The Pickering XV-15 was a close relative to the Stanton 680/681 series, and the styli from either will fit. Although the Stanton cartridges had a more upmarket image due to their advertising, there was little difference in quality, apart from the fact that Stanton 681 series cartridges were measured as being within certain frequency response standards, and sold (for a price premium) as being ‘calibrated’.
The XV-15 cartridges (and their Stanton ‘cousins’) could be fitted with a range of styli, varying from cheap, heavy tracking models designed for record changers, through to light tracking elliptical styli and ‘Stereohedron’ line contact styli. There were also several with quadrahedral line contact shapes designed for CD-4 quadraphonic reproduction. The quadrahedral was Pickering/Stanton’s first attempt at a line contact, and was later improved and developed to become their excellent Stereohedron tip.
As they go up in number, fidelity gets better. The best tips were the Sterehedron shape. The only difference is the stylus fitted to the body, which determines the quality – for instance, all the ones aimed at DJ’s will have cantilever strength as the main design factor, while the lightest tracking models (e.g. 1200E or 1800S) are aimed at the highest quality turntables, and the best fidelity. Here’s a list of the XV-15 cartridges, with the type of stylus, tracking force, and Pickering’s suggested use:
XV-15 78rpm stylus, 2.7 mil spherical stylus, tracking force 3-7g, used for 78rpm record replay
XV-15/100 – also known as AC DCF 100 (DCF stood for Direct Coupling Factor, a Pickering number which rated how good a stylus was – higher numbers were better) – 0.7 mil spherical, 3-7g, for record changers
XV-15/140E, 0.5 x 0.7 mil elliptical, 3-5g, for record changers
XV-15/150, 0.7 mil spherical, 2-4g, for automatic turntables
XV-15/AT DCF 150, 0.7 mil spherical, 1-5g, for automatic turntables
XV-15/150 DJ, 0.7 mil spherical, 1-4g, heavy duty model for DJ’s
XV-15/200E, 0.4 x 0.7 mil elliptical, 2-4g, for automatic turntables
XV-15/ATE DCF 200, 0.4 x 0.9 mil elliptical, 1-5g, for automatic turntables
XV-15/350C, 0.7 mil spherical, 1-3g, for manual turntables or light tracking automatics
XV-15/AM DCF 350, 0.7 mil spherical, 0.75-3g, for manual turntables, automatic transcription turntables or light tracking automatics
XV-15/400E, 0.4 x 0.7 mil elliptical, 1-2g, for manual turntables or light tracking automatics
XV-15/AM DCF 400, 0.2 x 0.9 mil elliptical, 0.75-1.5g, for manual turntables, automatic transcription turntables or light tracking automatics
XV-15/625 DJ, 0.3 x 0.7 mil elliptical, 1-4g, for DJ’s
XV-15/625E , 0.3 x 0.7 mil elliptical, 0.75-1.5g, for manual turntables or light tracking automatics
XV-15/750E, 0.3 x 0.7 mil elliptical, 0.5-1.5g, for transcription turntables and automatic transcription turntables
XV-15/757S, Sterehedron, 0.75-1.5g, for hi-fi
XV-15/1200E , 0.2 x 0.7 mil elliptical, 0.5-1.25g, for transcription turntables and automatic transcription turntables – this is Pickering’s closest equivalent to the Stanton 681EEE, and the best of their elliptical stylus moving iron cartridges
XV-15/1800S, Sterehedron stylus, 0.75-1.5g – this was the best fidelity of the lot, and was Pickering’s near-equivalent of the Stanton 681EEE-S
XV-15/2000Q, quadrahedral stylus, 1.5-2.5g, for CD-4 reproduction
XV-15/2400Q, quadrahedral stylus, 1.5-2.5g, for CD-4 reproduction
When you choose a stylus, just remember that it’s best to use a tracking force in the top half of the tracking force range suggested, to eliminate possible mis-tracking and record damage - Pickering's lowest tracking forces were sometimes verging on wishful thinking.
