Pickering and Stanton Users and Collectors.
- Thread starter freQ(*)Oddio
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freQ(*)Oddio
Super Member
https://www.lpgear.com/product/PICSD1200.html the vivid line 1200 from lp gear is what i was considering, they also have the d1800s stylus but it looks like same spec s as the 1200 from them, could be same stylus just a gimmick, ill spend a little more on a stylus for this cart, the 750 i have looks shot , also cantilever is loose, bent and soggy.
Apparently I'm lying to you. I just grabbed it, and that particular body does have a label. Pickering V15/AM-1. Stylus has no markings though. I must be thinking of one of my other bodies with no sticker. Thats the trouble when you've got too much stuff, you forget exactly what it is you have. I did remember the gold nail and what machine it was on though.
I suppose it could be aftermarket, but its old aftermarket if so. No PC stamping on the side, so anything is possible. Its got a fat cantilever and being on a record changer I don't think its anything particularly amazing.
vwestlife
Super Member
Is there any DIY way to fix a Pickering stylus with a collapsed cantilever? I got an NP/AC cartridge and it came with the original stylus, whose diamond tip is still in fine shape, but it rides so low that it can't play the first half-inch or so of an LP due to the raised edge, and any slight warp causes it to scrape. There's less than 1 mm of clearance between the cartridge and vinyl when it's playing.
I've thought of wedging in some blue tack (a.k.a. FunTac) to prop it up... would that work, or would that cause it to lose all its vertical compliance?
I've thought of wedging in some blue tack (a.k.a. FunTac) to prop it up... would that work, or would that cause it to lose all its vertical compliance?
yep, sounds fine.
Right now I'm listening to it's elder brother, the Garrard Lab 80 (the pic is the one from my Lab 80 MKII) running a Stanton 680 body with a Pickering D140 stylus.
freQ(*)Oddio
Super Member
freQ(*)Oddio
Super Member
i received a vivid line d1800s this morning, dialed in and fabulious sounding, the gold dustamatic was a exact fit to the stylus, i swapped out the silver brush
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Nice,let me know how it sounds in a week or so as well. Curious
The VividLine has the same tip dimensions as the Stereohedron II. That's not to say it will have the same sound as there is more to a stylus assembly than tip dimensions. However, the tracing edge is extremely fine and tracking should be exceptional. The thin tracing edge does create more friction between the diamond and vinyl so keep the VTF around 1 gram to avoid excessive wear.
freQ(*)Oddio
Super Member
bimasta
Addicted Member
I found an XSV-3000 body in my drawer. The pins were so corroded my ohmmeter wouldn't even make contact. After a cleaning, the coils read 607/608. Anything I say below based on idle chat I only dimly recall from these boards — I didn't know I had it, so didn't pay close attention — so please correct and guide me.
It's virtually the same as the Stanton 881S, and will take the same stylus. Or so I heard. I have the 881S (love it) but if they're the same, is there any point in trying the Stanton stylus? For the same reason, is there any point getting a new (aftermarket) stylus for the Pickering on its own? If so, is there a good new stylus?
I seem to remember also having the stylus carrier separately, and wondering what it belonged to. It had the brush and a busted cantilever. If I find it, has it any use (like maybe a DIY retip)?
Does the severity of the corrosion on the pins suggest similar deterioration internally, as to render it useless? Any tests I can do? Should I just toss it?
Any advice is appreciated. Your time is valuable.
It's virtually the same as the Stanton 881S, and will take the same stylus. Or so I heard. I have the 881S (love it) but if they're the same, is there any point in trying the Stanton stylus? For the same reason, is there any point getting a new (aftermarket) stylus for the Pickering on its own? If so, is there a good new stylus?
I seem to remember also having the stylus carrier separately, and wondering what it belonged to. It had the brush and a busted cantilever. If I find it, has it any use (like maybe a DIY retip)?
Does the severity of the corrosion on the pins suggest similar deterioration internally, as to render it useless? Any tests I can do? Should I just toss it?
Any advice is appreciated. Your time is valuable.
Electrically, I believe that the Pickering match to the Stanton 881 is the XSV-4000, not the 3000. I've had corroded pins and after cleaning the cartridge worked fine. To be sure, why not mount your 4000 and try the 881 stylus in it to confirm that the cartridge works?
Needlestein will be here shortly! There's a number of aftermarkets that will work pretty well, and some of them are quite inexpensive. Might not sound much different than the 881 though. I'd still be inclined to keep - but again, I'm a self acknowledged PickerStant horder.
Needlestein will be here shortly! There's a number of aftermarkets that will work pretty well, and some of them are quite inexpensive. Might not sound much different than the 881 though. I'd still be inclined to keep - but again, I'm a self acknowledged PickerStant horder.
bimasta
Addicted Member
Oh, I was using a multimeter, switched to the Ohm position. Am I using the terms incorrectly?Alternatively, you can check the coil resistance with a multimeter. Pretty easy
DOH! That's what I get for reading through posts so quickly! My manual states 700 ohm resistance. There might be some variance - I believe when I checked mine after I first got it, it registered near to yours (closer to 600 ohm). I know that there's some other threads where users also measured in the 600 range
Check this fairly recent thread for replacement styli:
http://audiokarma.org/forums/index....-pickering-d3000-stylus.762863/#post-10399214
Your friendly neighborhood audio fetishist here, just nodding in to say, in the words of the old Certs TV commercial, "Stop! You're both right!"
