Vertical Tracking Angle

[Stryder5]

I recently posted that I had retrieved my record deck and records after probably 10+ years from the loft. Fitted it with Rega Carbon and all was well...........then you know how you get an itch to see if you can make thinks better. Lol

Always heard of VTA, but never explored this.....until last night.

Wow, cannot give any measurements, but whatever the angle was I ended up making it smaller.

Results better tracking, weight reduced from 2.3 grms to 1.8 grms, sounds more detailed.

We learn something every day.

[Macca]

That's precision mechanical engineering for you. Tiny adjustments can make a big difference. I thought I had mine set up right until Marco came over and did it properly.

[karma67]

if you really want to scratch that itch you'd best get a usb microscope and set the SRA angle which is in effect what VTA is doing but less so,i played with this untill my brain exploded and i lost the will to live.
these days i get the tonearm tube level and thats it!

[struth]

Me too... Level or near level does me ..as long as its not pointing up or going down ar a sharpish angle im ok with. But some folk like the process, and thats fine too, as techy things like that can be fun for some.

[Ammonite Audio]

I agree that setting the headshell level is a good starting point, but cartridge cantilevers and tips are assembled by hand and there's a great deal of potential variation between makers and individual examples of the same cartridge. Ortofon seem to have achieved a good degree of alignment accuracy, though, so hats off to them. Miyajima are consistent too, but I have not looked forensically at other makes.

The picture gets even more varied when it comes to re-tipped and service cartridges, where you really are at the mercy of the craftsman involved and his/her skills. I have a re-tipped cartridge whose tip is impossible to align correctly for SRA because to do so involves it dragging the rear of the cartridge body along the LP. It took me a long time to work out why that cartridge never sounded as good as a new example of the same type!

I do more or less go along with Michael Fremer's 92 degree SRA thing, but (mostly) it's not necessary to use a USB microscope (do any of the cheap ones work properly with Windows 10?). A 40x LED illuminated loupe from eBay lets me see the tip alignment clearly enough to get SRA pretty much in the right area. Just set the tip so that it leans ever so slightly forward in the groove, at the recommended tracking force. After that, any differences in individual records' cutting angles, thickness etc are of marginal significance and obsessing over such things from one LP to another rather gets in the way of the music, IMO.

[Barry]

I agree that setting the headshell level is a good starting point, but cartridge cantilevers and tips are assembled by hand and there's a great deal of potential variation between makers and individual examples of the same cartridge. Ortofon seem to have achieved a good degree of alignment accuracy, though, so hats off to them. Miyajima are consistent too, but I have not looked forensically at other makes.

The picture gets even more varied when it comes to re-tipped and service cartridges, where you really are at the mercy of the craftsman involved and his/her skills. I have a re-tipped cartridge whose tip is impossible to align correctly for SRA because to do so involves it dragging the rear of the cartridge body along the LP. It took me a long time to work out why that cartridge never sounded as good as a new example of the same type!

I do more or less go along with Michael Fremer's 92 degree SRA thing, but (mostly) it's not necessary to use a USB microscope (do any of the cheap ones work properly with Windows 10?). A 40x LED illuminated loupe from eBay lets me see the tip alignment clearly enough to get SRA pretty much in the right area. Just set the tip so that it leans ever so slightly forward in the groove, at the recommended tracking force. After that, any differences in individual records' cutting angles, thickness etc are of marginal significance and obsessing over such things from one LP to another rather gets in the way of the music, IMO.

Excellent post Hugo. Some enthusiasts (they always seem to be American ) will alter the SRA for each and every record they play.