Technics 1200 - Tone Arm Trouble

NEW MUSIC _ www.thanative.com ___ www.voodoonationrecordsinc.com ____
This video may help a handful of you out there. This seems to be a very common problem. I suggest you replace the tone arm as soon as possible, though, if indeed you find the tone arm is the problem.

[@strictlybusiness]

you are a really great person for doing this. over 10 years later it's still helping people

[@aleio16]

holy shit, I thought I was going to have to replace my tonearm because everywhere I read, people were saying don't mess with the tonearm screws because the factory has already set it up perfectly. I just loosened it a bit, because I kept having issues with the same second of audio being played. and now my sl1200 works fucking perfectly.

[@djdesign_]

Wow, I finally found this video, after searching months for a solution to my SL-1700 pulling to the outside. The further the tonearm would play toward the center, the stronger it pulled making the audio quality suffer, to where it sounded like the stylus was covered in lint. I loosened the screws like the video shows and now it no longer pulls. Thank you!!!

[@taiwanluthiers]

Those bearing case cause a lot of problem and is made of stamped mild steel. It takes very little force to deform them. What you can do is remove the offending bearing, then ream the hole, so you can jam a skate wheel bearing into it. I believe MR52ZZ or MR62ZZ will work in both cases. Make sure the bearing face is flush with the assembly so you don't run into problems. Once you do this, the function of the tonearm will be restored. Or you can find the exact same bearing and attempt to replace them, but again, these are basically stamped mild steel and any little force in installing them will deform it. MR52ZZ bearing cases are hardened and ground to a very fine finish and high concentricity. I do not know what else you'd lose if you try this but I've done this to a couple of decks and they've stayed exactly where I put it without any anti skate.

[@MsDangerpants]

Ahhhh thank you! I just got some new (to me) MK5s and one of them would only play 8 or so bars before skipping. I tried a ton of different settings, changed slipmats, checked it with a leveI, etc. I wanted to cry, thinking I had been fully ripped off and they needed some costly repair. Thanks to your video my apartment is now a veritable bass explosssssssssssssion. Good times. Thanks! :)

[@MexiMumbles]

Thank you! I thought my bearings/tonearm were shot. I was able to fix it your help. Just seeing how to unscrew the pivot screw alone was helpful.

[@gotblueslistentojazzvinyl2530]

best video on youtube for this problem, nice easy demonstration to follow, and it solved the problem for me, although i think ill need to actually replace the bearings the next time this happens, my 1210 mk2's are 33yrs old, and its actually the first time ive had any problems with them

[@reydavidmaldonado]

YOU ARE AWESOME! I thought i got ripped off your fix worked perfectly i traded my iPad for a sl 1200 m3d i am stoked!!!! you rock!

[@tuneup1200]

@standtallproductions Glad to hear you found the problem and thank you for replying in the comments for others to see. This particular problem could have come about by many different factors and you uncovered the first factor in the Audio chain....how the needle sits in the groove. Have an awesome day!

[@tuneup1200]

@rothakoustic you're right ! If a tonearm was not properly installed, OR while changing the RCA cord and the wires were pulled tight, they can cause this to happen too....it also puts those tiny wires in a position to break....not a fun repair. Thanks a lot for bringing that up! These comments are always welcome! I'm sure this will help a lot of people.

[@dajmasta94]

Wow thank you for this, I was prepared to have to get a new tonearm and your little tip saved my neck and my wallet. Funny thing is I knew my anti skate worked properly at one point but then I moved and while setting it up again today I had problems so something must have happened on the trip.

[@tuneup1200]

@ericohman The anti-skate is a small spring that, when the anti-skate knob is turned, rotates and applies pressure to a small vertical shaft that's connected to the tone arm. The spring can lose its abilities when one has too much weight on the tone arm with anti-skate at full. A lot of dj's do this not knowing. This will, in time, stretch the spring. However, if you can put the needle on a blank and still adjust it properly, the anti skate is fine.