The original spec was indeed 600 ohms, 270 mH inductance. Pickering later tweaked the body specs slightly to 700 ohms, 350mH. By itself, this tweak isn't enough of a change to be audible, and I haven't seen anything to indicate that the stylus was changed, but the frequency response graph was flatter looking in the high treble.
Did it need flattening? Here's what Audio magazine got when they tested a 600-ohm 3000 for the June 1977 issue:
Sounds good (on 1977 stereos, at least), but looks bad on paper, increasingly so as people began to expect flat response from cartridges. You could say Pickering Stantonized the 3000. They didn't turn it into the 881S by any means, but nudged it closer.
Geek note: Audio tested an original 600-ohm cartridge in 1977 and measured it as such, but published the mfr. specs of the tweaked version, hinting that the change was made about a year after the 1976 introduction.
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bimasta
Addicted Member
Thanks for all the help. More may be coming — but I have the patience of a 2-year old. I couldn't wait.
I put the Stanton 881S stylus into the Pickering body — it's a better (snugger) fit than in its own body. I mounted it in my lowest mass h'shell, the SME cheesegrater. I didn't have a decent set of leads, just found 4 of mixed age, type, condition. Overhang off about .4mm (the SME h'shell has no adjustment) but I'll fix that later. Then into the tonearm at 1.25g (linear tracking, so no anti-skate).
BRILLIANT! Not just as a general superlative, but it has sparkle, dazzle, excitement. Its energy level reminded me of my Empire 2000Z, but better — OTOH the Empire is NOS and may change.
It jumped straight on to my favorites list. Surface noise a bit more than the cart it replaced, but that one has a NOS stylus. I'll play with VTA/VTF to see if noise improves. It may sound even better when I take time to dial it in better, but even if it doesn't change I'd be churlish to complain.
I don't understand how such an old cartridge kicking around in a drawer, not it a box or any other protection, and so corroded it wouldn't even make contact, could sound so new and alive. 3-4 months ago I found another cartridge I didn't know I had, ADC, and it also blew my mind. I'm very lucky — I have about 15 carts in all, 50/50 MM/MC, all vintage (over 25 years) and most NOS (so I'm spared the maddening stylus hunts). And with only one exception (Shure V15ivHE NOS), they all sound just GREAT to me.
Either I defied the odds of random selection (they can't all be great) or I have no judgment.
I haven't used an LOMC for some time after using them exclusively for 25 years. I'm kind of afraid to — did I lose 25 years of joy (when my hearing was perfect) because I was suckered by the propaganda of "experts" for-hire?
I put the Stanton 881S stylus into the Pickering body — it's a better (snugger) fit than in its own body. I mounted it in my lowest mass h'shell, the SME cheesegrater. I didn't have a decent set of leads, just found 4 of mixed age, type, condition. Overhang off about .4mm (the SME h'shell has no adjustment) but I'll fix that later. Then into the tonearm at 1.25g (linear tracking, so no anti-skate).
BRILLIANT! Not just as a general superlative, but it has sparkle, dazzle, excitement. Its energy level reminded me of my Empire 2000Z, but better — OTOH the Empire is NOS and may change.
It jumped straight on to my favorites list. Surface noise a bit more than the cart it replaced, but that one has a NOS stylus. I'll play with VTA/VTF to see if noise improves. It may sound even better when I take time to dial it in better, but even if it doesn't change I'd be churlish to complain.
I don't understand how such an old cartridge kicking around in a drawer, not it a box or any other protection, and so corroded it wouldn't even make contact, could sound so new and alive. 3-4 months ago I found another cartridge I didn't know I had, ADC, and it also blew my mind. I'm very lucky — I have about 15 carts in all, 50/50 MM/MC, all vintage (over 25 years) and most NOS (so I'm spared the maddening stylus hunts). And with only one exception (Shure V15ivHE NOS), they all sound just GREAT to me.
Either I defied the odds of random selection (they can't all be great) or I have no judgment.
I haven't used an LOMC for some time after using them exclusively for 25 years. I'm kind of afraid to — did I lose 25 years of joy (when my hearing was perfect) because I was suckered by the propaganda of "experts" for-hire?
Unasked-for advice for bimasta and folks in his Pickering/Stanton position: Never be afraid to swap styli on these cartridges. The combination may not produce the graph the engineers intended, but if it sounds good in your system, that's all that matters. Putting the D81S into the original 3000 body would, at least theoretically, give a curve that's not dissimilar to the curve you see in that graph in post 76, which would explain why you're hearing more surface noise. The D81S is an excellent stylus and would shine whichever body you put it in.