Diagnosing a fault with a Rega arm - RB250 RB300 etc

In the workshop today we have an RP6 which is off on one channel. this is how to diagnose where the fault is ....

[@peterfrantzen6482]

Thanks for the informative Video. Nice greetings from Germany

[@sam66hazmal]

That was really useful to see how to troubleshoot an issue with the tonearm. I use a modified Rega arm on my Linn Sondek LP12 and it works really well, I had to get a Rega Cut arm board to get it to fit. Their tonearms are excellent. Nice to see a Rega Ania on an LP12 too, thanks for doing the video

[@simonjames4529]

Thats my old Project turntable! great to see it continues to live :)

[@maxhifi1232]

Thanks, I always wondered how the tonearm wire was connected to the phono cable on a Rega.

[@Skeptgeo3]

Never buy a P1 or P2 unheard. My P2 had a ground problem. This is extremely common I’ve come to learn

[@lawrencecabrera5937]

Great tech tip!

[@Mc674bo]

Hi sir as a retired electrician I often found with cables it would be a break near a connection , so it would be interesting to just snip off a couple of inches near the phono end to see if indeed that’s were it’s broken. The times I had fellow contractor come to me and say my drill has packed up . Just have a look at before I throw it in the bin . I would snipe the plug off and reconnect it and 9 times out of 10 it sorted it . Copper wire has some interesting properties that can induce all sorts of issues even in the world of hifi . Best wishes and kind regards as always 😀👍👍👍

[@cheshireaudio]

You are absolutely right, they usually break just behind the Phono plugs ..... for some reason this one had broken at the arm plug end, which I've never had before

[@Mc674bo]

@@cheshireaudio bless you some you win some you lose , and of course if you are charging for your time your decision was definitely the right way to go . People are very lucky to have you close at hand to fix these problems . Knowledge is king and you poses it in abundance . Best wishes and kind regards as always. 😀👍👍👍

[@6643bear]

Great abs informative video . Regards mark

[@tonezone9385]

I wonder if I could pick your brains please? I've recently picked up a NAD 555i (basicly a Planar 2 with an MDF platter). On testing it the left channel was intermittent but seemed fine after a 'waggle'. I checked the amp inputs by connecting right out to left in which was fine. I changed the cartridge but the left channel still needed to be waggled to get it to work properly. I suspected a breakdown in the moulded phono plug so thought I'd solder a fresh pair on (which I've done many times to other decks without a problem). However on testing there was no sound at all. Tried cutting back the cable and different phono plugs but still no sound. There's not much cable left now before the plastic 'knuckle' on the leads but I sripped back preparing to try again but thought I'd do a continuity test from the cartridge ends through to my bare wires at the phono plug end. I was surprised to discover that both left channel leads seem to be shorted so that the white (or blue) cartridge connector goes full swing on my multimeter whether connected to the line wire or the ground wiring. The same applies the right channel with the red (or green) lead connected to line pin or screen. Removing the rubber arm plug and tesing again from this plug in both directions shows that there is continuity all the way through red to red and red to live pin but also red to green and to earth screen. Same happens on the left channel. Would the cable have shorted both in the arm and in the output cable? Am I doing something fundamentally wrong in testing?

[@knobbshots]

Love this, been fixing some old amps lately myself. You seem like a good guy to ask: where/how would you recommend adding a ground wire to a Rega P2? Mine has a hum and I notice as my hand approaches the tonearm it gets worse. I’ve heard tell I can just install my own but not sure how to go about it. Thank you very much for vid, and if you choose to answer see it is greatly appreciated Carl

[@cheshireaudio]

That’s more likely the cartridge picking up noise.... the arm earth is fine on Regas. I’ve seen a lot of advice on forums about adding ground earth wires, but this isn’t correct. It seems to be that some cartridges in certain situations are more prone to it... Regas and Grados particularly

[@SALVACINEMA]

I would like to “upgrade” cables for my rega p2 2000, but i can’t find the replacement part/cables. Could i order them from you? I live in the Netherlands.

[@danielmorgan9990]

Really enjoyed the video..if you could do a video . Want to change my cartridge on rega 6 to a ortofon M2 Bronze.. could you do a video using a rega shimm to raise tone arm? Just want to make sure I do everything correctly...or is a shimm not needed? Thanks

[@cheshireaudio]

You can get away without a spacer with the 2Ms only the Ortofon MCs definitely need one

[@danielmorgan9990]

@@cheshireaudio thanks very much for the reply 👍

[@soupathand]

Where did you order that replacement phono cable?

[@depechem0demusic]

I was going to replace the phono cables upto my RB300 arm for the newer thicker ones-but will it really make that much of a difference sonically to my 1984 P3???

[@cheshireaudio]

It does... but it is fairly subtle

[@barrybrennan2135]

Great video and troubleshooting. If I may query your expertise again please - do you think the RB880 is a worthwhile addition to an RP6? I know the P8 is the logical upgrade but I still fancy the coloured full plinth on my RP6. Cheers.

[@cheshireaudio]

I've never done it, but I'm pretty sure the RB808 would give a really worthwhile upgrade on the RP6 ....

[@barrybrennan2135]

@@cheshireaudio excellent, many thanks

[@depechem0demusic]

Which temperature is best for unsoldering and resoldering the tone arm wires from the phono cables??

[@cheshireaudio]

Think I had the iron set at around 400 degrees for this... but whether the display is accurate is anybodies guess

[@Pluralofvinylisvinyls]

I thrifted a Rotel RP900 with a Rega RB250 tone arm and Sumiko Pearl cartridge. Plugged it in and the right channel was out and humming. Gently fiddled with the wires on the carriage and it fixed the problem. Guessing it’s not a permanent fix. Do you know what the issue is?

[@soupathand]

I’m currently having the same issue. I duct taped it to the angle where it works. It’s a shame the video uploader never replied to you.