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Beginner Looking for Help!

fjords

fjords

New Member
Hi guys,

I guess you can say I'm pretty inexperienced with turntables and everything having to do with them. I've recently found myself a used Onkyo CP1046F that I snagged for $10 and I absolutely love how it looks. The only problem is I bought it without a stylus/cartridge (I don't know the difference to be honest). That's where I need help.

The turntable seems to be fully functional with its Play, Queue, and Search buttons from what I can tell. Only thing is I can't really use it until I find the right cartridge to buy for it. At the moment, the arm ends with a circular hollow end with 4 pins inside and a screw on the outside to hold something on. I've added some photos of what I mean.

Do I need to buy just a cartridge? Any additional pieces? I was really hoping to get this thing playing some of my vinyls without spending an arm and a leg.
IMG-1837.jpg IMG-1839.jpg IMG-1837.jpg
Again, I'd appreciate just about any help I can get. Thanks!
 
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Hi!
Welcome to Audiokarma and congratulations on your purchase!
I have no experience with that turntable but from the pictures I can tell that you're missing the part that's called "headshell". It sits at the end of the tonearm tube and is the holder onto which you then attach the cartridge. And then the stylus (needle) attach to the cartridge.
So you need to look for both a headshell for your model (Google "headshell" + that model and you'll probably get some hits showing what you need, and also a cartridge with stylus.

If you're lucky you may find a headshell with cartridge/stylus already fitted. Otherwise you need to get a cartridge with stylus too. Here there are almost infinite number of options. Hopefully other members will pitch in with suitable suggestions for your model.

Good luck and don't hesitate to ask more questions as you go along :).
 
Indeed, you need a headshell and cartridge.

For information, the cartridge includes the stylus - the stylus is the "needle" that sits in the groove and the cartridge body converts the mechanical vibrations from the stylus into electrical signals. The headshell is the part of the tonearm that supports the cartridge.

I imagine that your turntable takes the standard ADC-type headshell for straight arms, but this needs to be checked. The site Turntable Needles is good for checking such things. Here is an ADC-type headshell on their site:

https://www.turntableneedles.com/LMH-1-Headshell-for-ADC-Compatible-Straight-Tonearms_p_4344.html

You need to compare the pattern of the pins in their diagram with your tonearm.

As for the cartridge, this will be a low-mass arm, so you should go for a cartridge with a high-compliance stylus (meaning soft suspension). I would look at the Ortofon OM10 (or Super-OM10), which is reasonably priced. For something cheaper, I guess you could consider the Ortofon Omega.

Note that the headshell/cartridge package deals offered with this type of headshell are not always the best combinations. For example, Turntable Needles offer some with a low-compliance cartridge.
 
Thank you guys, I really appreciate the fast feedback. I'm checking out the link you sent for the ADC headshell and I'm gonna go ahead and buy it to see if it fits. If it doesn't fit, I might try the long version they mentioned on the website. Other than that, the pin diagram they show matches perfectly with what I have on mine.

After that I think I'm gonna use my next paycheck on the Omega just to see if the turntable is really FULLY functional (don't wanna spend too much to figure out something is wrong).

Again thanks so much for the help guys, I'll keep you posted.
 
Make sure you check cartridge/head shell alignment for that turntable.

In a nutshell it matters where exactly on the head shell the cartridge is. The head shell has two grooves that allow for some forward/backward adjustment. This can be quite the rabbit hole, but in general the manufacturer will provide a distance (usually in mm) specific to each turntable.
 
Thefamous said:
Make sure you check cartridge/head shell alignment for that turntable.

In a nutshell it matters where exactly on the head shell the cartridge is. The head shell has two grooves that allow for some forward/backward adjustment. This can be quite the rabbit hole, but in general the manufacturer will provide a distance (usually in mm) specific to each turntable.
Click to expand...

Some similar Onkyo models came with a gauge. Others mention a distance of 30mm from the back end of the headshell to the tip of the stylus which would be a good place to start. To the original poster, this also assumes you get the cartridge aligned in the headshell so the sides of the cartridge are parallel to the headshell sides. Usually (but not necessarily) the screws will be roughly in the middle of the slots too.
 
