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I just purchased a Rega Planar 2 with RB250 arm, Stanton 688 cartridge and stylus. I have the TT hooked through a Music Hall Phono Pack and then into my preamp.When I play a record I get a lot of noise such as crackle and pop. I have not played a TT since I was a kid but this noise seems excessive. In addition to that, the music seems flat and lifeless. Imaging is not good. No dymamics and almost no bass at all.
I have tried 3 different records all with the same result. Tried cleaning the records, etc, to no avail. I tried another stylus, with the same results although I really have no way of knowing if either stylus is any good.
Does this sound like a stylus or cartridge issue? Any suggestions? I know that the TT must sound better. Please help. Thanks.
Follow Ups:
Siddy
To derive any meaningful advice you'll have to provide more detail, you should also register on the asylum as I believe quite a few Inmates wouldn't bother responding as long as you're not registered, it's also just as good an idea to list your system, which BTW you can revise as you upgrade.You gear is good stuff it should when set up properly and with decent vinyl give most Digital front ends some competition and smoke some.
I'd advise replacing that stylus as a bad stylus is capable of damaging the Vinyl irrepairably as well as killing any good sonic's
Then what is the source of the LP's you tried and how did you clean them.
I think you'll be way ahead of the game if you order a new Stylus,
Kevin at KAB knows more about Stanton than just about anyone now at Stanton and has nice prices as well, Stanton has been having QC problems for a while as I believe the Disco types are in charge now, but Kevin has squirreled away styli and cartridges from the better day's.
Then while you're waiting for your Stylus read the FAQ here so you will understand how to properly set up your cartridges alignment
VTA, VTF how to properly clean your records etc. the FAQ is not difficult but analog is absolutely not "Plug and Play" it's a totally different critter than digital, but therin lies a lot of the beauty because by paying close attention to the details you will derive great sound even from reletively modest gear.
But you have to have your TT level, have it sited well, away from
the speakers and particularly the sub on a steady shelf or rack
sometimes some isolation is needed for best performance (usually dirt cheap DIY stuff will work every bit as well as very expensive accesories) You'll have to reset the balance point of your tonearm
and zero it, so the calibration disc zero is at the neutral balance point and the 2 gm. setting is actually at or approx. 2 gm.s and then set the overhang check the azimuth etc, it's all fairly simple and in the FAQ.And remember you never want to assume the PO had the table level or anything else set up right, and even if he did a table that's been bounced around in shipping and handling needs to be set up again
and NEVER trust a stylus from an unknown or questionable source.If the idea of all this seems dreadful and or daunting this stuff may not be for you, but you'll never really know until you do it right and listen.
If it's overwhelming at this point most shops will set up the cartridge and table for $50, then you can learn some of the details at your lesure.
Other posters may have some more specific advice re set-up, cleaning, etc., but I'll just mention the general principle that you need to allow for a break-in period, especially for the cartridge.Most cartridges require a break-in period of at least 20-40 hours of play before they will sound their best. In simple terms, the cartridge and stylus assembly has tiny moving parts that must flex a little before they have their full, intended range of motion. If your cartridge is brand new, this is probably contributing to the "flat and noiseless" sound you describe (and possibly to the noise issue).
Your phono stage will also require some burn-in time before it sounds its best.
Assuming your set-up is O.K., you may find that the sound really blooms on its own after some break=in time.
How are you cleaning the records?
Sound like it could also be an issue with setup (cartridge loading?)
Also, I owned the music hall phonostage. There are three different 'mystery' settings on the back. One for MC and two for MM. There is no info one what the settings represent. I contacted Music Hall about what were the specifications of the settings, and they just said to "put it on the setting that sounds best". Hows that for customer support.
No offence but I found the stage to be rather lifeless and lacking in depth. I also owned a NAD PP2 (in the same pricerange), and I found it to be a little better, but still not that good.
I feel that the phonostage is probabaly the most important part of the analog chain. A fair deck will sound good through a great stage, but a great deck will sound poor through a fair phonostage. Your rega will sound great through a good phonostage.
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