the unthinkinable has happened, I accidentally hit the tonearm whilst the cartridge was in the groove which caused the stylus to skip to a few lines down a record. how can I check if I've caused any permanent damage?
is it possible I have damaged it?
- Thread starter gbhsi1
- Start date
possible .in my dim and distant past after a drink or 5 I have done the same without any damage as tracking at 1.5 / 2.0 grams more likeley to have damaged lp unless of coarse you put a lot of wait on it but if you only nocked it it will most likely be ok
Check the cantilever with a magnifying glass, it will be obvious if it's damaged, bent either left or right, if it's not it's probably ok, the diamond on the shank are fairly resilliant, tracking vibrations they have to be, if it looks ok play the same record, if it's screwed, it's screwed what have you got to lose, i'd rather replace a scratched record than a cartridge any day.
I'll need to buy a magnifying glass. I've played some records and they sound the same and no noticeable difference just my mind is racing thinking I've done some kind of permanent damage.
chebby
Well-known member
Do you have a digital camera with a 'macro' mode? If so then you have saved yourself the expense of a magnifying glass. (Some digital compacts can focus from as close as a centimetre or two.)
Use the maximum image quality and photograph the stylus. Then crop and magnify the image on your screen. The quality won't be brilliant, but - so long as it's focused on the stylus tip - it will be good enough to see the stylus profile or any damage.
Use the maximum image quality and photograph the stylus. Then crop and magnify the image on your screen. The quality won't be brilliant, but - so long as it's focused on the stylus tip - it will be good enough to see the stylus profile or any damage.
If you place the stylus onto the rotating record and look straight at it from the front the stytlus/cantilever should be in the centre and not to the left or right. Looking sideways on, the bottom of the cartridge should be about 1mm - 2mm above the record surface, depending on the tracking weight applied. If these check out and the sound is o.k. then no harm done.
thanks for the handy tips. if the stylus was damaged wouldn't the sound be different or there would distortion of some kind?
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