Help, I'm going crazy with vinyl noise

I recently changed from an Aesthitix IO phono stage thru a Placette passive to an Ortofon MC step up transformer through a VTL Deluxe MM preamp (financial resons) and a Wilson Benesch Analog rig. Sounds good except every time the cartridge goes over a warp, and I mean even a teeny tiny warp, I get a scratching sound from one channel. It is loud enough to be heard when music is playing and IT IS DRIVING ME CRAZY!

This new set up has more energy at higher frequencies, cymbals and bells are louder but they sound natural and in balance with the rest of the music. The scratching may have been there before and the former set up masked it, or maybe it is just coincidence but I suspect it is just being revealed by this new set up.

I have adjusted antiskating, tracking force, and azimuth from one extreme to the other but it has no effect. Lowering VTA has a slight effect but with the back all the way down it is still very noticeable. I know it is the trurntable because switching the leads into the transformer switches the noise.

I don't have another cartridge to try and this one cost around $3000 so I can't afford to just get another one unless I'm sure this one is bad. I had it rebuilt by Wilson Benesch a while back and it seemed to be fine until now.

Sorry for the length but I thought too much detail was better than not enough. Any thoughts? I considered bad bearings in the arm hanging up when it goes vertical but it is a uni pivot variation that they claim will last forever. My best guess is that something is rubbing in the cartridge when it makes a vertical excursion.