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Do 5-pole DIN tonearm connectors deteriorate the sound?

I am in the process of completely rewiring my new Woody tonearm (https://vtaf.com/woody-tm-universaltm-tonearms.html#/), sitting on a custom-made Lenco-recreation by Peter Reinders (http://www.ptpaudio.com/solid9.html). My new cartridge for this set-up is the Audio Technica ART 1000.The signal goes from the TT into my Supratek Grange phono-stage/preamp via a custom-made phono cable that is foil-shielded and also carries the TT grounding wire. Currently I have issues with hiss and a deep background hum, indicating bad shielding of the tonearm wires and some grounding issues. So, I decided to completely re-wire the Woody and the phono cable. The latter is currently soldered directly to the tonearm wires (34 AWG copper). I also have a ProJect 10 Carbon TT with a BenzMicro LPS cartridge. This TT has an internal 5-point DIN connector linking the tonearm wires to the phono cable.

Here is my question: has - in the experience of this esteemed forum - the 5-pole DIN connection a noticeable effect on the sound? After all, we are talking about very low voltages here, so - at least in theory - a direct connection from the phono cartridge to the preamp would be ideal. However, because of the small wire gauge (34 AWG 6N silver by Zavfino), I would probably run into resistance and capacitance issues for a 3 feet run. I would rather put the DIN plug in place to have a clean transition between the TT-wires and the phono wire, but I am not sure if this would lead to a sonic compromise. Of course, I could just try both configurations and try to hear a difference, but first, I am interested in the science behind this question, and second, I don't really have the time for trial-and-error.

Your input will be highly appreciated.

128x128reimarc

Showing 1 response by atmasphere

atmasphere's avatar
atmasphere
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Currently I have issues with hiss and a deep background hum, indicating bad shielding of the tonearm wires and some grounding issues.

@reimarc You need to figure this out before worrying about rewiring the arm or dealing with connectors! Otherwise you may find you have the same problem after all that work! Based on other comments in your opening post, I suspect this will be the case.

FWIW, the ground wire does not have to be carried within the shield. It might help to explain how tonearm wiring actually works:

The cartridge is a balanced source. Like any balanced source, the signal is carried in a twisted pair of wires to the input of the preamp. It does not reference ground, hence the ground wire is merely to connect the shield (the arm tube) to the preamp chassis ground. On this account, the actual shield can be around the signal wires only.

However, you have a foil shield which is great at RF frequencies but bad bad not good really terrible for audio frequencies. Its no surprise you're having hum problems. The 'shield' is picking up noise and injecting it into your audio wiring within. So you'll want to rethink your tonearm cable, not your tonearm wiring!

Since you are likely running the system single-ended as most people do, its acceptable to shield the '+' (plus) output of the cartridge with the '-' (minus) output once the arm wires have exited the tonearm, but this should not be the same as the ground wire connection. That's about the best way to connect a balanced source to a single-ended input and is why tonearms are the only 'single-ended' source that needs the ground wire- in fact its not a single-ended source.

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