Opinions Please- Stanton 881S Cartridge

Thank you for your post, but to be honest, I dont think throwing more $$$ at it is the answer.

 

Yeah, I think this cart just doesn't suit your tastes.

 

Could be! But to be fair, I should give it more playing time.

 

Your money, your call, but I think @Tim S is right. All the playing time in the world isn’t going to make you fall in love with the cart. But I don’t think that cheap elliptical is doing it any justice either. It’s like mounting a set of bias ply consumer tires on a Ferrari race car and saying it doesn’t handle well around the track.

 

That would certainly explain the difference I heard between the LPG's and JICO high frequency clarity, the JICO being noticeably smoother if not a 100% copy of the original. I did order mine directly from JICO Japan as well as an Urushi 681EEE stylus when they offered it.

 

Are we sure the JICO have the tie wire? Can’t remember where I read it now, but I saw on another forum that none of the aftermarket styli have the tie wire upon close examination. They had the cut out for it, but no tie wire.

Has anyone done a continuity test to show that the cantilever is electrically connected to the tube in the back? If there is a tie wire, the cantilever would be electrically connected.

I also believe the Shibata tip is bonded, rather than nude as the Stereohedron was.

I would love for something to be a good replacement for the originals, but I’m not so sure...

 

I'm not. It would be nice to know definitively.

In 2019, does anyone know why it's so difficult to reproduce this stylus??

 

There were long threads in another forum. The Jico from Japan have the tie wire. And yes the Shibata are bonded, as I mentioned before.

 

So, if JICO used a short cantilever with a nude stylus (HE or better), they'd just about be there?

 

Probably. The only nude stylus Jico offers is the SAS, which is made for some Shure models but no Stantons/Pickersings AFAIK, ever. Perhaps they will change that one day but nothing so far.

 

I have a Stanton 881S JICO shibata stylus I bought directly from JICO Japan and there is a crimp on the post that inserts into the cartridge similar to an OEM D81S stylus so I am assuming this means it has a tie wire.

You can see the crimp about half way down the post, the light blue line in the photo. Anyway, I still have a clean OEM stylus so I only played this JICO stylus for about an hour and it sounded pretty good to me. I will need to play it some more, try the setup album to check tracking etc., and compare it to my OEM D81S at some point to see how it measures up.

I did swap out the stiff JICO brush for one from a Stanton 681EEE stylus with a broken canteliver I had and it make a noticeable difference in SQ for me in my limited testing. The stock JICO brush is synthetic fiber and very stiff and not as compliant as an OEM Stanton brush. YMMV.

 

All the Jico brushes for Stanton/Pickering replacement styli are like that. Best thing to do is just remove the brush. If you must use a brush, use an old one, or remove the fibers from the Jico brush and replace with soft bristles from an artist brush...someone on AK did that.

 

Sorry for the OT but I have a 681EEE body and need a new stylus so thought I would ask a quick question. Is the 681 EEE stylus the current shibata offered on the JICO site? If it is how does it sound and compare to an OEM stylus

 

I use this on my Stanton 680 MKII body that original came with an EL stylus. It has the Pickering style grip rather than the Stanton plastic grip, but it will fit any Stanton 680 or Stanton 681 body also. It sounds very good but won't be identical to an OEM stereohedron (nothing will), as mentioned before. There is some speculation that this stylus was supposed to fit a quad cart body like the 780 w/100K loading for proper sound but I did not find that to be the case (I ran an FR test).

D2000Q, JICO stylus | Online Shopping for Japanese Phonograph Needles

It sounds very good considering the price but my standards are very high so I will be going for some kind of custom retip job when mine wears out. If you aren't willing to spend more than $200 for a stylus I would think it is the best option available. Note: I track this stylus at 2-2.1g with no brush for the best performance.

The Jico 681EEE stylus is an elliptical, probably a .3 x .7. That would be a downgrade from the Shibata stylus linked above.

 

Thank Patient, JICO actually makes a Stanton type Shibata stylus for the 681EEE and if it is the quality of the 881S JICO stylus it is a very reasonable cost compared an OEM stylus which are virtually unobtanium and usually cost 2X or more the price of the JICO.

D6800EEE-S, JICO stylus | Online Shopping for Japanese Phonograph Needles

I know some other Stanton and Pickering stylus are supposed to work with the 881S or 681EEE but I would prefer to get a JICO made for the cartridge if it approaches the OEM sound.

 

The Pickering XV-15 and Stanton 680/681 are functionally and electrically the same cartridge. The only difference is the plastic grip of the stylus housing, which makes no real difference in sound. A few Jico users have reported that the Pickering style plastic grip stays connected to the body a little better than the Stanton style plastic grip. Your call.

Re: OEM sound, we've already established that it's not going to be exactly like OEM. You'll just have to try it to see if it meets your personal standards. You will likely have to track at a higher VTF than OEM, so if tracking at 1g is something you need to do forget it.

 

If it doesn't specifically say "Shibata" I wouldn't assume that it is.

Mine was, apparently, a special run Urushi Shibata... basically, just a Shibata with red lacquer on the stylus body. It looked cool; but, mine was mechanically faulty and produced a strange metallic chirping noise. I had an original 681EEE stylus retipped by SoundSmith (ruby cantilever/NCL tip). The result was a less warm/more detailed (in the HF) 681EEE, kind of a 681EEE on steroids. I actually prefer it over stock. It's no 881 (nor should it be); but, considering my preference for the 881, I can play and enjoy it longer before I eventually switch to a more detailed cart.

So, you could say I've gotten two duds from JICO Japan (the suspension failed 881 and the chirping 681) which is the reason why I have not as of yet given them another try. I may though; because, before the suspension on the 881 failed, it was very nice if not an exact replica.

 

JICO offers a 681EEE stylus in elliptical and shibata cuts. They specify this on their website so I was looking for any reviews from you or others.

Tough break on your JICO'S as they get good reviews and my 881S stylus I got fRom them sounds good for the short time I tried it so hopefully it holds up once I use it fulltime.

 

Yeah, never really got to try the 681 Shibata, the noise was too distracting.

It might be time to try another 881S or I think one of the retippers will actually replace the suspension (not SoundSmith). I do miss it.

If you get more hours in on yours, do tell...

 

Will do. If you find a retipper who can replace the suspension please share.

 

UPDATE:

Ok, so I've been listening more to the 881s and I am getting used to it's sound. It certainly grabs details from the grooves.

But.....I think the Rega fixed anti skate is causing some mistracking. Im tracking the 881s at 1.25, which is the top end of the range.

Is there any way to counteract the fixed antiskate?

 

I'm just noticing that you got the 890 stylus (good!). I have been using it at 1.8g, where I found it performs and sounds great. Remember it, that 890 stylus, is rated at 2-5 grams. The 881S original stylus was rated at .75-1.25g, but the 890 stylus isn't that original stylus.

 

If it were me I'd be tracking that at 2.5g MINIMUM and probably close to 3g at least. If using a brush, add 1g.

 

I can't disagree. I started it at 3, then 2.5, then down a tenth by tenth, by ear. I'll go back to 2 at least and play with it, it is not my main player.
It is their wide cantilever, and definitely not meant for 1.25g. It is their last style mount (ugly) with no brush.

 

DUH!!! stupid me! For some weird reason, I thought I had to follow the tracking specs of the original stylus. thanks for reminding me. I will try it at 2.0 and see how it goes. Thanks much!!!