OP:
I have done everything to avoid static in the system. I'm quite sure it is not static.
elizabeth:
It has to be static. No other possible thing.
jea48:
I agree with elizabeth, it has to be static.
Simple enough to test. If its static then it will pop even before the stylus touches down, the instant its close enough for a charge to zap across the gap. Otherwise it will pop only after gliding over the vinyl to finally drop into the groove.
And so as Richard Dawson so often proclaimed..... "Survey says......"