Fatparrot, my tonearm doesn't allow adjustments "on the fly." It is totally locked and rigid during play. To adjust VTA, I have to lift the stylus; loosen a set screw, adjust two nurled rings that raise and lower the arm in very small increments, then re-tighten. With practice, this process now takes me 10-15 seconds to accomplish.
For many years I used an Eminent Technology arm that could be set to allow adjustment on the fly. What I found, though, was that leaving the couplings just loose enough to allow for adjusting on the fly also compromised the bass response of the tonearm. So, I stopped leaving it that way and tightened it down playback for improved sound quality. There are other tonearms that may permit VTA adjustment on the fly without compromising the sound quality, I just couldn't name them. For me, I just draw the line that any tonearm I own must allow for VTA adjustments with relative ease.
What I hear with VTA adjustments is exactly what Lloyd Walker describes in his article on "Fine Tuning Your Turntable" noted in my earlier post in this thread:
The sensivity of one's system to the effects of VTA adjustments are very much cartridge-dependent; some cartridges are a lot more sensitive to minor changes in VTA than others due to the contour of the stylus. And the degree to which you will hear changes is also somewhat dependent on how resolving your system is.
Hope this helps!
.
For many years I used an Eminent Technology arm that could be set to allow adjustment on the fly. What I found, though, was that leaving the couplings just loose enough to allow for adjusting on the fly also compromised the bass response of the tonearm. So, I stopped leaving it that way and tightened it down playback for improved sound quality. There are other tonearms that may permit VTA adjustment on the fly without compromising the sound quality, I just couldn't name them. For me, I just draw the line that any tonearm I own must allow for VTA adjustments with relative ease.
What I hear with VTA adjustments is exactly what Lloyd Walker describes in his article on "Fine Tuning Your Turntable" noted in my earlier post in this thread:
General Rules and Effects:There is also an overall focus and coherence that will snap into place when VTA is right on the money. If the overall acoustic sounds a bit veiled, often raising the VTA just slightly, will bring an improved transparency that is not just an increase in high frequencies.
VTA:
~ Raise the VTA (raise the rear of the arm) and the highs will usually get better. Too much and you will lose the bass.
~ Lower the VTA and the bass will get stronger. Too much and you will lose the highs.
The sensivity of one's system to the effects of VTA adjustments are very much cartridge-dependent; some cartridges are a lot more sensitive to minor changes in VTA than others due to the contour of the stylus. And the degree to which you will hear changes is also somewhat dependent on how resolving your system is.
Hope this helps!
.