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Stylus not tracking and sounds terrible

I haven't used my TT in about 6 months due to a remodeling project. The TT was not moved, just not used. Yesterday I fired it up, tried to play some new vinyl, and ran into a problem.

The sound is terrible, shrill and scratchy sounding with no bass. The stylus randomly skates and hops. I tried playing a couple of records I know sound great but the problem remained.

The VTF, VTA, and azimuth are set correctly. I swapped out cables to and from the TT to the phono amp but still have the problem. I tried balanced and single ended cables to my pre from the phono pre.

I tried increasing VTF, playing with the VTA, disconnecting my subs, nothing changed.

The TT is a VPI Aries 1, Benz-Micro LO cartridge, Pass Aleph Ono pre. I've owned all of them since new or almost new so it all has some years on it but it sounded great before. Could the cartridge go bad in 6 months by just sitting there unused?

I had a similar problem a while ago and determined it was vibration/resonance from my room. I have the Aries sitting on a Ginko cloud platform now and it is pretty well isolated.

Everything sounded great the last time I played music on it. The only thing that changed was the location of the phono pre. It used to sit next to the TT but now my ARC amp is in that place. Could the tube amp be doing something here? The TT is right next to it on the same shelf.

Any help or ideas would be greatly appreciated.
nolacap

Showing 3 responses by millercarbon

millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
After 20 years nolacap you can treat yourself to a new cartridge. If you liked what you had then the safe bet is to stick with Benz. Stick with the same or greater output, get the most you can afford, it will be like what you had but completely across the board better in every way. That's what I found going from a Micro-Glider to Benz Ruby H. The same, only a whole lot better in every way.

Or if you can swing it, Koetsu Black Goldline is another one very similar so the only surprise will be how much better things can keep getting and still be supremely balanced with nothing hyped or exaggerated in any way. Just more and more refined.


millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
mijostyn- inverse square law. Need I say more?

nolacap- that cartridge is worth trading in. Don't mention condition, they don't care anyway. They only care that you're buying one of theirs. Which is a good choice, Benz are fine, had a couple myself. Just check this time first not years later! 

One thing that never was clear was if the cantilever was at an angle because it was bent or because the whole motor assembly was out of alignment. Anyone saying bend it straight had to be assuming bent, but the indications are more likely the whole assembly had come loose and was crooked. The cantilever got the blame simply because you could see it.

So this is one thing to always check anyway. Before unpacking look real closely. With the cartridge upside down and you looking down on it, the cantilever should line up perfectly parallel with the cartridge body. Equally important the stylus should be in-line and pointing straight up. I'm talking vertically. Straight at you when viewed from above.

If these aren't like this send it back. No amount of cartridge alignment will ever correct these faults. 

It seems to me you may never have heard anything but a damaged cartridge. Or in a very long time at any rate. Its not just the little channel imbalance you noticed. Unbeknownst to you the whole sound stage was being ruined. A new Benz properly mounted is gonna rock your world!
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
So its always been crooked. Sounds like you've had a bad cartridge for a long time and just didn't know it. Probably the whole motor mechanism was improperly installed, or knocked out of position somehow. But for a long time although it was crooked at least the cantilever was able to move freely so it would play. Until for whatever reason after the remodel it moved just enough so now the cantilever is hitting the body.

When this happens it can't move enough so there goes your bass. With the cantilever in contact with the body its picking up all the vibration and noise of the body. So there's your screeching. The rubber cantilever suspension isn't able to absorb any shocks from vibrations or even slightly warped records so all the shock goes right into the arm causing it to bounce so there's your random skipping. 

That may be a set screw you're seeing. Whatever, main thing is you can probably go back to using that cartridge if you can just get the motor back and held in alignment. 

Ideally I would upgrade to a newer better cartridge. Or if you like it, it could probably be repaired and re-tipped and would be like new. Better than new, from the sounds of it. Or with steady hands, a tiny vise, and some tweezers you could probably line it back up, drip some super glue on there and call it good. Probably better than what you had before! 
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