Stylus not tracking and sounds terrible

smrex13, I think you are correct. I took the arm off to get a closer look at the cantilever. It is slanted so far to one side it seems to be in contact with the metal housing.

There is what looks like a very small adjustment screw on one side of the motor housing just below where the cantilever connects to the motor. Can this screw be used to align the cantilever? The screw is below the wood housing so I think everything would have to be removed from the wood housing to get to it.

The arm is on the pivot and the damping oil is in the well and the stylus is clean.

I'm going to try moving the table on to the concrete floor.

The renovations were in another room. I had to move all my records. That's why I didn't use it during the reno.

It's possible someone messed with it but it was covered by a plexiglass cover. The cantilever is not straight, it comes out of the cartridge shell angled towards the record rim. It's always been slanted that way though and seemed to play just fine.

This is my only cartridge. I may buy an inexpensive cart and swap it in to see if that's the problem.

Thanks Elizabeth. I tried this and was able to coax it back to center but now only have sound from one channel. Good sound, but only from the right channel.

Millercarbon, great diagnosis. Thank you.

Benz doesn't retip this model any longer. They offer a rebate if you buy the new version. I'll ask them if they give the rebate for a damaged unit. If they do, I'll break out the super glue and give it a shot.

The cantilever was always at an angle, noticeable to see but it always tracked fine. I always noticed a slight L-R imbalance on some records. Maybe I've been enjoying a broken cartridge all these years.

Thanks Slaw. The cantilever always seemed to tilt left of center. Not like it is now, but tilting to the left a bit. But it sounded good.

I guess I should have tossed it in the trash the first time I noticed it wasn't perfectly straight.

Lesson learned. Thanks Slaw!

I had the Aries on a sand-filled base for years. I lost it in a move and had major problems with the Aries on the wife-approved unit I have my gear in now. The Ginko makes it work but not like the sand-filled base sitting on a lead-filled steel stand my welder buddy made for me years ago.

i will reach out to Soundsmith. Thanks for the recommendation. Although I think I have a jonesing for a new cart now.

I'll be moving the amp. I moved it next to the TT temporarily while waiting for some longer interconnects. What could the amp be doing to the cartridge to move the cantilever though?

There was electrical work done during the renovation. Power was turned on and off etc. but nothing in the system was unplugged.

So, the transformers in the amp are about three feet from the table. Next to the TT on the shelf but on the opposite side of the arm. I’m not sure that matters or if a TT could be affected by a transformer being located that close. I considered that when I moved the amp but my only other option at the time was putting the amp on the shelf below the TT which seemed worse.

The cantilever is not bent. It’s straight but is being pulled to one side by the motor. The assembly doesn't look to be crooked in the body. The cantilever just pulls to one side. I can pull it back to center and then it rebounds towards the other side. 

Following Elizabeth’s advice I massaged the cantilever towards the center several times and got the cantilever off the metal hole it sticks through in the body. Not completely straight, but not touching the metal body.

It now sounds fine but I have no sound in one channel. I swapped the cables to confirm that the cartridge is only providing a signal through one channel.

I’m thinking there is a defect in the motor assembly that is pulling the cantilever more strongly to one side. Maybe it was something progressive that got worse over the years and/or maybe something happened that tweaked it far enough to finally hit the housing it sticks out through.

Either way, I appreciate the input and help everyone offered, even Slaw, and consider this a sign from the universe to make an investment in a new cartridge after nearly 20 years.

This whole thing is a silver lining. One result of the renovations is that my lps now reside close to my system. For the past several years my records were located in the next room. The result was that I didn’t play them as often as I would like.

All these years I thought it was a motor. Until I married my Canadian wife I thought eavestroughs were gutters.