Hum and buzzing sound... the new normal.

No need to spend ridiculous amounts of money on interconnects. More expensive cables won’t cure a hum over lower cost cables. I make my own with Belden 1505F coax. Blue Jeans Cabels uses that for some of their interconnects. I also use Neutrik Rean connectors. I made all the interconnects for my whole rig, tt, tuner, phono preamp, preamp, power amp, for probably $50. They are all the same, no diff between regular or phono.

Can you hear the hum at normal listening levels, or only when you max out the vol knob?

 

That is what I am thinking as well. Possibly some degradation of the dry solder. This turntable was in South East Asia and I have had it for 8 years. I had to have the cartridge connectors replace because they had carbonized and degraded.
I have the mofi phon stage placed on its own shelf on my rack. Not near any other component. That being said I am gong to move it to a completely separate table tonight and see. I do see there is definite buzzing and hum when I pick up the unit and move it around. However, I did have hum and buzz before using this new unit and just connected directly to the Yamaha CR 2040.
I appreciate everyone's responses!!!! I will also look at getting some phone dedicated cables, however, I am using shielded rca cables. I am also going to try the suggestion of running another ground wire from the phono pre-amp to the ground on my power conditioner.

 

Ok, I am thinking it is the cables! I changed the cables I had one pair of SKW's and then just an old pair of rca cables and used both and the buzz and hum were reduced significantly. I can still hear a hum on normal listening level, but not too bad. But turning up to high volume can hear much more and a slight buzz. That being said when playing vinyl I do not hear it at all during quiet passages or between songs.

Could it be a combination of some dry soldering degradation and the cables? And now I am searching for a reasonably priced pare of dedicated phono cables. I mean under 100 dollars, around the thirty dollar range? Any suggestions and I am still thinking of taking the turntable in to have the ground and phono connector jack soldering checked. I love al the responses! THANK YOU!

 

Clean the RCA jacks. When one touchs the cables and hum increases, it can be a less than 100% shielded cable. Replace the cables with 100% shielded or double shielded RCA cables.

 

I’ll say the MoFi isn’t the quietest unit in the world and even higher end phono stages will hiss more than an cheap DAC or tape deck will. Hardly matters as the real issue is vinyl noise, but if you’re hearing it in quiet passages that’s maddening.

Agree on the recommendation to get better shielded coax cables and clean the jacks, refresh the solder joints. Don’t worry if they’re marked for phono use, you want relatively short runs, low capacitance and good shielding for the application. Plenty of garbage sold as “phono cables” that doesn’t hit the basic electrical requirements.

IME the best shielded cable I’ve used is the Blue Jeans LC-1. 3’ for ~$50, ~40pf. Using rough memory and math here haha, but I can say that it got the noisefloor lower than any other shielded cable I’ve used. Connectors are a bit of a funny fit on the MoFi though. A much cheaper alternative that will fit the MoFi’s plugs a bit better is the new cable Technics ships with the 1200G. Measured by people elsewhere ~80pf, looks like junk and the connectors aren’t fancy but it’s also well shielded and a good 4’ length. No clue what cart you have or how you want to optimize loading it, subjective opinions apply of course.

 

Your problem sounds similar to what I experienced (my thread is on this forum for last week - page 6+ as of today), though you never know with these things lol!

My system was creating a loud audible thumping hum at only high volumes (completely clear at low volumes).

As of today, my issue appears to be resolved. I replaced the RCA cable between my preamp and power amp (stereo in your case) and grounded the wires on both ends (my rca between TT and preamp is also grounded. I know you said you played with grounding but in case my suggestion is different than what you tried.

Separately, I reconfigured my room and moved the speakers onto stands. Not sure if I got lucky but between the grounding the connection between preamp and power amp, creating more distance between the components and isolating the speakers, it seems to have done the trick.

 

A pair of these is a good place to start:
https://www.amazon.com/LC-1-Stereo-...0OJLNEOU/ref=pd_lpo_1?pd_rd_i=B00OJLNEOU&th=1
They are very well shielded, low capacitance and cheap. These will take the cables out of the equation anyway.

 

Thanks to everyone for their suggestions. I did get some new cables. SKW Audiophile cables. Very well shielded. And it got rid of the buzzing noise! Still a slight humming noise at high volume when there is no vinyl playing, but not noticeable when vinyl is playing. I suspect there is a degradation on the internal soldering in the turntable and will take it in. But for now it is sounding very good! And the MOFI preamp is fantastic and pairs well with my Yamaha CR 2040. Thanks again everyone!

