Turntables

I hope you will love your new turntable. I began with p-24, which I heavily modded over time and learned with. The motor died last spring and I got the new P6 with Ania cart and I love this one as well. I think I will next try my DV cart on it. But I love to know about hardware setup and such as well as enjoy the music when I have finished a cycle of learning curves. I prefer vinyl still and I am sure my system is not as high end, but I get great joy out of it and out of tweaking a little at times. I concur about next focusing on a record cleaning protocol and caring for your stylus so even crappy albums can sound decent until you get a copy of more pristine ones. Plus, even new albums need cleaning of the residue. And I heard Viridian - his points always ring true with me and he has helped me avoid costly errors over time. I think if you have enough age on you that you had albums in the past, you can really “get” their value. I love physical media and all things pre-cell phones, so vinyl is joyful and fun. But if you have enjoyed hi-rez streaming and digital ease, this may not be your cup of tea. And no biggie, you will be able to resell just fine. So, enjoy the journey wherever it takes you. Mine returns me to quad and vinyl and now Vocallion re-issues of SACD’s from nice quad sources. Who woulda thunk? To each her or his own! But ain’t it fun! Good luck! 

So, the journey has began. I set up my Rega RP6, Rega fono MM and almost immediately I’m about ready to sell it lol! I have 2 albums. One was given to me with the table and the other is a brand new Norah Jones Come away with me. As I did 35 years ago when I had a TT and vinyl, immediately the first thing I did before playing the album was clean it. This album is horrible, scratchy sounding in spots with all kinds of crackles & pops. Is this what you get with “new vinyl” or is it a bad album? The Rush album I was given is fine with minimal pops. The SQ is not of my digital set up but that cold be because I’m using pretty shitty Monster Cables until funds build to get a pair of Transparent Audio Ultra’s. Any thoughts or recommendations?

I would try a few more records before giving up.  There is a record store "2nd and Charles" in Highland according to their website.  I had one near me but they closed.  

Luvrockin, if your cartridge and phono pre are new it's going to sound bad without break in. It's going to be thin and harsh. That's the bad part of analog there is no repeat button to burn in gear. I mean no disrespect but if you bought phono pre new and could return it I would. Without a full sounding 3D phono pre with gain adjustments it's going to be hard to enjoy your purchase.

++1paulcreed
There are a couple reasons you could be experience that from your LPs in-addition to what paulcreed stated. 
Firstly, some vinyl is just plain better. It depends on how it’s pressed when it was pressed, the label it’s on, etc. Were those LPs that you were given new? Check out the Kate Bush new box set release thread on Agon. Mine were fine, others reported horror!  My copy of Donald Fagen’s Nightfly180g release is incredible sounding. I just received Broken Social Scene’s, Broken Social Scene, my favorite Indy band, It has very poor resolution!
Secondly,  Please look to my post about setting up your TT. I was suffering the same issues with that expensive rig until I set it up correctly. Records were popping and had poor resolution. I get dead silence between the songs, in the lead in groove and dead wax, with no popping etc now. 
You will need an accurate protractor, (I use a mirror type for $20. You can pay a lot more for one. A paper protractor will not work) and scale.  Again VTA is so Important! TAKE TIME TO DO THAT. You’ll need to final adjust “by ear” as discussed on the S-S website. Don’t depend on the previous owner’s TT set-up for your new cart. EVERY cart is different. 
Please don’t give up yet. You will be richly rewarded using vinyl! Michael Lent 

@luvrockin , Your new cartridge is certainly going to new some break-in time, probably about 50 hours before it's at its best. After 10-20 hours it should start to improve. Remember it's got a moving suspension and needs to loosen up. So don't panic just yet. 
That Norah LP was reissued a number of times. Some versions are demo quality, a fine recording. Perhaps you've got a dud? One other thing that may be contributing to clicks/pops is static. If you have forced air heat running most rooms get very dry inducing static. Humidifier and anti-static gun are worth consideration. 
Sorry to say, but I agree with @paulcreed; a phono stage without adjustable gain is a real pity. If you ever want to try a moving coil cartridge, one with easily adjustable loading is far smarter choice too. Cheers,
Spencer

