Question Beginner help (distortion, wire, amps)

J3llison

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Nov 27, 2020
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I've recently received my grandparents Rega 3 turntable, a old model, one they bought a long time ago. Along with that I bought the Wharfedale diamond 220s and the Rotel ra-820bx4 integrated amplifier. I was and still am very concerned about clipping or general damage to my whole system. The Rotel powers 2x 30w and the speakers need 25-100. Normally when tracks get to a particularly 'busy' or peak moment I'm met with some kind of rumbling, I would call it distortion but normally its very low and I'm not sure if its poor wiring, me being paranoid, the actual track itself or actually some sort of clipping or distortion. Would anyone be able to suggest if I would be encountering distortion or clipping based on the fact my amp only powers 5 more than recommended wattage for the speakers. Also does wire gauge or length matter, if only running a short distance, the speakers are 8 ohm and the amp allows 4-16 the wire is around 1m and I just want to check its safe and sufficient. Final question, if I were to replace my amp, what would be good choices, considering I live in the uk and have a budget of around 200 ;(. I would definitely want more wattage so I never run into theses troubles again.



Thanks



Jake ; )
 
I cannot see your am clipping with these speakers unless you're attempt to play at concert level volume.
Admittedly the amp is old and my need replacing but it shouldn't be an issue with your current speakers the speaker wire isn't going to give you problems assuming it is correctly connected.
If you are looking for a new amplifier make sure it has an inbuilt phono stage as some don't.
Is you budget £200 or what?
If it is you may need a bit more than that for a decent amp equivalent of that Rotel.
 
With an elderly turntable the cartridge may be well past its best. Although your description isn’t that easy to grasp, it might be mistracking. That’s when a tired stylus, or a worn record, (or both) lose contact at higher volumes. If it’s worse towards the end of a side, then it’s mistracking.
Check the stylus is clean and the tracking weight set near the top end recommended.
 
With an elderly turntable the cartridge may be well past its best. Although your description isn’t that easy to grasp, it might be mistracking. That’s when a tired stylus, or a worn record, (or both) lose contact at higher volumes. If it’s worse towards the end of a side, then it’s mistracking.
Check the stylus is clean and the tracking weight set near the top end recommended.
You could be right and, although poorly described, the issues could be down to the cartridge.
 

Gray

Well-known member
I've recently received my grandparents Rega 3 turntable, a old model, one they bought a long time ago. Along with that I bought the Wharfedale diamond 220s and the Rotel ra-820bx4 integrated amplifier. I was and still am very concerned about clipping or general damage to my whole system. The Rotel powers 2x 30w and the speakers need 25-100. Normally when tracks get to a particularly 'busy' or peak moment I'm met with some kind of rumbling, I would call it distortion but normally its very low and I'm not sure if its poor wiring, me being paranoid, the actual track itself or actually some sort of clipping or distortion. Would anyone be able to suggest if I would be encountering distortion or clipping based on the fact my amp only powers 5 more than recommended wattage for the speakers. Also does wire gauge or length matter, if only running a short distance, the speakers are 8 ohm and the amp allows 4-16 the wire is around 1m and I just want to check its safe and sufficient. Final question, if I were to replace my amp, what would be good choices, considering I live in the uk and have a budget of around 200 ;(. I would definitely want more wattage so I never run into theses troubles again.



Thanks



Jake ; )
Your speakers are not sat on the same surface as the turntable are they?
(The 1m cable length makes me wonder).
 

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