 

If I may add to this, make sure there are no electromagnetic devices on the other side of a wall or floor, such as phone chargers, fluorescent lights, etc.. since electromagnetic energy travels through walls! I once had minor hum from a halogen desk lamp near my turntable, which operates low voltage via a transformer. The lightbulb lit up in my head as I changed a burned out bulb, ahhhh wait! "this is 12 volts" .... something I had least suspected.

 

That used to be the first place one went, at least when I came into High End in the early '80s. Shunyata Research, however, discourages using any grounding schemes on their line conditioners quite strongly nowadays. Although people scream bloody murder these days, lifting the ground was common practice, well into the 90s (and I don't personally know anyone who was electrocuted from doing so. Sometimes it was the only way to completely eliminate hum.)

 

keep the TT power cable well away from the phono interconnect; even a well-shielded phono cable can pick up hum from your power supply.

 

Clean cable routing is definitely the place to start, but making a shielded power cable also helps.

 

You can reflow some solder joints but very low probability this is a root cause for hum noise

 

The recepticle where you plug in power cables in the wall.

If it is properly grounded, the screw that holds the plastic cover on, will also be grounded.

 

Total fix! So I swapped out my connectors with shielded SWK connectors. Then I replaced my Ortofon Bronze cartridge with an Audio technica VM740ML. I have had my original Bronze on the deck for 10 years. Now that I have replaced the cartridge and stylus I have absolutely no buzz or hum! Now if I turn up the Yamaha very VERY loud I can hear a bit of a hum, but nothing like it was and NO buzzing at all. I suspect my cartridge was on its last legs from frequent use and dramatic climate change factors from Thailand to Michigan. And I absolutely love the Audio technica! IT is stunning. A much fuller sound.
Also I will say in the long run I am a bit unsatisfied by the Ortofon Bronze. The cantilever on the stylus and just not very sturdy or durable. It is too sensitive and I have had to replace that stylus four times in the last ten years from it coming un-aligned. One time a bad needle drop that justified the damage. The other times, nothing really dramatic.
So anyhow, that is my rant and follow-up and want to thank everyone for your suggestions and help.

 

It sounds like this may have been a cartridge shielding issue (more than a cable issue), since using the Ortofon produced the same results when using either the Yamaha TT (turntable) input, or the MoFi TT preamp, but when you switched to an audio-technica model, hum and noise dropped dramatically (I can only assume when using the same cabling).

Just out of curiosity, which model of the MoFi TT preamp are you using - the StudioPhono, or the UltraPhono?

One always needs to first isolate the source of the problem, when trying to remedy it. Looking at provided details, it sounds like the problem is isolated to the turntable and/or phono cartridge.

Before we discuss cartridge shielding and grounding, let's discuss turntable audio routing. Just making 100% sure when using the MoFi, you are connecting the output of it to a line level input on the Yamaha receiver (this is a must), and not the TT input. I'm sure you are, but just making 100% sure.

Before we go any farther, do you have a set of headphones? If so, I would use them to listen to the hum and noise of your turntable setup. I many times use headphones as a type of audio stethoscope when listening for noise. If possible, switch off your speakers, and only use your headphones when trying to achieve the lowest hum and noise in your scenario. Using headphones in this situation can also be compared to using an audio microscope (if there was one).

Now to ground connections. I would try:
1) just hooking TT ground to the MoFi preamp (listen for hum and noise, with no vinyl being played)
2) with TT ground connected to MoFi, connect another ground wire (any wire you have laying around) from the MoFi ground terminal to the ground terminal on the receiver (listen again for hum and noise, with no vinyl being played)
3) hook TT ground directly to Yamaha ground terminal, bypassing ground terminal on MoFi (listen again)
4) out of all of those combinations, which setup produces the least amount of hum and noise? That would be the best ground setup to use.

Cartridge shielding: Even though this Thorens has an external power supply, there *still are* electronics mounted under the turntable, which could possibly emit EMI (electromagnetic interference). This is when good cartridge shielding comes into play. I simply love the sound of many Grado cartridges, but due to their design and shielding, most models are rarely useable on direct-drive TT's, or any other turntable with electronics mounted in close proximity of a Grado cartridge, because they most times produce hum. You will also discover that some MM cartridges (I have not had enough experience with MC cartridges to be able to evaluate their performance when it comes to shielding) are quieter than others, when listening closely for hum and noise. This is because of better design and shielding. Since you didn't mention which model of Ortofon Bronze you purchased (2M or Quintet), I'm assuming you're referring to the 2M MM version.

