I'm totally new here (forum and hifi) and I just put together a decent set to get going. Some Polk Monitor 5 speakers, a sansui 4000. I bought a pioneer pl 518 for $25 and got a pl 550 fo $25 again. I only have one headshell cartridge and the leads/wires are pretty shoddy. I plug in the 518 and get intermittent sound. I have no expereince so at first I think the player was a bust. Today, I grab a pl 550 and put the same cartridge on it and get the same results. 5 minutes later, 2 leads break, then another. Speakers sound crisp with the FM. The receiver's phono stage was spot on when the seller tested it in front of me. Would 20-year-old, almost falling apart leads, cause such cruddy sound? What are the odds two players have tonearm wiring problems? I can hear the faint music when I put the cartridge and needle to vinyl. Is there anything I can test to isolate the problem? Everything else on these players is working. I'm just kinda frustrated and want to put on some vinyl. I know at least, I have broken leads that need replacing. If anyone could advise me, I would be grateful. Thank you.

Here's a link to some rather cheap set of leads...

http://cgi.ebay.com/Standard-Turntable-Cartridge-Mount-Headshell-Lead-Wires_W0QQitemZ5829942923QQcategoryZ48648QQtcZphot oQQcmdZViewItem

There are better sets availible through some of our AK sponsers located at the bottom of the page as well... :thmbsp:

In your case it might be best to get a couple new headshells with leads from here...

http://www.turntablebasics.com/hardware.html

Good luck on your vinyl adventure... :yes:

Thanks a lot. So I'm assuming you think this is strictly a leads problem. Right on. I'll grab some new ones along with a headshell. Out of curiosity and impatience, are leads sold in any "chain" store?

I have not seen any in the chain stores... :no:
I know that the "The waiting is the hardest part..." been there before.
Is your cartridge and stylus in good shape, if not ya might want to get one on order as well... :scratch2:

Hi there nasalissues, and welcome to AK.

Assuming your leads are not broken, ( which in fact you seem to say in your post they are ) you might try to ( very, very gently ) unplug the leads from the cartridge pins, and give those pins a good cleaning. Tighten up the plugs, ever so lightly, with a pair of fine tipped pliers.
Then proceed to do the same at the other end, i.e. at the headshell pins. Very often this is the case of a dirty contact or even a loose one.
You can use Deoxit or, alternatively, scrape the pins with an Xacto knife, till you get the copper pins shinning again.
If none of the above solves the problem, you either need a new set of leads, as suggested, or a new cartridge.

Jorge

The contacts were actually pretty clean. I could probably have tightened the fit but before I knew it, they were broken. Thanks for your help.