Buzz ground issue....

Thank you very kindly. Sanded the tip, but that didn't work for me. Back to the drawing board for me.

 

So VPI sent you a new pivot point when you asked? I might do that. How do you get the original point out?

 

There is an allen screw near the bottom if memory serves, and you'll need a very small allen wrench. Don't make the mistake I made: make SURE you note how far the point goes up from the base. That is crucial for raising and lowering the arm. I didn't and it was a royal pain to get it back at the correct height. Yes, VPI sent a new one. I don't know when the points were bad, or for how long, so you might want to tell them when you bought your table. One would assume they caught this quickly, but you know what they say about assuming. And, you would also assume they would have reached out to buyers and let them know. I never got a notice. Why don't you start a new thread and describe your issue. People here are incredibly helpful and I can almost assure you the problem will be found. It can be numerous issues as I found, but people here gave me a lot to look for and ultimately it is to where I can listen and enjoy. Good luck!

 

I'm almost positive my spike is black. Which I assume means it's painted/coated. I've had intermittent buzzes and hum since I've owned it. Sometimes nearly inaudible and other times quite loud (depends on the phono preamp and cartridge used). I'll have to try sanding it down to bare metal. Thanks @Jrr

 

Thanks again. I actually do have a thread running on my problem and got lots of suggestions, most or all of which I have already tried/done. I think I had multiple problems -- both a grounding issue and a shielding problem. New shielded phono cables are on the way. I hope it's that. Thanks again for your help.

 

It can be so frustrating. It only takes one bad element to cause an issue, and there could be more than one. I purchased one of those line conditioner boxes and all my power cords now go into that. It looks real nice but from what I can hear, did nothing what so ever plus or minus. I had pretty run of the mill interconnects and switched all of them with some mid level cables from Magnolia. Zero difference and I couldn't even discern a quality change in sound. I'm definitely one of those guys that casts a very wary eye when I read grandiose comments about cables in general, but there are too many people saying there can be a big difference for me to dismiss it out of hand. It didn't help with the ground issue but it eliminated another potential weak point.

Anyway, I spent a good deal of time and money running this down, with a lot of help here, and even bought a new ART9 cartridge just to eliminate that possibility. The only thing that made a difference was when VPI told me about the defective pin. That one element really made a huge difference and it is at least listenable now. However, now I am getting a static pop sound most times when I touch the arm. It was bad enough that I blew fuses on both channels of my Krell amp. Now I mute the pre whenever I touch the arm. It also does it when I touch the clamp. I never had any of these issues with my trusty Technics table, but I also never got even close to this sound quality either. Seems there are trade offs as you move up the chain. We have an audiophile store in town and I am considering paying a tech to come over and check everything out as I think I need someone experienced to run this stuff down. Of course, they'll be thrilled to see I have bought all my equipment on line! Anyway, I think if you keep going you'll get close enough to enjoy listening to it, but try and get a new pin before you spend much more time. I had to sand mine really good a second time to get rid of the intermitent issue.

 

I had to use my Dremel tool to eliminate the intermitent issue, but the first time I sanded it it made a massive difference. But if there is even a spec of that finish left, and the arm touches it, you have lost the ground connection until the pivot hits metal again. Good luck on this and let us know how you made out. This thread may help others down the line!

 

I'll sand again, but the first go got it clean and silvery...

 

Just came across this thread while trying to figure out the buzz in my VPI Classic. I'll clean that pin and see if it helps.

@EdogawaRampo did you fix your issue?