May  want to put in your cable for digital in your phono pre temporarily just to trouble shoot, that monster cable could be killing signal. You will still need to break everything in but may make you feel better that things can be improved. Is your tracking force set to 1.75 on your counter weight. You could try between 1.50 or 2.0 I believe without damage but may need to research it. I would not give up so soon.

  lol,  Ortofon should be a good starting point for you   funny stuff    yes!
   to many comment's 
  good luck   

Thanks for the suggestions guys. I’m definitely going to start looking into all of them. I’m also going to try a pair of my Transparent Ultra’s from one of my other systems. The Pre phono stage may be an issue in itself. I noticed as I crank up the volume I have a hum coming from my speakers. The turntable is grounded. As I move the arm towards the center if the album, it gets worse wtf? It does this with the TT running and when it is off. Anytime the phone stage is on, I get a hum. Thoughts?

See if you have any power cords or interconnects running parallel or even crossing over any of the phono cables, or interconnects  involved in your table including wall wart. Try a cheater plug on phono stage. Some unshielded cables can cause problems. I would also check the ground going to phono pre again just incase. Your phono stage may sound better left on 24/7. 

Can you plug the phono preamp into a different outlet that's on a different circuit?  Or did the ground lug become loose from moving things around?  

@gshepardbuster- I can put it on a different outlet which is a totally different circuit. It’s just not dedicated with upgraded outlets like my main. Also, what ground are you mentioning may have come loose? The one from the table to the pre phono is tight. Is there another I’m not aware of?

@paulcreed I will try leaving the pre on 24/7. As for the cables crossing the power cords, that’s not an issue. I will be poking and prodding pretty much all day tomorrow. Thank you guys for the input. Greatly appreciated!

Luvrockin, ran into friend at a party last night that I knew owned Rega p6 and p10 years ago and I mentioned your problem. ( noise gets louder as headshell moves toward spindle) He had same problem with p6 and said it is well documented. So it's not  just you. One thing it could be is motor is not well shielded. He mentioned adding adhesive foil shielding tape over the hole by the motor( this is what rega did with p10). Could also be tonearm is not grounded, there is a wire inside the the tonearm that sometimes comes unsoldered but you have to unscrew end stub off and re solder. From what I understand you can take a wire and touch it to head shell screws or tonearm and ground it to Preamp ground to see if in fact tonearm ground is faulty. You can run a ground from PSU chasis to Preamp ground? Please research this before doing that, I don't want to give false information. He said you can try moving power supply as far from motor as possible. If you touch tonearm screws or tag wires going in cartridge or spindle does noise get louder. Also mentioned was Rega cartridges are not shielded very well, really don't know as I'm not familiar with Rega. Since you bought this at a dealer can they help you or maybe get your money back if table is faulty. 

Here's a thread about someone with the same problem including a link to a PS Audio link that might help.
https://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?60274-Rega-P6-getting-hum

Guys thank you again for your input. Sorry I’ve been away with the holiday. Here’s some things I noticed and things I tried. I brought down my Transparent Audio Ultra cablesand the sound quality is pretty awesome. Some progress made. As for the hum and noise issue with my Rega, I tried isolating power sources, moving the power supply and pre phono with the same issue. The hum and noise level is definitely higher as I move the arm in towards the LP. I found the ground connector had a loose connection, it pulled off in my hand. Ithought this was it but as I connected it direct to the phone pre, it still had the hum. I crimped a new connector on the end of the ground. I have 3 systems in my home. I brought the TT up to my Mc setup which is pretty simple. It consists of a Mx-130 used as pass through 2 channel pre and a MC7300 amp. The MX-130 has a build in phono stage so I didn’t use the Rega Pre phono. Powered the system up and there is still a hum and static pops. I’ll get more into the pops in a minute. I brought the table on to my 3rd system which is a Jolida RC-1000 tube integrated amp. Plugged in the TT along with the Rega phono pre and as strange as can be, there is no hum and the amp noise level through the speakers is minimal. When I mentioned I’d get back to the popping sounds. I have said way back the disappointment of the Norah Jones LP I purchased but I noticed something else and it’s on all 3 systems. When I remove the arm from the album and the arm is in its rest, there are pops and crackles coming through the speakers. There’s no doubt the LP is not a good pressing but I believe some of the pops I’m hearing is the same pops I hear with the needle off the record. The last thing I tried for today was something the seller suggested. I have the TT on the very top of my rack which is right above a power conditioner for my DVD player and projector. He suggested unplugging that unit and sure enough, the hum dropped drastically. The system noise is still exceptionally loud and the crackling and popping when the arm is NOT on the record still exists. Gonna keep poking away.