I have an Onkyo with a similar arm. The headshell are $10-15. The Omega is a good cart, I have one. A conical stylus is less critical to align. An Audio Technica at91 is a good cart and you can upgrade to a better stylus later. Also you can get an alignment protractor and probably an owner's manual at Vinyl Engine. You have to join but its free
 
So I went and bought the Headshell + Cart bundle off turntable needles. I got the low end one only for the sake of trying out the whole thing and making sure it all works. I'll see if I cant figure out how to align it but if I am getting sound out of the thing, I'll likely immediately upgrade the cart.
 
You probably got the one with the AT91 cartridge. This is a very good starter cartridge but its low-ish compliance stylus isn't intended for low-mass arms. It will serve the purpose of checking whether the turntable works though and might not sound too bad (although you'll have had nothing to compare it with). Be sure you know how to zero-balance the arm and set the tracking force - if you do have the AT91, it should be about 2g (and the anti-skating set to the same).

Also, you are aware that you'll need to feed the signal through a phono-stage or phono pre-amp, aren't you? You amplifier may have a built-in phono-stage (associated with the input usually marked Phono).
 
That headshell should work. I have a couple like that, that say Empire, for my Onkyo. The Omega has the same tracking range as the at91. I'm not sure if an Omega can be upgraded with an om10 or 20 or better stylus. An AT3651e nude elliptical will fit an at91 and is a huge step up.
 
headshell holds the cartridge and yours is missing
cartridge holds the stylus and without a headshell you also don't have a stylus
cartridges bought new come with a stylus so you are good there. Don't spend more than 500 on a cartridge as this table might not get the most from it.
the stylus has a cantilever that holds the diamond tip that tracks the record. most cartridges have removable styli so you can replace it when it wears out or breaks. the stylus costs about 75-90% of the cost of a cartridge.
 
Another friendly suggestion. I note that you admit to being inexperienced, so you will gain more credibility in audio circles if you say you are playing "records", not "vinyls". Although most people will know what you mean. Not a criticism, we all started learning with little knowledge. I hope you can enjoy listening to some great music on your new turntable.
 
I would say call it whatever you want. Don't be cowed by peer pressure from old people such as ourselves.

Back in the day when I first got out of high school that was the first decent turntable I ever bought. They are quite nice, I am sure you will enjoy it. Quite a respectable table.
 
Crab33 said:
you are aware that you'll need to feed the signal through a phono-stage or phono pre-amp, aren't you? You amplifier may have a built-in phono-stage (associated with the input usually marked Phono).
Click to expand...

Yes! Totally aware about that. I'm definitely a young dude who has minimal experience with all the old gear but I've always had to run my audio production setup through old preamps/tuners. In fact, I actually got this whole onkyo deal at a yard sale. I ended up getting the Onkyo cassette player, cd player, tuner, and turntable all with the Onkyo shelf/rack. The guy even threw in a set of huge onkyo speakers and sony speakers. All that for 35 so I think it was worth. But yes, I made sure to grab all of the required RCA cables and such including the cable that connected the phono port.
 
AudioFeline said:
Another friendly suggestion. I note that you admit to being inexperienced, so you will gain more credibility in audio circles if you say you are playing "records", not "vinyls". Although most people will know what you mean. Not a criticism, we all started learning with little knowledge. I hope you can enjoy listening to some great music on your new turntable.
Click to expand...
For sure! Thanks for the heads up.
 
Mister Pig said:
I would say call it whatever you want. Don't be cowed by peer pressure from old people such as ourselves.

Back in the day when I first got out of high school that was the first decent turntable I ever bought. They are quite nice, I am sure you will enjoy it. Quite a respectable table.
Click to expand...

Honestly, I've only ever used real cheap turntables off amazon for the past five years or so. They were audibly terrible as they sounded like they had a super choked low and high shelf. Not to mention they never had any proper output options other than a headphone jack and the built in speakers. The second I saw this CP in action on a Youtube video and I realized that the arm moves itself with the push of a button... I was hooked.
 
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