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

Thanks 'Tone, but it's not just about the noise. More importantly, it's about locking in the image. It not only solidifies the soundstage (and helps define it), but it greatly improves the rhythm. The question is whether some of the detail that's lost with the additional cabling is made up for the improved soundstage and musicality.

 

I needledropped my entire set with my T-cables between my TT and preamp. Apparently I shouldn't have done that because of possible capacitance issues. But I'll tell you, I heard no loss of my high-end at all, nothing but a more locked-in soundstage. I have a needledrop melody of samples from the mono Beatles reissues posted in the long-running needledrop thread here, and I don't think anyone's going to complain about a perceived high-end loss with it.

 

I'm glad you asked that. I bought some cheap Y connectors at Bestbuy and put them between the TT and the phono amp. Bad hum, so I abandoned the idea. I will try it between the phono amp and integrated and see what I get. It's a tube phono stage and very quiet when connected normally.

 

I got the radio shack connectors and put them between my tube phone amp and integrated amp ---- no hum

So far sounds good

 

I did it between table and phono stage with no hum. Not sure if it's causing some rolling off.

 

Thanks Superfuzz!!

 

I've just posted the double Y cable recommendation to another forum and someone said that it's not necessary because "The Beatles Mono reissues have a 'stereo groove' with just the same signal pressed for the left and right channel". What should I reply to him?

 

Steve already made two posts about this.

 

Just curious, is your phono amp, tubed or SS?

 

Same 'mono music' in each channel, but different 'noise', hence the combination method to reduce that 'stereo noise'.

 

I learned of Steve's combining-for-mono about 40 years ago as an eager-eyed new employee in an FM radio station. Watching the production guys, I became educated to the fact that collapsing two mono channels had the effect of eliminating some of the stereo noise that leaks through on most mono product.

And I've used the technique myself going all the way back to making mix tapes on cassette by using Y patch cord devices to sum the two channels. I continued to use the Y-patches when making mono recordings on my dedicated standalone CD recorder in the late '90s, and now do it effortlessly in the software age as I make CD-R's from old mono records.

Sound advice - literally.

Harry

 

Tubes

 

I had a similar experience, except the store I was at had no 2male-1female plugs. Ended up buying both cables off Amazon. What a load of dum dums.

 

My phono stage and amp have to be connected by one of those Naim cables not RCA.

 

I installed them after the turntable and after the phono stage. The latter is what you want to do.

 

In terms of the 'Tape Monitor Method' I have it set up as follows...

1. Tape Out: 2 Male ends of my Y Cable 1
2. Female end (Y cable 1) connected to the male end of Y Cable 2
3. Y Cable 2 Female ends connected to stereo cable
4. Stereo cable male ends connected to 'Monitor In'

Through this I can now push my 'Tape Monitor' button on and off and produce two different sounds. Does this seem correct? I have to assume when I push my 'Tape Monitor' to its on position I am now getting the mono sound, right? I just really like the idea of having the option of mono vs stereo instead of having to unplug my Y Cables from my Pre-Amp to my integrated Amp each time.

Thanks all! Regardless, this has been a very helpful thread.

 

Would all this apply to fold downs ?
I just set this up, would like to hear my mono promo John Prine 1st lp.
Thanks.

 

Just remember, if you're using the double y-cable method to record hi-rez files to your computer, you can always record Without the double y and use the double y on the playback from your computer...... I like to listen to the records 'live' but did record the new Beatles vinyl at 24/192 (without the double-y. I can always use it on playback).

 

I've received both Y-cables today and everything seems to work perfectly. No hums, like what other members reported. I would like to thank Steve for enlightening us with this simple method for mono playback.

 

Same here! And, yes, thanks to Steve and others for showing us the way and exhibiting great patience with us as well. This thread is a wonderful example of what this site is/should be all about!

 

Weird problem (maybe I'm just being thick) : when I insert my double-y cable from turntable to preamp, it seems to work as advertised, but when I insert it from preamp to amp I only get sound from a single speaker.
Removing the double-y gets me sound through both speakers.
What am I doing wrong ?
If it matters, my double y is actually combined of an adapter plugged into a cable :

+



Oh, and in case anyone is wondering : mono through a single speaker isn't much fun at all.

 

One thing to remember too is that if you're using these Y-cables to listen to a mono record, then go off to some other part of your life, when you come back to listen to a stereo record - unpatch those cables!

I remember several instances of dubbing off a recording that needed to have the stereo channels reversed and I'd switch the input cables to accomplish the dub. But when finished, I'd forget to switch the inputs back, so it would happen that for months thereafter, I was listening to reversed stereo without realizing it. In some cases, I'd even made mix tapes and dubs for others with the stereo reversed!

So, if your stereo records sound a little mono-ish - check to see if you've removed the Y-adapters from the circuit.

Harry

 

What additional cable are you using between the phono pre-amp and the amp, and how do you have it connected?

 

Between the phono preamp and the integrated amp, I have a single, ordinary, stereo RCA cable that has always served me well and still seems to be working fine : removing the double y contraption gives me normal stereo playback.

 

So you've got phono pre-amp, to stereo RCA cable, to Y-adaptor plug, to Y-cable, to amp? That should work, if not, I give up.