Mistracking and VTA

[DSJR]

Looks like a Spendor BC2 or BC1 to me.

I don't think DSJR ever got into SD Acoustics and IIRC they didn't do stands for their speakers.

It's an ATC SCM100A, I think on the day they went to their new and current home The stands were custom made for them by Target Audio. The ATC's went with their original lower stands (also made by target back then) and, IIRC the custom stands ended up in metal-recycling when we moved ten years ago.........

[hifi_dave]

Shit - that never is !!!!!

It looks so small. Must have been when you were on 3 Weetabix/ day.

[Mike]

I will come on the issue of mistracking and the confusion my title has generated.

Hi Varun,

Would you like me to change it for you?

[Varun]

Hi Mike

Thanks for offering. I feel the thread must be about to run out of steam. It has attracted a lot of interesting comments-some not directly related- but good fun all the same.

Cheers

Varun

[Mike]

It could run and run!... you have some very interesting kit that's well worth talking about!

[Varun]

Many thanks Mike for your considerate words. I did clarify it once but I will take the opportunity to respond to Barry's comments.

Helloa Barry: so to carry on>

What I was going to re-iterate that the title of my thread was misleading- the two; Mistracking and VTA are neither exclusive nor inseparable.

So I should make a few points- or repeat what I have already said.

Most people are talking about Azimuth as so well clarified by Dave DSJR-but I am not. Setting and resetting Azimuth either on an LP12 or the Well Tempered is a fiddly time consuming process and unless you put marks on the pillars you do not know where you were before. That is the reason most responders have called it 'pain in the butt' and I agree.

Where I do not agree is all the reasons for mistracking given-apart from temperature. Take for instance-overhang. If the basic cartridge set up is not right then the sound will be SHOT and you do not have to wait to hear mistracking. It will have to be set right straight away. I never meant that and I for one-never listen until the temp is right.

Give you one example-I had arranged an appointment with Sound Organization in South London to listen to Naim 140 monoblocks and SBL speakers. The boss was in and out and I told him that the cartridge was mistracking- and it was very easy to spot. He agreed but we listened. I came away very disappointed with the Gear I had wanted for years. It was then that I decided to buy EAR 509s and the 802 pre-amp.

My concerns about mistracking had to do with some very heavy orchestral passages which neither LP12 nor Well Tempered could handle-irrespective of cartridge-it was always the same.

Also one last comment: The VTA is central to 'critical listening' in fact crucial. It has nothing to do with dynamic range etc as those relate to Azimuth again. I do not change it from record to record but will do so if I am not happy with the sound-and if I can not tell the difference in a 180gm LP from a 120gm one-I should not be owning the system I do.

I could go on............

Cheers

Varun

[StanleyB]

This reminds me why I have the Micro Seiki MA-505 MKI, instead of the MKIII. The MKI instruction manual happens to also be a good reference on how to set up an arm to correct mistracking issues. The MKI arm itself even has an extra component and set up procedure for that. It has turned out to be invaluable for my wooden floor.

STan

[DSJR]

VTA can also be tuned with tracking weight. On a Troika, I was told that one tenth of a gramme was equivalent to 2mm up or down on the arm-height. The stylus type makes a heck of a difference too and conical ones as beloved by Marco and other 103 owners don't have anything like the trouble as an MR type does.

[DSJR]

Shit - that never is !!!!!

It looks so small. Must have been when you were on 3 Weetabix/ day.

It got worse before it got better I got married and once I'd finished with the road job, the weight fell off along with me barnet Still, I don't need to pay shedloads of dosh to get me "do" done any more I asked the vet to prescribe me some minoxidil, but he wouldn't play ball...

[hifi_dave]

You really don't want to get on the Minoxidol - the side effects are awful and then you will need Bisoprilol to keep your heart beating properly and Frusemide to relieve the water retention and Lansoprazole to reduce the acid reflux. Factor in the side effects of that lot and you'll be wondering if life is worth living.....

Happy days