Dear Fleib,
No worries.
Yes, it’s interesting to get a general overview of how successful folk are at keeping VTF within reasonable limits. Most people tend to live at the top end of the spectrum. Sometimes this is because others recommend it or perhaps because they’ve used Test Tones resulting in a "maxxing out" of A/S.
Indeed there is a minority "Cult of Excessive VTF" (i.e. beyond the manufacturers recommendation or max limit) which is not always discouraged by manufacturers on the grounds that the customer is always right (Why argue? Whatever makes them happy!) ;^)
Now, I’m not saying that any of our illustrious "zero A/S" contributors here are getting anywhere near that level of VTF in their quest for zero anti-skate just that there are others out there compensating for different reasons.
For the benefit of those who may be misled into maxxing out on VTF (or over-Maxxing) we should publish the standard warning that VTF increases skating force and thereby unilateral wear on the diamond. There is a price to pay...
Don’t know if you’ve tried the following experiment? Several years ago I performed multiple needledrops of one side of an LP, bracketing the optimum A/S setting ranging from “A/S max” to a setting below the optimum. Then I was able to rapidly switch between them on an HDD running them effectively in parallel with each other.
(This of course assumed that VTF should be identically/ideally "mid-range" for all needledrops.)
As you quite rightly say, changes in general balance between each setting are clearly audible (whether there is an actual voltage amplitude difference is contentious for some). Subtle though the differences are when AB-ing, what was interesting about this was that listeners didn’t hugely dislike any of the settings but would eventually arrive at a preference with some difficulty.
On the other hand, doing a similar experiment "the hard way" by adjusting the T/T then using a fading musical memory of the programme material to compare will of course still work, albeit less successfully because few people want to wear out the same snapshot over & over again on an LP, so for the purposes of comparison it’s undeniably easier & quicker to switch between samples and instantly replay on an HDD.
One of the rare advantages of digital technology...it’s consistent. ;^)
