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help me remove noise from my vinyl setup

hi all,

i have a low-output vinyl setup, and the noise hovers around -60 dB. i would like it to be lower. can you let me know where the problem might lie and suggest solutions?

i have a Technics SL-1200 (M3D) that i got from KAB, with most of the upgrades... fluid damped tonearm, Cardas tonearm wires, strobe light disabled, and the external power supply/conditioner. i have the low-output Grado Sonata1 (statement series) and Cardas headshell wires. i have Grado's prestige interconnect cables between the turntable and a Grado PH-1 phono stage. finally, i have a Blue Jeans MSA-1 cable between the PH-1 and an ASUS Xonar DX sound card in my computer.

here's a recording of the noise:

http://www.sendspace.com/file/1y89l5

there is also a slight popping/crackling noise, can you hear it?

i borrowed a Furman PL-8 Series II power conditioner from a friend, and tried plugging the PH-1 into that. i also tried plugging the turntable power supply into it. ...it didn't help any.

many thanks.
scar
mapman's avatar
mapman
22,284 posts
 
I use mu-metal sheeting to protect my MC step up amp from hum/noise induced from external EM fields emitted from amplifiers or other nearby transformers.

I roll the mu metal sheeting into a oval tube large enough to insert my step up device into and it works like a charm. Hum/noise otherwise audible is gone.

The mu metal sheet needed cost around $35 in my case.
scar OP
10 posts
 
thanks, all. i just cannot get the noise down to a satisfiable level. i looked into SUT but i have heard from some experts that they require cartridges with low impedance, and the 47K of the grado is way too high. so it would mean buying a new low-output cartridge. i browsed needledoctor and didn't see anything i liked within my price range, which is kind of low for a low-output cartridge considering i am going to spend at least a few hundred on a SUT. i need a high compliance cartridge also, to match my tonearm, and didn't see many of those.

for now, i am going to try a high-output sonata. it may not have the same detail as the low-output, but i will hear when i get it.
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knownothing
1,584 posts
 
How did the high output Sonata work for you? I have a Grado PH-1 and a Reference Platinum 1 running on an older Thorens TD 150 MKII turntable, and even with the high output Platinum I notice the preamp hums (a lot) if placed too close to my integrated amplifier. The further away, the better.

Also, certain turntables are not ideal for use with unshielded Grado cartridges because the motors are too close to the path of the headshell. I have not experienced this problem with Grado cartridges on my current TT, but if it was going to happen at all, it would likely be accentuated with low output Grados.

For me, for now, the combination of the Reference Platinum 1 and PH-1 sound pretty good together.
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