turntable output dropped - do I need a new cartridge?

kyleknapp · « **on:** 28 Aug 2009, 02:58 pm »

Hi. I'm not a serious audiophile by any means, but I do have a modest collection of LPs, mostly dating back to the 60s & 70s that I like to listen to from time to time. But suddenly I can't...

I have a Kenwood KD-12RB turntable (don't remember where it came from, but I've had it for years). It was working fine, but suddenly it is producing almost no output. It's like someone turned the volume down to near zero. If I crank my amp up to max, I can hear it, but not loud enough to enjoy it, and it sounds thin and tinny.

I'm not real savvy with electronics. Is it likely the cartridge just failed? If so, where might I go for a replacement? Or should I just throw out the turntable and look for another one at the local pawn shop?

Thanks,
~kyle

guest48077 · « **Reply #1 on:** 28 Aug 2009, 03:28 pm »

Quote from: kyleknapp on 28 Aug 2009, 02:58 pm

If I crank my amp up to max, I can hear it, but not loud enough to enjoy it, and it sounds thin and tinny.

Hi,
To me this does NOT sound like a Bad Stylus or cart. You state that you can hear it yet it is really quit, thin and tinny. This is what a Turntable sounds like when there is not Phono Preamp. I would try to get your hands on another Phono sections or reciever ( I am assuming you are using an integrated amp with built in Phono Section)

srb · « **Reply #2 on:** 28 Aug 2009, 03:41 pm »

Both channels are exhibiting the same low ouput, which would make a cartridge defect or interconnect problem less likely (but not impossible). It sounds like you haven't made any changes (like moving the system), and inadvertently plugged the turntable into a line input instead of a phono input (if you have an integrated phono setup), but then, of course, you would have to choose a different input other than Phono on your Input Selector.

If by chance you are using an external phono preamp, did that accidentally get unplugged or unpowered?

Please give us some more info on your setup.

Steve

kyleknapp · « **Reply #3 on:** 28 Aug 2009, 05:55 pm »

Well, recently I tried to play a record and discovered the turntable had become unplugged from the amp (somebody must've moved a component, CD, Cassette deck and DVD player were all plugged into the same amp, the turntable was on a different shelf and the cable was stretched as about as tight as it could go). I'm reasonably certain I plugged it back in the same way it had been before, but that's when I first noticed the problem. Since then I've moved everything out of the rack it was in, and onto a countertop where cables reach easily.

It's just plugged in the the "aux" rca jacks on the back of my tuner/receiver/amp (there is no dedicated phono section, and I've never used an external preamp). I tried connecting a different turntable in its place, and it seems to work fine.

~kyle

srb · « **Reply #4 on:** 28 Aug 2009, 06:09 pm »

Quote from: kyleknapp on 28 Aug 2009, 05:55 pm

It's just plugged in the the "aux" rca jacks on the back of my tuner/receiver/amp (there is no dedicated phono section, and I've never used an external preamp). I tried connecting a different turntable in its place, and it seems to work fine.

~kyle

Even the highest output MM (moving magnet) cartridges have a low enough output that normally requires some kind of boost with a phono preamp, built-in or not, and the phono preamp also provides RIAA equalization necessary for proper LP playback.

How you could plug another turntable, that itself doesn't have a built-in phono preamp, into an AUX line input and not have a barely audible output, is indeed a mystery to me.

I'm puzzled.

What receiver model do you have?

Steve

kyleknapp · « **Reply #5 on:** 28 Aug 2009, 10:27 pm »

It's a Yamaha HTR-5230

And the turntable that works is an Aiwa PX-E860

srb · « **Reply #6 on:** 28 Aug 2009, 11:51 pm »

Well, part of the mystery is unravelled. The Aiwa PX-E860 is one a very few turntables that has a built-in phono preamp, designed to plug into mini-stereo systems that do not have a phono input.

The Yamaha HTR-5230 receiver does not seem to have a phono input, as you say. So it is hard for me to understand/comprehend/fathom/believe that you were ever able to get sound out of that receiver from a turntable that doesn't have a built-in phono preamp, like the Kenwood.

Unless there is a small phono preamp (like the one a friend bought in a $20 blister pack for his Yamaha receiver) that has fallen behind the rack or whatever.

Steve

kyleknapp · « **Reply #7 on:** 29 Aug 2009, 02:31 am »

Thanks for being so patient with me. I seem to recall sometime awhile back, maybe last year, installing the Yamaha to replace an older receiver that was intermittently failing on the left channel. Is it possible I never tried using the turntable since then? I am finding myself a bit forgetful in the last few years...

I think I still have the old failing receiver somewhere. If I can find it, I'll try playing the turntable through it. If it works (except for the aforementioned intermittent problem), then I'll know (A) that I'm probably getting senile, and (B) that I need to get a preamp.

I'll try this and post back my findings.

~kyle