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Cartridge Tacking Problems - Help please

I have major tonearm/cartridge tracking problems that seems to have gotten worse, leading me to believe there's a problem with the arm. Can anyone suggest what I can/should try to further diagnose the problem?

Here's what it's doing:
On some (becoming many) discs, the cartridge will just skip out of the track, as though there's a scratch, or someone bumped the stand. Changing the anti-skate setting (ie over driving the anti-skate to 2.5) helps a little, but doesn't cure it.

Here's the set-up:
Pink Triangle original table
Audioquest PT6 arm
Signet TK7SU cartridge with new stylus
(the the problem exists also with the old one)
I have no damping fluid in the trough at present

Here's what I've done:
Table is leveled and set up properly
Arm/Cartridge is set up and aligned (and quadruple-checked)
Tracking force is set at 1.75 g, which is the max recommended by Signet. I've always tracked this cartridge at 1.25 g on my old table and it worked beautifully.

thanks in advance!
bdgregory
martykl
3,578 posts
 
One more idea. I don't know the PT6, but if the lead out phono cable attaches directly to the arm, check to insure that the cable isn't binding the table's suspension. To check, simply lift the cable as a record plays. If the platter moves, you've got a problem.

good luck.
mofimadness's avatar
mofimadness
5,134 posts
 
Check to make sure the cueing support platform had cleared all the way under the arm. The arm might be hitting this. These can usually be raised or lowered.
grimsbylad
34 posts
 
This may be a little obvious but it did happen to me. Om an Sme 309 ,which is "fatter" at the pivot end, I lowered the arm to adjust VTA. It skipped/jumped on some discs because they had slight warps and the warp hit the arm as it neared the end of a disc!Duh!
I've never seen acompliance mis match so sever it cause the cartidge to skip, mistrack yes but not skip.
If it's not the above I would have to concour with other poters that it is a mechanical bind of some sort. Hope this helps
bdgregory OP
1,717 posts
 
thanks everyone . . . there are a number of suggestions I need to followup on here. I'll be out of town this week so they's need to wait til next weekend.

I have given thought to a new arm, not sure if the RB300 is my first choice or not. There are a few things that appeal to me about the PT6, so I want to try and make it work.

thanks again, I'll post results after the next tear down.
fatparrot
1,314 posts
 
Your cartridge is 25+ years old. Sounds like it might be time for a new cartridge! The suspension elements of a phono cartridge will not last forever, as the rubber suspension parts will decay. This can occur even if the cartridge has not been used very heavily.

Also, do you have a sturdy table stand, and have you changed the TT stand recently?
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