Just Listened To My LPs For The First Time Here Are My Thoughts & Questions

To be completely honest at first I was not blown away. I had years of hype building up and obviously, it did match up. What do have to say though is that the music is clearer? I can most of the time hear ever instrument There is no clicks and pops expect on used records I got from a flood or just really old records in poor shape like my Sinatra LP. (which barely has any) The cart is getting better as I use it more. The speakers are also sounding better as they break in.

I also have a few questions.

The AT92ECD is known to be a very quiet cart. The cantilever moved to left so I readjusted it and when it tracks it is parallel. Has anyone had this problem with a faulty bendy cantilever? I have read these similar problems on Amazon reviews. People have said this cart is junk. I know for the money its great, but compared to a Grado or Ortofon how does it compare? Will my music sound 10X better with one of those carts or another cart with similar prestige. I like music with a lot of detail. (meaning I want to hear every little note played from the album.) I want a high bass responses and I want the music to f**cking hit me and floor me like they do when I blast it on my headphones on my iPhone. What Cartridge would you recommended

How do I know if my tracking force is correct? The Cartridge I bought (Audio-Technica AT92ECD) recommended 1-1.5g tracking force. I have it at 1.25g tracking force and 1.25 anti-skate. I guess it won't be perfect till I get a scale or gauge tracking force.

I connected my speakers to the "front" section of the stereo receiver is this correct, should I connect it to center or surround sound. How do I know I am playing my music too loud. Is it if the tweeter is visibly "bumping". Why isn't my the top of my speaker (Elac Debut B6) playing maybe it is but I cant feel it? I feel like its barely playing anything. What should I do?

Finally, how can I improve my sound for a relatively cheap price. I know about a cork mat but should I put my Record player on the floor instead of on my stereo receiver? Stuff like this would be useful.

All Comments are appreciated.

 

Alrighty, if your equipment profile is current and correct, you've got the same cart and turntable I started out with. As long as the cart isn't damaged you should be good to go. If it is, it isn't very costly to repair or replace.

Connecting to "front" is perfect. The tweeter will never appear to move. Maybe the woofer will, if you play loudly enough.

I wouldn't place the table on the floor. On the receiver is not great either. If you can find a sturdy shelf that doesn't wobble, put it on that. You can buy audio racks or even dedicated turntable shelves that mount to the wall, if you want to go down that road.

The cheapest way to affect the sound is to move the speakers around. The sound will change as they move towards and away from walls, for instance. Your speakers are small, so they won't necessarily be capable of ****ing hitting you or flooring you. They should sound good though. Subwoofers or bigger speakers are the recipe for more "oomph".

 

It is a low end cart, near the bottom of AT's range, but I think you could do much worse. Re: Grado and Ortofon, it depends. What cart are you talking about from those brands? Both have carts that are relatively cheap and some that cost thousands. Need more info. Budget?

When it hurts your ears and is uncomfortable to listen to. Listen at the volume YOU are comfortable with.

What does relatively cheap mean? Budget? A cork mat isn't going to do jack. Neither of those places are good for your turntable. Buy an audio rack with shelves for you components. You can get a decent one for around $100. If you are handy with tools, make one yourself. Likewise, if the speakers are on the floor, buy some speaker stands. The ones you can fill with shot or sand to make them heavy are preferable. Affix the speakers to the stands with blutak/poster tak.

 

What does relatively cheap mean? Budget? A cork mat isn't going to do jack. Neither of those places are good for your turntable. Buy an audio rack with shelves for you components. You can get a decent one for around $100. If you are handy with tools, make one yourself. Likewise, if the speakers are on the floor, buy some speaker stands. The ones you can fill with shot or sand to make them heavy are preferable. Affix the speakers to the stands with blutak/poster tak.[/QUOTE]

Budget is $100 and I asking about the volume because if I play it too high it will damage my speakers

 

I beg to differ. Music on most good systems can go VERY loud and not cause any pain in your ears, when you are enjoying the sound. But the sound levels can easily still be damaging.

As a rule of thumb, listening at or above 90dB for extended periods of time can be damaging to your hearing, while not in the being not in the least bit painful.

 

Very good points. I usually start to feel uncomfortable when things are too loud and that is well before it hits 90db. I've only checked with a meter app on my phone, but a common volume for me is between 55-60db. I might turn it a bit louder when I want to hear a specific track or part of a track loud, but I quickly turn it back down.

When I was younger I would go to concerts and stand near the front with no earplugs - very stupid, but I didn't know that then.

 

With $100 I would buy or make an audio rack so you can get your turntable off the floor and not have to set it on the receiver. That should be near the top of the priority list IMHO, before anything else. Next speaker stands if you don't have them already. After that, record cleaning system. Then think about cartridge upgrades.

RE: speaker damage, what is the wattage on your receiver? Check that against the manual for your speakers. You would probably have to push them pretty hard to ruin them.

 

One of the tips I read here that worked pretty well for me was to plug the TT directly into the wall socket.
Before I had it connected to a power strip, along with the amp and CD player.