[@lcmxr6]

@tuneup1200 Yes I think this is the issue. I put it in backwards again and lined the padding up on the case to see where it closed on the TT. It was putting pressure on the raising mechanism, I'll give your suggestion a shot, thank you again!

[@rothakoustic]

If the tiny tonearm wires (exiting the arm tube at the bearings) are slightly too tight, this also can explain why the tonearm wants to return to its rest. Those wires need enough slack to allow the arm to move freely.

[@luprdubz9801]

cheers bro this worked heaps well

[@DjSuess]

Thanks so much..it seems in fact its my tonearm..my main deck that i use mostly and is actually only a few yrs old needed this..my other deck ive had since 99 & i also loosened the top screw due to it returning so quickly. my only concern,especially with the deck i take out of the house often for shows & doing heavy scratching with.How long can this temporary fix be expected to last without any problems do you think?..it has a little play (the peice directly above the tonearm connected to the kimbal?) ..a bit jiggly..Again..A million thankyou's

[@rsanchez7111]

Tuneup 1200. Thanks for all this great imfo. I'm sure it's going to be handy in the future. I own 6 sll1200 mk's. 10Q

[@tuneup1200]

There are lots of factors involved. However, what I can say is that, when the anti-skate is on the highest setting, it is applying more centrifugal force toward the OUTSIDE of the record. This can be proven by "floating" your cartrige at zero weight then put anti-skate at max. You will see that the arm will forcefully move outward. The cartridge angle of approach causes the arm to naturally move toward the center of the record. This can be proven by playing a record "Blank" (no grooves)

[@tuneup1200]

@MsDangerpants glad to be of service!

[@r.poyart1683]

thanks a lot ! solved my problem!

[@lcmxr6]

There doesn't appear to be any dings or dents after further inspection, I think the issue might actually be with the base height E.g. It won't go low enough to even the arm out,the headsell is lower than the weight, it's only a slight angle when on the record but a straight angle at least. The table is still performing well, hope I'm in the clear. Sometimes I tend to overreact with expensive things lol. Thanks for the tips!

[@tuneup1200]

@lcmxr6 are you saying that the base adjustment ring is stuck and you can't lower the arm low enough to be parallel with the record? Sometimes, when a force is applied to the tone arm, as in your situation, it causes the adjustment ring to jump a thread unevenly. You may have to grab the ring with both hands and work it back and forth until it jumps back.

[@kennethdemeester4069]

Thx for the video. My tonarm allways want to go to,the middle of the platter, not the center. From either direction, regardless of how i set the anti skating, it allways shifts to the middle with quite some force.

[@tuneup1200]

@lcmxr6 sorry, sounds like you may have damaged the tone arm. First, I would lift the arm off of the rest and feel underneath the arm where it would sit on the rest. If you feel a dent/crease of any sort, the arm is bent. Ironically, the majority of the tone arm replacements I do is because of this very reason. Maybe, a good idea would be to make alignment markers (i.e align red dot of turntable to red dot of case) . I know Dj's get in a hurry sometimes , but having something like this may hlp.

[@standtallproductions]

Hey thanks for your videos they are very useful. Both of my turntables fail this test however I am not having a problem with tracking both of my table play fine and stay in the groove when scratching. I am currently trying to digitize my vinyl collection and I am finding that both my turntables are 1-2db's quieter in the left channel. I have tried various cartridges and stylus which the same results, do you have any ideas what could be causing this, any help would be greatly appreciated.Thanks

[@ericohman]

@tuneup1200 thanks! really appreciate your answer. // eric

[@monel07306]

This problem is similar to maintaining compressed air powered tools. If your TT is old, the tiny ball bearings need lubrication. Air tool oil is suitable. One half-drop does years. However, calibrating tightness-fit-axial span is a practical impossibility for a first time amateur. If needs be, mark exactly where the top screw sits -- the factory setting. Count your counterclockwise turns exactly to the end of the thread-match. Mark it. Reinstall from thread-match to recreate original setup.

