SL1200G - Tonearm shape from side question for owners

You can always adjust the VTA to raise or lower the rear of the arm!

What headshells have you tried tried? Many of the aftermarket ones I've seen are quite heavy.  

Do you mean to say the tonearm, when viewed from above, has an S-shape?  Or that when viewed from the side, it is not more or less flat?

Viewed from the side it’s not more or less flat. It has a very slight downward curve in the middle viewed from side.

@chriscox000, I never noticed any irregularity with mine, but you made me double check.  I don't see any downward curve.

I do agree it sounds great, even with my current modest Shure V15 4 with SAS stylus.

You should still take a photo with a straight edge parallel to the bottom of the arm and send that to your dealer and/or Technics.  If it is not flat horizontally then it is defective.

dont try to sight the tonearm level.  use a small bubble level on top of the headshell. make sure the vtf is backed off temporarily to compensate for the mass of the level.  

@chriscox000 

That arm should be perfectly flat in side view, straight as a ruler. The S shaped curve is only in the horizontal as viewed from above. Either the arm tube is loose or it was damaged or not installed correctly.

If an S-shaped arm is rotated about its axis, even a little, it would then appear to sag when viewed from the side. That would be an optical illusion but evidence that something is askew, literally. I would check the solidity and geometry of the grip on the arm wand at the pivot.  This is something you should not have to do, so also contact your seller. 

In the above, I refer to the front-to-rear axis, the same plane as the azimuth adjustment.