Help with setting up a new cart on SME309

[mainaman]

I have difficulties setting up my Kuzma CAR 40.I attached my previous cart,a Zu 103,in place of an AT one and adjusted only downforce and azimuth as the cart was sounding terrific from the first moment.Maybe it was the simple conical stylus,maybe it just didnt need any adjustments.

After i installed the Kuzma,i noted a lighter bass and some sibilance and splashiness.I started playing with VTA,HTA,distance and overhang.I managed to get rid of the sibilance and the splashiness,but other issues appeared-brightness and/or loss of dynamics.It looks like the cart,like many high-end ones,is very sensitive to even the smallest adjustment.When i get the stylus in the pinhole of the protractor,the tonearm cannot be aligned over the protractor properly and sticks out a bit in front of the outline.When i pull the arm back a bit with the HTA key and it aligns with the outline the stylus cant reach the pinhole.I am still experimenting and i can't understand what to do.The stylus to be in the pinhole or the tonearm to be completely within the outlines?

The manual says to keep the stylus in the pinhole,yet it declares the the most correct way with any cart would be the arm to be aligned along its lenght.Well,it is either one or the other.Despite of the three rows of mounting holes on the cart...I can't make up my mind from listening yet.What would be the correct method?Anybody experienced enough with the modern SME arms?

[Yiangos]

hey mainman !
I am not exactly sure what you mean but lets take things one at a time.The 3 mounting holes are there in case the cartridge isn't aligned properly with one setup (ie hole 1 etc) use the next hole and see but even if the condition persists with all 3 holes,i don't think it really matters as long as the needle point is inside the pinhole and the cartridge perpendicular to the outlines of the protractor.Just think about it.You are aligning the cartridge (stylus),not the cartridge's body. As for the lack of bass and more brightness , give the cartridge at least 60 hours to bed-in. On the other hand,the zu 103 is a "warmish" cartridge.I am not so sure about the Kuzma.Perhaps you bought the wrong cartridge for your tastes ?

[mainaman]

Thanks.I have already tried the second and third row of holes,there is no way to align both the stylus and the tonearm lenght.The manual is not clear,insisting of keeping the stylus in the pinhole,yet ''the only requirement for correct HTA being that the outlines appear to coincide along their lenght''.19118

[Barry]

Looks like you may have the arm in the wrong position on the turntable. Did you use the installation drilling guide to mount the arm's sliding bedplate at the correct distance from the turntable spigot?

[mainaman]

I mounted it on a SME plate(made by Roksan for their decks) on the predetermined mounting plate position on the deck.It can be mounted only in one position.

The tonearm can slide fore and aft,up and down and sideways,all independantly,so i dont think that the distance could be a problem.The cart is mounted via the middle holes.If i mount it via the third row of holes the stylus ends slightly in front of the pinhole.The distance between the holes is around 5mm and if the third row was 2.5mm away from the middle one the stylus and the tonearm tube would probably align perfectly with the outlines.

The tonearm tube and the headshell ARE within the outlines along their width.

It is the cart lenght,the position and spacing of the holes and the lenght of the cantilever that appear to be the problem.