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More turntable set up problems

I have an older Teres Audio turntable, purchased in 2005. It is a basically a model 160 with some upgrades, such as a birch plywood platter, a Teres VTA adapter and a hardwood reflex clamp. The tonearm is a Moerch DP-6 Precision red dot with a 12"armtube, and the cartridge is a Zyx R100-02H. I had everything set up in 2005 and everything was still working fine when I stopped listening to it a few years ago. Just this month I decided it was time to start listening to my two channel system again - I really do regret having neglected it for so long, but you can't change the past!

The turntable is level, the VTA appears to be correct, I have aligned the cartridge with the use of a Turntable Basics protractor( the only tool I have for this) and the tracking force is set within the range suggested by Zyx. With the rather crude measuring devices I have (rulers/straight edges) the overhang seems about right - it is supposed to be 13.3 mm, but I have nothing that will measure .3 of a millimeter. Anyway, I don't know how accurate my eyes are but I think I have things set up as close to where they should be given my tool and eyesight limitations. But.....

The sound coming out of my speakers is awful.....lots and lots of distortion, sounds like a transistor radio turned all the way up, if you know what I mean (if you are old enough to have been around transistor radios, lol,) hissy and garbled, really rough.

I have tried adjusting the anti-skating on the tonearm. The Moerch DP-6 has a lever for this, not a wheel, so I can't actually dial it in, but moving the lever made no discernable difference, the system still sounded like you-know-what. I also played with the VTA, just in case, but again, this made no difference.

I am probably going to start all over again and recheck every alignment, etc., but if anyone can give me some tips as to what area I should definitely focus upon - azimuth perhaps? - given the distortion problem my system is experiencing, I would much appreciate it.

By the way, I have a DAC and CD-player in my 2-channel system as well; CD's sound wonderful, so that SHOULD eliminate the possibilities that the DAC or tube power amp are causing the problems. Of course, there is a tube phono-stage/step up in the mix as well, but I really don't think that is the source of the problem - I really think I have done something wrong with the cartridge alignment....

Holly
oakiris
oakiris OP
206 posts
 
Well John, Colorado makes a lovely vacation spot; are you not ready to take a nice vacation? lol Yeah, a long road trip indeed, and it won't necessarily be warmer here, either.

If it is the cartridge, I wonder how a $50 or less cartridge would sound in this rig? Might be an improvement over the sound my much more expensive cartridge is giving me! I will check the cartridge and stylus again, plus do the whole set up again, and change out the phono stage if need be to see if any of that helps. If it is the cartridge, I will be listening to CD's for a long, long time. :-( Luckily, CD's sound great in this system, but, oh, I do want to be able to play records again.

Stringreen - I do know what you mean, but Teres Audio was highly recommended to me by folks right here on Audiogon when I asked for turntable recommendations, plus they were a local company (working out of Chris's home at the time) and I could actually audition the turntable and bug the owner with lots of questions! It seemed ideal at the time, and all was well for several years. Perhaps if I had kept up with my system, I would also still have a line of communication to Chris. I may try another email to them, just to see if I can rattle some cages and get a response.

Holly
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
Alright Mofimadness...you da man!!! There you go Holly, keep us posted on how things turn out.

Cheers,
John
oakiris OP
206 posts
 
Oh, Mofimadness! Somehow I didn't even see your post when I responded to John and Stingreen. Yes please! I am off to send you an email!

Holly
swampwalker's avatar
swampwalker
5,138 posts
 
I agree w Jmcgrogan2 that the most likely candidates are cartridge or tubes. Very unlikely that a less than optimal set-up (unless is was WAY OFF) would yield the symptoms you describe. In terms of checking things, I would go for swapping out the phono stage first. If that does not yield improvement, then I would call Mehran @ Sorasound. He probably has a demo/used cart he could send you for test purposes, or buy a cheapie from a web dealer. If it is the cart, it may have considerable trade-in value. As for Teres Audio, I believe what you are seeing is the winding down of Chris' TT business. I seem to recall that it was a family affair and one of the prime movers (his father maybe) passed away. I could be wrong about that so please don't take it as gospel. Since you are in CO maybe you could give him a call.
oakiris OP
206 posts
 
Thank you for your response, Swampwalker. Yeah, I would say that the Teres Audio story is close to its ending - the fact that they no longer have a page on their website showcasing their current turntable offerings is rather telling.... Chris's father actually died in 2007 so I am not sure that his demise led to the demise of the business, but who knows. Anyway, I don't expect to get any help from Chris, though, ever the optimist, I did send another email.

Luckily, folks like Mofimadness exist in this world; he is going to come down after the holidays and help me figure out what is wrong with the system and to get it set up properly. I am hoping that I made a boneheaded mistake with the set up that has caused the distortion problem, or that it is a bad tube in my pre-amp. If it is indeed the cartridge/stylus suspension, I will be very sad as there is no way I can purchase a new cartridge, especially one as good (IMHO) as the ZYX. In that case, I will be listening to CD's for a long long time to come....

Holly
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