Parallel Resistive Loading

derek92994

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#1
I have found a cheap and simple way to change cartridge loading and tame overly bright cartridges. By purchasing some line plugs, y adapters and resistors. Found some very handy info on this site and must credit the author so will put a link in down below.

You put the resistor plug and phono source into the y-adapter then into the phono stage you are using. Making up several loading plugs to find the sweet spot and giving you the option to change loading according to how different albums sound. I have settled with 24k ohms which is much less than the default 47k ohms. 47k ohms is bright as hell with my cartridge (AT440MLa) and my phono stage is preset at 220 picofarad which is odd as I find 100 is more the norm. Not sure if that affects brightness as well, but seem to have rectified the problem changing the loading itself. Bass is much tighter as well, and more noticeable as its not drowned out by brightness. 24k is my favorite for now, best thing is they are easily changeable with a simple power down of the Phono Stage and swapping of plugs.





Here's a link to the source site:

http://daveyw.edsstuff.org/vinyl/loading/
 

derek92994

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#3
Now that's cool as hell. How's the noise floor?
There is a tiny bit more noise but you'd have to turn the volume up to 2 oclock with no LP playing to hear it, I normally listen at 10 or 11 oclock and that's plenty loud. I put this down to cheap plugs and y adapters, wanted to see if it would work first. I will be purchasing gold plated ones when I can, gotta watch money this week. I'm doing some tube videos of it now, encoding and uploading takes ages.
 

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#6
That's a great option for selecting different cartridge resistance loadings without too much fuss. That's one thing I haven't tried, yet, but it seems there's some untapped fine tuning that could improve the cartridge loading to an optimum range. Your video clip sounds good, Derek.

Nando.
 

derek92994

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#7
Thanks Nando, it has sure changed the sound for the better. In your face brightness can get a bit much sometimes. Its nice to have more of a flat and neutral sound across my collection of LPs. There may be a few which require 32k instead of my current 24k, however its very easy to change with a power down of the phono stage and swapping of resistor plugs.

I'll put another couple of videos up soon, just need to upload them.
 

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#8
Super job Darcy - I liked the sound quality via the ewe-toob video you posted when listening with my on line system. Having the capability to fine tune your cartridge based on your music source is a fantastic feature.
 

derek92994

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#10
With youtube, choosing 720 or 1080p can give a bit better audio quality.
 

orange

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#11
How so? Isn't it some form of AAC? And 720/1080 aren't often available plus default is AUTO which is often the native resolution of the upload.

But the audio standard is FIXED IIRC and has nothing to do with the resolution.

So even crap can sound awesome. With HTML 5 it shouldn't even matter as it's not Flash in that case.
 

marcok

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#12
Dear all,
I'm not sure about this solution , because you can only decrease the input load .
Generally I have seen that other preamps increase the input impedance .
Here are some examples :
1) PL 4000 : from 39KOhm to 139KOhm with two trims on the back panel .
2) Yamaha 2010 : 47 ,68 and 100Kohm selectable from front panel .
Anyways to perform a correct adjustment is necessary a test record .
Ciao
Marco
 

marcok

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#13
I want to add more info about load compensation in phono stages .
C4000 and Sme III cable use caps for this purpose .
In particular C 4000 use 0 pf ,180 pF and 390 pF in parallel with 47 KOhm,
so with this HW arrangement I suggest to prepare two connectors with
disc caps ( 180 and 390 pF ) . Sorry , but I don't know the cap value used in Sme III cable .
I have also seen that phono 2 in PL 4000 has 68 Kohm load ;
probably Bob Carver and his team decided that it was the right value
for most cartrigdes .
Ciao
Marco
 

derek92994

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#14
How so? Isn't it some form of AAC? And 720/1080 aren't often available plus default is AUTO which is often the native resolution of the upload.

But the audio standard is FIXED IIRC and has nothing to do with the resolution.

So even crap can sound awesome. With HTML 5 it shouldn't even matter as it's not Flash in that case.
There are multiple factors which affect youtubes selection of quality, I think one of them is connection speed. I'm just saying that, if you can, run 720p or 1080p. If not just run the maximum youtube will allow you.

Auto is not the native resolution, I know that much as I have caught youtube out displaying a lower res (on auto setting) than the video was uploaded with. Also the audio quality decreases if you go too low with the quality setting, I have experienced this first hand.
 

derek92994

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#15
Thanks for the info Marco, its hard for me to understand those technical specs. All I know is that I am much happier with the sound of the 440MLa by reducing the load to 24k, sometimes 32k on some records. Its simple and easy to change and I know this has helped other vinyl lovers with excessively bright cartridges who are stuck on the standard 47k load in the case the phono pre doesn't allow the option to change it.
 

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#16
Crap the tile of this thread sounds like when the ex and current Mrs. both yell at you in the same day. :sad7: I am sure FF knows what that feels like. :toothy5:
 

marcok

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#18
Derek ,
I have simply got the opportunity to talk about this matter ,that ,even if it's well known,it's often neglected .
But since the sound is a sensation , the most important thing is that you are happy .:happy3::happy3::happy3:
Ciao
Marco
 

derek92994

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#19
Derek ,
I have simply got the opportunity to talk about this matter ,that ,even if it's well known,it's often neglected .
But since the sound is a sensation , the most important thing is that you are happy .:happy3::happy3::happy3:
Ciao
Marco
Its nice being able to tweak and try new things. The brightness issue had to be solved somehow and reducing the loading achieved that. The 440 cartridge has so many great qualities, especially inner groove tracking, its incredible. I'm glad I found a way to make it sound more neutral instead of moving onto another cartridge which can be rather costly. Although I do plan on upgrading to the AT150MLX in the future, it is a $500 cartridge so will be some time before that happens, it is also known to be less bright and have better bass response due to the boron cantilever.

I'm sure there are better ways to tweak, I have found this to be a simple solution, it just works. Others who are more particular about sound may disagree and prefer a different method. I also think that there is no single setting that suits multiple cartridges across the board, they all behave differently at the standard 47k loading and usually require tweaking to suit the listener's needs.
 

marcok

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#20
Derek and all,
a simple summary :
to compensate frequency response of any MM cart you can modify resistors or caps .
Ranges suggested from some manufactures are:
39KOhm -100 kOhm
0pF - 390pF
The adjustment can be made with a test record or according your personal taste .
Ciao
Marco
Ps : Derek enjoy your TD 160 super , SME II and your carts .
 
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