[@tuneup1200]

@upthedirttrack , you can only get one by purchasing a new tone arm. Technics does not offer it seperately and for good reason. The likely hood of the s-arm being bent slightly when the gimbal was damaged is high. If you were to purchase a gimbal seperate and still experienced tracking problems, you would be disappointed. This is why they only sell the tone arm; to assure the tracking problem goes away and you don't waste your time scratching your head trying to resolve a tone-arm issue....Scott

[@tuneup1200]

@nikko2thep is there any way you can record a video of what is happening on your turntable so that I can see this problem? Dont forget to send me the link. Thanks for watching!

[@tuneup1200]

@nikko2thep the tone arm shouldn't move back toward the arm rest when the anti-skate is set to zero - the 1200 in the video did have a problem as I noted in the video. When the tone arm's anti-skate is set to zero it should move freely but stop smoothly where ever it naturally loses momentum.

[@seydevilchick8]

Hell yes …good stuff..

[@yoitsgiook]

@tuneup1200 Thank you so much. I will definitely try that. It seems like such a hassle to replace a whole tonearm for something that I feel could be fixed. damn you TECHNICS!!! HAHAHA

[@tuneup1200]

mmm, seems like you have a bearing thats hanging up. Try loosening the top screw, then slowly tighten until you feel the slightest resistance, then lock it down with the outside screw...make sure you hold the center screw in place when you tighten the outside screw. If it still hangs, keep backing out on the screw a little art a time until it doesn't hang anymore. If you end up with a sloppy arm to make it not hang, you will need to replace.

[@lcmxr6]

A few days ago I took my 1210mk5's out of their road cases and noticed I had put one of the tables in backwards. The padding on the case lid was dangerously close to closing if not closed on the tone-arm and after noticing my mistake I became paranoid it did some damage. The arm looks straight but when its locked in the rest and is lower than the other table and slanted down, is this normal? Thanks awesome video by the way, oh and mine passed your test.

[@standtallproductions]

@tuneup1200 I'm pretty sure that the mixer and sound card are fine as I have bypassed both of them to eliminate them from the chain. I have since fixed the problem by adjusting the azimuth, I have done this by slightly loosening the screws on the bottom of the tonearm and slightly turning the cartridge a little, which seems to of done the trick...

[@yoitsgiook]

Is there any solution to one of the 4 pins in where the cartridge goes are set in or pushes in, other than replacing the whole tonearm? Thanks.

[@ericohman]

can the anti-skate be repaired? i think mine is faulty/weak. on both 0 and 3 the arm goes towards the resting position. on 0 it moves with less speed but it definately isn't floating still, it's pretty noticable speed towards the resting position. seems like some calibration issue of the whole anti-skate function. I can still set it so that it stays in one place when playing a blank (no grooves) vinyl. have you seen tutorials on trimming the anti-skate? // eric, north of sweden

[@djelite6907]

I just bought a pair of 1200s, and even with the weight all the way on, & with the needle on, it still floats....What can I do to fix this? I posted a video on my page.

[@nikko2thep]

@tuneup1200 I can't record a video, but at :57 when you "play tennis" with the tonearm, it slowly moves back to the arm rest. When I do that with mine, the tonearm doesn't move back to the arm rest.

[@tuneup1200]

@standtallproductions if both turntables are giving you the same result, then I would look at the error being the mixer's output settings or computer's input pan setting. Your computer should have a software console for your sound card...check there. Let me know what you find. Thanks for watching.

[@DeliverLikeUPSTrucks]

can you help me please!! PLEASE!! I cant find any video on youtube to explain how to fix a stuck pin in the arm or a 1200 technic, The bottom left one is stuck and doesnt have good contact with my stylus needles. How can I fix this?? Please help.

[@angelinewittke]

Think my kids pulled the arm around while we weren’t looking and bent the nails making the arm stiff. It’s fixed but is this just a temporary fix then?

