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Fisher MT-6225

kretinus

kretinus

squanto was a fool
I got this Sunday, paid too much I'm sure, but after giving it a good cleaning and a good test drive, I can honestly say I don't feel ripped off. It came with a good Shure V15 Type III, sans stylus, so I currently am using a lower OEM Shure from my MCS/Technics until my new stylus arrives, but even so the sound is significantly better, especially in the rumble department. Can't wait to hear it with the V15.
 
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Hooray!!!

I thought I was the only one using one of those. You didn't mention what you paid, but I picked mine up for $65. I also felt like I wasn't getting a bargain but it was the only tt with a strobe (I had a project that really required a strobe) that this particular shop had for under a hundred.

I also really like mine. I put an AT440MLa on it and use it through a Marantz 2230 receiver. I have done quite a few needledrops with it and people I share them with are all very complementary.

Don't be bashful, tell us what you paid.

BTW, I don't see a bubble level on yours. Mine has one and I always assumed it was stock, but perhaps it is not. Is there any glue that doesn't show on the pic that looks like it could be residue from an affixed level?
 
I just picked one of those up a couple of weeks ago, I got it for the Pickering XV-15 that was mounted on it, the platter is kind of light and cheesy, but it seems to have a pretty good arm on it, I am about to take the Thorens off of my main rig for some more mods, I may just throw the Fisher on for awhile and see how it sounds, watch the magnets on the platter, I had to do a little work to mine to keep the speed right. :thmbsp:
 
Pull the platter and flip it over, you will see a magnet running all of the way around an inner lip, I am not sure but I think this has something to do with the speed control, mine had become brittle and cracked over the years and I had to lightly wet sand it to get it to run smoothly. you can see the pickups for this magnet in kretinus's last photo.
 
The the platter is part of the motor, think armature I guess. I paid $71 for it at auction, I suck at auctions. It was local pickup though. It's actually in very good shape, not even a lot of dust and I'm sure I was the first one to have it open for awhile if ever.

The speed control was touchy till I cleaned the pots, now it's spot on. There's a warning about contamination of the magnet, mine is as goos as the day it was new from the looks of it.

The platter is in fact a bit on the light side, pretty sure the one on my MCS is a bit heavier, however, the drive system, as advertised would preclude the need for a massive flywheel type platter, and it does work well. On the other hand, I believe as a result of it's lack of mass, it's a bit prone to feedback.

The two other weaknesses I noticed in the design are the use of 1/2" particle board for the top half of the plinth and plastic for the bottom half, both again leading to the feedback problem, along with the fact that the panel the tone arm is mounted on is plastic and picks up vibration easily as well.

In fact that's the only real complaint I have, it howls if you're not careful, but placement isn't ideal yet either so it's an annoyance, not a problem.
 
Nice catch, especially with the V-15 III. The Pickering XV-15 is another good catch. You'all are doing great. And, even though we don't mention in in mixed company, the old MCS's keep right on spinning. Mine's in the shop with an MCS receiver :)
 
I orginally intended to sell the MCS when I got the stylus for the Fisher, but it is a Technics built DD and I really didn't have much to complain about, hate to say it but the primary reason for the Fisher purchase was it pre-80 and I posted elsewhere about my purging of BPC, even it it wasn't bad BPC. I did sell the other MCS components I got with the TT for what I paid for the whole system so it was essentially free anyway.

If I had to say which TT was better I'd still have to say the Fisher but someone else might say differently.

I have a Sony DD in the garage, why I don't know but I do.
 
CEC is Chuo Denki, a company that made turntables for various mfrs including Marantz. Their tables ran the gamut from so-so to very good, and were it not for your isolation observation, I'd have put yours closer to the upper range.
 
hakaplan said:
CEC is Chuo Denki, a company that made turntables for various mfrs including Marantz. Their tables ran the gamut from so-so to very good, and were it not for your isolation observation, I'd have put yours closer to the upper range.
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If I'm not mistaken, this is one of the higher Fisher models. The isolation issue quite possible could be more a function of age as particle board drys out and becomes brittle as well as plastic and rubber. I haven't been into it deep enough yet to see if the tone arm is isolated at all from the plinth, the location is also an issue, it sits on a shelf bolted to the wall between the speakers.

I have a set of of RS-1001s and a CW sub running on another wall and the feedback doesn't occur. It doesn't occur at all unless I crank it up somewhat.

But all are addressable issues so no big woof, won't be the last turntable I buy but it will keep me happy until I find the right upgrade.
 
kretinus, you didn't mention if yours looks like it may or may not have had a bubble level affixed to it. Since you are only the second person I have found with one of these, I would love to know.

Did yours by chance come with a manual? I would love to get a pdf of that!
 
Markshan, Mine doesn't appear to have ever had a level attached to it, also I have never noticed any kind of Isolation issues with it.
 
The Fisher turntables do not seem to inspire a lot of passion in audio circuits. The Vinyl Engine has a picture of a Mt-6220 there but no manual, they do however have a manual for the 6330. I don't know how simular they are but it might be worth a download. http://www.vinylengine.com/library/fisher/mt-6330.shtml
I bought a low end Fisher MT 272 to use on a second system,replaced the Red Ed cartridge that had a broken sylus when I bought it with a Pickering cart it works ok no noise spins at right speed and has a strobe. It sounds OK.
 
Most audio circles do not even bother to consider something when it is direct drive. Some people slam the 1200s, the most popular tt in history. I think this is a pretty good sounding table.
 
I prefer DD over belt drive because that's what my personal experience told me to go with.

I don't think a bubble level is OEM, I don't have one and I don't see where there ever was one.

In regards to the resonance/isolation issue, there are a lot of possibilties, but it's only occuring when the needle is on the platter when I'm playing the speakers it sits between, you can feel the vibration in the plinth and tonearm, in fact I'm tempted to put a bit of tape on the arm to dampen it and see what happens.

On the other hand, this is the OEM cartidge or shell I'm using so it might just go away on it's own when I have the V15 reinstalled and set up.

I've had several Fisher components in the last year and can't really find fault with any of them, I find it to be decent, reliable equipment at very reasonable prices in regards to the more vintage stuff, I definitely would not give this TT bad marks even with the isolation issue, it's still a very good sounding TT and will be even better when I get the V15 reinstalled.

I get a kick out of people who slam others gear, it means they're so unsure of their own systems quality that they have to reinforce it by slamming someone elses. It's human nature, and it's more than a bit amusing at times.
 
I've got an MT-6250 (with bubble level) and it's been wonderful. No problems at all and greeat sound even with the cheapie Shure I've got on it. Not the most beautiful thing around but really good sonically. Never had any resonance issues.
Paid $20 for it.
 
ampegdan said:
I've got an MT-6250 (with bubble level) and it's been wonderful. No problems at all and greeat sound even with the cheapie Shure I've got on it. Not the most beautiful thing around but really good sonically. Never had any resonance issues.
Paid $20 for it.
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So perhaps the level was an optional item. I could take a picture of mine and see if they are the same.
 
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