A turntable is a gadget with a circle in shape and a platform that rotates the gramophone. It is also used as a record player since it’s majorly used to play sound records.
These turntables normally hum. This humming can be a result of two different causes. It could be as a result of ground loops or even feedback.
In this article, I will explain how you should turntable hum when the needle is on record. To discuss this, I will talk through the two major causes of humming at the same time: what to do when the turntable hums when the needle is on record
What Should I Do Turntable Hum When Needle on Record
1. Ground loop
A ground loop is a major cause of humming. This is an issue that is very easy to correct. A turntable comes with a ground cable. The initial stage of what to do to a turntable hum is to connect the ground cable to the grounding terminus, which is at the back of the turntable—having done that, tighten very well the nut that is on the lower side of the cable connector.
Go through this procedure severally on the grounding terminal of the speakers or even the amplifier. If your speakers or amplifiers lack ground connection, then make a screw loose from the case or even the panel at the back of your speaker or amplifier. You are having done that to ensure that it is tight on the side of the ground cable.
If you have a preamp, the best option is to ground the turntable straight to the preamp; from there you can then connect to the speakers or amplifier.
2. Feedback
A turntable is an audio appliance that is very sensitive. Due to this, it can lead to humming or even having feedback in certain situations.
To ensure that this does not happen, the following simple rules can be of great help.
Place your turntable on a surface that is flat or leveled.
They are looking at the speakers and they should not be placed on the same level surface as the turntable. This is because the vibrations from the speakers can be echoed by the stylus and hence bring up the feedback loop.
Your speakers should not be on the same surface as the turntable. The vibrations from the speakers can be picked up by the stylus creating a feedback loop.
The turntable is supposed to be put or placed in a place that is free from vibrations and static.
After grounding, if the issue persists, you will be required to put an additional ground loop isolator and connect to the RCA.
These steps will assist you in finding out what causes buzzing
You should ask yourself if the speakers are connected to another device like a smartphone, does the humming remain in the turntable or to the speakers?
In addition to that, you can also connect the turntable to a different power outlet and do that directly to the wall socket without using a power bar.
If your speakers are placed on the same level surface, they can lead to a feedback loop where the needle collects the speaker’s vibrations .Therefore, the speakers during playback should not be kept on the same level surface.
The headshell should be disconnected and then reattached back. Make sure that the locking nut is secure.
Look at the connections headshell all through to the cartridge, and you will need to tighten the connections if they seem loose.
Ensure that you have a turntable that is grounded, making use of the grounding cable that is grounded. If there is a nut that is not available, you can make loose a screw on the case of your speaker or amplifier and make tight the on the lower part of the grounding cable
RCA cables should be removed from the connections then be put back firmly. You can also try a different set of RCA cables.
It is also necessary to consider that some humming happens to be an issue of analog gear. If this hum is only heard when the volume is increased up to 88, then this means that the humming is in a normal range. If the volume is just normal and you can still hear the hum, then there is a problem that needs to be solved.
The first thing that you need to check is whether the humming sound comes from the speakers. This can be checked by turning on the volume when there is no record playing.
If you happen to hear that the buzz has an increased sound, it means that it comes from the speakers. If the sound remains the same, it then means that the problem is not within the speakers but your turntable. In such a case, a few steps can help.
Connection of the grounding spade to the grounding pin on the turntable is very paramount. This is usually between the RCA connections, which are on project turntables. In addition to that, phono cables should be plugged into an amplifier, and each of them should have a grounding pin of its own. Having done this, then the problem should be sorted.
If the problem still persists, it means that there could be other reasons why the turntable hum. The problem could be with the turntable itself, where the turntable is placed, or maybe some other factors that may need a specialist to look at them.
Conclusion
In this article, I have taken you through what you can do when your turntable hum when the needle is on the record. When through some of the reasons that can lead to that and given some of the ways of getting a solution to the problem.
The major thing that a turntable user needs to know is that when humming occurs, the best thing is first to identify the source of the problem, and by doing that, getting a solution will be very easy.