I could be wrong but sounds like you may have 2 problems motor, power supply and cartridge together causing hum. The pops and clicks when no record playing sounds like tonearm ground problem. My table did pop/click while no record playing when my tonearm ground came lose from chassis. I'm not pointing blame but maybe previous own became tired of fighting multiple noise issues. If it was me I would try to return table. Hope your able to resolve issues one way or another.

I am the seller of table in question. I have never had any issues whatsoever.  I have gladly offered to buy the table back.  We listened in my setup then boxed the unit up together.  I treat people how I want to be treated and don't withhold info on anything I sell.  If the issues aren't resolved I will be fully refunding buyer and picking up the unit at his convenience.  Some have reported hum and noise with Rega.  Maybe there's an engineering problem that only manifests in certain environments but in the context of my system on 3 different phono preamps with at least 4 different carts I have never had any problems. 

Gshepard, I thought op bought table at a stereo shop used and was a trade in as he described being able to demo it before purchase. My brother has a Rega and never a problem. Friend I talked to other night bought p6 new from dealer and fought hum for a few weeks before returning it. Im sorry for implying any deliberate wrong doing, I did not mean for it to come across that way. I just felt bad for op trying to get into vinyl with issues with his new purchase.

Paulcreed,   No offense taken:).  Just trying to clear up some things before this thread becomes flame the seller.  I don't know why hum and noise is now present in this scenario.  Hopefully an "aha" moment will occur and we can have a good laugh.  Either way I will take back the table unless buyer wants to keep it and assuming issues are solved. 

I was just able to catch up on these threads at lunch.

@gshepardbuster- you’ve been phenomenal with trying to get the problem rectified and I will continue to try and correct it. I listen to it at your house and I know there were no issues heard that day. I think we both just want it corrected and if we can get to that point, I’d love to keep it.

@paulcreed- Thank you for all the suggestions, lord knows I’ve tried almost everyone of them. Gshepardbuster and I have been trying to figure out and work out the culprit. I am so appreciative to have a AG community with so many seasoned veterans so to speak to lend expertise. 

To all although the seller and myself are trying to work out the plaguing issues, I always throw out test and different things tried so we all can learn and maybe share to the next victim of....”sound issues lol” once I get gone tonight, I’m am going to start poking again. Paulcreed, I think I am going to connect a bastard ground wire from the screw on the head shell/cartridge to the ground on the pre just to test. I’m also going to check humidity levels in my home. Although I have (2) whole hound humidifiers and they’re both working, I want to check the levels. If I recal, the popping and crackling is usually after the needle comes if the LP and I don’t think it pops prior to playing. I have to double check. If so, this would lead me to static? Still have to address the hum issues once and for all as well.

The P25 that I am setting up for a friend has a new Exact 2 on it. The cartridge is very high gain, putting out approximately 7mv. Additionally, the shielding is in the Grado camp.

I had a hum problem as well. My Naim CD player, which is always on, was on the shelf of a Target rack at least 10” below the shelf with the Rega. While still connected, and humming away, I picked up the turntable and moved it around and the hum became louder and softer. Which lead me to turning off the Naim CD player, and the hum was, miraculously, gone.

I think the Exact is a bit hum prone and other internet threads tend to reinforce my impression.

