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Vinyl Newbie - So Many Questions!

New to these forums and new to vinyl, but longtime audiophile, so I feel comfortable saying that I know what I’m hearing but can’t figure out why. 

It would probably help if I summarize my system to aid in troubleshooting:

Marantz TT 15S1

iFi Zen phono preamp

Naim Uniti Atom as streamer/preamp/dac

Conrad Johnson CAV-45 S2

Klipsch Cornwall IV

I’ll start with the easy one

1.  I followed the setup instructions for the Marantz tt meticulously. Every time I start the motor, the belt squeaks and slips on the motor pulley before getting up to speed. It’s annoying and really cheapens the experience. Is this normal?

 

2.  The sound quality ranges from very bad to very good, largely dependent on the record. I don’t have a large collection as I just started with vinyl, but many of these pressings sound absolutely terrible. Many sound distorted and compressed. Many have tons of clicks and pops. I double checked the settings on my phono preamp which is really just moving magnet. There aren’t a lot of settings. One for MM and three for MC. I connected the phono preamp directly to the Conrad Johnson instead of the analog input on the Naim and while it does sound “better”, it’s mostly the same. 
 

I don’t have another cartridge or phono preamp to swap out and try to isolate the issue. Could it simply be that the phono preamp is defective?  It seems that if the cartridge was defective it would just all sound bad.  Could it be that my system is revealing enough that it’s showing the limitation of the iFI?  I just think it would sound “good” all the time, but never really “great”. Could it be that all of these pressings are so incredibly crappy that I’m hearing just how bad they are?

The couple of “mainstream” records do sound pretty good. Namely Gregory Porter, Adele, Gary Clark Jr, Miles Davis, John Coltrane. But even a couple of those have inconsistently cut holes for the spindle (some of them bind), significant warps, and some off-center labels. The independent stuff is all over the map. A couple of the John Prine pressings sound very good, but have soooo many clicks and pops it’s ridiculous - even after cleaning. And one of them wouldn’t even go on the spindle because the hole was so small. 
 

Anyway, I’m just perplexed and pretty annoyed. I’ve debated buying another turntable (with cartridge) and phono preamp just to see if there’s any change.  Any suggestions?  Is that my best course of action - to just buy another preamp and cartridge to troubleshoot? 

doodledan
gbryant's avatar
gbryant
83 posts
 

Yes... a phono preamp is meant to plug into a preamp... it should be OK.

If your preamp sounds ’right’ with CD, etc. ... it should work with ifi

Go to Clear audio to get specs for your cartridge... 47k ohms should be OK.

GET A FORCE GUAGE.... they are cheap. You cannot properly set up your TT and cartridge without one.

Once you have made sure your cartridge is setup... you can play with VTA (height of tonearm) start at dead level, raise or lower to your preference.

Make sure your records are clean. Get on u-tube and watch setup videos and cleaning videos... helps newbies.

If your cartridge has collapsed... clear audio has a trade in , trade up program.

BUT... more than likely it’s your setup skills... no offense... try again with the proper tools.

AND... the belt. Take it off, put in a bag with a little baby powder... shake it. May help. Belts stretch..they are a wear item... you can replace it.

doodledan OP
7 posts
 

So the phono cables coming out of the Marantz are hardwired to the tonearm, so I can’t say for certain what Clearaudio uses (they make the TT for Marantz). The cables coming out of the iFi are (cue the eye rolls) Monolith 3 ft RCAs. 
 

I just checked an Amazon review where someone reportedly measured theee cables and found them to be quite high in capacitance (65 pF/ft), so that might be an issue. What do you think?

vair68robert's avatar
vair68robert
588 posts
 

doodledan

I looked at images of your model TT and the motor mounts are similar to my TT , on mine there are springs that level or keep the motor spinning so that it does float and the belt rides perfectly horizontal on the plater  .  This could be your problem , you'll have to take the motor housing apart to see .

You NEED VTF scale . Your cartridge requires 2.2gms +/- .3 , it also suggested 100pf loading . Your iFi is set at 110pf  so your OK there .

Your experiece with new pressing is very unlucky , I stay away from the EU pressings that do not have the original company label on them / or the ones that don't pay royalties .

Good Luck

 

 

 

vair68robert's avatar
vair68robert
588 posts
 

P.S.

I don't think that the motor housing should be moving , if you hold the housing can you then move the pulley ?  I beleive that only the pulley should be floating .  The three screws you see on top should be holding the motor housing to the plinth .

 

 

doodledan OP
7 posts
 

I wish there was a simple way to post pictures. The motor literally sits on the shelf, completely independent from the plinth. Since there is already tension on the belt between the motor and the platter, it’s very easy to move the motor and end up with it in contact with the plinth. The only thing holding it in place is a bit of friction from the little feet under the motor and inertia.  
 

I listen to a lot of “independent” type artists who tend to be on small and sometimes even their own record labels. Unfortunately, the production quality is just very poor. Im going to have to rethink my vinyl purchases and stick with stuff that I really want to own that’s either on a larger label or just purchase audiophile pressings. It’s more than a little disappointing that new vinyl seems to be such trash. 
 

In a timely YouTube video posted just yesterday, Paul McGowan talked about that very subject and seems to support what I’m hearing; namely that much of the new vinyl coming out is just a highly compressed digital transfer to vinyl. Much worse than just listening to a CD or highres stream. 

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