01-31-2026, 12:09 AM
Hi Marsupial,
Sorry for the delay, I got busy with several other issues but also did a bit of research that is hopefully helpful.
The needle for your turntable is available from the V-M Enthusiasts website given in the previous post. Your turntable uses a Shure Ceramic cartridge having an output of somewhere between 250 mV and 700 mV, but I don't know which model your turntable uses. There are currently 2 Shure cartridges of this vintage on eBay. There is no info on these cartridges on either the Voice of Music Enthusiasts website or on the Shure website.
The VM website has several cartridges that may fit your tonearm, some as cheap as $20.00 plus shipping. Some info from that website is in the doc below that I put together from their website:
Below is the service document for the Philco D10 and D10A turntables. Read these as it may give you further insight to this issue.
https://philcoradio.com/library/download...6-1947.pdf
Reviewing the D10 and D10A turntable service manuals from the Philco library, the D10 (not your old one) uses a crystal cartridge, likely having 0.5V - 1V output. The D10 A that you removed from the set used a magnetic cartridge. The instructions state that the extra audio stage in the D10A has a gain of about 5. There are instructions in the D10 manual that may be helpful. I base the following inswtructions on the procedure in the manual.
You can test the phono amp in your Philco by doing the following:
Tune the radio to a quiet spot on the AM Band. Set the volume control at ab out 1/4 of the way.
Using a CD player with a headphone output and a blocking capacitor, connect the output of the CD player to the "FM Test" point on the radio, set the Radio-Phono switch to Radio and set the volume on the CD player so that it is barely audible. Now connect the CD player to the phono input and set the Radio - Phono switch to Phono. The volume should increase significantly, likely to a comfortable or loud listening level.
Do you still have the original D-10 A turntable? if so, connect it watts and all and do a "scratch the needle test. If the scratch is loud and proud, then the audio amp circuit works.
I used the term "modern" magnetic cartridge in previous posts. The original Victor "Electrola" turntable from the late 1920s to early 1930s used a magnetic "head" that produced a "radio level" output (likely between 500mV and 1 volt) that would drive the audio amp of a standard radio of the times. However, the Electrola also used a step-up transformer, and the head was massive and had the same tracking weight as the original acoustic sound box which was somewhere around 20-30 grams.
Sorry for the delay, I got busy with several other issues but also did a bit of research that is hopefully helpful.
The needle for your turntable is available from the V-M Enthusiasts website given in the previous post. Your turntable uses a Shure Ceramic cartridge having an output of somewhere between 250 mV and 700 mV, but I don't know which model your turntable uses. There are currently 2 Shure cartridges of this vintage on eBay. There is no info on these cartridges on either the Voice of Music Enthusiasts website or on the Shure website.
The VM website has several cartridges that may fit your tonearm, some as cheap as $20.00 plus shipping. Some info from that website is in the doc below that I put together from their website:
Below is the service document for the Philco D10 and D10A turntables. Read these as it may give you further insight to this issue.
https://philcoradio.com/library/download...6-1947.pdf
Reviewing the D10 and D10A turntable service manuals from the Philco library, the D10 (not your old one) uses a crystal cartridge, likely having 0.5V - 1V output. The D10 A that you removed from the set used a magnetic cartridge. The instructions state that the extra audio stage in the D10A has a gain of about 5. There are instructions in the D10 manual that may be helpful. I base the following inswtructions on the procedure in the manual.
You can test the phono amp in your Philco by doing the following:
Tune the radio to a quiet spot on the AM Band. Set the volume control at ab out 1/4 of the way.
Using a CD player with a headphone output and a blocking capacitor, connect the output of the CD player to the "FM Test" point on the radio, set the Radio-Phono switch to Radio and set the volume on the CD player so that it is barely audible. Now connect the CD player to the phono input and set the Radio - Phono switch to Phono. The volume should increase significantly, likely to a comfortable or loud listening level.
Do you still have the original D-10 A turntable? if so, connect it watts and all and do a "scratch the needle test. If the scratch is loud and proud, then the audio amp circuit works.
I used the term "modern" magnetic cartridge in previous posts. The original Victor "Electrola" turntable from the late 1920s to early 1930s used a magnetic "head" that produced a "radio level" output (likely between 500mV and 1 volt) that would drive the audio amp of a standard radio of the times. However, the Electrola also used a step-up transformer, and the head was massive and had the same tracking weight as the original acoustic sound box which was somewhere around 20-30 grams.
"Do Justly, love Mercy and walk humbly with your God"- Micah 6:8
"Let us begin to do good"- St. Francis
Best Regards,
MrFixr55
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