Sooooooo.... it's that time again, trying out a new cartridge that I acquired fairly recently. I'm finally getting round to getting it set up and I have some questions regarding the various adjustments, what impacts they might have and how I can tell if they need further tweaking. I know this gets done a lot on here but each time it comes up it's often about individual parameters rather than the whole lot. Here goes...
Have I captured all the main parameters to be taken into consideration? And is the order in which you approach them correct?
Increasing bias doesn't get rid of the "buzzing" - and in fact it begins to introduce it in the left channel as well. But even at the very lowest bias I can apply, I am still getting the problem in the RH channel.
Cartridge is a Benz Ace Low Output, arm is Origin Live Encounter 3C so bias is by hanging weight & thread. The cart is used, not new. VTF is set to 1.8g ("ideal" range is 1.7-1.8g). Armtube is set level. I'm wondering if:
I've played a couple of LPs and they sounded fine, but I've not really put it under any sort of stress yet so it's early days to say that this issue with the test LP is not causing any problems.
Next question - cartridge loading. So I know that, put basically, for an MC you don't really worry about the capacitance in the circuit but you do set the resistance (assuming you have the facility to do so). My phono (Tube Technology) does have a fairly wide range of options which is great. Benz somewhat unhelpfully suggest 100 - 47,000 ohm, hardly narrows it down! I've gone for 103 ohm which is the closest I get to 100, as a start point.
What I want to try and understand though is, when we say we are "loading" the cartridge, what exactly is happening? How does adding a resistance in-circuit make a difference to how the cartridge performs? Further, my phono applies this loading on the "secondary" of the transformer. Am I correct in thinking that the "primary" side is the side that the cartridge connects to, and the "secondary" goes out to the rest of the phono stage? In which case, changing this "loading" wouldn't seem to me to be having any effect on the cartridge at all, but on the rest of the phono. I'd just really like to try and understand, in layman's terms, what's actually happening in the circuit. And in addition, how altering this loading impacts the sound - what impact does an increase or decrease have?
Third question. Let's say that I audition my cartridge and think that, for the sake of argument, the sound is a bit bright, a bit brittle. As I understand things, lowering the VTA could restore the balance by making the sound less top-endy (!). But then also the cartridge loading could make a difference. Or potentially the tonearm lead-out wiring. Or the interconnects between phono and amp. How would I know which one to try adjusting? Is there a general rule-of-thumb or a preferred "order of experiment", i.e. should I always try VTA before loading?
I do enjoy all this playing around with setup and adjustment, but it can also be frustrating when you're playing with so many parameters and not sure where to turn next. What's my next steps, chaps?
Have I captured all the main parameters to be taken into consideration? And is the order in which you approach them correct?
- Approximate VTF setting (with any bias adjuster disabled)
- Cartridge overhang & zenith, using an alignment protractor
- Azimuth (I've not attempted to do much with this yet but adjustment will be via the "squish" in an Origin Live cartridge enhancer)
- VTA / SRA
- Bias
- Readjust VTF, azimuth, VTA as required during testing / listening
Increasing bias doesn't get rid of the "buzzing" - and in fact it begins to introduce it in the left channel as well. But even at the very lowest bias I can apply, I am still getting the problem in the RH channel.
Cartridge is a Benz Ace Low Output, arm is Origin Live Encounter 3C so bias is by hanging weight & thread. The cart is used, not new. VTF is set to 1.8g ("ideal" range is 1.7-1.8g). Armtube is set level. I'm wondering if:
- I need a smaller weight for the bias adjuster so I can apply less force
- Stylus wear could be wholly or partially responsible for the distortion
- My test LP is knackered from prior tests and may be wholly or partially responsible for the distortion
- Alignment is incorrect (which bit would be most likely? Azimuth? Zenith?)
- (horrifyingly) any combination of the above
I've played a couple of LPs and they sounded fine, but I've not really put it under any sort of stress yet so it's early days to say that this issue with the test LP is not causing any problems.
Next question - cartridge loading. So I know that, put basically, for an MC you don't really worry about the capacitance in the circuit but you do set the resistance (assuming you have the facility to do so). My phono (Tube Technology) does have a fairly wide range of options which is great. Benz somewhat unhelpfully suggest 100 - 47,000 ohm, hardly narrows it down! I've gone for 103 ohm which is the closest I get to 100, as a start point.
What I want to try and understand though is, when we say we are "loading" the cartridge, what exactly is happening? How does adding a resistance in-circuit make a difference to how the cartridge performs? Further, my phono applies this loading on the "secondary" of the transformer. Am I correct in thinking that the "primary" side is the side that the cartridge connects to, and the "secondary" goes out to the rest of the phono stage? In which case, changing this "loading" wouldn't seem to me to be having any effect on the cartridge at all, but on the rest of the phono. I'd just really like to try and understand, in layman's terms, what's actually happening in the circuit. And in addition, how altering this loading impacts the sound - what impact does an increase or decrease have?
Third question. Let's say that I audition my cartridge and think that, for the sake of argument, the sound is a bit bright, a bit brittle. As I understand things, lowering the VTA could restore the balance by making the sound less top-endy (!). But then also the cartridge loading could make a difference. Or potentially the tonearm lead-out wiring. Or the interconnects between phono and amp. How would I know which one to try adjusting? Is there a general rule-of-thumb or a preferred "order of experiment", i.e. should I always try VTA before loading?
I do enjoy all this playing around with setup and adjustment, but it can also be frustrating when you're playing with so many parameters and not sure where to turn next. What's my next steps, chaps?