V3XED Posted October 27, 2017 Share Posted October 27, 2017 (edited) Heeeya folks, TLDR: I have a constant low hum coming through my speakers 24/7 when the turntable is on. Regardless of weather or not anything is spinning. Yes I know its is electrical interference, as turning on my ceiling fan makes it notably worse. I am here to ask for advice on improving the situation. Details Time! Turntable: Modular Component Systems 6202 (Semi-Auto / Belt Drive... Macy's re-brand with Technics guts) Tonearm: Stock arm, reads MCS branding to match. Cartridge: Audiotechnica... of some variety Output from Table: Red/White composite audio cables (these have a small ground cable paired with them, see below) Pre-Amp: PYLE Pro - Model# PP444 (It has "12v Ground" screw to which I have attached and tightened the ground cable from the turntable) Output from Pre-Amp: Red/White Composite with a "composite to 3.5mm aux" cable. This then runs into the soundcard on my PC (bear with me here) So as crazy as that probably all sounds, my tiny apartment layout and speaker setup and outlet locations pretty much mandate my turntable stays on my desk near the pc. The speakers, are then hooked to the PC via a very long aux cable, as the speakers sit underneath the tv across the room. So..... Feel free to tell me I am being an idiot here, but be specific at least. Id like a solution to reduce/limit noise without completely re-arranging my entire apartment. Is there a specific piece in this puzzle that is most likely to be the problem? It is hard to troubleshoot as all the elements are somewhat integral to getting noise out. Thanks!!!!! Edited October 27, 2017 by V3XED Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thomas³ Posted October 27, 2017 Share Posted October 27, 2017 Dimmer switch close by? Try touching the tonearm to see if the hum dies down. It could be a bunch of stuff honestly. The table is old, so might be a grounding issue. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V3XED Posted October 27, 2017 Author Share Posted October 27, 2017 Hey thanks for taking the time to read through everything! The dimmer switch is near the speakers (10' away) but nowhere near the record player or pre-amp (closer to 20' away). When I take the dimmer switch from zero, to any higher position, there is an audible "pop" through the speakers and then the volume of the humming increases. I tried touching all over the tonearm as you suggested, (along with touching the pre-amp and other things) nothing impacted the noise at all. I'm wondering if its worth trying a cable (R/W component to Aux) with extra shielding? Seems unlikely... The Component cables coming out of the turntable are hardwired and non-replaceable. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted October 27, 2017 Share Posted October 27, 2017 looks like it's time to move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 You could try a mains conditioner but it's grounding somewhere, I expect you've tried all the obvious but you could try running an extra ground between the pyle and your pc case, pc power supplies can be noisy but it's most lielely going to be a case of trial and error to see what causes it and if you can remove it. Unplug the table from the pyle and see if it still does it, if so buy a better phono stage, if not the arms internal wiring is a possibility but it could be anywhere in that chain. You could also try switching of the breaker for your lighting circuit off if it's a separate circuit from the power to see if it is the dimmer or fan that are causing it Other than that 14 hours ago, Tardcore said: looks like it's time to move. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
andynz Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 On 10/27/2017 at 6:50 PM, Thomas³ said: Try touching the tonearm to see if the hum dies down. It could be a bunch of stuff honestly. The table is old, so might be a grounding issue. I have a hum in my system that goes away when I touch the tone arm. What’s going on with that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
allenh Posted October 29, 2017 Share Posted October 29, 2017 12 hours ago, andynz said: I have a hum in my system that goes away when I touch the tone arm. What’s going on with that? Thats a bad ground, when you touch the arm you ground it so that's used as a test to diagnose if the problem is in the turntable or the amp. Either your existing ground is bad somewhere between the headshell and the amp, check and tighten any grounds before you go any further Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
V3XED Posted October 30, 2017 Author Share Posted October 30, 2017 Hmm appreciate the insight here. I will try to buy a longer cable and run it past my pc (turned off) to see if the PSU is whats casuing the bulk of the hum. The pre-amp and table are both within 5 feet of it after all. And yeah, the pre-amp was cheap so if I can isolate that as the issue I would def. drop some money for an upgrade. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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