2. analog
  3. 142703-12450

Vinyl heresy-overhang induced distortion is not that important

I have learned and am of the opinion that the quality of the drive unit, the quality of the tonearm, the quality of the cartridge and phono stage and compatibility/setting of all these things (other than setting overhang) and the setting of proper VTF, VTA, SRA, and azimuth are far more important than worrying about how much arc-induced and overhang- induced (the two are related) distortion one has. I learned this the hard way. I will not go into details but please trust me-I am talking about my new ~15K of turntable components for the deck itself and excluding cartridge and phono stage. I have experimented with simply slamming a cartridge all the way forward in the headshell, placing the cartridge mid-way along the headshell slots, and slammed all the way back, each time re-setting VTF, VTA, SRA, and azimuth. I would defy anyone to pick out the differences. I have 30K of tube separates, a Manley Steelhead, and DeVore O/93's. I submit that any differences in distortion due to sub-optimum arcs and deviations from the two null points and where they are located (those peaks in distortion) are masked several times over by distortion imposed by my tubed gear and my loudspeakers. To believe that your electronics and loudspeakers have less distortion than arc-induced distortion is unrealistic. I have heard startling dynamics, soundstaging, and detail with all three set-ups. It is outright fun to listen to and far preferable to my very good digital rig with all three set-ups. 
My point is that getting perfect alignment is often, not always, like putting lipstick on a pig, I think back on my days on owning a VPI Classic and then a VPI Prime and my having Yip of Mint Protractors fashion custom-made protractors for each of these decks and my many hours of sitting all bent over with eye to jewelers loop staring down horizontal twist among parallax channels and getting overhang on the exact spots of two grids and yet never hearing anything close to the level of sound I get now. Same cartridges, same phono stage, only my turntable/arm combination has changed. I kept thinking the answer had to be in perfect alignment when it was clearly everything else but.
Thoughts? I am sure I will get all kinds of flack. But for those that do tell me I am nuts, try my experiment sometime with a top-tier deck/arm combination and report back. 
128x128fsonicsmith
testpilot
233 posts
 
You mean I don't need to purchase the $700 AnalogMagik software, the $600 SMARTracker, the $150 torque headshell screw driver and spend a 1/2 day setting it up the cartridge to enjoy vinyl replay?  
lewm
6,770 posts
 
In my opinion, you need to set up the cartridge properly with very good tools, and then find out for yourself if you think it makes a difference. This thread is a collection of anecdotal subjective impressions.
lewm
6,770 posts
 
But you certainly don’t have to buy the analog magic hoo-hah or a smartractor, in order to have good tools for the job.
Ag insider logo xs@2x
rauliruegas
9,123 posts
 
Dear @testpilot : Certainly you need the rigth tool to make the cartridge/tonearm alignment, no questions about.
What you don't need is to spend all that kind of money you posted to do it. You can buy from MINT LP a dedicated protractor for around 100.00 that's really accurated.

The issue in this thread is that as @lewm pointed out the OP posted something that's a wrong opinion ( I respect his opinion but that's all. ) because I think he does not understand why Mr. Löfgren created the tonearm/alignments calculations. In the other side the OP can't be aware because he said does not listen improvements, it's clear that he do not know what to look for with and with out Löfgren alignments calculations set up.

What the OP was doing is to " live "/return to 1937 year when Löfgren not developed yet his calculations about that he did it in 1938.

So if the OP is happy living in 1937 no problem about, he is satisfied with but do it your self a favor and make the rigth thing with the tonearm/cartridge alignment. Don't let at random as the OP.

Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS,
R.
fsonicsmith's avatar
fsonicsmith OP
334 posts
 
This thread is a collection of anecdotal subjective impressions.
Then your reading comprehension is suspect. I explained in my OP how setting up cartridge alignment using the Mint Protractor on a VPI Classic and Prime resulted in lackluster sound. Do you need laboratory proof that I indeed used the Mint Protractor and used it correctly? On the one hand I may be posting anonymously and I may have no credibility to defend but how do you know that any measurement from say, John Atkinson, is valid and correct? And how many meaningful measurements are there that explain how a turntable/tonearm/cartridge sounds? To say "this thread is a collection of anecdotal subjective impressions" is like saying "zoos are full of captive animals". Yes, but what is your point?
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