I’m voting on static buildup. The filth on your records is the tell. I’d be interested to check the humidity of your house, the carpet (or rug) between your record storage and turntable, what kind of shoes you do (or do not) wear, if you wet-wash or simply dry brush your records, etc. I’m assuming whatever you are doing before putting the vinyl on the platter is leaving one heck of a charge on your record. The other questions remain: Did the single ended connection really solve your problem? Did the rewiring create a better ground path? Why do people feel the need to comment without watching your video?
So Weird- No Stylus Contact Woofer Pumping with Hana ML and Elac PPA-2
I observed the weirdest thing I have ever seen in audio. With the cartridge positioned above the record, tone arm locked up and platter spinning, the woofers were pumping on my system. I googled every permutation of query I could think of but came back with no hits. That’s when I decided to video the problem- link below:
I could type out all the details but the video pretty much covers everything. I thought ya’ll might be interested in this.
Showing 6 responses by nrenter
BTW, I’m running balanced from cartridge to speakers (and have been for 17 years). Soundsmith Aida -> OL Enterprise -> AudioQuest Leopard (balanced) -> Ayre P-5xe (balanced) -> AudioQuest Colorado (XLR) -> Ayre AX-5/20 (balanced).
And I can tell a difference if my table bearing is properly grounded or not, particularly on dry days. |
I’m still thinking you are putting a static charge on your records. That charge won’t universally distribute evenly across the record, as the vinyl itself is an insulator. Something you are doing is leaving a charge, and that charge is concentrated (possibly) at the last place you touched the record. That concentrated, persistent static charge is inducing a periodic, low-frequency signal via your cartridge. I also still think the conversion from balanced to single ended isn’t what resolved your issue. You created a better ground path to dissipate the static charge. I’d bet that if you ran a very thin wire from your head shell to ground you would have resolved the issue as well. |
If I may quote myself:
Here's a video of a demonstration that clearly shows this concept in action. |