please recommend a new cartridge for my Thorens tt
Options
Comments
-
On a "per control cleaned" basis, it's not unreasonably priced. Less than the price of a single audiophile fuse for a whole can, anyway.
-
mhardy6647 wrote: »The "red" DeOxit D5 can damage the carbon film plastic guts of some pots, and will often/usually dissolve out the lubricant (and thus that sexy, smooth "feel") of a pot, so it's not a one-size-fits-all solution for dirty controls -- although, make no mistake, it is an excellent product.
DeOxit "FaderLube" (now called Fader F5, I think) can restore the feel and is generally considered to be the better choice (as I understand it) for pots with plastic innards.
For better & for worse, and FWIW, I have yet to destroy the function of a pot (or switch) with D5... but I certainly have left some pots feeling scrunchy after cleaning with D5.
I subsequently did indeed buy a can of the Fader F5. 
Thanks for the info.
I went ahead and ordered the red deoxit that pitdogg recommended. Pricey stuff, but necessary and a great product. I have used deoxit spray in the past to clean dirty pots of old receivers but ordered deoxit liquid (D100L) this time to be able to clean the cartridge pins with a brush.
Yes that is 100% pure cleaning stuff. The D5 @mhardy6647 referring to is a 5% solution of the D100.
Fwiw -
mhardy6647 wrote: »The "red" DeOxit D5 can damage the carbon film plastic guts of some pots, and will often/usually dissolve out the lubricant (and thus that sexy, smooth "feel") of a pot, so it's not a one-size-fits-all solution for dirty controls -- although, make no mistake, it is an excellent product.
DeOxit "FaderLube" (now called Fader F5, I think) can restore the feel and is generally considered to be the better choice (as I understand it) for pots with plastic innards.
For better & for worse, and FWIW, I have yet to destroy the function of a pot (or switch) with D5... but I certainly have left some pots feeling scrunchy after cleaning with D5. I subsequently did indeed buy a can of the Fader F5.
Thanks for the info.
I went ahead and ordered the red deoxit that pitdogg recommended. Pricey stuff, but necessary and a great product. I have used deoxit spray in the past to clean dirty pots of old receivers but ordered deoxit liquid (D100L) this time to be able to clean the cartridge pins with a brush.
Yes that is 100% pure cleaning stuff. The D5 @mhardy6647 referring to is a 5% solution of the D100.
Fwiw
Yes, absolutely true; I skipped that bit because (first & foremost) I wanted to mention the "fader" product.
I have no experience with the 100% stuff, but should be fine used as directed.
-
Two styluses for your M97XE shipped out today.
-
Two styluses for your M97XE shipped out today.
Thanks again for your generosity. It is much appreciated!!!
I will let you know when they arrive.
-
Correct Doc, I don't think I'd use it in any pots but for his pins should be good. Personally I'd use fader lube on pots and stuff like that myself.
-
The replacement wires arrived today. Unfortunately I am still waiting on the deoxit to arrive so I won't be able to put the new wires on until I get the deoxit on Monday or Tuesday.
The replacement wires look shorter than the ones I had on the cartridge. Hopefully, they will fit. I am sure they will since they are a universal size but I wonder why my prior wires were longer (and perhaps wider; I tossed them out so I am going on memory, which is not the best thing for a Grateful Dead fan to do, ha, but my other wires were definitely longer. I remember them being bent quite a bit to fit within the headshell from pin to pin).
I will send an update after I get the new wires installed next week. Hopefully I can report that Operation Replace Cartridge Wires (and clean cartridge pins) was a success. And hopefully the only issue was the wires.
Thanks to all for the great advice and help!
And a big thanks to dromunds for the two Shure styluses (styli ?) which he sent to me gratis and which arrived yesterday. The Polkie spirit lives on! -
Update: Operation Replace Cartridge Wires was a success (with one minor issue remaining; see below).
I replaced the cartridge wires Friday afternoon and spent Friday night and last night spinning vinyl and the sound is great. No more low volume in one speaker. It seems that the old cartridge wires were at fault.