I hope some of this info helps.

 

That is a great reply. And I appreciate all the time and thought you put into your writing. I have done everything you listed. However, I have not used my headphones. And am not sure I need to at this point. I do think what you refer to as the cartridge shielding must have been the issue. As with the new Audio technica I am getting virtually no noise. Only a slight hum when the Yamaha is turned up way louder than I would ever play on my system and louder than my speakers would handle without distortion.
I did try the various different connections you suggested for the ground. The only one I have not tried, which was suggested in an earlier post, was connecting the ground to the ac box. I did have some earlier success doing that when I ran an Emotive Amp and connected the ground to the chassis of the amp.
I do really think the Ortofon had shielding issues. I do suspect age and wear and tear contributed to it. I must say I am so far very pleased with the Audio technica. And am anxious to see how this cartridge breaks in.
On another topic I also am wondering if my speakers need to be reformed. I have a pair of Norh 9. A brand out of Bangkok, Thailand. They are beautiful, solid marble. However, I am now thinking about getting them retrofitted with new woofer and tweeter speakers. I would love suggestions on how to myself. But am worried about not being able to seal the speakers at spec.

 

“Marble”! Should that read Maple? If not, wow, never heard of marble speakers, they must be heavy, heavy units!!

 

Marble. They are very unique speakers! Made with a solid piece of marble shaped like a Thai drum.
Marble 9
And yes they are very heavy!

 

If that slight humming sound is not an issue I'd leave things alone. If I turn up the volume to max I also have the same. The hum in my system is inaudible at all levels except at max. I can't hear it between songs on vinyl.

 

@Matthew Turner Here's a notable set for sale by one of our own that won't break the bank.

 

>>>The only one I have not tried, which was suggested in an earlier post, was connecting the ground to the ac box. <<<

99% of the time, any piece of audio equipment that has a two prong AC plug (compared to a 3 prong - the 3rd prong being the ground connector), which typically is unbalanced RCA type audio equipment, does not want to have any type of ground to AC box connection, or it will produce 60 Hz hum. That two AC prong audio gear is usually designed differently than 3 prong audio gear. When connecting turntable grounds, stick only to connecting them to the turntable pre-amp, integrated amp, or receiver ground terminals.

 

One other thing that came to mind is turntable (TT) placement. Even the finest shielded phono cartridges can still pick up electro-magnetic fields, which can then produce 60 Hz (and for some, 50 Hz) hum and buzzing. You should always try to locate your TT (mainly the phono cartridge) away from large power transformers, and other electro-magnetic fields, because of this. Again, headphones come in handy for listening for hum and buzz. Even if you have a little hum, if you can, while listening (obviously with no vinyl being played at the time), physically move the turntable around, and see if hum varies - if it does, the phono cartridge is picking up an electro-magnetic field.

This goes for many interconnects, and audio equipment placement, even in all balanced (XLR type) hookups. You're striving to always keep that noise floor as low as possible. Just because you have a rack full of equipment, and all of your equipment looks beautiful on each shelf, doesn't mean that there won't be equipment interaction. When setting up audio systems, many times I start with no connected audio connections, and listen (all equipment should be powered ON at this point). How low is that noise floor? Then I'll connect the next piece of equipment, and listen again. Is the noise floor still as quiet as it was before I connected the new piece of equipment? If so, move on to the next piece of equipment, and so on.

 

...and keep RCA interconnect cables physically as short as possible, and as far away from AC cables as possible.

 

This may be related to your problem, and you might have already considered and checked what follows, but just in case:

A few months ago my TT developed a hum. I found I could alter the volumn of the hum by touching and or slightly moving the ground wire. I removed the ground wire and noticed it was very flimsy at one connection. I stripped back the coating and found the wire had broke in two. It was a decent ground from Audioquest.

I replaced it with a DIY ground wire I quickly made with an old lamp cord and two spud connectors. I imagined that fix to be temporary till I purchased another ground. However, it has worked so well I decided to leave it alone.

If you haven't yet done so, you might closely inspect the ground wire and the connections.