School me

[crwilli]

When I decided to prioritize my audio hobby again, I bought an entry level Marantz TT. While gooving to Steve Miller Band's "Fly like an Eagle" i noticed as the album played, it became more and more sibilant.

Is that a function of my LPs or of the setup or lack thereof of the TT? I am dipping my toe back into analog to listen to my 30 yr old LPs. Still kicking myself for selling my Dual 122X in 2008. Not really intending to go wild. I would rather put my money in DSD playback. But, my system is not forgiving of this sibilance so I wonder if there simple things I might do ( read not $,000's ) to improve the analog sound)? Reasonable cartridge upgrade etc?

Thanks gurus and please don't be insulted by 'cheap out' approach to what I know is a passion for most of you. That is what makes this hobby so cool.

Craig

[crwilli]

When I decided to prioritize my audio hobby again, I bought an entry level Marantz TT. While gooving to Steve Miller Band's "Fly like an Eagle" i noticed as the album played, it became more and more sibilant. Is that a function of my LPs or of the setup or lack thereof of the TT? I am dipping my toe back into analog to listen to my 30 yr old LPs. Still kicking myself for selling my Dual 122X in 2008. Not really intending to go wild. I would rather put my money in DSD playback. But, my system is not forgiving of this sibilance so I wonder if there simple things I might do ( read not $,000's ) to improve the analog sound)? Reasonable cartridge upgrade etc? Thanks gurus and please don't be insulted by 'cheap out' approach to what I know is a passion for most of you. That is what makes this hobby so cool. Craig

Sorry for the grammatical issues . Darn iPhone is tough to compose on.

[audioguy3107]

Hi Craig.......what type of album is the Steve Miller Band record? Is it new or an old used record? Does it happen on all the records you play? Try and give us a few more details when you have a second. I know that old used records can be prone to inner groove distortion which tends to be worse on the inner grooves of albums due to former owners subjecting their albums to abuse by means of improperly set up cartridges. Have you done aany experimenting with other albums in your collection? I had a visually mint Van Morrison album that was virtually unlistenable by the time I got to the last song on each side.

Buck

[crwilli]

Hi Craig.......what type of album is the Steve Miller Band record? Is it new or an old used record? Does it happen on all the records you play? Try and give us a few more details when you have a second. I know that old used records can be prone to inner groove distortion which tends to be worse on the inner grooves of albums due to former owners subjecting their albums to abuse by means of improperly set up cartridges. Have you done aany experimenting with other albums in your collection? I had a visually mint Van Morrison album that was virtually unlistenable by the time I got to the last song on each side. Buck

All my LPs are old circa 1968 to 1982. So are old. I probably bought via a record club 'back in the day'. Although, while I wasn't clear, It does seem to happen with most of my LPs. While never uber technical, I did try to take care of my LPs back then. I used a Discwasher and tried to insure my Dual was set up properly as best I could! They were never abused other than by the 'needle'

Craig

[audioguy3107]

Craig......how about your turntable setup? Did you do it yourself or did a dealer perform the setup for you? What about your cartridge....preowned or brand new? Some more of these details could clear things up for you!

Buck

[crwilli]

The TT is out of the box Marantz. I have done nothing to it. I took it out, plugged it in and have used it about 10 hours. Other than using groove glide to clean the old LPs my analogue approach is as they say, stock.

I don't know what to do.

[Front242]

Craig, it could be as simple as dust accumulating on your needle. I've seen that happen at friends' houses when they finally set up their turntable again and break out old records. Please be a careful observer/listener and I am sure you will get the help you need here.

[speedofsound33-3]

I would think you would want to check the cat ridge set up. Things can shift in delivery

[miner]

Take nothing for granted on pre-set up. No one will set it up better than you. Check cart alignment, VTF and be sure table is level (very important).

[Mikado463]

as Buck states, more info, but myself I suspect also that used LP's with inner groove wear combined with poor cart set up on your rig (azimuth, anti-skate) all contribute to what your hearing. Do re-check as Miner suggests....... FWIW and IMO, VTF issues would have little to do with what your experiencing.


..............one more thing, get yourself a copy of Mikey's (Fremer) DVD on TT set-up, it will provide you with useful info

[audioguy3107]

as Buck states, more info, but myself I suspect also that used LP's with inner groove wear combined with poor cart set up on your rig (azimuth, anti-skate) all contribute to what your hearing. Do re-check as Miner suggests....... FWIW and IMO, VTF issues would have little to do with what your experiencing.


..............one more thing, get yourself a copy of Mikey's (Fremer) DVD on TT set-up, it will provide you with useful info

Good advice from Dave about Fremer's setup DVD. I agree with what he said above, although I would say it sounds more like a cartridge setup issue since it occurs on every (at least that's the picture I'm getting from your description) LP that you play. I'm sure you have some LPs that wouldn't have any IGD, so I'm leaning toward a cartridge issue. All kinds of things can happen in shipping that might not be obvious to the eye. My next step would be to contact a local reputable dealer who has experience in setting up turntables and have them do a cartridge setup for you. I suppose that there would be a chance you could have a defective cartridge (it happened to me on my first turntable purchase!), but they would be able to figure it out for you.

[crwilli]

I have worked to level the table in all directions and that has helped. More fully cleaning the LPs with my discwasher and the Groove Glide has helped further. I will also get Fremer's DVD.

Thanks for all the great and experienced guidance! My personality is such that makes me hesitant to get this right as that will lead me to spend a lot more money on analogue when my brain tells me to go toward DSD.

In the meantime, I am going to get what I have as perfect as it can be but know my TT is the rate limiting step and I can only go so far.

There are no adjustments I can see on it. But will get the DVD. Dealer is two hours away.

This is a great community.

Craig

[Mikado463]

Craig,

it sounds like leveling the table wasn't done prior, that is a huge first step in the right direction. If you leveled it via the plinth be sure to confirm on the platter as well.

I'm assuming the anti-skate is set via some dial ?? reconfirm this with the tracking force of your cartridge......what are you using for a scale ?

At this point with regards to azimuth I would only confirm headshell / cartridge body being 'square' with the playing surface. Once you get Fremer's DVD this will be easy to check.

While your TT might be an entry into the joys (and perils) of analog it will give you and your ears a good indication as to just how far you want to go with analog....... enjoy the ride !