Hey there, I’ve been relying on this thread a bunch for setting up my system, and I figured I’ll ask you for advice this time.
After long research and bit of a challenging process, I finally completed my new Hi-Fi setup. I’m a hardcore record collector who just wanted to step up his audio game a little bit, so I had to learn on the fly. This is where I am right now with my fully analog setup:
- Klipsch Heresy IV (new)
- Unison Research Simply Italy (new)
- EAR 834P Deluxe edition
- Meticulously serviced Technics 1210
- Audio Technica VM 520ML
- Some decent cables, just so I won’t feel too guilty about them not matching with the rest the system
I’m almost totally stoked with how everything sounds, but there’s a little problem. High frequencies can be a bit much, especially when I’m listening to jazz. Any kind of high pitch instrument is just fatiguing and hard to listen to. Now, I get it - Klipsch has reputation for being bright and potentially fatiguing. But I tested this exact system with different sources, and the problem was not there.
Now, I’m trying to figure out if the hiccup is because A) My gear is still new and needs some time to break in B) There’s a mismatch between my cartridge and the phono preamp path. Both the EAR and Audio Technica have high gain. Could swapping out the cartridge be the magic fix? Else?
Anyone advice on how to tweak this so I can just listen to my records without the high-pitched headache?
If the 520ML cartridge is anything like the 520EB or 540ML, it has a 4-5 dB bump above 5kHz in the frequency response. I’d try a flat catrdige like the AT-VM95ML or a digital source for comparison.