Just got back into vinyl again and picked up a secondhand 1210. I've cleaned it up and everything seems to be running well, just two problems that have me stumped.
1. I get a powerful ground loop hum when i connect and ground via my mixer, but if I connect directly to the amp and ground there it the hum becomes reasonable. I've tried grounding at amp and connecting to the mixer but it doesnt seem to improve anything.
2. Even once connected (via phono) the turntable outputs really low volume and only the left channel. I have to gain it up all way to my amps max to even hear (with loads of hum)
Here's some info about my set up.
My turntable and 2 CDJs are hooked up to my mixer via fairly decent RCAs. The mixer then outputs to my amplifier and speakers. The mixer and amp are Euro devices connected via UK 3pin adapters to the power (all other devices are 3 pin UK plugs). I'm not sure whether that makes a difference but trying to include everything. I've tried powering them from the same and different sockets with no noticeable difference.
My theory
Problem 1 occurs because my turntable is grounding through it's chassis and not properly through the ground wire. Maybe I need to ground the turntable to the mixer and the mixer to the amp? I dont currently have long enough wires to do this. The Technics ground wire is also pretty frayed, lacking a spade and could do with replacing. Maybe grounding internally would help? Although I know many dont recommend this.
The weird part: my mixer appears to produce a hum no matter as long as a cable is connected to either phono stage. Even if the turntable is unplugged. Could an errant cable be causing this?
Problem 2 Normally I would say cartridge, but the AT95E i've hooked up is brand new and normally a decent choice. Could I have been unlucky? Sadly no spares around to test. Could it be the original RCAs?
The headshell i bought is also brand new and official. Also no spares to test. I cleaned the contacts in the tonearm, didnt improve anything. Anyway of testing this without borrowing/buying something? Currently the groundloop hum increases significantly if i touch the headshell in anyway - is that normal? Never noticed it really with past decks.
I'm not sure what to do next. Should I return the cartridge? Order new RCAs and ground wire and pull out the soldering iron? Could it be a more serious problem? I'd love to get some wisdom/insight from your experiences before I waste anymore time or money. I even looked into booking my local deck doctor but he's booked up til March. Any help would be massively appreciated.
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