Need Help With Turntable...again :(

[MrCrowley]

IF your amp has a phono inputs built in, you may not need the preamp, If you don't need the preamp and you have it hooked up the singnal will be to high for the amo and one of two things will happen, first and common with cheap amps is that you will get super bad sound with emense clipping, or second, this is more common with high quality amps, a level circuit will trip and will cause a hum/ buzz, or no sound at all.
If you try with out the pre amp and it still does not work, the turn table is broken.

I'm not using an amp and a pre-amp. Just an amp.

The turntable has no pre-amp, so i've hooked it up to my Harman/Kardon (high quality) amp.

But thanks for the advice anyway.

[jrrdw]

Whats the name of that Neal Young song? oh it's "I Seen The Needle and The Damage Done"

Could be the pic but the needle looks tweeked to the side. Should be straight down the middle.

[MrCrowley]

Yeah I thought that didn't look right. It's pretty bad as well, it's not just the picture. I can't seem to get it straight though, it just keeps going back.

[jitup]

What you should do than is check frequently at your local thrift store for mid '70s era record players. mid '70s turntables are better quality and If you are lucky you may fing a gem such as a TEAC or an AKAI, I have a mid price range technic's turn table and it sound phenominal through my good sony amp (not best buy crap, the good stuff) and early '70s JBL's.
also chenck the records, I found a Boston album in good shape and myprize possesion, original unopend Beatles Srt. Peppers lonley hearts club band album. I carefully opened it and fresh vinal of that album is amazing, I heard so many things you can't catch with warn vinal or cds.
I am a bit of an audio phile, and also a first year music major, so even though I am a noob to home made guns (I am pro marksman certified for shot gun, used to do skeet and trap) I know my music stuff

[jrrdw]

Must be the gromut. Grab the cartidge off your other turn table, if you swap the entire head it should work.

[MrCrowley]

Well I straightened the needle up as much as I could and it's still crackly, though it did get better. Maybe i'll just buy a whole new stylus, if I can find one reasonably priced.

Thanks jitup but i'd prefer not to spend another $40 on a record player. I can get TEAC's or AKAI's of www.trademe.co.nz for about the same price as well. I've already got a bunch of records i've bought second-hand also.

Edit: jrrdw, I looked at doing that but it doesn't look like it will work. I'll have another look though.

Edit 2: The wires run through the whole arm in my other turntable, the wires on my pioneer use a 4 pin connector instead. So you can take the head off without wires still connected to the arm.

[jimmy101]

Radioshack still carries needles (aka stylus) in the US, here's a link to a Pioneer one for $19
http://www.radioshack.com/search/index. ... oneer&sr=1

Here is an online site with a bunch of Pioneer needles, $12 ~ $70,
http://www.garage-a-records.com/products.php?cat=47

Does your cartridge have a manufacturer number on it?

[MrCrowley]

Made some progress with the stylus.

On the website www.styli.co.nz, I managed to identify my cartridge as a Ortofon, and I found that <A HREF="http://www.styli.co.nz/stylus-410.html">this</a> stylus will work with that cartridge and ultimately my turntable. It's only $26NZD as well. It looks pretty similar to mine except for the gold thing in the middle. I have a feeling this broke off my stylus as the guy on the website say the stylus I have now is the same one as the one I linked.

Doesn't look like RadioShack has them in stock but thanks anyway. Now I just have to wait 'till I have $26, i'm a bit low on cash thanks to Iron Maiden coming to tour soon.

[jimmy101]

Looking back at the photos you posted, it looks to me like the thin metal tube (bar?) that the needle is mounted on is bent. It looks like the tip with the needle is much too far away from the cartridge body.

While you're waiting for the $$$NZ to buy a new one you might try just bending that tube. The central axis of the needle should be perpendicular to the plane of the record. In other words, the pointy part of the needle (the little hunk of diamond) should be square and true to the record surface. And only the tip of the diamond needle should touch the record. Looks to me like you might be able to just push the tip of the tube back up towards the body of the cartridge. The tube should also be aligned with the major axis of the cartidge. The needle carrier comes off the cartridge, so it might be easier to fix the needle's alignment if you remove it.

If someone mishandled the cartridge/stylus then it is easy to snag that tube and bend it out away from the cartridge's body or off to one side.

So, try bending it. Then test on an old Beatles album.

[MrCrowley]

I had bent it back but it made little difference. The needle looks in pretty bad shape compared to the one on my other turntable. I can't seem to make out a definite needle tip under a magnifying glass, it just looks like there's a pointy end, not a diamond stylus tip. It's hard to explain.

But i'll keep trying...on my Kate Bush* LP



*I got a bunch of LP's from an Uncle, that included.