To The Prof: Thanks, you made my day! It's nice to know that my words have had such a positive effect, especially after it took me so long to get it right on my own setup. (I finally got it right about the mid 90's. it took me that long just to find a decent demodulator) I would recap the power supply, and the regulator circuits. Electrolytic capacitors do get weak on capacitance and get leaky over the years. When replacing capacitors, avoid ROHS if you can. They just don't hold up well. Using XLRs, Hmmm Interesting. Definitely better than DINs. The best XLRs are Switchcraft. They are silver plated, and they are incredibly reliable. Since working in the TV industry since 1984, I have seen only a handful fail, and they were really worn to the bone. They're so reliable that we routinely cut them off of old cables to reuse them. There's no risk. When I buy XLRs, I specify Switchcraft. I won't use any other brand. I have never thought of using FM lead. But I have often thought that oscilloscope probe wire would work great. But since the wires on my turntable were made for quad, there has been no need to replace them. Happy Listening!