How to Ground Your Turntable to a Receiver Without a Phono Input
Grounding a turntable to a receiver without a dedicated phono input can be a bit tricky but it’s definitely possible. Here’s how to do it:
Identify Grounding Needs
Most turntables have a ground wire that helps reduce hum and noise. Check if your turntable has a grounding wire which is typically a thin bare wire. This wire is essential for ensuring your records play without excessive hum or noise.
Use a Line-level Input
Since your receiver doesn’t have a phono input, you’ll need to connect your turntable to a line-level input like AUX or CD. You will also need a phono preamp to boost the turntable’s signal to a level that your receiver can handle.
Get a Phono Preamp
If you don’t already have a phono preamp, you can purchase one. Many preamps come with a ground terminal that will help to safely connect the ground wire from your turntable.
Connect the Turntable to the Phono Preamp
Connect the RCA output from your turntable to the input of the phono preamp using RCA cables. Connect the ground wire from your turntable to the ground terminal on the phono preamp.Connect the Phono Preamp to the Receiver
Use another set of RCA cables to connect the output of the phono preamp to one of the line-level inputs on your receiver, such as AUX or CD. This will ensure that the signal is boosted and correctly transmitted to your receiver.
Final Grounding
If your receiver has a grounding terminal (some do), you can connect the turntable’s ground wire directly to it. However, it is usually sufficient to ground it through the phono preamp to ensure safe and effective signal transmission.
Power Up and Test
Turn everything on and test your setup. You should be able to play records without excessive hum or noise.
Additional Tips
Placement: Keep the turntable and preamp as close to the receiver as possible to minimize noise. Quality Cables: Using quality RCA cables can help reduce interference and improve sound quality.A properly grounded turntable setup ensures clear and high-quality sound. By following these steps, you should be able to successfully ground your turntable to your receiver and enjoy your vinyl records!
Why a Turntable Needs a Ground Wire
Records are mostly made from vinyl, a type of plastic, and if you've ever experienced the effect of static electricity build-up, you know that rubbing plastics can generate a static charge. The same principle applies to vinyl records, although it doesn’t pull the hair from your head, it can still drag dust from the air to the record surface, resulting in a 'frying bacon' sound when playing poorly maintained vinyl records.
The need for a separate ground lead is due to the way a cartridge works. A moving magnet cartridge generates a current flow in a coil of wire using magnetic induction. This is when a piece of wire is subject to a varying magnetic field. The resulting induced current has the effect of pushing and pulling electrons and so we get an alternating current (AC) from each coil. There is no ground from the cartridge signal.
The wire connections from the back of the cartridge are connected directly to each end of one or the other coils. The signal connections are positive and negative, similar to loudspeakers. The ground wire, however, is not connected to the cartridge; instead, it is connected to the turntable arm and possibly the chassis, depending on the turntable design. This helps to discharge any static build-up to a ground point without affecting the signal.
Conclusion
Take care with turntable grounds. Don’t add that to signal paths—it won’t be a happy marriage. Use a dedicated turntable ground connection where provided. Where a turntable has a built-in phono pre-amp, this has already been taken care of for you.