turntable cartridge issue?

pglbook

I played a record last night and noticed that the volume from the right speaker was much lower than the volume from the left speaker. The problem did not not happen when I switched to my CD player.

The turntable worked fine the last time I used it a few weeks ago. Could it be a cartridge issue, like a faulty connection? I have a Shure mx97e cartridge which is about 7 or 8 years old. I also recently bought a used phono preamp (Musical Surroundings Phonomena II+) but that has always worked fine and I do not think that is the problem.

If the cartridge is at fault and I need a new cartridge, can anyone recommend a good cartridge for my Thorens TD 160 tt? I like the Shure mx97e (and it was a real bargain) but it has unfortunely been discontinued. My cartridge budget would be around $250.

Thanks.

tratliff

Check alignment on cart.

jdjohn

Probably a connection issue somewhere in the chain. Those Thorens headshells are prone to connectivity problems.

Make sure the headshell collar is tight on the arm.
Make sure stylus is pushed all the way in.
Make sure all RCA connections are snug.
After that, start checking cartridge lead wire clips on the pins.

pglbook

jdjohn wrote: »

Probably a connection issue somewhere in the chain. Those Thorens headshells are prone to connectivity problems.

Make sure the headshell collar is tight on the arm.
Make sure stylus is pushed all the way in.
Make sure all RCA connections are snug.
After that, start checking cartridge lead wire clips on the pins.

Thank you. All fixed!

I also assumed it was probably a loose wire on the cartridge. I took the headshell off the tonearm and gently pulled 2 of the 4 little wires off from the cartridge and reattached them and the headshell. And the result was that the right speaker now had normal volume and the left speaker had little volume (opposite of initial problem). So I took the headshell off again and this time pulled off off all 4 little wires from the cartridge and reattached them (I do not know why I did not do that the first time) and the headshell and all works perfectly now. The issue was a loose cartridge wire.

Thanks for the input.

I am now spinning The Who: Odds & Sods (RSD 2lp version) and it sounds great!

Next up...Sun Ra...my wife and chihuahua are not going to like that one, ha!

maxward

...edit... never mind.

jdjohn

Glad you're sorted. If you gently tug on a clip, and it slides off rather easily, that means it's too loose. The clips can carefully be compressed a little to provide a tighter fit. Also, a rubber eraser can be used to rub off corrosion from the cartridge pins. Sometimes the corrosion is not visibly evident, but it may still be there, so it's not a bad idea to clean them anyway when you have the clips off the pins.

If you like your M97XE, you might consider getting one of the JICO SAS stylus replacements. They are supposedly much better than the stock stylus.

mhardy6647

FWIW - I like to use small hemostats ("mosquito clamps") to operate on the cartridge wire connectors (including tensioning them a wee bit when needed).

jdjohn

"Mosquito clamps"...interesting. I've heard them called something else, and it actually does involve an insect and a type of clamp