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Hi everyone,
My dad passed me on his Beogram 4500 which he didn't use anymore... Unfortunately, there's obviously a problem with the left channel : there's sound but the quality is really poor. The right channel is ok. I checked the cables and my DIN/RCA adapter and tried to reverse the plugging of the channel on the amp (L on R and R on L) to check if it wasn't the amp... but it isn't.
So I suspect the cartridge (an MMC4 that has never been replaced or retipped since the 90s) or the stylus, but can it be something else ? I'm not willing to get it retipped (given the price) to eventually find out that it wasn't the problem.
Does this problem seem consistent with a stylus problem ? Or could it be the cartridge itself ? Or... ?
Thank you very much !
You can turn the cartridge 90 degrees so it is up-side down, and then with the tip of your finger touch it lightly and see the right channel is still ok, or it is now the left channel that is ok.
I had the problem with an MMC2 pickup on the BG4500, and mine got fixed by putting the cartridge on/off a few times, upside down and correct. I suspect that it was dirt and so on in the connector.
But with the "upside down" test, you can at least determine if it is the cartridge. There is also a mute-switch inside that can cause the problem with a channel die or go "poor", but first find out if it is the cartridge..
Here you can find information on the mute-switch, and also other great information on your beogram :)
http://www.condoraudio.com/wp-content/uploads/Projects/BeoGram-4500-Turntable-Restoration-Repair.pdf
/Weebyx
Thank you for your answer, Weebyx.
If the cartridge must be upside down, I suppose you meant 180° (half a turn) rather than 90° (a quarter of a turn) ? I understand that this could help to detect a dead channel, but I do not see how, without playing a record, it can help to identify the source of a distortion (with my finger, I will hear a sound or no sound, but I don't see how I can hear if the sound is distorted) ?
Regards,
EcceAngelo: Thank you for your answer, Weebyx. If the cartridge must be upside down, I suppose you meant 180° (half a turn) rather than 90° (a quarter of a turn) ? I understand that this could help to detect a dead channel, but I do not see how, without playing a record, it can help to identify the source of a distortion (with my finger, I will hear a sound or no sound, but I don't see how I can hear if the sound is distorted) ? Regards,
Hehe, yes sorry.. 180 degrees ;)
With regard to the sound, I might have read it wrong then, if the sound is equal high in both channels, but distorted in one(and you did the swap on the amplifier to rule that out), then I would suspect the pickup. My test os only if there is a channel missing, or one is much lower that the other... Sorry for the misunderstanding.