VPI Classic hum

You need a well shielded cartridge with the Classic to stop the hum.

I had an expert suggest Soundsmith, and it's a dude who should know.

No hum from the Dynavector 17D3 Karat Mk II on my Classic. It's grounded and am using a Krell reference phono amp.

Here's an update, and a new issue.

Two cartridges I've used of late - Benz Gullwing and Dynavector 17D3 - reveal another source of hum.

This time, the hum begins when the stylus touches the playing surface, during the lead-in to the tracks, and I can also hear it a bit during quiet passages.

Someone told me it's because VPI motors are noisy.

VPI tells me it's because my low-output cartridge requires a lot of amplification, and is picking up some 50Hz hum from other piece of equipment in my system.

Anyone have any ideas?

I'm close to moving on to another t/t if I can't resolve this issue.

Oh, but the Classic/17D3 combi is awesome. Just that pesky hum bothers me ...

UUUhhmm, I also own a VPI Clasic and I mounted a Clear Audio Maestro Wood, a MM with a 3.6mV output. I think the I/C from the TT to the phono pre may be some off the shelf "higher end" Radio Shack RCA cable. I don't know if its shielded. I don't use a grounding cable from the TT to the phono pre. Also the phono pre is NOT a super high gain job, only 58 db. Bottom line -- no hum whatsoever, but as I mentioned in two other threads, still tweaking the set up to optimize sonics and reduce a slight bass resonance.

Bassraptor, did I miss something in the posts above, but it seemed like you found cartridge nirvahnna with the Rega I/Cs and the CA Concerto? How did you wind up with the Benz and Dynavector cartridges?

Let me challenge point you with a couple of questions. Krell runs his Classic with the Dynavector and reports no problems. His set up is grounded. Is yours?

You mentioned that the Rega I/Cs are shielded. Can I assume that these I/Cs are effective with respect to shielding against low frequency currents in nearby electronic circuits, trannies or the TT motor? Do the Rega I/Cs run near any of the foregoing types of equipment?

Finally, have you sent a private message to Krell asking for more details on his set up, including what he's using by way I/Cs? It seems to me that if you can duplicate whatever Krell is doing, presumably you should get a similar result.

Good luck!