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High frequency distortion?

Hello all, I'm newish to vinyl, having gotten my first turntable, a Denon DP 300F within the past 12 months. It's been great so far, but lately I've been noticing distortion in both channels, mostly with high frequency sounds, like cymbals, high guitar notes, high vocal ranges, etc. Pretty much anything that comes out of the tweeters. All of my records were purchased new, so they've only been played within 5 times each. Anyone have any idea what could be the cause of the distortion?

Troubleshooting I've done:

  • Hooked up different speakers to the receiver.
  • Unplugged turntable from phono, and into cd, then used the turntable's built-in pre-amp.

  • Plugged headphones into the receiver while playing a record.

    In each case, the distortion persists, in both channels, at the high frequencies. Thank you so much to anyone who can offer any insight.


128x128bizzy
halcro's avatar
halcro
2,664 posts
 
You've had the turntable 12 months and never cleaned the stylus....😱
My money is on a dirty stylus as the culprit. Don't you have a stylus brush? It's the No.1 accessory you need for any cartridge. Brush from the back to the front.
Be careful with any fluid. Get some cheap Magic Eraser and do a search in the Archives on how to use it. Onzow ZeroDust is worthwhile as well as long as it's not a London Decca cartridge.

bizzy's avatar
bizzy OP
5 posts
 
Will do, and thanks. Yeah, I know, I haven't used it a ton, but I should've thought about cleaning it earlier.
bizzy's avatar
bizzy OP
5 posts
 
So, my stylus cleaner and record cleaner both came in yesterday, and today I cleaned the stylus, and a record. The problem is virtually non existent. Thank you all for your help for a newbie like me, cheers!

Highway To Hell is sounding epic :)
halcro's avatar
halcro
2,664 posts
 
Glad to hear it bizzy.
It is vital to clean your stylus at least after every listening session.
I know many who clean theirs after every album.....I certainly need to do this with my London Decca Reference which picks up crud from the grooves like some Atlantic bottom feeder.
Unfortunately just brushing the stylus does not render it pristine and if you inspect it under a 20x or 30x lupe....you will see the encrustations fairly clearly. That's why many resort to Magic Eraser and ZeroDust to perfect the process.
Happy listening...πŸŽΆπŸ€—
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