Bassraptor, thanks for the update. Did you try the suggestions I made on the 23rd, namely:
"Do you get the hum with the stylus sitting on the record, but with the motor turned off? I suspect that the answer is no. Then if you start the motor, I assume that the hum starts up. If I'm on target so far, what happens if you touch the ground wire to the tone arm base. Does the hum go away? If not, what is your ground wire connected to? If the pre, any possibility of a ground loop? Just for fun, if you can extend the ground wire to touch a water or gas pipe, you might get a clean and solid ground that will eliminate the hum."
The suggestions should take all of 10 minutes to try out. If the problem is, as I suspect, related to the motor and its interaction with the stainless steel tube, maybe the grounding ideas will help.
BTW, it's very nice of your dealer to let you try out another Classic TT this weekend. I suggest that you try out a Classic 1 with the stock arm, which as I mentioned above is an aluminum/stainless steel combo. If my suggestions above don't work, try twitching out your stainless steel arm with the Maestro already mounted onto the test TT. If the hum persists, I think that's credible evidence that your motor is ok. Next, I would mount the Maestro on the stock Classic 1 arm that comes with the test TT. If the hum disappears, then I think you have localized the problem to the stainless steel arm. If the hum still persists, maybe your Maestro is defective or the Maestro/Classic is simply not a good combo.
As I mentioned above, Mike from VPI is exchanging my Classic 1 stock arm for a Classic 3 stainless steel arm. In light of what you said on the 26th that you don't hear the bass resonance/ringing that I seem to have, then that's a good indication that the stainless steel arm is better suited for the Maestro. I just hope I don't wind up fixing the bass resonance problem, while adding a hum problem.
Please report back on how you make out. Good luck.
