Mono without a Mono cart or button on amp....

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Chester0711, Nov 17, 2017.

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  1. Chester0711

    Chester0711 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Minneapolis,MN
    okay so I have a lot of Mono Jazz albums that I love and I am usually a hair less critical of surface issues on my mono albums because typically when the mono button on my old Marantz was pressed or active I would not hear the surface noise as much.

    Fast forward to my new Yamaha A-S501 and I do not have a mono button. Without getting too nuts, do any of you have a preferred method of playing mono albums with a setup that does not make special allowances or adjustments for it? Do you throw the balance over to one speaker and just go single channel that way? Are there better ways? I can’t think of any , just asking?
     
  2. dkmonroe

    dkmonroe A completely self-taught idiot

    Location:
    Atlanta
    I just listen to mono albums over two speakers and enjoy it. It doesn't sound bad to me at all.
     
  3. Rolltide

    Rolltide Forum Resident

    Location:
    Vallejo, CA
    What kind of table/cartridge do you have?
     
  4. JohnO

    JohnO Senior Member

    Location:
    Washington, DC
    You can add a mono capability with a couple of inexpensive cables, discussed in this long thread - you would have to manually make or break one simple connection to switch from mono to stereo
    SH Spotlight - If you have a turntable you need to play your mono records in true MONO. How to do it cheaply..

    A forum user makes a well regarded high quality "Stereo/Mono switch box", and many forum users have ordered one, discussed, with photos, in this long thread on the For Sale section, the photos are now toward the end of the thread since the first photo hosting got broken
    http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/stereo-mono-switch.386061/
    Current photo here
    http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/posts/16758436/
     
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  5. TheVinylAddict

    TheVinylAddict Look what I found

    Location:
    AZ
    This all over the archives.

    I have done both, and still do both depending on which table I use. I have a y split, and three Mono cartridges - I only use the Mono's on the table that is MC compatible.

    Which is better depends on your budget, how much extra work you want to do or not, if you have a mono button or not, how many mono albums you may or may not have, and what works best for your lifestyle and your ears.

    If you have a sub $1000 system (TT, speakers, amp) just use the button or the Y split - you probably won't hear much of a difference. If you are a critical listener, have a multi thousand dollar system, and want to squeeze every last ounce of sound - you might try a mono cartridge. I still know a lot of folks with high dollar systems that Y split - mainly because they don't own many mono records.

    I do both cartridge and split because I have multiple tables, and LOTS of mono albums. Plus, after being in the hobby for many years, you tend to try new things, try both ways...

    I say try both and see what you think... there is no right or wrong, you are going to get split answers (pun intended), and realize the motivation for the answer might be budget, time savings, not being a critical listener, not having a lot of mono albums - so unless you understand more about the choice, you may or may not get what you need for your own decision.

    Try both, and come back and tell us what you think.
     
  6. Dillydipper

    Dillydipper Space-Age luddite

    Location:
    Central PA
    Alternative method to enjoy mono easily: lick a water fountain at your neighborhood school! :p
     
  7. M.T.S.

    M.T.S. New Member

    Location:
    rotterdam
  8. It's been a long time for me, but get 2 "Y" connector cables, one "Y" will have 2 female RCA connectors on one side and a single male RCA connector on the other end. You then need another "Y" connector cable, this one will have 2 male RCA connectors on one end and 1 female connector on the other end. Plug the 2 "Y" connectors together with the single plugs, the 2 male RCA connectors plug into your amp and then plug the RCA cables from your turntable into the 2 female connectors of the "Y" cables. If your turntable and cartridge are wired in-phase, you will get noise suppressed mono out of your 2 speakers.
     
  9. beat_truck

    beat_truck Forum Resident

    Location:
    SW PA
    If you have a turntable with removable headshell, you could get an extra headshell and cartridge and bridge the cartridge for mono. A piece of stripped telephone wire works perfect for this. This thread shows how it's done.
    Stereo cartridge mono wiring
     
  10. Mr.Sneis

    Mr.Sneis Forum Resident

    Location:
    Phoenix, AZ
    Real mono carts don't have to be too expensive?
     
  11. TheVinylAddict

    TheVinylAddict Look what I found

    Location:
    AZ
    Links?
     
  12. Mr.Sneis

    Mr.Sneis Forum Resident

    Location:
    Phoenix, AZ
  13. The FRiNgE

    The FRiNgE Forum Resident

    Very easy to obtain mono, simply jump across the REC OUT jacks with a single cable. Most pre-amps and receivers do not have buffered REC OUT taps on the circuit board, so the result is the same as a mono switch. This can be done also with a small box on a single pole switch to disconnect the jumper.
     
  14. The FRiNgE

    The FRiNgE Forum Resident

    The suggestions to double Y are good ones, however be aware of this done at the cartridge (or any bridging) will change its load on the input of the phono amp, and alter your frequency response somewhat. The double Y is better at the output of the phono pre.
     
  15. I've got a mono switch on my old-school amp, so...
     
  16. Chester0711

    Chester0711 Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    Minneapolis,MN
    Wow, honestly sounds better than my old Marantz with mono switch deployed....either way the double Y-Cable is gold!
     
  17. Rickchick

    Rickchick Forum Resident

    Location:
    PA
    Our fellow member, mentioned earlier, sells a switch that works great and is actually cheap. Recommended.
     
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  18. TheVinylAddict

    TheVinylAddict Look what I found

    Location:
    AZ
    I have the AT-Mono 3/lp - great budget mono cartridge - some will debate if it is a "true" mono cartridge, frankly I am not sure, but for the price it is a great starter cartridge for someone with a few Mono albums that wants to experiment.

    Also have the AT33Mono - almost 2.5x the price, but a good one.

    Both are not the best match for early - mid 50's mono albums with the wider 1mm groove, but satisfactory on late 50's / early 60's mono's, then all mono's cut with a stereo lather (later pressings - mid 60's onward). Note newer mono reissues sound darn good with a mono button or y-split and a stereo cartridge - but the AT mono cartridges at .60 and .65mm do a respectable job.. Both are conical.
     
  19. Ed Hughes

    Ed Hughes Senior Member

    Location:
    phila.pa.
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  20. TheVinylAddict

    TheVinylAddict Look what I found

    Location:
    AZ
  21. Severin22

    Severin22 Well-Known Member

    Location:
    WI
    Just curious. Is it bad if you play a stereo record with the mono y-splitter set up? Or are you just going to get less sound?
     
  22. Ed Hughes

    Ed Hughes Senior Member

    Location:
    phila.pa.
    Strange. I just tried it and it's working for me.
     
  23. drindle

    drindle Forum Resident

    Location:
    Saskatchewan
    You need to reach a certain number of forum posts first
     
  24. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore

  25. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore

    It will probably sound not great, due to phase cancellation, etc. Whatever's in the center channel will be louder than whatever is hard-panned left and right.

    A few record labels in the late '60s, like A&M and Atlantic, experimented with Haeco-CSG, designed to make stereo records sound "good" on mono systems, but they generally sound lousy in stereo! George Martin also famously recorded/mixed "Rubber Soul" for stereo in a wonky way (no center channel information) as an experiment, to see if a stereo mix could be compatible with mono playback. Most people agree that the stereo mix doesn't sound awesome.
     
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