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Weird issue with my VPI... please help

I have a VPI Scoutmaster with a Shelter 501 MKII cartridge.

This is fairly new, so cartridge has maybe 40 hours on it.

Imagine a graphic EQ where you pushed the lowest band up full... and did the same to one other band in the upper midrange... and that's what it sounds like.

I thought it was something else in the playback chain, but I've isolated it to the turntable (switched phono stages to be sure). Other sources play fine so it's not the preamp or speakers etc.

Any ideas? I don't know if it's always been like this because when I first got the turntable I had some serious speaker issues where I couldn't hear the difference between any electronics (had a very muddy sound). Now that I have that cleared up (CDs sound great) I can hear the difference between different preamps etc... so I finally sit down to hear what my new vinyl collection actually sounds like... only to find out I have a problem of sorts.

The cartridge was setup by Elusivedisc.com where I bought the turntable.

Any help much appreciated!
madfloyd

Showing 4 responses by artemus_5

artemus_5's avatar
artemus_5
1,992 posts
 
You could have a bad cartridge. I bought a Benz L2 which gave me fits trying to zero it in. A test record showed that it would not pan which seems like your problem as well. Anyway I sent it back to the factory for inspection and they concluded that the coil windings were faulty and replaced the cartridge.

The only way to know is to check all the setup parameters and if it is setup correctly and you still have the same problem, I'd talk to the Dealer about checking the cartridge for defects
artemus_5's avatar
artemus_5
1,992 posts
 
Madfloyd. I upgraded to the Signature arm and never looked back. It was a very good upgrade which I would recommend. My room is an untreated living Room. If I have any problem with it, it would be its slight tendency towards brightness on some albums. I have noticed no undue brightness with the Sig arm. Tighter bass and more detail is what I heard. There is no more tendency towards brightness with the Sig arm than the standard arm. I have used a Dyna 20XL and a Benz Ebony L with great success.
As someone else has said, your problem is not the arm/cart match. I suspect a bad cartridge.
artemus_5's avatar
artemus_5
1,992 posts
 
Madfloyd. The Ebony is brand new and is not broken in. Maybe only 2 hrs on it so far. That said, it does everything on a bigger scale than the 20XL and has a better separation of instruments. But the 20 XL is indeed a good cart and doesn't need to apologize for its performance when matched against the Ebony. The Ebony is a better cart without a doubt. But is it 5 times better? probably not. Then too, the Ebony is not broken in.
That said, I have never heard anyone say bad things about the Shelter cart. I've heard of others who are using it on the Sig 9 arm with great success. I doubt it is the VPI sound that is the problem. I doubt it is an arm/cart mismatch. I also doubt it is a setup issue. Even so, I'd still check it.
FWIW, with my bad Benz cart, some albums sounded good while others that I knew were recorded well sounded very bad. I'd send the cart back to have it checked.
artemus_5's avatar
artemus_5
1,992 posts
 
Stringreen. The Ebony is starting to open up very nicely to the point where my previous comments should be revised and extended. Sure, the 20XL is a good cart for its price point, but at this point the Ebony is starting to show that it will be a great deal better than the 20.
The sound stage is huge. The layering is captivating. The bass is deep to the point that I can almost hear the string resonating at times. I don't know all the appropriate audiophile terms but I know that it is besting the 20 by a wide margin as it should. In spite of the law of diminishing returns, I have no regrets with my purchase but must admit that my first impression was somewhat lackluster. But that is changing very quickly. I still only have 3-4 hrs on it so I expect even more to come.
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