Before grounding a turntable, be sure the turntable and amplifier are both turned off.
You can avoid all destructive noises and numerous dangerous incidents caused by electric shock in the speakers by doing so.
Materials Needed
Step 1: Turn Off The Power
Turn off the amplifier and the turntable to avoid developing tinnitus (which will never happen anyhow, so don’t be concerned). When a result, there’s no risk of any loud noises erupting from either as you connect what you need. Shock is already exceedingly unlikely, but shutting off the amplifier and turntable completely removes it.
Step 2: Find The Ground Wire
It’s usually attached to the turntable’s metal chassis on the underside. The unconnected copper spade connection, which is usually a flat piece of metal with a u-shape etched out of it, will draw your attention to the wire.
Although there is no standard color for grounding wire, the majority of them are green. If you have a more recent turntable and can’t find the grounding wire, look beneath the chassis; it might be wound up with a twist tie. Unwrap the wire if this is the case.
You’ll have to make your own grounding wire if you can’t find one anywhere. This is where the 18 to 20 gauge stranded wire, measuring 5 feet or 1.5 meters, comes in handy. Strip roughly 6 to 8 mm of insulation from both ends with the needle nose pliers. There will be more steps to follow.
Step 3: Find The Grounding Terminal
On the back of your amplifier or terminal, you’ll find this. You won’t miss it if it’s there because it’s prominently marked “Ground.” Either a metal post with a ridged shaft or a standard screw terminal will suffice. Loosen the ground terminal once you’ve discovered it.
It’s possible that you won’t find a grounding terminal. You can still ground your turntable with just the grounding cord and the amplifier’s physical body, so don’t worry.
Step 4: Check the Measurements
Now that you’ve located the grounding wire and its corresponding terminal, double-check that the wire can reach the terminal. If this isn’t possible, bring your equipment closer together.
Step 5: Make A Connection
Remember how you turned off your turntable and amplifier in step one? Now is the time to pay attention to that.
Place the copper spade connection from the grounding wire on the grounding terminal. Tighten the connection, but not too much, or the terminal will be stripped.
If your amplifier doesn’t have a grounding connection, glue the copper spade connector of the grounding wire to the amplifier’s metal box with gaffer tape.
If you’re building your own grounding wire, strip one end and secure it to the amplifier’s chassis, preferably with a screw, rather than the speaker connection. Then, with the other end of the wire, secure it to the turntable’s chassis with a screw.
This performs the same purpose as the grounding wire tied to the grounding terminal, but it may take some experimenting to locate the optimum position that provides the best connection and generates the least amount of hum.
Touching the end of the wire on different regions of the turntable’s chassis is an easy approach to test for the ideal position (with the power turned back on, and taking care not to touch any of the metal with any part of your body).
Does my turntable need to be grounded?
Grounding is required for turntables without a built-in preamp. Grounding-required turntables have a cable that must be connected to your preamp (whether it’s an external preamp, mixer, or amplifier). A buzzing sound will be heard if the turntable is not grounded.
How do you ground a turntable without a ground wire?
Instead of a speaker connection, hook one end of the wire to a glossy screw at the bottom of the amplifier’s chassis. Then, at the other end of the wire, secure it to a gleaming screw in the turntable’s metal chassis.
First, let’s define ‘Ground’ in broad terms. Ground is largely provided as a safety measure because your hi-fi is filled with electronics and power. The metal exterior or chassis of all of your hi-fi boxes is electrically isolated.
If the safety precautions within fail and electricity comes into contact with the chassis, the (typically rubber) feet will prevent the electricity from moving and it will sit there waiting for someone to touch the chassis, with predictable results.
Any undesired power will travel through the wire back to your electrical panel, triggering the circuit-breaker and interrupting the flow of electricity if you have a Ground. Furthermore, that wire must be attached to something outside, which is connected to the earth or ‘Ground.’
Because the turntable’s Ground is slightly different, this is where confusion can arise. This Ground isn’t there for safety; it’s there to prevent a Ground Loop. A Ground Loop can occur when you have interconnected equipment of any kind that has more than one electrical channel to the ground.
The problem is (almost literally) amplified for a turntable that handles sensitive signals from a delicate cartridge. A hum will be heard via your speakers if your turntable has a Ground Loop. Because of this sensitivity, most turntables come with a separate Ground wire linked to the tonearm, which may then be connected to the ground screw of the amplifier or phono amplifier. This will drastically lessen the background hum.
How do you ground a turntable with a powered speaker?
The R-15PM power meters are quite great, not to brag. They have a built-in phono pre-amp as well as internal amplification. A separate phono pre-amp is still required for most powered speakers. In any event, the built-in phono pre-amp and internal amplification eliminate the need for two independent components – a receiver and a discrete phono pre-amp.
Here’s how to connect R-15PM powered monitors to your turntable step by step:
Can I use speaker wire as a ground?
Because the gauge is too narrow, speaker wire will not operate as a ground wire. Unless, of course, you enjoy having a fireworks display in your trunk or rear seat. Only speaker wire requires oxygen-free wiring. For power and ground wire uses, it is unimportant.
