downisthenewup87 Posted June 19, 2016 Share Posted June 19, 2016 (edited) Hey guys, I've had a Debut Carbon turntable for about 1 1/2 years now. Recently, I've started getting distortion on S sounds when certain records are playing. I had ventured into Amoeba a couple months back to ask about how often I should be changing the needle (I play probably a record or two a day on average). They had said that on a Carbon I should be good for a couple of years... Is the distortion I'm now hearing an indication that it is, indeed, time to change out the needle/cartridge? Could it be something else? And how much damage is it liable to be doing to my records in the meantime? Thanks, Casey Edited June 19, 2016 by downisthenewup87 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tardcore Posted June 19, 2016 Share Posted June 19, 2016 It's more about how many hours you've actually used it than how many years it's been on the table. I'd check to make sure everything is still aligned properly first, but it could very well be time to replace (or upgrade) the needle. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted June 19, 2016 Share Posted June 19, 2016 How do you clean your stylus? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
circuit bored records Posted June 20, 2016 Share Posted June 20, 2016 On June 19, 2016 at 10:26 PM, ajxd said: How do you clean your stylus? Bingo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
downisthenewup87 Posted June 20, 2016 Author Share Posted June 20, 2016 Thanks for the replies. In regards to cleaning the stylus... I have a little flat stylus cleaner that my father gave me-- brand name LAST. I just run it along the stylus toward me pulling off the dust. Probably do it a couple times a week. I would up switching out the stylus and everything sounds good again so I'm gonna presume the needle was worn. I did hold onto it though in case you guys really think their is a different approach to cleaning I should be taking. I should have trusted my gut and changed out the needle a couple of months ago before any of these issues cropped up. It probably had a good 500 hours of use on it. The sibilance first appeared on a copy of Marshall Mathers LP 2 that I bought around a month ago. I just figured it was the album-- but then gradually started noticing it on random LP's I already own. The final straw was a hiss filled play through of White Stripe's Elephant that included one of the loudest pops I've ever heard. When I put the album on tonight, I realized that pop had caused a chip in the record and it now skips. All this to say, lessons in vinyl collecting can be expensive. But damn if I ain't still addicted. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted June 20, 2016 Share Posted June 20, 2016 (edited) I highly doubt listening to 1 record a day work out your stylus. It's probably just dirty, needing more than a brush. Lets even stretch this. 1hr a day * 1.5 years is 550hr. Ortofon says the stylus is good for at least 1,000hr. Get a better cleaner. Edited June 20, 2016 by ajxd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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