MoFi UltraDeck / StudioDeck Owners and those interested

Nee Lewman said:
Yeah that was my fear is that maybe the NAD’s headphone amp wasn’t great. The 599s pretty much sounded the same on the marantz cd player I have. But the NAD definitely gets more out of the 6XX. I had to play with gain on the Marantz and that just made things sound unpleasant. So I’m convinced it’s at least serviceable. Makes me itchy for a dedicated headphone amp though. I need a few other things before I can really make that work though, dedicated phono and probably a passive pre.
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Watch out for that yellow brick road as it ends in a rabbit hole that is hard to get out of.
 
TL/DR: I think the MasterTracker cart on my Ultradeck failed. Everything was playing fine and then tracks started sounding , grainy and muted and records started skipping. I have never experienced this before. Does this sound like a cart failure or could something else be wrong with the TT? The Ultradeck has been working fine for over a year.

I was deep into some Erykah Badu last night and on the last side of the second album (Side D) everything start sounding grainy and muted and then part way into 'Green Eyes' the record started skipping. I checked the record for any noticeable blemishes and it looked OK. Hard to tell because it's yellow vinyl. But I didn't recall any issues the last time I played the record. I checked all my connections and everything seemed OK.

I then put on War - The World is a Ghetto that I had listened to earlier in the evening and the same problem with skips in the Cisco Kid and City, Country, City. It was late so I went to bed. Tried everything again today same results. I pulled out my Project DC Evo to see if maybe something was wrong with the phono pre (DL MP7B), but the records all sounded fine from the Evo.

Any recommendations for a new cart? Should I go MC?
 
mindhead1 said:
TL/DR: I think the MasterTracker cart on my Ultradeck failed. Everything was playing fine and then tracks started sounding , grainy and muted and records started skipping. I have never experienced this before. Does this sound like a cart failure or could something else be wrong with the TT? The Ultradeck has been working fine for over a year.

I was deep into some Erykah Badu last night and on the last side of the second album (Side D) everything start sounding grainy and muted and then part way into 'Green Eyes' the record started skipping. I checked the record for any noticeable blemishes and it looked OK. Hard to tell because it's yellow vinyl. But I didn't recall any issues the last time I played the record. I checked all my connections and everything seemed OK.

I then put on War - The World is a Ghetto that I had listened to earlier in the evening and the same problem with skips in the Cisco Kid and City, Country, City. It was late so I went to bed. Tried everything again today same results. I pulled out my Project DC Evo to see if maybe something was wrong with the phono pre (DL MP7B), but the records all sounded fine from the Evo.

Any recommendations for a new cart? Should I go MC?
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Honestly, if it was sudden, it sounds like a dirty stylus.
 
Angsty said:
You could get the cartridge examined by Steve at VAS - he will check it out for the cost of shipping. VAS Audio

Or you can go MC. I’m always quick to recommend the Hana series; I own the SL and the ML. Even the EL will be a fine performer if your budget is lower.
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I was thinking about getting an MC cart before this happened. Maybe I shouldn't have put that thought out into the world.

How hard is it to mount a Hana SL/ML onto an Ultradeck? This is also uncharted territory for me. Should I get a cheaper cartridge to practice mounting before trying with a $1k plus piece?
 
I keep a cheap pocket magnifying glass by my table to periodically check how the stylus looks. Sometimes I have found that a dry brush alone is not enough to clean a very gunky stylus.
 
mindhead1 said:
I gently clean the stylus with the brush. I tried that but everything still sound off. I'll check it again, but I don't have a microscope and my eyesight isn't that great.
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An onzow (I use one, but they are somewhat controversial) or blue tac (a fav around here) may help if it is gunk. People use a magic eraser, but I found that to build static and leave a residue over time.
 
mindhead1 said:
I was thinking about getting an MC cart before this happened. Maybe I shouldn't have put that thought out into the world.

How hard is it to mount a Hana SL/ML onto an Ultradeck? This is also uncharted territory for me. Should I get a cheaper cartridge to practice mounting before trying with a $1k plus piece?
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Others can comment on the mounting difficulty, but the SL Mk 1 is known to go well with the Ultradeck at under $1000. Hana is clearing inventory at reduced pricing to make way for the Mk 2.
 
Angsty said:
Others can comment on the mounting difficulty, but the SL Mk 1 is known to go well with the Ultradeck at under $1000. Hana is clearing inventory at reduced pricing to make way for the Mk 2.
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Would the Hana SL be a noticeable upgrade over the MasterTracker or should I go straight for the ML? Buy once. Cry once.
 
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mindhead1 said:
Would the Hana SL be a noticeable upgrade over the MasterTracker or should I go straight for the ML? Buy once. Cry once.
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I do have experience comparing the SL to the ML. For me, the difference was very much dependent on the table. I used the ML on three different tables and found that it sounded notably better only on one of them. The SL Mk 1 has been my go-to for several years now.

If I were in a replacement situation like yours, I’d probably buy a SH Mk 1 on the clearance sale. The Darlington does have a LOMC setting, but you’d likely get better overall performance with the high output cartridge. I did not seek much advice on choosing a SL versus the SH, but a high-output MC can be a better route unless you want to slide down the phono/SUT/SU upgrade rabbit hole.

