2. analog
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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
 
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
swampwalker's avatar
swampwalker
5,138 posts
 
Cheer up, Holly, there are lots of other good folks like Mofi who can probably help you get up and running. And there are also lots of pretty darn good carts out there for modest $$, if Mehran can't help you out. I would definitely send him an email or give him a call to get his thoughts on this. He is one of the real good guys on the retail side of this hobby.
jmcgrogan2's avatar
jmcgrogan2
6,346 posts
 
Holly, while ZYX does make great cartridges, I know, I've owned 3 of them, the Airy 3, UNIverse and 4-D, I would not just abandon analog if your ZYX cartridge has gone to meet it's maker. LOL! There are a few good cartridge options for under $500 brand new. Denon DL-103R, Audio Technica OC-9 mk II, and Ortofon 2M Bronze to name a few. Also, as Michael (Swampwalker) alluded to, Mehran is a good guy. Maybe your ZYX would have some trade in value towards a demo ZYX R50 for relatively little money. Just explain your situation.

Hopefully Mofi can get your rig up and running again with just some minor adjustments though. Good luck, John.
oakiris OP
206 posts
 
lol - I didn't mean to imply that I was going to give up on analog; I just don't have ANY money to spare right now and probably won't for months, so if the cartridge is bad, I have no choice but to temporarily abandon my vinyl rig until I can afford to buy a decent cartridge - I don't imagine that my system would benefit by going from a ZYX to a cartridge of less than $50, even if it would probably sound better than what I am experiencing with the turntable right now.

If Mofimadness does determine that the problem is with the ZYX, I will definitely contact Mehran to find out what my options are. I still remember how nice it was to work with him when I was making up my mind about which ZYX cartridge would be "the one" for my system.

Holly
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Mofimadness... you da man! What a generous offer. An an in-system evaluation by someone who knows their way around a vinyl rig is more likely to improve things than all our yacking from afar. :-)

That said, try this first... clean that stylus with a Magic Eraser and brush. I can no longer count the number of "damaged" or "worn out" cartridges I've "saved" for people by this simple measure. Judging by a recent post by Michael Fremer, even he has yet to learn how to properly maintain a cartridge.

From Holly's sonic description, inadequate VTF may also be a culprit.

The TurntableBasics protractor is rather hit or miss. Even used to its best capability, it's a pretty coarse instrument. The fact that Holly's trying to direct-measure overhang with a ruler indicates that her tools and methods need improvement. Consider printing out an arc protractor from vinylengine.com to double check overhang and zenith.

P.S. if Holly sends her ZYX to Mehran, he'd probably send it to me for evaluation before undertaking the expense of sending to Japan, so you might be saving Holly and me some time. Thanks! :-)

P.P.S. If Holly can't find the instructions for changing the Teres bearing oil, I have a copy if you need it.
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