However, one minor issue still remains. There is a slight hum when I touch the headshell to swing the tonarm back after playing a record. It is a slight hum if I touch the upper plastic part of the headshell when moving the tonearm but it is a more pronounced hum/crackle if I touch the metal lever attached to the headshell. I suspect it is a ground issue but do not know why or how to fix it. Any tips would be appreciated. I did remove and reattach the ground wire at the preamp to make sure it was not loose and was a tight fit but that did not fix the issue. The hum is only present when I touch the headshell. It does not exist at all when I play records so I can live with it and can turn down the volume down when I need to swing the tonearm to flip a record over. And the hum is very low if I touch the upper headshell area (but still present) but it is louder when I touch the metal headshell lever.
Thanks again for the advice about the cartridge wires. I thought I had a bad cartridge. It is great to be able to spin records again.Post edited by pglbook on -
Sounds like a ground problem
-
FWIW - and perhaps cold comfort - I'm not sure that a hum when the arm is up and you're cueing is anything worth being concerned about, truth be told. Many tonearms have a mute that engages when the cue is "up" so that you don't get that induced hum (and/or other 'microphonics' from moving the arm, picked up through the cartridge).
In terms of "ground problems" -- get a bag of clipleads and start investingating grounding if you like Another time-honored grounding "trick": If the AC mains plug on the tt is unpolarized, try flipping it in the outlet. Sometimes (!!!!) you can back out one of the RCA plugs at the phono preamp end just enough to disengage the outer conductor (i.e. disconnect the shield on one lead) and quiet down a hum. If the 'negatives' aren't common at one or the other end, though, you can get MACRO-hum doing this -- so proceed with caution & the volume set very low if you try this!
-
mhardy6647 wrote: »FWIW - and perhaps cold comfort - I'm not sure that a hum when the arm is up and you're cueing is anything worth being concerned about, truth be told. Many tonearms have a mute that engages when the cue is "up" so that you don't get that induced hum (and/or other 'microphonics' from moving the arm, picked up through the cartridge).
In terms of "ground problems" -- get a bag of clipleads and start investingating grounding if you like Another time-honored grounding "trick": If the AC mains plug on the tt is unpolarized, try flipping it in the outlet. Sometimes (!!!!) you can back out one of the RCA plugs at the phono preamp end just enough to disengage the outer conductor (i.e. disconnect the shield on one lead) and quiet down a hum. If the 'negatives' aren't common at one or the other end, though, you can get MACRO-hum doing this -- so proceed with caution & the volume set very low if you try this!
Thanks.
It really is not that big of a deal but I don't rememember that hum being there in the past (i.e., prior to the problem with the old cartridge wires).
It is definitely some sort of minor ground issue.
I have read that the cartridge and tonearm also may have a ground wire or clip so perhaps one of those got loose somehow.
-
latest update...I spun vinyl all day Saturday and there was no longer a hum when I swung the tonearm back after playing a record. It has completely gone away.
It is strange it went away on its own as I did not change anything on Saturday (perhaps it was from the new cartridge wires needing to break in?) but I am happy that all of the issues have now gone away.
btw, on Saturday I listened to, among many other albums, the new RSD version of Booker T and the M.G.'s McLemore Avenue. What a great record! I had never heard of that record before but bought it due to the great reviews of the new RSD version. Booker T and the M.G.s cover the Beatles' Abbey Road...in a "funkified" version. Fantastic music...and the new RSD version is wonderful. -
latest update...I spun vinyl all day Saturday and there was no longer a hum when I swung the tonearm back after playing a record. It has completely gone away.
It is strange it went away on its own as I did not change anything on Saturday (perhaps it was from the new cartridge wires needing to break in?) but I am happy that all of the issues have now gone away.
btw, on Saturday I listened to, among many other albums, the new RSD version of Booker T and the M.G.'s McLemore Avenue. What a great record! I had never heard of that record before but bought it due to the great reviews of the new RSD version. Booker T and the M.G.s cover the Beatles' Abbey Road...in a "funkified" version. Fantastic music...and the new RSD version is wonderful.
It's a miracle!
