Why does my vinyl sound so bright?

If you like the Blackbird, consider having it rebuilt or retipped. I've just had two carts nicely redone by Peter Ledermann at Soundsmith. You could give them a call at (914) 739-2885 ( http://www.sound-smith.com/ for an idea of their rates ). They also sell cartridges, and would advise you.

Sounds like damage. Is the cantilever straight? If not, that would be an indication that the suspension is shot. If you have a 50x or higher scope for viewing the stylus you may find that it has been chipped. I suggest NOT playing any LPs until you figure this out.

Cantilever appears straight and I don't have 50x of higher. I'm going to take it in to a place that does tomorrow. Yeah, I am NOT playing any LP's based on how this sounds. Chipped might make some sense as it would play, just terribly...

I've got a Blackbird and it is very sensitive to VTA; however, your adjustment and the resulting unsteady sound makes me thing that something happened in the move.

Use canned air to blow out the cartridge. Don't put the nozzle too close because the parts are sensitive, but see if that doesn't help. If that's no good, then completely dismount it and inspect it with a magnifying glass. If all appears ok, then try to remount it one last time. Be careful not to overtorgue the machine bolts holding it to the arm or headshell.

Try a cheap MM cartridge in the arm to make sure that the arm is ok. There could be some binding that you don't feel, but I really doubt this possibility.

Dave