Rega Owners - Alignment Tool / Protractor

Small world Brad! I'm in N. Vancouver (Salmon Creek area), Washington. I'll be heading down to L.A. in a couple of weeks, bringing a trailer full of hi-fi back with me, including the Wallytractor.

@ bdp24
Hi Eric, I will pm you after the Thanks Giving Holiday Week-end with regards to your Walllytractor.
Sorry I had not answered you earlier, It was an oversight.
I am not sure where in The NW, you moved to; I am in Portland.
Hope your enjoying your Thanks Giving
Brad

shanticat
Thnx for taking the time to respond, take measurements, and informative response.
I will take a look at Analogue Seduction
Brad

@bradf 
I purchased mine from Analogue Seduction based in the UK. I also ordered the white belts as the P7 needs 2 of them. 

The Avid does not state what geometry they use specific to the Rega, however there are two printed sets of null points and my quick measurements would indicate it is a Stevenson. 

Hi @ shanticat
I found the Avid to be referred to frequently on other forums.  I did some searching on the web, but didn't see one available, specific to the Rega
I think Music Direct sells the Avid Universal Protractor only (now).
If you know of were there sold, please forward that info to me. Also is there one or two points of alignment on the protractor, do you know what geometry is employed.

BTW,
my turn table is a P5 (all GrooveTracer Mods and Rega speed Cntlr) with a Lyra Delos (stepped up from the Dorian). Rest on a Symposium Platform.

Thank You
Brad

I have used the supplied cardboard one with my Rega P7 which is not very useful, then the Rega Baerwald Arc printed protractor which I felt was better than the first. Then I got the Avid HiFi Rega specific one. That is the one that made the biggest difference. Not only did it sound "right" but knowing I had a tool that allowed me to be both accurate and precise in setting up my cartridge was worth the $40.

I use a Benz Micro Glider on a RB700. 

@wrm57 

Hi Bill
Thank You for all your input. I haven't heard of Triplaner or UNI-tractor,
Accutrak. Although I am pretty convinced on a Best Mint, I will probably look into them also since I am one of those guys that needlessly makes things a lot more difficult then common sense would predicate.
I have once been accused of opening a rock to see how it works. 

Hi Brad,

I think Wally is out of business, though I might be wrong. Some years back he became undependable in delivering product, according to threads that appeared here and elsewhere, and I've heard nothing about him in quite a while. I bought protractors from him 2000-2002 and had no issues, though I had to send a check in advance and hope for the best. The used market is probably your best bet, if and when they come up, which is seldom. As a matter of fact, I just snagged a Universal Wally a couple of weeks ago, just to use with my Triplanar (even though I have a Mint, a UNI-tractor, and an Accutrak for it),  but I'd been looking for a long time. Yip at MintLP is completely dependable, in my experience.

Wallys are inscribed for both Baerwald and Loefgren. Yip uses Baerwald by default (at least on mine) but you may be able to request Loefgren.

Bill

Hi @ williewonka, wrm57
Thanks to both of you for your comments.
Would anyone know the geometry used for either Mint or Wallytractor protractor.

@wrm57 , Wallytractor, "hard to come by these days" ?
Due to long lead time, no longer manufactured, or ?

Thank You
Brad

I have MintLps and Wallytractors for several tonearms and prefer the Wallys, finding their inscription on mirrors to be superior for parallax offset and their super-fine lines on the surface of the protractor (rather than under a layer of glass) to be more precise and easier to use. Hard to come by these days, though, so Mints are an excellent alternative. The differences are minor, really.

Brad - once you get the Mint, be sure to get it "dead-on" the marks - this may take some time - I actually had a fellow audio-nut with much younger eyes do mine for me.

Get the largest, most powerful Loupe you can find - it will make the process so much easier. Also, put the TT on a regular table, the extra elbow room/support will make the process easier/faster - trying to setup on an audio stand was an exasperating and shaky experience.

Regards...

Hi @ ,williewonka, tooblue, cleeds. Thank You for taking the time to respond to my post and your recommendations. Look's like I am getting a Mint Protractor. I noticed they manufacture one specifically for the Rega arm/table combo.
By the way the Lyra Delos is a Namiki microridge line contact stylus.

Thanks again
Brad
  

williewonka

+1 for the Mint Protractor - especially if you are using a stylus profile that is not spherical

If you're using a spherical stylus, you only have to get the overhang correct. There really is no VTA/SRA with conical stylii.

+2 for the mint/Best protracter.

+1 for the Mint Protractor - especially if you are using a stylus profile that is not spherical

Paid for itself right off the bat - my cartridge has never sounded so good

You do have to get the setup perfect though, but once you have achieved that the improvements are very noticeable.

My Cartridge is a Soundsmith modified Denon DL-103 with...

• Ruby Cantilever
• Optimized Contour Nude Contact Line Diamond

My arm is an Audiomods Series 3 Original that uses the Rega Arm tube
- same geometry, overhang etc, but that's where the "similarity" to rega arms end.

Once setup correctly using the Mint this cartridge became extremely revealing, detailed, spacious and dynamic

Regards...

Thanks miner42 for your input/info.
Did you happen to compare with any other brand protractor, where you found the Mint provided better performance. I don't see on there website any statement of what geometry there gauge incorporates; would you know?

Thanks again
Brad

I had a Rega P5, then P7, then P9.  I used the MintLP alignment tool.

mb1audio
Thanks for your suggestions/help. I was hoping that you could use the Baerwald geometry for adjusting cartridge alignment/overhang on a Rega table,  without modification to the table or relocating the pivot point of the arm to table mounting.

You can use  Baerwald to setup your Rega TT and arm. A lot of people opt for that as opposed to Rega's alignment procedure. If you need advice on what tools to get, call Larry at Hollywood Sound in Hollywood FL. All he does is TT's and can best asvise you on what to buy.