What's wrong with this vinyl???

[animalwithin]

I bought a used vinyl record of John Williams' Jurassic Park score and upon playing it on my turntable, I noted two locations where the needle would get stuck and the record would just loop endlessly.

I thought that since it's used, it could just be a damaged record so I went ahead and returned it.

I proceeded to find a new, sealed copy of the same record and went ahead and purchased that. Upon playing this, the record would get stuck and loop in the exact same location as the first one.

It's a completely new record so I can't blame it on being used/damaged so I've got no clue what is going on here. How is it that this is happening? Is it a problem with my turntable? I've ran dozens of records on it and not a single one has gotten stuck/looped.

 

[usersky]

Failed cut/pressing. Try increase a bit the weight on the stylus if it worths the effort.

 

[Deleted member 77012]

Is that a very loud part of the music where this happens?

You could try to modify your anti-scating setting by some degree.

 

[Salt]

Any visible/optical/obvious things?

 

[DVDdoug]

Does the store where you bought it have a turntable?

I'm also guessing that you need to increase your tracking force (maybe to the maximum recommended for your cartridge) and re-adjust the anti-skating.

Normally the deep-bass is rolled-off to minimize tracking problems, but maybe they didn't do that on this particular record.

Or it's possible that there was a pressing defect and both records came from the same batch... I remember sticking record decades ago on badly-obviously scratched records.



...I don't miss vinyl!

 

[BDWoody]

I've ran dozens of records on it and not a single one has gotten stuck/looped.

Is it a particularly loud or bass heavy part of the track?

As mentioned, you may need to look at your tracking force. I would also take a magnifying glass and look closely at the groove where it skips. It's possible there is a pressing error leaving a little bit of vinyl that a toothpick might dislodge. Not likely, but never hurts to look.

That's a cool soundtrack. I hope you get to play it through properly!

 

[egellings]

I bought a used vinyl record of John Williams' Jurassic Park score and upon playing it on my turntable, I noted two locations where the needle would get stuck and the record would just loop endlessly.

I thought that since it's used, it could just be a damaged record so I went ahead and returned it.

I proceeded to find a new, sealed copy of the same record and went ahead and purchased that. Upon playing this, the record would get stuck and loop in the exact same location as the first one.

It's a completely new record so I can't blame it on being used/damaged so I've got no clue what is going on here. How is it that this is happening? Is it a problem with my turntable? I've ran dozens of records on it and not a single one has gotten stuck/looped.

Is this happening on a loud bass passage?

 

[animalwithin]

Thanks everyone for chiming in!

To answer some questions, my naked eye can't see any physical issues with where the record is giving me problems, neither on the used one that I returned or the new one that I kept.

It is occurring on a loud bass passage. How does this cause a potential problem?

I have to check the tracking force as, if I remember correctly, it's not a the max of the cartridge specs.

Same goes for the anti skating weight. I'll check to see if I have the settings correct and report back.

 

[DVDdoug]

It is occurring on a loud bass passage. How does this cause a potential problem?

The "wiggles" in the groove tend to be bigger for bass. Sort-of like how you can often see the movement of a woofer but not the movement of a midrange or tweeter. That should be somewhat offset but the RIAA equalization but I guess not completely.

It may also be related to mechanical resonances and inertia. With a high frequency the tonearm can't move as fast as the "wiggles". Strong high frequencies create different issues.

I found something semi-related here.

 

[Soniclife]

The old school solution.

 

[Hayabusa]

did you put your turn table on the subwoofer?

 

[raindance]

If your stylus is not worn out then you're either tracking too light or you have excessive anti skate or both.

 

[Robin L]

Thanks everyone for chiming in!

To answer some questions, my naked eye can't see any physical issues with where the record is giving me problems, neither on the used one that I returned or the new one that I kept.

It is occurring on a loud bass passage. How does this cause a potential problem?

I have to check the tracking force as, if I remember correctly, it's not a the max of the cartridge specs.

Same goes for the anti skating weight. I'll check to see if I have the settings correct and report back.

There was a similar problem with an early "Hot" mastering of Led Zeppelin II. The high amplitude of that section of the music is enough to throw the stylus out of the groove. With phono cartridges, it's best to track with higher forces. If 2 grams is the recommended upper end, use 2 grams. And make sure the anti-skating is set at close to the same value.

 

[Jaxjax]

There was a similar problem with an early "Hot" mastering of Led Zeppelin II. The high amplitude of that section of the music is enough to throw the stylus out of the groove. With phono cartridges, it's best to track with higher forces. If 2 grams is the recommended upper end, use 2 grams. And make sure the anti-skating is set at close to the same value.

Every time I find a ZII I keep my fingers crossed for RL,......

 

[Soniclife]

If your stylus is not worn out then you're either tracking too light or you have excessive anti skate or both.

This, also check the stylus and cantilever are clean.

 

[sergeauckland]

If there's any obstruction in the groove, excess anti-skating will pull the arm back so the disc skips. Anti-skating is at best a compromise, as the actual amount needed varies moment to moment with modulation and position from the outside edge. Consequently, it's better to underbias than overbias as any obstructions will result in a click rather than a skip. I buy almost all my LPs used, and stuff in the groove is quite common, some stuck hard enough that even my vacuum record cleaning machine won't shift it. A soft toothpick or matchstick can help if you can see it with a magnifier.

S.

 

[animalwithin]

Appreciate all the feedback, very helpful

Regarding the anti-skate, I've got a bit of problem.

If I recall correctly when I was setting up the turntable, the first two settings of the anti-skate didn't do much with regards to preventing the tonearm swinging in immediately when the needle hit the record.

The last setting (which I think corresponds to the cartridge manufacturer's specs) also doesn't seem to be correct because now when I drop the needle, the tonearm swings out before the needle even hits the record, I have to guide the needle down. It no longer swings inwards once the needle makes contact, however, so is this the right setting for the anti-skate?

 

[Robin L]

Appreciate all the feedback, very helpful

Regarding the anti-skate, I've got a bit of problem.

If I recall correctly when I was setting up the turntable, the first two settings of the anti-skate didn't do much with regards to preventing the tonearm swinging in immediately when the needle hit the record.

The last setting (which I think corresponds to the cartridge manufacturer's specs) also doesn't seem to be correct because now when I drop the needle, the tonearm swings out before the needle even hits the record, I have to guide the needle down. It no longer swings inwards once the needle makes contact, however, so is this the right setting for the anti-skate?

No.
As sergeaukland already pointed out " it's better to underbias than overbias as any obstructions will result in a click rather than a skip." In my experience, higher tracking force coupled with less antiskating was the best way to avoid the kinds of problems you're experiencing.