Stanton 681 gain suggestions

I have obtained a Stanton 681 with a Jico D6800EEE-S Shibata stylus. I like the detail, and am trying to adjust to the leaner sound it gives compared to the AT VM540ML - some things it works very well on (French organ music), others not so much (Vanilla Fudge). However, my Fisher X-100-B isn't really designed to handle such a low signal level - the literature I've found indicates this is about a 0.7 mV output cart, and the most sensitive input I've got is designed for a 2 mV signal - so I have to dial the volume up well past normal levels, which introduces a fair amount of tube rush (enough to be distracting in between tracks and in quieter sections of music).

My first response to this, when I get some time, will be to roll the phono pre 12AX7s; currently, I have a pair of Matsushitas there, but I can swap in some Telefunkens, and also have a few pairs of Raytheons at hand. I'm not holding my breath that this will work, though, so I'm trying to figure out what to do if that's the case.

The initial thing I considered is a 1:2 step up transformer, but there only appears to be one I can find (linky: https://www.amazon.com/Nobsound-Transformer-Moving-Cartridge-Passive/dp/B07H2VJK71 ; various others are out there, but they all appear to be clones of one another). I'm not convinced this will have the desired result since this appears to be primarily intended for a line level input (note the lack of grounding as well as the description) and this will tank the input resistance the cart sees from 47k ohms to around 12k ohms, which seems to be the very low end of acceptable. Plus, I'd like to avoid getting... let's say an inferior quality product, for the sake of being nice.

The next option would be to spring for an external preamp. I'm out of my depth there, plus I do like the sound of the Fisher's pre, and it seems like buying a preamp for one cart (at the moment, anyway) is a bit more than I'd like to bite off if I can avoid it. I've got some other things I'd like to get upgraded (not the least of which is my listening space) before I go too far down the MC route.

I have heard that there is (or at least used to be) a school of thought that introduced a pre-pre-amp in this situation, but I've not really been able to find much on that.

Any suggestions/recommendations/constructive criticism/snide remarks/bad puns would be welcome. Thanks!

 

Head amp from Hagerman Labs, lowest setting will give you +12 dB.

Piccolo2 - MC Headamp

Or Rothwell MC-1H SUT, made specifically for HOMC carts:

SUT for HOMC

 

However, IIRC, the 0.7 mV was quoted by Stanton in different units. Usually, the output is quoted at 5 units of something or other (I can't remember what), but Stanton quotes it for 1 unit. In essence, you have to multiply the figure by 5 to get the real output, which should be around 3.5 mV.

 

@Benzion is right. Unless something is VERY wrong with your example, you should be getting an output around 3.5 mV, give or take. You DO NOT need a SUT or any other step up device with that cartridge. I run my 680 with a Jico Shibata at 40-42dB of gain. Slightly less gain should be okay too, you'll just have to turn up the volume control a bit.

 

Possibly the cart isn't loaded right, it likely needs a little more capacitance than an AT. Not sure what the capacitance of your cabling and internal phono preamp are. Stanton used to recommend 275pf total for most of their carts IIRC.

 

Hmmm... sounds like the cart/stylus itself may not be quite right, then. I'll fiddle with that a bit and see what happens.

 

I've been using a Stanton 681EEE for decades and its output is simply average, normal, perfectly ok, well-matched to every other source device that I own. Absolutely no need for a head amp. I've always just connected it to the mm input of any receiver, preamp, pre/pro etc. NAD, Pioneer, Denon, Outlaw, Yamaha, Hafler, to name just the ones that come immediately to mind.

Something's not right with the set-up if this is not the case.

Jeff

 

Are you certain which stylus you have? A stylus made for certain other Stanton carts could look about the same as a correct 681 stylus, but could give that low output on a 681.

 

It is a Jico D6800EEE-S - I have the packaging for it, so that seems to be right (or someone has gone to a great deal of effort to mislabel that, which seems unlikely).

 

Make sure the stylus is pushed all the way into the body, but don't apply too much force. When's the last time your fisher was serviced or looked at?

 

Fisher just came back from the shop a couple of weeks ago, and works as expected with all the other carts, so I don't think that's it. Everything in the thread so far makes me think it's the cart and/or stylus. I'll borrow a different stylus from a friend tonight and go from there.

 

Check that youre not shorting the leads coming out of the cart, also.

 

Aha! The cart innards are a bit loose in the shell and had slid back. Nudging that back into position seems to have done the trick - gain in line with the AT, and a much fuller sound now. Thanks all!

 

Nice! I've got a 440mla body with the new VM stylus on my Thorens turntable. I've also got an old Technics table in the basement with the 681EEE mounted on it. Which one are you liking better?

 

Not enough hours on the Stanton yet to make a fair comparison, but from the little bit I have had that on so far this afternoon, I notice the detail it pulls out is different than the 540 - not more/less from what I can tell, just a different cross section. It also seems a bit more tolerant of imperfections. Seems like the Stanton prefers jazz, particularly more open bop, while the AT does a bit better on dense orchestral and organ music. (Still prefer the Shure M91ED for rock.)

 

M91ED is a GREAT cart for retro rock. With a cheap conical stylus, its great for challenged records.

In my Rega P2, I'm running a Stanton 881. Really great sounding cart.