To alleviate static, mix a small amount of commercial fabric softener in water. Put this in a spray bottle and spray on the carpet around the stand, covering the stand if need be to keep the spray from coming in contact with it. A simple solution that will alleviate any static problems that you are having.

@viridian- I’ve tried about everything. I messed around with it again tonight with no luck. At this point I’m not willing to buy a different cartridge right out of the gate or buy longer cables plus another stand etc. just to accommodate this setup. The seller and I are going to hook up Saturday and try a couple experiments. Hopefully we can figure it out. If not, I’ll probably  be in the market for another table & cartridge. 

I’ll recommend something unconventional:

Buy the cheapest decent used turntable you can find (Thorens, Rega 3, even a Technics SL-D2 for under $50 - but stuff plasticine inside the ugly plastic plinth! -etc), and spend the majority of your money on a good MC cartridge and preamp.
In a couple of years, upgrade to a high end turntable.

Once going vinyl, never back to digital. Except for convenience listening, as in background music while entertaining guests. Vinyl rules - Still. 

Just because the Exact hums is no reason to abandon the table. You can buy a  cheap used cartridge with better shielding simply to confirm that the table is fine. That would be cheaper than what you will probably lose selling the table. If it works then look for a better cartridge. Cheers,
Spencer 

As you all know, my first TT experience didn’t start off very good but the seller gshepardbuster  came over this morning. Having attempted several different things, we opted to try a different TT with a different cartridge on it. Sure enough it was silent with no hum or buzzing of any sort. It was a Technics TT with an Audio Technica Cartridge. He was willing to sell the TT and Cartridge at a very fair price and refund some of the money I paid for the Rega RP6. I wanted to keep the Rega for now so we swapped out the Exact 2 Cartridge with the Audio Technica AT150MLX. All the hum, buzzing and popping were gone. The sound was so sweet and I am a happy camper! I’m now afraid because I like I’m hearing so much, I’m already thinking about doing vinyl on one of my other systems. @gshepardbuster- Thank you for everything 
@ the AG forum members, thank you for all the help and ideas trying to help remedy my issue. It is greatly appreciated.

Luvrockin,  You are very welcome, glad we made it work. 

@luvrockin That's awesome to hear.You are lucky that  @gshepardbuster is one of the good guys! Cheers,
Spencer 

Luvrockin, so glad you’re getting good vinyl playback. Sounds like you still don’t know what caused the hum, but merely replaced one component to resolve the issue. 

I am am wondering if you are near any substantial source of RFI. We are near a large antenna and once I switched from MM to MC, I suffered many of the same issues you were having. The larger magnets on the cartridge were reacting negatively to all of the radio frequencies . I tried many things before I could rectify the issue and regain my nice dark backgrounds, which ultimately I did. 

If if you do have a source for EMI/RFI keep that in mind, because system matching and other more basic solutions will be really important, especially if you are now desiring a second system. 

Enjoy the music. 

@luvrockin 

As I move the arm towards the center if the album, it gets worse wtf? It does this with the TT running and when it is off. 

Your hum problem is from the turntable power transformer and your cartridge is insufficiently shielded to block the EMI. 

@dramatictenor & @sleepwalker65- I don think there is any extra source causing the hum. When I had the Exact 2 Cartridge in the arm, I also had a power conditioner which was used for a projector and DVD player. It was one shelf below the turntable in my rack. When it was powered up, that cartridge humid even more. When we swapped cartridges, no hum at all any time powered up or not. At the end of the day, the seller & I got the issue rectified by changing the cartridge. There’s a ton of info about hum issues from the Rega’s and the Exact 2 Cartridge. There’s also another upgraded power supply which supposedly helps this problem. At this point, I’m going to stay right where I’m at. I’ll be totally honest, although I love the sound of vinyl, I’m still having a rough time with the snap crackle and pop associated with it. Even after washing the albums and with 34% RH in the home, still get them pops. It’s a very hard decision and it’s still up in the air, but vinyl for me may be short lived :(

Any thoughts! Always at the beginning silence to the first song on an album or sometimes in the silence between tracks I can faintly hear the start of the next tune. Does that mean anything or is that normal?

