Setting anti-skate

Rich, the visual method is easiest with hi compliance (very wiggly suspensions) like vdH, but it's not impossible even with moderately low compliance carts like the Helikon. The trick is 1.) to use a strong light pointed at the front of the arm/cart, and 2.) sharpen your obsetvational skill by carefully watching what the cantilever does with no AS, and max. AS, just to get a feel for the range of movement. You will not get it "on the nose" with a Helikon because its too hard to see the tiny deflections, unlike a vdH for instance. But you can get pretty close and do the rest by ear.

The inward twisting torque (skating force) on the arm is created by the stylus' drag (friction) in the groove times the (geometric) lever arm distance created by the headshell offset angle. So using a blank record is a waste of time. (Perfectly straight arms with no headshell offset do not develop skating force, and don't need AS)

I have the HiFi News record. With minimum anti-skate, the cartridge, Helikon, goes through the frst 3 tracks with no buzzing. It does buzz in the right channel slightly during the last track with the highest modulation.

Tracks 6-9 on side one of the HFN record are virtually useless for setting antiskate, unless of course you're going to play alot of test records with unrealistic amplitudes on inner grooves. The best use for those tracks is to ignore them.

If you want to use the HFN record to rough in your AS setting, try the three widely spaced "tracking test" bands on side two. If your cartridge buzzes on them (the Helikon may not) get the buzzing roughly equal on all three bands. (You may get opposite channel buzzing on the inner and outer tracks, just equalize that). Fine tune by ear with music from there.

On some old records, I do hear some breakup in the left channel. This is an old Riverside with sax. As the sound swells, you can hear the distortion. I increased anti-skate, and the distortion in the left channel seemed to stay the same, but the center image became a little cloudy. Setting anti-skate back to minimum restored the focus. I think the distortion is due to the the record being damaged or still dirty after cleaning. I bought the record used.

If that L channel breakup were caused by an incorrect antiskate setting, the remedy would be to decrease AS, not increase it. Try reducing AS and/or increasing VTF slightly. If that doesn't eliminate the distortion it's either dirt, damage or an amplitude and frequency that exceed the tracking limits of the cartridge.

Other then a distinct distortion in just one channel, is there anything else to listen for?

Excess AS has exactly the effect you heard, clouded imaging. On a fine cartridge like the Helikon you'll also hear muffled HF's and/or reduced microdynamics. The fact that you heard these things indicates that your original AS setting was closer to being correct.

This is the "fine tuning by ear with music" method. Use only enough AS to prevent R (not L) channel distortion on tough passages. If imaging goes cloudy or highs get muffled, back it off a bit.

Maybe you guys could answer my question.. I don't have the most accurate arm in the world, however the only use for anti-skate I have found is not to fix any sound issues cause I don't seem to have any, but the Leader blank track of the album when I set down the stylus would sometimes Take off with inertia plowing into the first track? So I added a small washer to the weight on the fish line to up it by like a Gram and this solved the problem .. Why is this? I hear or see no difference adding or subtracting anti-skate weight just simply keeping the cartridge from taking off a little once in a while.. I measured my original weight with dital stylus gauge by just removing the anti weight off the arm and setting it on the scale, and then put on the washer with it, it went from 3.1 gram to 4.1 gram and it seems to have solved this, is there something else I should do to correct this issue or is this it?

Undertow, what you've done (adding the washer) has WAY increased the anti-skate force necessary for regular groove tracking. Take it off! Also, DO NOT exceed the manufacturer's max. recommended VTF, because that will force the coil out of alignment with the magnetic field (or if it's a MM cartridge, the magnetic field out of alignment with the coils).

Records are made with a raised edge (and center) to keep the groove area from touching other records when stacked up (like in a changer) so if you set the stylus down in this lead-in area with today's light tracking forces and sensitive arms, yes, it's going to slide or plow into the first track. You need to set the stylus down right in the first groove. And return all your AS and VTF settings to normal.

Doug,

Why are the widely spaced tracks better?

Rich