Which Pickering is This?
- Thread starter davidguilbault
- Start date
Register to hide this ad
Stanton681EEES
Addicted Member
It looks to me to be one of the Brown body XV15 Micro series. Id say it worth trying a stylus for it. LP Gear has a D7E on there website for around 32 dollars I have one and like it a lot. it's a 0.03 X 0.07 elliptical. It should work nicely in that body. Or you could pick up one of the many Pickering conical's listed on ebay such as an AM or AC
davidguilbault
Perusing the Bargain Bins
Turntableneedles.com is selling a genuine D625 for $88 (http://www.turntableneedles.com/D625-Needle-606-DEL_p_720.html). Would that work well, you think?
voltcontrol
Fizheuer Zieheuer
I wouldn't spend that much on it and get the mentioned ellipitical stylus.. But maybe that's just me..
KentTeffeteller
Gimpus Stereophilus!
What this is a Pickering Phase IV. Stanton version is the 600. Styli fit each other. Available from heavy duty conical to a Stereohedron. 4 coil design. Excellent cartridge with better styli installed. Replaced later by the 680/681 family.
Stanton681EEES
Addicted Member
Have you heard the older Pickerings. You'd be amazed at how good they can sound.
Interesting. I am a fan of the 600. Very nice cartridge. If that is the case then this cart is worth pursuing the best stylus you can find.
KentTeffeteller
Gimpus Stereophilus!
Agreed! Poor man's 681 EEE with the better styli installed. The mounting told me what this was. I have a Stanton 600 of my own. They discontinued it because it was too good for the price and stole 680-681 sales. A broadcasting and audiophile classic. :tresbon: In the day, priced between the 500 line and the 680-681 family and a bargain then.
davidguilbault
Perusing the Bargain Bins
Hi folks. Thanks for the posts. But, I'm still a little confused. Is this an XV15 or a Phase IV? Do they use the same interchangeable styli?
(By the way, I obviously put the stylus on upside down in my original photos. Didn't notice because the cantilever is missing.)
In any event, turntableneedles.com says the right replacement stylus is their 606 series (http://www.turntableneedles.com/search.asp?keyword=606-d&search=GO). But, I think a Phase IV would call for their 607 series (http://www.turntableneedles.com/search.asp?keyword=Pickering+Phase+iv&search=GO). Are those two series interchangeable?
What say you all? Cheers. David.
(By the way, I obviously put the stylus on upside down in my original photos. Didn't notice because the cantilever is missing.)
In any event, turntableneedles.com says the right replacement stylus is their 606 series (http://www.turntableneedles.com/search.asp?keyword=606-d&search=GO). But, I think a Phase IV would call for their 607 series (http://www.turntableneedles.com/search.asp?keyword=Pickering+Phase+iv&search=GO). Are those two series interchangeable?
What say you all? Cheers. David.
Attachments
Last edited:
davidguilbault
Perusing the Bargain Bins
Stanton D200 Stylus
Steve at turntableneedles.com says that the 606 and 607 series of Pickering replacement needles are physically interchangeable. But, he says, he doesn't know about their electrical compatability. It's all very confusing. So, at this point I am going with the 606-DET, the OEM genuine Stanton D200 (http://www.turntableneedles.com/Needle-606-DET_p_1198.html) for $56. If someone knowledgeable knows this to be wrong for my cartridge, please let me know. Thanks much. Cheers for now. David.
Steve at turntableneedles.com says that the 606 and 607 series of Pickering replacement needles are physically interchangeable. But, he says, he doesn't know about their electrical compatability. It's all very confusing. So, at this point I am going with the 606-DET, the OEM genuine Stanton D200 (http://www.turntableneedles.com/Needle-606-DET_p_1198.html) for $56. If someone knowledgeable knows this to be wrong for my cartridge, please let me know. Thanks much. Cheers for now. David.
davidguilbault
Perusing the Bargain Bins
Help anyone. I've communicated with the folks at Garage-a-Records and TurntableNeedles and I am still confused (as are they). Neither can decide if I need a 606 or 607 series stylus. And, what is the difference between an AME, ACE, ATE? And what is the difference between DET, DEC, DEG? You need a Navajo code breaker to understand some of the designations on styli. What to do? What to do? What to do?
davidguilbault
Perusing the Bargain Bins
I know I'm kinda talking to myself here. But, it looks like maybe the stylus I need is the Pickering IV ATE. The replacement number for that is 607-DET. It is a diamond elliptical. (http://www.garage-a-records.com/proddetail.php?prod=607det)
The 606 is for the XV15 series; the 607 is for either the Micro IV or Phase IV, which appears to be what you have. The AME, ATE, and ACE designations are a guide to the size of the stylus and the tracking weight. The AME had slightly finer profiles (such as .3 X .8 mil as opposed to .4 X .7) and tracked at lower weights (maybe 1.25 grams); the ATE tracked a little heavier at 2-4 grams (as your Garage-a-Records stylus does), and the ACE tracked heavier yet at 3-5 grams (as per information from Vinyl Engine).
