SH Spotlight If you have a turntable you need to play your mono records in true MONO. How to do it cheaply..

By the way, I posted earlier that I experience a hum when I used the double-y between my turntable and my preamp/phono stage (one component). That was the reason I bought the Monocor mono adapter, which had much less hum. Out of curiosity, I tried the double-y between my pre and my amp - zero hum, clean as a whistle.

 

I've started getting my Christmas LPs out of storage for the upcoming season and have really found magic in some of the old mono lps in my collection. Might sound dumb, but I'm astonished that I can now hear traces of tape hiss from the original recordings, that must have always been hidden by the surface noise being generated by my stereo cartridges. Again... a million thanks for this simple but effective tip/trick!

 

Should have stated to use two wire shielded cabling

 

Thanks what I want, a switch! Any chance you can put together a parts list from where you got them? Did you buy them online? I'd love to be able to make one of those! Looks super simple.

 

The Monacor looks like a good solution but seems it has no switch, which is a deal breaker. Is that true?

 

No switch on the Monocor.

 

Sure, here's the schematic and parts list.

It is very simple to put together.

 

Brilliant! Thanks Xmas

 

WOW! Thanks xmas111! Parts numbers and all. I'm gonna make one thanks to you. Much appreciated.

 

I'm inexperienced in things like this, but curious. What happens mechanically to combine the channels when you flip the switch?

 

I believe the signal from both channels get combined and sent back out to both channels as 'summed' signals. Both channels become equal. This has been described many times many different ways throughout this thread. Or, do you mean: how does the switch operate??

 

Yes, of course the signal is summed. But if I'm building one, what I want to know is: what is the mechanism by which that happens? How does the switch control it? I'm not familiar with electrical engineering, and so the provided schematic doesn't make it clear to me, a person without knowledge in this area.

 

On the drawing take the red vertical line on the mono side from the upper dot and move it over to touch the switch toggle, the red angled line, then connect the top of that vertical red line to the red horizontal line connecting the two red jacks so when the switch is closed it connects the black side to the red side so both red and white are tied together, when switch is open it is then normal, stereo L - R
Does this make it easier to understand the drawing?

From my earlier posts it can be done in the pre amp also just substute the one set of jacks for the PC board.

Jim

 

Ya know if someone made a few of these and put them up for sale in the classified section of this forum I'd bet he or she would do pretty good for themselves

 

UPDATE!

Went and got the bits from Jaycar, electronics shop here, drilled some holes in an ABS box, screwed in some gold RCAs and added the switch and viloa a mono/stereo switch box. Cost $17 for the parts.

Copies Xmas111's wiring - works perfectly. Thanks for the photos and instructions - much appreciated.

 

It probably would be good to use shielded wires maybe to keep things more balanced to the interconnects? No outside interference "RF" just connect shields to the RCA jack shells.

 

I just used the same wire as the photos and there is no interference even at volume - I was surprised actually that it does work so beautifully - simple design I suppose - nothing to go wrong?

 

Hello.

My apologies, but I'm struggling to understand Steve's original instructions in the OP.

I have a Project Debut SE III connected to the Phono input on a Cambridge Audio Topaz AM10 Amp. Can anyone break down the steps I need to take to get a pure mono output?

 

The Y interconnects go between the TT outputs and the phono inputs on your amp. It appears that amp has a tape out connection. Does it have any way of 'monitoring' the output? If it does then you can connect it up the alternate way using the tape in/out method (instructions for which are in this thread a few times )

 

The clearest picture was way back in this thread, page 6 http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threa...w-to-do-it-cheaply.81073/page-6#post-10642556

 

"Tape Monitor Loop" method":

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threa...w-to-do-it-cheaply.81073/page-7#post-10643215

 

Brilliant, thank you so much, that's much clearer to me.

 

Here's the hookup if your using a mono/stereo switch box. Hope it helps.
I might be making a few more of them....

 

I've ordered a pair of cables from Amazon, will see what difference it makes. Out of interest xmas111, what sort of price range would a switch box be in?

 

The one I just made today cost $17 in parts - $2 a piece for the 4 gold RCA's, $4 for the box, $4 for the switch ( I got a fancy push / push out one ) and $1 for the wire.