In my experience the sophisticated stylus profiles such as the Shibata are very sensitive to vta, without a doubt.
It's the way the stylus rides/sits in the groove due to its stylus shape.
As a result easy on the fly is a must with stylus's like the Shibata.
I've had extensive experience with these types mc's - Ortofon 2M Black, Quintet, Black, Cadenza Black - all Shibata tips and currently re-tipped Cadenza Black with the replicant type Fritz Gyger S stylus profile.
My experience is that close is not good enough. The only time they have ever sounded right, is when set/up and in particular, vta has been nailed.
In my experience the sweet-spot is extremely narrow with these stylis profiles.
I've always nailed it after meticulous attention to the other set up areas: tracking force, anti-skate, azimuth, protractor arc, nil points etc etc and then finally dialling in the vta.
Takes time but once nailed you just know, you hear it, everything comes together and sounds right / balanced, fabulous and well worth the pain once it's found.
You have to be patient and 'listen' as you carefully/slowly dial in.
It is why I have only ever used tonearms with 'on the fly vta', (and only ever will) to accommodate these types of stylus profiles, which again, in my experience major on detail / info retrieval, accuracy, neutrality and really let you know what these carts are about