Mobile phone interference

[Jac Hawk]

While listening to some LP's this afternoon i noticed when i approached the turntable that i was picking up interference from my phone and the closer my phone was to the cartridge the louder the interference, has anyone else noticed this with their gear?

[worrasf]

Although not quite the same as the “mobile effect” you describe I get a similar interference/hum when using my Decca Super Gold when I approach/lift the arm. Not massive but audible. In my case I seem to be inducing a ground loop because if I earth myself by touching a grounded piece of kit or the rack (also earthed) there is no interference/ hum.
I know these cartridges have a reputation for hum but this is the only situation that mine does.


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[YNWaN]

Both of the issues described are quite common. In Mike’s case it is the phonostage that is the cause and is quite common and some stages seem very much more sensitive to this issue than others. Weirdly, despite the active amplification stages being housed in largely plastic cases, my own stage seems quite immune to RF breakthrough.

The problem Stephen describes is a different problem altogether and relates to the tonearm grounding. In the past I have found it is down to whether the headshell/arm tube are grounded.

[Jac Hawk]

it was weird as i'd left my phone near to the TT then in between tracks i heard what i can only describe as "that mobile phone noise" as it happened in between tracks and i didn't realise that i'd left my phone so close i thought it might be something on the LP, but soon worked out the culprit

[paulf-2007]

I used to get a bleeping signal through the speakers in my car when the phone was near the radio, radio wasn't even turned on.

[Dubster68]

I had a similar problem when I used an Angle Audio phono stage. Seemed to pick up all sorts of noise dependant on where it was placed.

[struth]

Could try some ferrite cores. But easiest way is to keep phone away. Older 2g was the worst offender

[Shovel_Knight]

It seems different components have different degree of sensitivity to mobile phone interference, I used to have a DAC that was bleeping mercilessly when a mobile phone was in the same room. I later had a battery-powered phono stage that was also heavily affected, perhaps because it was not really earthed properly.

[Barry]

Yes it does depend on the phonostage. With a previous system I had breakthrough from a taxi radio parked outside my house (a couple of ferrite beads on the leads inside the unit, just behind the phono input sockets cured it).

I have noticed mobile phone carrier signal breakthrough on some plastic-cased head amps I have tried.

I response to your post I padded over to my TT and placed my mobile phone as close to the cartridge as possible (a low output Ortofon MC), turned the volume up to my normal listening level - and heard nothing. So I'm quite satisfied with the interference rejection of my preamp/phonostage (Mark Levinson ML25/28).