We have a Sylvania stereo system manufactured in 1975. I recently had the turntable repaired (it was not running), but now when I play records on it, LPs or singles, I hear a constant clicking, sputtering sound which comes through the speakers only. (When I hook up my headphones and switch off the main speakers, I get the sound just fine through the headphones, without the odd “clicking” sound.)
Can any audiophiles tell me: Is the sound coming from 1) A faulty receiver component, 2) The receiver’s transducer for the main speakers, or 3) Some other component?
Further information is needed:
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Is the clicking at regular intervals, or does it sync up to anything regular like the rate of the disc’s rotation?
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Is it more of a dull buzzing or hum?
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Does it get better or worse if you gently fiddle with the knobs (volume/balance/tone)?
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Is it equally bad in both speakers?
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Is the sound present with any other source (tuner/tape/aux input)?
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Is it equally bad for all LPs?
To Opus:
1, 2. It’s an unrhythmic, “clattering” sound.
3. I haven’t tested this; I’ll try.
4. It’s equal in both speakers.
5. No.
6. Apparently so, but it’s at its worst when I play the single “Come Together” by the Beatles. (This was a blue colored copy, originally to play in jukeboxes, for what it’s worth to mention that.)
Dougie, your contacts are filthy. The knobs that you turn to adjust volume, balance, etc get dirty. Go down to Radio Shack. Buy a spray can of Contact Cleaner/Lubricant. Get into the case of the tuner, on the inside of the faceplate. See all of those cool round thingys? They are the actual controls, that you turn when you turn the chrome knobs.
Spray sparingly, using the little straw thing. Do a little spray, into the curved area. Then, turn that knob from the front, back and forth.
Betcha it helps out a lot, if not totally solving the problem.
Cartooniverse
If you want to kiss the sky, you’d better learn how to kneel.
Microphonics perhaps ?
Does it happen at low volume ??
If it happens at high volume only (how else can you play ‘Come Together’ ?) try isolating the turntable by placing some foam underneath it.
Maybe the springs on which the turntable is mounted are in the “shipping” position, causing an abnormally large amount of feedback?
Methinks Oblio is onto something.
I don’t think it would be after 25 years, Tbea. We unpacked it and set it up in 1975. Only within the last year or so did it start making that sound.
I suspect that if the problem goes away when you plug your headset in, it is a problem with the receiver. Contact cleaning is a good idea, as is the feedback due to high vibration - see Oblio’s post.
I would try the following, in order:
[ul][li]Isolate turntable from vibration as Oblio suggests[/li][li]Contact cleaning. My primitive approach is to work the hell out of the controls (volume, balance, treble, input selector, etc.) with the power off. That usually clears the crust out of them.[/li][li]Try a different speaker output (if you have one) - since the headphones work, perhaps it is the speaker output.[/li][li]Try a different input (e.g. Aux). You will probably need a phono pre-amp for this (phono plugs into pre-amp, pre-amp plugs into Aux input on receiver.)[/li][li]Cartooniverse’s contact cleaning surgery.[/li][li]A new freaking stereo. It’s 25 years old!!![/li][/ul]
‘Microphonics’ is a possibility, if by the term, we mean physical sonic feedback from the speakers through the turntable cartridge. But ordinarily, this problem can be isolated fairly easily – just turn down the volume, and see if the problem persists.
The fact that the problem disappears when Dougie uses headphones points a lot of different ways.
Hey, Dougie! When you plug in the headphones, do the speakers cut off?
I don’t know why fortune smiles on some and lets the rest go free…
T
Actually, that “new freaking stereo” comment made me think of one more:
[ul]
[li]Borrow a receiver from a friend, wire it to your phono and speakers, and try it out.[/li][/ul]
Maybe you could do this before buying a new one.
The problem sounds like dirty controls, but this can’t be the case if it happens only for the phono (unless it’s the source selector switch). Personally I’d opt for the new stereo approach. If it really is limited to the phono, there are only a few things it can be. I have never heard this kind of noise as a result of sonic feedback (acoustical energy making its way back to the pickup element), but I’ve seen enough strange things in 12 years of consumer electronics servicing to say that it coudn’t happen.
Since you say that you just had the turntable serviced, it’s possible that a new problem was injected into the unit during surgery.
All decent shops should do a general cleaning of controls when you put anything in for service. Especially on something that old- I would never have let a 10+ year old receiver our of my shop without a thorough chemical cleaning of all the controls- I would just be asking for a “back in for service” ticket to ruin my customer satisfaction surveys if I neglected to do this.
Is the stylus old & worn? That could make the usual vinyl “pops & clicks” sound so much worse. Is the stylus fully & properly attached to the cartridge? Do you get the noise when the tone arm is just resting on its perch?
Fools read Dear Abby, Simpletons read Anne Landers… it’s a fine line.
Did you remeber to hook up the turntable grounding wire to the amplifier?
Is the tracking force set right for your needle?
Are the speaker impedance correct for what your receiver is spec’ed to drive?
Opus asked “5. Is the sound present with any other source (tuner/tape/aux input)?” and you said no. Is this still true if you are playing a record while listen to the tuner?
Douglips’s last suggestion is probably the best: “Borrow a receiver from a friend, wire it to your phono and speakers, and try it out.” Narrows the problem down right there.
It is too clear, and so it is hard to see.
Yes, it has a ground wire, with a connection on the back of the receiver.
There is a switch to shut off the “main speakers,” which I do turn to the “off” position every time I plug in the headset.
And I see the point about the preamplifier.
You also might want to check the polarity of the speaker connections, and the phono cartridge. The wrong polarity could enhance whatever is going on.
Of course, this depends on how they did the repairs to the turntable, whether they completely unhooked everything or not.
An addendum:
Yesterday I found I had enough money to get the system checked out. I took it to the place where I had the turntable fixed. As it turned out, the speakers–the original speakers we got with the system in 1975–were faulty, so I tossed them. The repairman hooked the system up to a second-hand pair of Fisher speakers, which give excellent sound! 
He charged me nothing for checking the system out. I paid him $60 for the speakers.
Golly, my own OP should have given me the message. :o