A friend gave me an early eighties Denon DP-11F direct drive turntable yesterday for free, as it was just sitting in his basement collecting dust. This couldn't have come at a better time as my previous turntable had just bitten said dust. However, the Denon's got a very tiny, yet very large problem: one of the oh-so-delicate tonearm wires that connects to the cartridge has broken off of its connector. So, as you can imagine, I'm only getting one channel of audio.
The trouble with the DP-11F is that it's not like my other turntable, where the headshell wires are part of the headshell, and disconnect from the tonearm as easy as pie. Instead they run the entire length of the tonearm back down into the table to some not immediately visible source.
So, the question is, is there a worthwhile fix for this problem. How hard would it be to resolder the wire to its little teeny tiny connector? Or should the entire wire be replaced?
ugh...both sound difficult. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
I assume you are telling us the tonearm wire has come unsoldered or broken the solder joint at the cartridge pin clip end. If this is the case, you can resolder the wire to the clip. However, when soldering such small pieces, you'll need a fair amount of skill and the proper tools. Do you think you possess both? If not, inquire at a few independent audio/TV repair shops. Probably a technician will take on the task for a minimal fee.
yes, it has come unsoldered from the pin clip. I have a friend who has a soldering iron who is going to look at it for me. cross your fingers! meanwhile, here's another question about the DP-11F: the counterweight on the back of the arm doesn't have any numbers on it - just line markings. what do you suppose these markings indicate? half-grams? the lack of numbers sure makes it hard to properly balance the arm.