[@tuneup1200]

@xposeb you're welcome.

[@tuneup1200]

@tuneup1200 I just thought of something.....If the tone arm has been replaced at one time or another, it very well could be that when the new arm was installed, the person failed to have the anti-skate on zero. If anti-skate is at full when installing a new arm, it will be on the wrong side of the arm's vertical shaft. The anti-skate will seemingly work but be far less effective.

[@NeuclearRabbit]

tuneup1200 I have 1200 MK2 that is skipping backwards. I took the tone arm assembly apart & I noticed that the anti skate spring is on the wrong side of the shaft. Could this be the cause of the backwards skipping? Also can the test that is shown in the video be performed with the tone arm assembly removed & apart?

[@paullinares3920]

How do I check the bottom lock ring?

[@nikko2thep]

When my tonearm is at 0 gravity, it doesn't move at all. I can move it anywhere and it won't move at all. Is this bad!?

[@unkono]

Hi. Is it possible to add turntable oil to the bearings of the Tonearm?

[@tuneup1200]

no more than a drop of oil while disassembled . Any other way is just waste and mess.

[@thinkharder2028]

Looks more like your antistatic doesn't go to zero. If the bearings car damaged by a hit or over tightening dents the bearings races and causes a detent not a smooth movement through the full travel of the arm.

[@tuneup1200]

@lcmxr6 Thanks for watching :)

[@tuneup1200]

@snelpiller Well, the tone arm really is a fragile thing looking at a different perspective. If your goal is to reproduce the sound exactly they way the studio engineer heard it, then ANY slight tweak of the tonearm will render perfect reproduction of sound useless. So any abusive actions will damage perfect reproduction. I'm sure the "Hi Fi" guys are reading this post while biting their tounge. Hey, if you're a very casual listener and you don't care about damaging your records then it's ok.

[@Milesy1818]

@tuneup1200 hey! great video, just wondering, I followed this video on my technics 1210, it seems that my tone arm just stays where it is when I adjust the anti-skate either way...It was playing records fine until now it just repeats a part of every vinyl for like 2 beats... is my tone arm needed to be completely replaced or could it possibly be fixed cheaply? Kind Regards

[@Luxman1958]

"a little play on the gimball is required" ....... Seriously !? You must be kidding !

[@daveeckblad]

Uh... weird... I had just left a helpful comment as a follow-up to this advice. And now it's gone? Maybe because I included a link to an imgur? Tune1200, let me know if you deleted it otherwise and I'll delete this comment. ANYWAYS As an addendum, If your pins have indents from the ball bearings: I found that I can hone a new surface on the gimbal pins by chucking the threaded end into a drill and then using a whetstone or sharpening file to grind a new surface. Apply tape to the threaded end before chucking. Also, I did discover the answer to my other deleted question regarding the intermediate gimbal pins for up-down tonearm movement. The one pin with the hole on the side is not threaded. It's glued into place. There was no setscrew. I was able to destabilize the glue by heating that part in my oven at 325F. I could then wiggle the fake stop collar and pin loose.

[@stuszith]

Tonearms are a PISSER to work on!!!!!!!! -Fascinating ,but delicate things ,done many of them years ago. Try using silicone lube on the Gimbal Bearings ,safer then disasembling them ,REALLY, one slip with a Big hand and your bearings TOAST!!!

[@tuneup1200]

@yoitsgiook DeliverLikeUPSTrucks had the same problem and was solved by a friend. " DUDE, i got it out with this little trick that my friend should me. He came over and grabbed a small eye glass philips screw driver and got in there and just spun it on that one pin. After awhile like 1 minute it popped out!! and then he got a q-tip and sprayed some WD-40 on the q-tip and spun that around and cleaned all that nasty spit from in there!!!l lol.... YUCK!! " hope this helps.

[@PhuckHue2]

mine never did this. These Technics are built like tanks

[@bootasinghwarring1109]

Good work sir Please one record Plyar give me please sir Thanks for your