Analog Help Please


I have been getting quite a bit of mistracking at the beginning of many of my Lp's just recently. Bought them used, and I am wondering if it is because they are wore out?

I am wondering though if it is something to do with my cartridge/VTF/VTA. I even realigned my cart today with no improvement. I increased VTF with no success. It seems like this problem has been happening more and more and sometimes even on Lp's that it never happened to before.

Please note that by the second song or so, the mistracking noise is generally gone completely and everything is fine.
I've visually inspected the cantilever and needle, they seem fine as far as I can tell. I've cleaned mu Lp's thoroughly.
I've played around some with antiskating to no avail.

One thing I have not done is lower VTF. Maybe? Then again I am not even sure if the sound I hear is mistracking. I can only describe it as a "flutter" or "shutter" evey revolution at a certian place in the Lp.

I just tested an Lp that is had never happened to before on and is is definately there. here's a funny thing though. The "mistracking happend last night on one Lp. So I put another on. No mistracking sound. So I put the previous one on and the mistracking sound was gone. What's up with that? The sound did not appear the rest of the evening but has been present all day today. Bummer.

Any suggestions. I'm stumped.

The arm is triplanar, the cart is ZYX Atmos, proabably 40 or so hours on it.
mariasplunge

Showing 1 response by dougdeacon

It certainly sounds like acoustic feedback. The Atmos, being almost fully nude, is likely to be sensitive to that. It gave us no problems on our rig, but I can bounce up and down next to our table with no audible feedback, certainly no skipping. Speakers 5" from the tonearm? Yikes!

You need to address those issues I guess. You could confirm the diagnosis by listening through headphones, as Markd51 suggested.

P.S. to DocSavage
There's an easier way to adjust the a/s initiation point on a TriPlanar. Don't fiddle with the set screw holding the fishing line. You're as likely to break the line as anything, trust me! ;-)

Just adjust the pin sticking out of the front of the bearing cage (just below the dogleg). Swivelling that pin up or down controls the a/s initiation point.