make sure you have the right stylus....then make sure you have it installed correctly.
Hey guys,
Recently I purchased a new stylus for a record player that I bought a couple years ago. When I play a record the sound quality is really bad. At first I thought it was the amp, but I tried the record player on another amp and the sound quality was still horrible. I figured a bunch of musicians could help me out with a record player, any suggestions?
make sure you have the right stylus....then make sure you have it installed correctly.
Guitars: 2002 Les Paul Studio Limited Color's Edition | 2004 Greg Bennett Avion Les Paul Copy | S101 Telecaster project | 2004 Washburn D46 Acoustic
Amplification: Epiphone Valve Jr. Head and Cabinet | VOX AD30VT
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Um . . . sorry guys . . . what is this "record player" of which you speak?
Guitars and other stringed instruments: Washburn D10S, Washburn EA52SWCE, Washburn Cumberland J28SDL, Washburn D46S12, D'Aquisto Centura, Rover RM-50B Mando
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Is the arnm weighted/balanced correctly? What is the brand of your record player?
Mark
* Loud is good, good is better!
How old is the turntable (record player)? Did it sound OK thru the same amp(s) before you got the new stylus? Newer (made in the last 7-10 yrs) stereo amps/recievers lack a dedicated 'phono' input with a dedicated preamp for the turntable (record player) device like older ones. Many newer turntables have built-in preamps; they didn't used to, when amps had phono inputs. Without a phono preamp, the signal strength won't be adequate. If that's waht seems to be lacking, you can get a separate phono preamp and plug it inline.
^^
AXES: Fender '81 The STRAT, '12 Standard Tele, '78 Musicmaster Bass, '13 CN-240SCE Thinline; Rickenbacker '82 360-12BWB; Epiphone '05 Casino, '08 John Lennon EJ-160E; Guild '70 D-40NT; Ovation '99 Celebrity CS-257; Yamaha '96 FG411CE-12; Washburn '05 M6SW Mando, '08 Oscar Schmidt OU250Bell Uke; Johnson '96 JR-200-SB Squareneck Reso; Hofner '07 Icon B-Bass; Ibanez '12 AR-325. AMPS: Tech 21 Trademark 10; Peavey ValveKing Royal 8; Fender Acoustonic 90, Passport Mini, Mini Tonemaster; Marshall MS-2 Micro Stack; Behringer BX-108 Thunderbird; Tom Scholz Rockman. PEDALS/FX: Boss ME-50; Yamaha EMP100; Stage DE-1; Samson C-Com 16 L.R. Baggs ParaAcoustic D.I; MXR EQ-10.
The turntable is a technics sl 230, I am not sure how old it is. I found an add from 1979 for the same model turntable on the internet, but I'm not sure how long technics made this model. I bought the record player at a garage sale a while back with a broken stylus. So, I never before tested it with the amp I have now. I took the broken stylus to a shop and the store owner gave me a new one that he said should work. He told me to put the counterweight between 2 and 2.5; the stylus itself is 1.5 grams. The amp I am using has a phono input which I used when I tested the record player but I had no luck.
From what I found on the Technics SL-230, the headshell should have the following wire colors:
White = Left +
Blue = Left -
Red = Right +
Green = Right -
Guitars (All Lefty): Fender MIM Wine Red Telecaster
Washburn D10SCELHBK
Greg Bennett (Samick) Avion AV3/LH/CS
Franken-Strat (Maple Neck / Black Body & Pickguard / 2-Point Tremolo / GFS Alnico Single-coil Pups / Gold Hardware)
2 Fullerton Standard Strats; Sunburst w/ GFS Overwound P'ups and Black w/ GFS Lil Killer Rail 'Buckers
Fullerton Deluxe Dreadnought
Amp: Blackheart BH1HS Killer Ant Half Stack (Bitmo Ant Eater Kit)
Crate V18-112 (Goodsell RGM Speaker / Accutronics Tank / Switch R4 - R10 Mod)
Pignose G40V (Jensen MOD Speaker / DC Heater Mod / Pentode:Triode Switch)
Fender Champion 30 Reverb (Accutronics Tank / Jensen MOD Speaker)
Speaker Cab: Lopo 1x12 Tweed Convertible w/ Eminence GB128 Speaker
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Boss DS-1 (Rectifier Tri-Gain Plus Mod); CS-3 (Opto Plus Mod); SD-1 Super (GT Mod); GE-7 (Plus Mod)
Fender PT-100 Tuner
E.H. Big Muff Pi (US)
S.D. Pickup Booster
Ibanez CF7 Chorus/Flanger
Alesis NanoVerb
ART Tube MP Studio (OPA2604 Op Amps) (On Champion 30)
Behringer NR100 & OD100
Nay,
Sounds like you've got the right type of amp to play that turntable. But while you may have a new stylus, the cartridge -- the apparatus which holds the stylus -- may be deadsky. Back in '79, you could buy a replacement stylus, or cartridge, or both as a set. First check the wiring with WackyT's helpful wiring scheme, and if the cartridge is connected correctly.
