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Beginner’s Guide to Turntables & Hi–Fi *READ 1st PAGE BEFORE POSTING NEW THREADS / BASIC QUESTIONS*


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@Gumbo72203 Since you talk about 33/45 switches, the Debut series doesn't have one. You'll need to remove the platter and change the belt manually. 

 

I think the Debut series is a great 'bang for the buck, no bs'-affair. Sounds great, easily upgradable (the Ortofon 2m blue is miles above the red, which is pretty great by itself) and devoid of any gimmicks. As long as you don't plan to take your tt to the club, stay away from the at. As @Freki pointed out, it has features you don't need in hifi, but still pay for.

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38 minutes ago, slinch said:

I have no idea what's going on with that strobe light, but if the table works it's definitely a great deal, even if the cart is busted.

There's a loose piece in front of it that says disctracker it probably doesn't belong with it but I kept it just in case 

M0S5oYT.jpg

No idea what it's for

Edited by pizza face
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Hooked it up and it works good but it could need a new cartridge. The bass is extremely low compared to my current turntable unless that's just how this one is. It also creates it's own surface noise. When the volume is more than halfway up I can hear humming but can't hear it when music is playing. Not sure if its my cheap ass pre-amp (behringer pp-400) or what but I have another Direct Drive turntable that does the same thing. Any suggestions? I've never changed a cartridge in my life but am willing to attempt it. I get frustrated easily so honestly I'll probably just try to sell this to a pawn shop and hope to get $40 or something. -___-

Edited by pizza face
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11 hours ago, pizza face said:

Hooked it up and it works good but it could need a new cartridge. The bass is extremely low compared to my current turntable unless that's just how this one is. It also creates it's own surface noise. When the volume is more than halfway up I can hear humming but can't hear it when music is playing. Not sure if its my cheap ass pre-amp (behringer pp-400) or what but I have another Direct Drive turntable that does the same thing. Any suggestions? I've never changed a cartridge in my life but am willing to attempt it. I get frustrated easily so honestly I'll probably just try to sell this to a pawn shop and hope to get $40 or something. -___-

If it's creating it's own surface noise then it could well be a worn stylus but have you checked the setup? the humming will just be dirty connections somewhere along the line of the arm and the cable causing a bad earth

Also that's a great table for the money so it's worth spending a bit of money on and treating it to a new stylus or cartridge if it needs it. Getting a replacement stylus for that Micro Acoustics cartridge might be difficult though.

If you have another table that has an SME type/bayonet headshell fitting which is pretty common try swapping the headshells with the cartridges in to see if the humming and surface noise go away but if you do remember to reset the weights and heights etc.

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That table is a great deal for $35 dollars, it's basically an automatic version of the 1200 (more or less).It probably could use a going over by a tech, so if you don't know what you're doing take it to a shop to be checked out and get a new cart.  You could start with something like a Shure M35x cart for less than $60 if you're on a budget. It's a solid entry level cart and you can grow from there. But that table could be one to stick with you for many years once you have it running properly. 

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  • 3 weeks later...
5 hours ago, allenh said:

Leave it for a bit and go back to it, you're probably over thinking it.

That's what I ended up doing, and I got it to look fine but it sounds "off". Not sure if it's just the difference between the Grado and AT, but I didn't like the sound. I'll double check it again tonight after work.

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23 minutes ago, allenh said:

It'll need a few hours before it will give of its best so don't be too hasty, it might be that you just prefer the Grado though, certainly on paper the profile of the 8MZ should be better than the AT but that is only true if you like the Grado

I def. see what people are saying when they say they are bright. Vocals sound kinda harsh too, not really sibilance, just harsh. I'll check it again, and then give it some time to break in. The Grado was more balanced and warm off the bat, but I figured I'd try out the AT since my Dad bought it for me. I can always swap if I still don't like it.

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Hmm, well got it perfectly aligned with a downloaded protractor instead of the Shure one I had. There is a weird thump on the lead in grooves (misalignment?), but otherwise there is not noise/distortion etc. It's really boring though, no soundstage at all compared to the Grado....

 

Edit: I just can't get it. I guess I'm paying someone. The ML stylus is just too damn small to see, so I can't tell if it's on the dot or not. Now I'm worried I damaged it by putting it on the paper protractor a million times.

Edited by Thomas³
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8 hours ago, yanquiuxo said:

I love my AT440MLa. Bunmer to hear you're having such problems with yours. 

Yeah, I don't know why. I've aligned tons of other carts without issue, but the diamond is just too small too see so I can't tell if it's in the crosshairs. AT put it under a microscopy for me, and said the diamond is fine, but it still looks smaller than pictures I've seen online. I'm just going to take it in this weekend to get aligned.

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1 minute ago, Gumbo72203 said:

So this is going to be a dumb question, but what do you guys mean when you talk about aligning the cartridge?  

You can't just put a cartridge in a headshell and expect it to work properly. A record is a circle, so you need to align it to make sure it is tracking at the correct angle all the way across the record. Download a protractor from vinylengine, and make sure yours is aligned properly.

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6 hours ago, Thomas³ said:

You can't just put a cartridge in a headshell and expect it to work properly. A record is a circle, so you need to align it to make sure it is tracking at the correct angle all the way across the record. Download a protractor from vinylengine, and make sure yours is aligned properly.

Ah yeah, that's basically what I assumed it was.... the tracking force on either side, and making sure it's aligned at 18 degrees and all that. 

 

If it's off slightly, is it REALLY that big of a deal though?

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45 minutes ago, Gumbo72203 said:

Ah yeah, that's basically what I assumed it was.... the tracking force on either side, and making sure it's aligned at 18 degrees and all that. 

 

If it's off slightly, is it REALLY that big of a deal though?

Yes, it can cause wear on your stylus and records. Usually it sounds bad too. What do you mean 18 degrees?

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57 minutes ago, Gumbo72203 said:

Ah yeah, that's basically what I assumed it was.... the tracking force on either side, and making sure it's aligned at 18 degrees and all that. 

 

If it's off slightly, is it REALLY that big of a deal though?

Intriguing. Weren't you recently concerned about the ability of straight tone-arms to track round records?

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3 hours ago, Freki said:

Intriguing. Weren't you recently concerned about the ability of straight tone-arms to track round records?

I was curious about whether the S-shaped arm or a straight arm with angled headshell makes a difference, I think. 

 

3 hours ago, Thomas³ said:

Yes, it can cause wear on your stylus and records. Usually it sounds bad too. What do you mean 18 degrees?

Isn't that the degree of off-set that the headshell must be, for it to track properly? 

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