@owl9113, @jasonbourne71 makes a point about passive volume controls. They interact with the output impedance of your sources, in this case the DAC and your phono stage, both of which have to drive your amplifier thru the passive control, which can really increase the source impedance that the amplifier sees (this is bad, in case there's any question). Its highly unlikely that both have the same output impedance! Because of that its very possible that the phono section is working alright, but is placed in a bad light simply on this account. So its worth trying to run the line stage active rather than passive.
Weak Link in Vinyl Playback
Hi Everyone,
I’m looking for some input on a weak link in my system, mostly in regards to my vinyl playback chain in a 12’x11’ room.
I currently have a Technics SL-1700 MK1 with an AT-VM95ML cartridge. The turntable is connected to an iFi Zen Phono. The phono is connected to a Schiit Saga S via 3 ft. Blue Jeans BJC LC-1 cable, and the Saga runs to a single Schiit Vidar by the another set of the same cable. The Vidar is connected to Elac Debut B6.2’s via 10 ft. Belden 50000UE cable (as an aside, my digital path is Pro Ject S2 Pre Box Digital connected by the same 3ft. interconnects to the Saga>Vidar>speakers). I’ve connected a sub previously (a Martin Logan Grotto I that I inherited) to the Saga in the past, but am currently running without it.
My concern is that while the digital path sounds full to me, at least as much as can be expected, the vinyl path sounds a bit thin and weak. I guess I’d describe it as kind of lacking energy. My gut tells me the Saga S having 0 gain in both the passive and buffer mode (I run it in passive mode because it sounds more lifelike to me but I’ve used the buffer in the past as well) is the reason for this, but I’m not positive. I’m ready to upgrade to the Freya S if that’s the solution, but I didn’t want to start throwing money at a problem without really narrowing it down first. The Zen phono is set to MM and gain 1, which should be correct for my cartridge, the interconnects aren’t overly long (the speaker cable being 10’ isn’t too big a deal, I think?), the Vidar should be driving my inefficient speakers with no issue and judging by the digital path, it is.
I’m hoping someone here can weigh in on what would make the biggest positive impact in my listening and give me the oomph I think I’m missing. For what it’s worth, I plan on doing some room treatment down the road, but that’s not what I’m looking for advice on at the moment.
Thanks!
Showing 4 responses by atmasphere
It used to be that getting the digital right compared to the vinyl was the expensive bit. @owl9113 The cartridge gain settings won't have anything to do with loading. You might try setting number 2 and see how that works- you won't hurt anything if you overload the phono section doing so. Sometimes if the gain of the phono is too low, the system can sound anemic. So this might be worth a try. |
@owl9113 You are. Cartridge loading is one of the more arcane issues of LP playback and it can have a big effect on MM cartridges! Its worth doing. A phono preamp manufacturer is being remiss if this issue is not addressed. In addition to tonal balance problems, the resonance can cause ticks and pops that sound like they are on the LP surface if the phono section has poor high frequency overload margins! Loading the cartridge eliminates that issue- so it can reduce ticks and pops depending on the design of the phono section. FWIW its far easier to design a tube phono section that has good overload margins than it is solid state. Some phono sections will have an extra RCA jack which is intended for loading purposes. Sometimes its handled by DIP switches internally. But there should always be some sort of provision, otherwise its impossible to get all the performance out of the cartridge and the phono section together!
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@owl9113 Your cartridge is a high output MM type. This type of cartridge needs to be loaded correctly to prevent very high audio frequency or ultrasonic resonance. If in the audio band, which seems to be the case here, the resonance will act like a tone control, boosting the extreme highs. Your ear will thus perceive this as a bit dry- by reducing the highs, the ear will seem to pick up on the lows better. So before you do anything else I recommend looking into loading your cartridge correctly. The inductance of your cartridge is 550mH. I don't know the capacitance of your phono cables, but they play a role in this (when inductance and capacitance are in parallel as you have in this situation, you get a resonance). So you need to find that out and then drop the numbers into this calculator: http://www.hagtech.com/loading.html I would read that whole page if I were you. If the stylus is older than 4 years, its suspension may be perished. If that happens the cartridge can sound dry. So replacing the stylus is worth looking into as well. |