Portland Sheriff

Post in thread 'MoFi UltraDeck / StudioDeck Owners and those interested'

mindhead1 said:
What’s the benefit of using the SU-7 with the MP8B?
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Do you have a low-output MC cart? If not, there is no benefit and, as I understand it, the SU-7 would make no sense and be incompatible unless you’re using a LOMC. Darlington’s site has a lot of info in the FAQ and Support sections. Here is a small blurb about your question, but I think there’s a bunch more if you dig around, although I’m not certain of that bc, while I have the MP8B, I use high output MC cart primarily and my spare is MM. Lastly, if you think you want a SU-7 for whatever reasons, they’re about to release a new...
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Angsty said:
I do have experience comparing the SL to the ML. For me, the difference was very much dependent on the table. I used the ML on three different tables and found that it sounded notably better only on one of them. The SL Mk 1 has been my go-to for several years now.

If I were in a replacement situation like yours, I’d probably buy a SH Mk 1 on the clearance sale. The Darlington does have a LOMC setting, but you’d likely get better overall performance with the high output cartridge. I did not seek much advice on choosing a SL versus the SH, but a high-output MC can be a better route unless you want to slide down the phono/SUT/SU upgrade rabbit hole.

Portland Sheriff

Post in thread 'MoFi UltraDeck / StudioDeck Owners and those interested'

mindhead1 said:
What’s the benefit of using the SU-7 with the MP8B?
Click to expand...
Do you have a low-output MC cart? If not, there is no benefit and, as I understand it, the SU-7 would make no sense and be incompatible unless you’re using a LOMC. Darlington’s site has a lot of info in the FAQ and Support sections. Here is a small blurb about your question, but I think there’s a bunch more if you dig around, although I’m not certain of that bc, while I have the MP8B, I use high output MC cart primarily and my spare is MM. Lastly, if you think you want a SU-7 for whatever reasons, they’re about to release a new...
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Click to expand...

Angsty said:
I do have experience comparing the SL to the ML. For me, the difference was very much dependent on the table. I used the ML on three different tables and found that it sounded notably better only on one of them. The SL Mk 1 has been my go-to for several years now.

If I were in a replacement situation like yours, I’d probably buy a SH Mk 1 on the clearance sale. The Darlington does have a LOMC setting, but you’d likely get better overall performance with the high output cartridge. I did not seek much advice on choosing a SL versus the SH, but a high-output MC can be a better route unless you want to slide down the phono/SUT/SU upgrade rabbit hole.

Portland Sheriff

Post in thread 'MoFi UltraDeck / StudioDeck Owners and those interested'

mindhead1 said:
What’s the benefit of using the SU-7 with the MP8B?
Click to expand...
Do you have a low-output MC cart? If not, there is no benefit and, as I understand it, the SU-7 would make no sense and be incompatible unless you’re using a LOMC. Darlington’s site has a lot of info in the FAQ and Support sections. Here is a small blurb about your question, but I think there’s a bunch more if you dig around, although I’m not certain of that bc, while I have the MP8B, I use high output MC cart primarily and my spare is MM. Lastly, if you think you want a SU-7 for whatever reasons, they’re about to release a new...
  • Like
Click to expand...
Thanks for pointing out the Phono Pre limitations of the MP7B.

This is a journey. I’ll learn as I go. I think I’ll go with the SH vs the SL. Now the question is should I go with MKI vs MKIII. I have some credits at TMR and could get $150 off the price of the MKII (or MKI).

Any thoughts on the new Hana S line?
 
mindhead1 said:
Thanks for pointing out the Phono Pre limitations of the MP7B.

This is a journey. I’ll learn as I go. I think I’ll go with the SH vs the SL. Now the question is should I go with MKI vs MKIII. I have some credits at TMR and could get $150 off the price of the MKII (or MKI).

Any thoughts on the new Hana S line?
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The mark 1 is a great cartridge. I don’t think you’ll have any complaints with it at all, best sounding and tracking cartridge I’ve run. The improvements on the Mark 2 do sound significant and it is the next cartridge I want to hear but as to them being worth the extra dough, I don’t want to speak until I do hear it!
 
I have gone from MasterTracker to Hana SL. I do like the MasterTracker, I think it's a well rounded, musical cartridge, which works very well with this table. It does everything well but at the same time does not shine in any particular area, it's somewhat "flat".
The Hana has a refinement, detail and presence that are hard to beat IMHO.
If I have one small complaint with the Hana is that sometimes can sound a little forward on midrange, especially with 50s/60s jazz recordings. I guess that being a more refined and revealing cartridge does also expose the weaknesses of certain (maybe poor) recordings.
I also think these results are very system dependent, YMMV.
I would be very interested in trying the SL Mk II, maybe my next purchase (my Hana has still a lot of miles to go).

For mounting, as kvetcha said, it's relatively easy. If you mount carts with threaded holes like the MoFi ones, it's actually a breeze. I find a little more frustrating when you have to fit the rounded little nuts on the bottom, but the Hana has the stylus guard that is designed to help a bit. I use MoFi GeoDisc with the Magnifier app on my iPhone, and a laser level to check all tonearm and azimuth alignment.
Hope this helps.
 
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