico Shibatas on my 3 Shures. Last one I bought is well over a year ago so maybe something has changed.

 

[cafe latte]

That has not been my experience. I have Jico Shibatas on my 3 Shures. Last one I bought is well over a year ago so maybe something has changed.

Have you looked at them under a microscope?
Chris

 

[revox-b77]

My two Shibata I got from Jico one for an 881 and the other for a 681 were a joke quality wise,

I am curious, did you order them directly from Jico? Also when did you purchase?

 

[steven94]

Can this be fitted to the 681eee or do I need to get the vivid line for the 681? I thought they were the same but they are listed seperate?
Cheers
Chris

Yes the Stanton 680/681 and the Pickering XV-15 stylus are interchangeable

 

[steven94]

No. Needlestein recommends the Pickering D1200 from Jico. He had a thread about a D 12000 bought direct from Jico. The tie wire is a Jico feature and if you buy from a second party you may not get one.

Once you said Jico I remembered that duh why not before?.The good news is that Jico is cheaper but I think shipping is more

 

[Bob in WI]

Have you looked at them under a microscope?
Chris

No - why would I?

 

[Bob in WI]

I am curious, did you order them directly from Jico? Also when did you purchase?

From Jico. Maybe that makes a difference. All I know is I've been perfectly happy with the styli.

 

[cafe latte]

No - why would I?

Well I thought my 881 was ok but knew there was an issue with my 681, both under a microscope are horrible, the 881 has rough contact surfaces, the 681 is a nightmare with bits missing. My point is without a microscope you wont know how good yours actually is.
Chris