RCA double adapters

[rchinn]

Just how bad is an RCA double adapter on sound quality?

http://images.esellerpro.com/2272/I/100/84/3RY.jpg

I have two turntables and only one input in the phono stage.

An adapter like this allows me to use both turntables without plugging and unplugging. I think it reduces the strength of the input signal - but hard to measure. Will it reduce audio quality?

Is it rare for a phono stage to have more than one RCA input?

[walpurgis]

It will have some effect (everything does), but I have occasionally used those and can't honestly say I heard anything detrimental. Perhaps a good quality input switching box might be better.

[Marco]

Shocking, been there, done that... Seriously, Richard, if you value good sound quality, I wouldn't touch them with a bargepole! :nono:

Marco.

[PaulStewart]

The problem with using these, quite apart from the general quality loss,is that you would have the two cartridges wired in parallel. This would do weird things to the loading and the non playing one would, quite literally be singing along. Get a good quality switch box.

[Barry]

What Paul said - not a good idea at all. The cartridge that was playing would be the generator and the cartidge that was not playing would act as a motor and be driven by the playing cartridge.

Get a good quality switch box.

(I have used 'Y' adapters on the phono input of a preamp, because I wanted to experiment with cartridge loading. But the adapters I used were very high quality (and expensive) Lemo CAMAC type on my Mark Levinson preamp.)

[rchinn]

Cheers team. I knew it was bad but thanks for explaining why.

[spendorman]

A Quad 44 may be a good solution, choose your inputs by changing the input modules.

[rchinn]

Is there a decent analogue rotary dial that would allow you to mix the output from two phono stages?