@luvrockin What's 34% RH and how do you clean your records?
I bet this is a big reason for your clicks and pops. Cheers,
Spencer 

@sbank 34% RH = Relative Humidty in the house. I use the spin clean system when I first receive them, let them air dry and the prior to playing use the Audioquest carbon fiber brush or Audioquest micro brush with cleaning solution.

I remember a thread here a few months ago regarding the same phenomenon.  I don't recall the exact thread or details but if memory serves the consensus was pressing error or defects.  If not maybe someone who rembers or knows can chime in...

Pre-echo or print through. Not uncommon with records and not a defect that would cause me to reject a record. 34% RH is too dry in my estimation. Don't know where you live @luvrockin  but winter with central heating can do that. Can you increase the RH on your HVAC system? I adjust mine higher in the winter (in Texas now, where it isn't as cold as it was in the NE, but still makes a difference). 
Vinyl is a wonderful PITA. You get better at it. Record cleaning and care is part of it, for better or worse. Static is the devil, enhanced by dry conditions. I've gotten most of that sorted by effective cleaning, decent aftermarket inner sleeves and, for the most part, staying away from dry brushing in favor of an 'air puffer' to dust off surface lint from an otherwise clean record. I also learned to play and handle records in my bare feet- socks or shoes on carpet will charge you, and hence, the record. 
Sounds like @gshepardbuster is the kind of seller who goes beyond the call of duty. You are lucky! 
enjoy-
FWIW, the real cost in vinyl-land eventually becomes the records, sorting through different pressings, facing the challenges of the used record market to find the jewels and not being put off by the long list of things that can make you crazy. When it's right, it's pretty much as good as it gets, leaving aside my maniac friends who feed the tape beast. 

@whart thatbis what I thought about the pressing. gsheppardbuster who has gone well beyond the call of duty had also commented similar on possible pressing issues. That is not really a deal breaker on the LP. Just didn’t know if I had a tracking issue or something along those lines.

I live in the Midwest. I have (2) whole house humidifiers. I really don’t know how to get anymore humidity based on outside conditions. If I crank up the humidity much more, then I get a lake on all my windows frames from the glass pouring h20. I may try adding a portable humidifier just in that room. My thought is water seeks its own level. As the furnace fires up and I pull air from my listening rooms return air, that RH will probably drop and in theory gonup in the house? Anyway, I’ll keep poking with it and give it a shot. 

In regards to the faint signal you hear just prior to the music starting is indeed, print thru. Peter Lederman of Soundsmith told me that the louder this sound is, the better the azimuth alignment of the cartridge is. It can be used as sort of a tool for cartridge azimuth alignment.

I have a like new 2040 PE (Perpetuum Ebner) turntable that was considered to be top notch when we purchased years ago.  It has hardly ever used and stored in our residence closet for many years.  We purchased a second needle Shure M-91E-P20, at the time, which I remember was approx. $100 in the day for the needle cartridge alone .  That needle has never been on the platter. My husband has since passed away and I am looking to downsize all of his audio/stereo equipment including a Dokorder Reel-to-Reel which I think was a good unit.  Is this a place to be able to do so or can I be directed to a site to help in selling these types of products.  Thanks for feedback!  

Kreber my condolences on the loss of your husband. Unless you are comfortable with packing, and shipping, stereo components, it might pose a challenge to you. 

You may find that selling locally by posting an ad on Craigslist, for free, is an easier solution. Another option is to sell to an audio dealer that handles used gear in your locale. I hope that this helps.

@Kreber my condolences as well.  You can get the equipment packed for you by UPS among others for example.
There are other issues.  You need to know the value of the gear you're selling.  It would be good if you had a friend of your late husband who also knows audio.. Otherwise there is a blue book on this site.
You can list the equipment on a site called "Audio Asylum" for free but it will reach a national audience, shipping will be a concern, unless you say local pickup only. Of course some high end audio is sold on Ebay