Various questions from someone new to analog

[JohnMichael]

Well, I haven't heard any howling, so I must not be getting much feedback, if any.
Sorry to post another large picture, but here is the 'counterweight' on my turntable. If my host name works (had problems with it last night) you should be able to see that it adjusts from 1.0-1.5 grams, with about 1.25 being where it is now. Hopefully; I'm new at this so I could be wrong.

No you are right. The Technics I had did not have that feature. Have you adjusted your tracking force any to see if that helps. Maybe setting it between 1.25 and 1.5 if it will allow a mid setting.

[BRANDONH]

How do you tell when you're getting feedback and when it's just noise on the record, or distortion on the inner tracks? And how much vibration do you have to have to cause feedback? Is it because some people are running subwoofers in addition to regular stereo sound?

When I crank my system, just about everything in the basement including the concret floor vibrates to varying extent. With the volume at 50/80 (just over my normal listening level when there's nobody home) I can put my hand on the turntable itself and feel vibrations, while hearing some distortion.

I'm not sure whether that's because it's a small amount and the high volume is making it audiable, or whether it's feedback from the vibrations. With some older records or ones with high-activity tracks on the inner reaches, I can hear similar distortion at any volume on the inner tracks.

Also, my turntable is pretty modest compared to many here so it may be that it's simply not sensitive enough to pick up the extra vibrations? Maybe the stereo isn't powerful enough to produce such? I run a 5.1 JVC reciever with 100 watts per channel, currently only hooked up to two Infinity Entra One bookshelf speakers, circa 2002.

This is the way I currently have everything.

John Michael summed it up.
Feedback can damage amplifiers and speakers as the loop continues the higher the feedback (howl).
With my dustcover removed only for very high power jam sessions it eliminated the feedback as well.
Plus I have my subsonic filters on as well

[BRANDONH]

If anybody has a free site they could recommend, I'd appreciate it.

Audio review gives us one:

http://gallery.audioreview.com/

[BRANDONH]

However borrowing a guage still sounds like a good idea to me, because of the poor reliability of printed on 'scales' in general. I don't know anybody else who actually owns one though, so I'll probably have to buy one.

http://store.acousticsounds.com/brow...&section=music

[Coyote-X]

Thanks a bunch for the good info. I'm putting all my pictures into the gallery now, too.