New to vinyl question


I recently added a turntable to my system, mostly so I could play old records of my father's that formed my early introduction to music. I got what I think is a pretty good turntable, a Music Hall Stealth with an Ortofun Blue cartridge. I'm playing it through my Rogue Sphinx 2, hooked up to a Mytek Brooklyn Amp through Focal Aria 926 speakers. None of this equipment is the highest end available, but it's always sounded great when streaming from my BlueSound Node 2. When i first played some records, particularly jazz and classical, I really enjoyed the sound, though in not sure I prefer it to streaming digital in all contexts. I definitely think the vinyl sounds great for acoustic instruments and vocals, particularly female vocals. But after a little time playing some old Cream and Hendrix records (in new or like-new condition), I noticed pretty significant distortion particularly in the bass. I'm wondering if this is some issue of improper setup or just an artifact of analog reproduction. The sound I'm hearing on the bass lines in particular sounds like clipping i think. But I'm not playing at high volume and it doesn’t happen when I play the same track from a streamed source at the same volume. Any ideas for what I'm heading? I'm hesitant to expand my record collection until I get the issue figured out. Thanks in advance for any help you can offer. 

128x128grateful_dad

Showing 3 responses by lewm

The other problem with Amazon is they kill local small businesses, like record stores.

To the OP. One more thing to check. Many turntables, especially ones with a springy suspension, have built in screws, usually hidden from view, that are tightened down for shipping. If your TT has such screws make sure they are not impeding the suspension, loosening usually requires only a screwdriver and a few counter clockwise turns. Check the owners manual.

VTF can easily get out of whack during transit with most tonearms. Do you have a stylus force gauge? If not, get one before “fiddling” with VTF, is my advice.