Stereosound 9000D radiogram

[Alanroy]

Worked out that I can only add photos via a conventional reply not a quick reply, so hopefully these will now arrive. Thanks.

[BRASSBITS]

is there no markings on the cartridge body
ie brand name or numbers?

post crossed

[Nickthedentist]

Well done on your work, that's excellent.

Looking online, your Stereosound was a budget-priced machine, so I'm almost certain it would have a ceramic cartridge as these were better matched to cheaper record decks and could be used with simple, inexpensive amplifiers. Post a pic and we can tell you for certain.

By the way, the terms ceramic and magnetic refer to the workings of the cartridge that you can't see, rather than what the outer housing is made from. The former have a couple of slabs of a ceramic material which produces an electrical signal when twisted by the stylus's vibrations, the latter (usually) has two coils of very fine wire instead, with the stylus having a tiny magnet attached to it.

Cheers,

Nick.

EDIT: just seen your pics. That's a ceramic cartridge for sure, made by Sonotone (but might be rebadged as Garrard). Look at the sticky label on the side and tell us what it says. Probably model 2109: https://www.picclickimg.com/d/l400/p...otone-2109.jpg

[Alanroy]

The only markings are SONOTONE 2509 (on a white paper sticker) and on the grey body itself are the markings L and R + and -

[Alanroy]

Thank you Nickthedentist for your kind words and helpful information. I seem to ne learning something every day!!

[Nickthedentist]

Pleasure.

So the make is Sontone, model number is 2509, and the moulded-in markings tell you which terminals are which, so you can connect the wires correctly.

Nick.

[Alanroy]

Right. Thanks. So I have learned something else now, on researching where to buy this (or an equivalent to). The difference between a stylus and a cartridge!! Amazon sell a replacement stylus, but I need a whole cartridge and stylus. One pin in my cartridge is a little loose. Do they make an equivalent cartridge these days?

[Welsh Anorak]

As you say you have some learning to do, without meaning to be rude, could I just explain simply how your radiogram works?
The very low signal from the cartridge is fed to a preamplifier to boost the signal and 'equalise' it, which in simple terms means getting it back to the correct tone as the original. It's then fed to the switch unit where you can choose other imputs, such as the radio. This is where your phone should be connected, perhaps by 'aux' inputs if there are any. Now comes the volume control, and the chosen signal is then fed into the amplifier to raise it to a level where it can feed the speakers - many hundreds of times larger than the signal from your cartridge.
I hope this makes it a bit clearer. Well done on finding the original fault!

[Radio Wrangler]

A loose-feeling pin on the cartridge is a bad sign. You'll probably need a new cartridge.

The piezo-electric elements are usually mounted with one end right on the pin - on the inside end of the pin that is.

David

[julie_m]

Do you mean the pin is loose where it enters the cartridge, or that the push-on connector is loose when it is pushed onto the pin?

A "Chinese Cheapie" ceramic cartridge, from eBay probably would be as good a replacement as anything else you will find; but make sure to get one with the 12.7mm. mounting clip -- you might have to pay a little extra.

[John10b]

Well done Alanroy in sorting out your problem, hope you enjoyed the challenge .
Cheers
John

[Alanroy]

Hi Julie M. The pin was a little loose where it enters the cartridge, not the wire onto the pin. The latter was nice and firm. Have found something on eBay that might do, but am waiting now for a response from the seller for confirmation that the unit for sale is comparable.
Thank you John 10b, yes, I did enjoy the challenge!!
Thank you all for your incredible help. The whole experience has been fun!!

[Herald1360]

Originally Posted by julie_m

A "Chinese Cheapie" ceramic cartridge, from eBay probably would be as good a replacement as anything else you will find; but make sure to get one with the 12.7mm. mounting clip -- you might have to pay a little extra.

Just ever so slightly.....


Around £10 instead of about £1-50. It's an expensive bit of plastic!


(Well relatively- it's still a reasonable price for a reasonable cartridge!)

[Radio Wrangler]

Yeah, it's very close to "Free cartridge with every plastic clip sold!"

David

[ben]

Those Sonotone 2xxx and 3xxx series carts tend to suffer from oxidization on the internal contacts. I have repaired quite a few, search the forum if curious. Not really a job for the novice though, as it is very fiddly delicate work.

It is quite a high output type, so check the sticky thread I made with the specs before paying too much for a replacement. A BSR SC12H might be okay if memory serves.

I have had a couple of Stereosound units over the years, and they came with this type of Sonotone cartridges.

[Techman]

I certainly wouldn't recommend buying a second hand one of those Sonotone cartridges unless it was fully tested and very cheap.

I try to stop people pulling the connectors off these old cartridges, as if they've been on there for a long time then they'll be tight and are likely to damage the internal connections within these cartridges due to flexing of the pins when they're pulled off.

I know folk keep recommending removing the connectors and cleaning the pins, but I'm completely against this if it's an old cartridge, and should be done ONLY as a very last resort if the initial 'BUZZ TEST' has confirmed a possible fault at the cartridge end of the system.

It's best to try to pry these connectors open with a very fine blade to release them a bit before actually trying to pull them off.

And as a last comment - don't EVER apply heat from a soldering iron directly to the pins or connectors when they're on the pins of the cartridge!

[tracypaper]

I think? that may be a crystal cartridge not ceramic as it has a grey body, AFAIK ceramics had black bodies.
Gaz.

[julie_m]

Sonotone were the inventors of modern ceramic piezo materials, weren't they? I'm not sure they'd put their name on a technology they were trying to declare obsolete!

Labelling a less-good ceramic cartridge as "crystal" (and further hobbling it with a plastic stylus shank) might be a way to differentiate it from your better offerings, though .....

Genuine Rochelle salt is suicidally hygroscopic, i.e. will draw enough moisture out of the air to dissolve itself into a puddle of green goo.