 

A nightstand or a microwave stand makes a decent low cost turntable stand. Something like this, but they come in many styles. Usually you can find a few in different styles at a thrift shop for $25 or less. Another source is if you find a hotel used furniture sale, where they sell 50 of these at a time. You could get two, one for the turntable, one for the receiver. The top could be scratched up a little, but that's where the turntable goes so it's no problem! One of a good design for a turntable will have space tall enough at the bottom to hold your albums. That's a drawer on top to hold your record cleaning supplies. New they can be $50-$100.

 

No comments on the "bendy" or "misaligned" cantilever? I'd think that was a potential disaster. How can you manually adjust such a thing? I'd replace it before playing another LP on it.

 

its straight now do you think its damaging the lp

 

This might be a bit obvious, but make sure the table's speed is correct.

My turntable was fast out of the box. A few years later, I adjusted the speed. It sounded much better after that.

 

As long as the sound is clean, you are not damaging your speakers. If you hear distortion, turn it down.

 

How much do you trust your eyeballs to determine straightness? How do you know the cart is performing to spec if the cantilever has been bent back and forth? It might be off in other ways. It probably is not damaging your records, but I’d return it.

 

A bent cantilever is a damaged cantilever and should be thrown away before you damage any more of your records!
Current AT cartridges aren't what they used to be back in their 1970's quadraphonic heyday. I haven't been happy with any of the AT carts I've had in the last 10 years or so. Although I use a few different cartridges, using the proper one for the type of record I am playing, for quality everyday use, I seem to return to the Shure M97xe.
No ticks or pops on any record other than used records? Where are you buying the new ones that don't have ticks or pops? Inquiring minds want to know. If you don't hear ticks and pops on new records and they are clearer, then that cartridge must be magical and everyone should get one! Ticks and pops are part of the record playing experience as well as the warmer sound they are famous for.
I would never consider putting a turntable on the floor. I've used furniture-type stereo racks for decades for all the electronics. I've seen some people put all the electronics in a closet. Speakers belong on stands and with their output not inline with the turntable so they won't cause acoustic feedback or mis-tracking. It is important that a turntable should be shielded from noise and vibration.
Tracking force is relative and although you can buy scales to properly adjust it, I wonder if there is a way to measure anti-skate? If your tracking force is too light, you should be able to hear it from the distorted sound. If the tracking weight is too much, then you will notice that the cantilever has lost it's normal angle and is running flat.
How do you know if you are playing your music too loud? That's an easy one. That's when you family and/or neighbors complain. If the police come knocking on your door, then you better turn the volume down. Also, if it sounds like you are overdriving your speakers, and the sound is distorted, turn the volume down before you damage the speakers. If you can get inside your speaker enclosures and disconnect the main drivers, if the recorded source has the frequency range which the tweeter are biased for, then you should hear their output. The purpose of the tweeter is to create the 'edge' of a multi-speaker system.
I'm not sure what you mean by hooking your speakers to the "front" section of your receiver, but if you mean hooking your main stereo speakers to speaker jacks marked "front" on the rear panel of the receiver, then, that would be correct. If this is a 'surround' receiver, then you hook front speakers to front speaker jacks, center channel speaker to center channel jack, rear & side speakers to their appropriate jacks.
With a surround receiver with different sound fields and surround speakers, playing stereo records in a 'surround' mode will give you an enhanced listening experience. In the Dolby Pro-logic mode, what you might expect to hear is whatever sound is common to both stereo channels, like the vocal, will come out of the center channel speaker, the difference of the 2 channels will come from the 2 front speakers(no vocals), the rear speakers will take the differences of the 2 front channels and the phase will be reversed giving you a different sound. The subwoofer will put out only the frequency range you have tuned it to.
Playing a mono recording will only come out of the center channel speaker and if the mono recording isn't played with a true mono or jumpered stereo cartridge, the ticks and pops will come out of the front and rear channel speakers.

 

How do I do that

 

Old-school, analog era vinyl makes a lot more sense after you go "Mid-Fi" and beyond.

 

Actually, that might not be possible on your turntable.

I should have looked before bringing it up. Sorry.

 

I think there's a chance it could be damaging LPs. I'd at least have it checked.

 

Aren't there paper cutouts you can use with a strobe?

 

That's what I figured it still sounds better than analog, a lot less compressed, but it is not wow level. Only for my Single by Elvis Blue Suede Shoes, and Zenyatta Mondatta by the police. Have I been like F**k man analog is the bees knees. I probably have low entry level TT and Cart but Mid Hi-FI stereo Receiver and High End of Entry Level Speakers. I cant To hear what music sounds like on a 1200 completely upgraded by KAB Electro Acoustic a 100-300 Cart, a tube amp or Mcintosh stereo Reciever and 1,000-3000 speakers

 

Yah it says its perfect centered. When I modified the cantilever the cartridge it has straightened out now I will post a pic.

Tell me what you think

 

Paper cutout/strobe is to check the speed.

I wouldn't be able to tell from a picture (or even in real life) if your cantilever is shot. I don't have the expertise, I just know it's a very precise thing.

 

Imgur: The magic of the Internet

Imgur: The magic of the Internet

 

There’s nothing in these photos that should draw any conclusion that the cantilever is straight. Why take a chance? Replace it.