At wits' end with radio through the speakers!


Hi, i am hoping for some creative ideas here ...

I have "upgraded" to a tubed phono stage with Herron VTPH2A.

I can hear quite clearly radio in the background! Drives me nuts!

I tried:
  1. Moving TT.
  2. Moving preamp.
  3. Moving grounding cable.
  4. Upgraded phono cable (slight improvement but still very clear)
  5. Upgraded audio cables.
  6. Using Ground Control GC1 doo
  7. Inserting shorting plugs.
My system: LP12 clone with aluminum plinth, SME V, DC motor and Dynavector XX2mk2 cart.

2 more data points:

"old" Schiit Mani phono is quiet and cant hear the radio!

Thanks in advance!



fuzzypoodle
The ferrite rings might help. Let us know. Short of moving to West Virginia, you might try enclosing your phono stage in a sort of faraday box. It’s impractical to do a true faraday box, but you might encase it in shielding as much as that is possible without hindering your access.
I have noticed after purchasing a Manley Chinook SE MK2 I am hearing  radio stations. However, it is only coming through when the tonearm is sitting on the tonearm rest. Once I lift it up it stops. 

In addition, like the original post my previous phono preamps did not experience this interference either. 
I had a LIO DHT and was hearing radio stations when the amp was turned on. I added a ferrite ring to the the speaker cable close to the amp and the problem went away. 

I bought them on Amazon for $8. 


I had radio pickup when I bought a Naim Superline phonostage, mostly in Russian. A 1nf loading plug (in parallel with the resistive load) reduced the level to where I could live with it but I could never eliminate it until I swapped out the steel framed rack for one made largely of wood, I can only hypothesise that the old rack was acting like an aerial element and focusing the signal but I’d tried earthing it to no avail.