I checked out the cartridge and the wires leading back to the arm of the turntable are in the order WackyT posted (thanks for posting that btw). The wires leading to toward the stylus end of the cartridge are:
Green labeled RG on the cartridge, but in the top left corner when looking from the back of the cartridge
Red labeled RS, bottom left corner
White labeled LS, bottom right corner
Blue labeled LG top right corner
If this is confusing I can take a picture. Thanks for all the help guys.
Glad to help out. The cartridge looks like it's wired correctly, Nay. Which cartridge do you have?
Guitars (All Lefty): Fender MIM Wine Red Telecaster
Washburn D10SCELHBK
Greg Bennett (Samick) Avion AV3/LH/CS
Franken-Strat (Maple Neck / Black Body & Pickguard / 2-Point Tremolo / GFS Alnico Single-coil Pups / Gold Hardware)
2 Fullerton Standard Strats; Sunburst w/ GFS Overwound P'ups and Black w/ GFS Lil Killer Rail 'Buckers
Fullerton Deluxe Dreadnought
Amp: Blackheart BH1HS Killer Ant Half Stack (Bitmo Ant Eater Kit)
Crate V18-112 (Goodsell RGM Speaker / Accutronics Tank / Switch R4 - R10 Mod)
Pignose G40V (Jensen MOD Speaker / DC Heater Mod / Pentode:Triode Switch)
Fender Champion 30 Reverb (Accutronics Tank / Jensen MOD Speaker)
Speaker Cab: Lopo 1x12 Tweed Convertible w/ Eminence GB128 Speaker
Pedals: Korg ToneWorks AX1000G, AX5G, & AmpworksG Modeling Signal Processors
Boss DS-1 (Rectifier Tri-Gain Plus Mod); CS-3 (Opto Plus Mod); SD-1 Super (GT Mod); GE-7 (Plus Mod)
Fender PT-100 Tuner
E.H. Big Muff Pi (US)
S.D. Pickup Booster
Ibanez CF7 Chorus/Flanger
Alesis NanoVerb
ART Tube MP Studio (OPA2604 Op Amps) (On Champion 30)
Behringer NR100 & OD100
That's a good question haha. How do you check the type of cartridge?Originally Posted by WackyT
It doesn't have a name on it, like Shure?Originally Posted by Nay
Guitars (All Lefty): Fender MIM Wine Red Telecaster
Washburn D10SCELHBK
Greg Bennett (Samick) Avion AV3/LH/CS
Franken-Strat (Maple Neck / Black Body & Pickguard / 2-Point Tremolo / GFS Alnico Single-coil Pups / Gold Hardware)
2 Fullerton Standard Strats; Sunburst w/ GFS Overwound P'ups and Black w/ GFS Lil Killer Rail 'Buckers
Fullerton Deluxe Dreadnought
Amp: Blackheart BH1HS Killer Ant Half Stack (Bitmo Ant Eater Kit)
Crate V18-112 (Goodsell RGM Speaker / Accutronics Tank / Switch R4 - R10 Mod)
Pignose G40V (Jensen MOD Speaker / DC Heater Mod / Pentode:Triode Switch)
Fender Champion 30 Reverb (Accutronics Tank / Jensen MOD Speaker)
Speaker Cab: Lopo 1x12 Tweed Convertible w/ Eminence GB128 Speaker
Pedals: Korg ToneWorks AX1000G, AX5G, & AmpworksG Modeling Signal Processors
Boss DS-1 (Rectifier Tri-Gain Plus Mod); CS-3 (Opto Plus Mod); SD-1 Super (GT Mod); GE-7 (Plus Mod)
Fender PT-100 Tuner
E.H. Big Muff Pi (US)
S.D. Pickup Booster
Ibanez CF7 Chorus/Flanger
Alesis NanoVerb
ART Tube MP Studio (OPA2604 Op Amps) (On Champion 30)
Behringer NR100 & OD100
Oh sorry I didn't look hard enough. The cartridge says ADC.
