I digitize both cassettes and vinyl. 99.9% of these recordings are 2 channel. Pretty sure I have a problem with my turntable needle that is causing one channel to record at a slightly lower volume than the other. It’s consistently the same channel, and does not happen with tape. Ultimately I want to get a new needle set-up, but in the interm I was wondering if there is a way of adjusting the record volume of channels independently? I’ve tried adjusting the balance to compensate, but see no change in the graphic recording when I do this. Which in my mind would be an adequate means of adjusting, but maybe I don’t understand the purpose of the balancer? In my experience, graphically speaking anyway, adjusting the balance slider does nothing.
You might also find that the Phono Preamp is out of balance and not the cartridge at all. If you’re not using a phono preamp in the system, you should be. If you determine to fix it at the arm, I would replace the cartridge. I can’t think of a defect in the needle which would cause channel imbalance but in all other instances sound OK.
What is the turntable plugged into? Describe the system. You can plug one turntable cable (say left) into a Y cable and then into both phono preamp sockets. Record something. I expect almost exactly the same sound left and right (it’s a piece of wire, right?).
If the sound is exact, it’s the cartridge. If the balance is off the preamp is wrong and it could be both.
My system is cobled together thrift store buys. I have a Sony V333ES, which is really more for surround sound system but I’m using it as a tuner/“amp”. It does these things, but is overkill and not really what it does best. I got it because it was only $20 and has a ground, which is needed for the turntable. The turntable is a very used but still working great Technics SL-D30. Very happy with this find/buy. Was very grundCassette deck is a TEAC unit that I’m also really happy. And at $22 was ironically the high cost item.
The needle is visably tweeked (slight bend). So yes, I would need a stylus/cartridge. My unsophisticated ear can’t hear any inbalance - so not super urgent - I only really know of it because I can see it graphically. On the other hand, I don’t have a high fi system, and my living arrangement right now isn’t condusive to it. So it’s bossible that the imbalance could be heard in a better system/situation.
That would do it. The music in the groove is diagonal and it’s different on each side of the groove. So if the needle doesn’t hit the groove perfectly straight it could deliver more on one side than the other.
The other side isn’t just low volume. It’s distorted.
In that case, the needle would do a world of good.
What I discovered (and most/many probably already know this), is that the stereo tracks can be separated. Once separated they can be amplified or normalized independently, and then rejoiced into a stereo track. So that’s my work around for the time being.
Once separated, the channels can be amplified separately but as WC said - if you use Normalize with “Normalize stereo channels independently” checked (ticked) then there is no need to split the stereo track.