Personally, I think you're better off spending your money on a new cartridge. I owned the Stanton version, the 600, and didn't think it worked as well as either the higher cost 680/681 models or the less expensive 500 series. My guess is that the slide-in mounting system (developed to facilitate easy mounting in various Garrard and BSR record changers; five different mounting plates orginally came with a 600 body) compromised rigidity in the cartridge/headshell interface, thereby reducing performance. In addition, with a cartridge so long out of production you have to take really old styli that could have suspension issues (the rubber bits harden over time even if never used) or depend on 3rd party or generic styli. Why not just get a new, decent budget model? The Sumiko Oyster and Audio Technica AT95E come to mind at about the $50 price point. For that matter, I currently have an Audio Technica CN5625AL on my LP12, and it sounds great. Garage-a-Records sells it for $23, or you can get it along with an extra stylus (not a bad thing to have around in case of accident) for $38.
Personally, I think you're better off spending your money on a new cartridge. I owned the Stanton version, the 600, and didn't think it worked as well as either the higher cost 680/681 models or the less expensive 500 series. My guess is that the slide-in mounting system (developed to facilitate easy mounting in various Garrard and BSR record changers; five different mounting plates orginally came with a 600 body) compromised rigidity in the cartridge/headshell interface, thereby reducing performance. In addition, with a cartridge so long out of production you have to take really old styli that could have suspension issues (the rubber bits harden over time even if never used) or depend on 3rd party or generic styli. Why not just get a new, decent budget model? The Sumiko Oyster and Audio Technica AT95E come to mind at about the $50 price point. For that matter, I currently have an Audio Technica CN5625AL on my LP12, and it sounds great. Garage-a-Records sells it for $23, or you can get it along with an extra stylus (not a bad thing to have around in case of accident) for $38.
davidguilbault
Perusing the Bargain Bins
Dear jrtrent. Thank you, thank you, thank you. This is a wealth of good information. I really appreciate it. Cheers. David.
You may be able to get a new production stylus for that, just not OEM. I have a more pedestrian Pickering V15, and I purchased a new production Pfansteil stylus for it just 2 weeks ago. I don't know how the quality on the new ones compares to the OEM, but at least the rubber bits ought to be good.
For whatever its worth, I think my V15 sounds pretty decent even with the cheap $14 conical tip. My Shure with the elliptical does sound smoother, but I can get an elliptical for the Pickering for 30 bucks or so if I decide I want to upgrade it. Hard to argue with the money if you're looking for good results on the cheap.
For whatever its worth, I think my V15 sounds pretty decent even with the cheap $14 conical tip. My Shure with the elliptical does sound smoother, but I can get an elliptical for the Pickering for 30 bucks or so if I decide I want to upgrade it. Hard to argue with the money if you're looking for good results on the cheap.
davidguilbault
Perusing the Bargain Bins
I pulled the Pickering off a thrift store Hitachi turntable that I got for $16. Gave the turntable to a friend to fix up and sell. I like hearing old carts, so I wanted to get a good stylus for it. Think I'm sold on the genuine Pickering IV ATE elliptical (http://www.garage-a-records.com/proddetail.php?prod=607det) at Garage-a-Records, on sale for $35. Or, the lower-tracking AME (http://www.garage-a-records.com/proddetail.php?prod=607dem). So, my whole investment is only a bit over fifty bucks.
Last edited:
Is that recent production, or old stock though? The suspension wears out on that stuff with age. The stylus I replaced had no obvious signs of wear, but the suspension was quite clearly done for when I compared how much the cart settled towards the record with the old vs new stylus installed. The difference in sound was night and day too, and I didn't upgrade the stylus at all. Its just the cheap of the cheap conical. I probably should have pitched in a few more bucks for an elliptical but I didn't think to find out what would fit before I bought the thing.