OK. That's a standard name. Have you check continuity between the cartridge leads and the leads going to the amp?
White = Left + = Left (usually white or black) center conductor
Blue = Left - = Left (usually white or black) shield conductor
Red = Right + = Right (usually red) center conductor
Green = Right - = Right (usually red) shield conductor
Guitars (All Lefty): Fender MIM Wine Red Telecaster
Washburn D10SCELHBK
Greg Bennett (Samick) Avion AV3/LH/CS
Franken-Strat (Maple Neck / Black Body & Pickguard / 2-Point Tremolo / GFS Alnico Single-coil Pups / Gold Hardware)
2 Fullerton Standard Strats; Sunburst w/ GFS Overwound P'ups and Black w/ GFS Lil Killer Rail 'Buckers
Fullerton Deluxe Dreadnought
Amp: Blackheart BH1HS Killer Ant Half Stack (Bitmo Ant Eater Kit)
Crate V18-112 (Goodsell RGM Speaker / Accutronics Tank / Switch R4 - R10 Mod)
Pignose G40V (Jensen MOD Speaker / DC Heater Mod / Pentode:Triode Switch)
Fender Champion 30 Reverb (Accutronics Tank / Jensen MOD Speaker)
Speaker Cab: Lopo 1x12 Tweed Convertible w/ Eminence GB128 Speaker
Pedals: Korg ToneWorks AX1000G, AX5G, & AmpworksG Modeling Signal Processors
Boss DS-1 (Rectifier Tri-Gain Plus Mod); CS-3 (Opto Plus Mod); SD-1 Super (GT Mod); GE-7 (Plus Mod)
Fender PT-100 Tuner
E.H. Big Muff Pi (US)
S.D. Pickup Booster
Ibanez CF7 Chorus/Flanger
Alesis NanoVerb
ART Tube MP Studio (OPA2604 Op Amps) (On Champion 30)
Behringer NR100 & OD100
I have not checked the leads and unfortunately I do not have a battery for my multimeter. I will check as soon as I get a battery. Thanks for the suggestion WackyT.
Nay, it seems that you are getting some sound - could you characterize 'horrible'? Distorted, scratchy, weak, limited frequency range (no bass, no treble)?
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tjcurtin1, by horrible I mean weak and staticy. I can hear the different frequencies alright, there is just a lot of static and fuzz over it.
Did you ground the turn table?
Guitars: 2002 Les Paul Studio Limited Color's Edition | 2004 Greg Bennett Avion Les Paul Copy | S101 Telecaster project | 2004 Washburn D46 Acoustic
Amplification: Epiphone Valve Jr. Head and Cabinet | VOX AD30VT
Effects: Rocktron Delay | BBE Free Fuzz | Big Muff Pi | Boss Flanger | Bad Monkey | Jekyll and Hyde | Cry Baby Wah | Boss EQ | Behrenger TU300 Tuner |
You could have the wrong stylus for that cartridge (probable).
Could be the wrong cartridge for that arm/turntable (possible). If you bought it at a garage sale, you don't know if it worked correctly when you got it, if I understand you right...you haven't played it since you rcvd it w the broken stylus?
There are 3 cartridge/needle types: ceramic = cheapos for BSR, Emerson, etc...
moving magnet = the most common and probable for a Technics (Panasonic)
moving coil = higher end for more expensive turntables (usually selling at $1000 or more) and require a separate pre-amp specifically for moving coil output.
Sounds to me like the stylus is incorrect or defective. Check here for info by name of cartridge manufacturer (ADC, in your case) and by matching up your exact cartridge w pics on page:
http://www.needlefinder.net/
Sounds to me like you have the wrong stylus. If you paid less than $12 or so, you likely have a ceramic stylus, when you need a moving magnet (usually $20 and up).
Good luck.
Last edited by bigG; July 30th, 2009 at 03:58 AM. Reason: change text
bigG
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