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Time to choose: Baerwald, Lofgren, Stevenson ?

I’ve managed Dr.Feickert Analog Protractor for a decent price (build quality is superb, such a great tool).

Time to play with Baerwald, Lofgren, Stevenson alignments on my Luxman PD444.
Need advice from experienced used of the following arms:
Lustre GST 801
Victor UA-7045
Luxman TA-1
Reed 3P "12
Schick "12

Baerwald, Lofgren, Stevenson ? What do you like the most for these arms?
Manufacturers recommend Baerwald mostly. 

Dedicated "7 inch vinyl playback deserve Stevenson alternative, maybe?
Since it's a smaller format than normal "12 or "10 inch vinyl, it's like playin the last track's according to position of grooves on '7 inch (45 rpm) singles. RCA invented this format, i wonder which alignment did they used for radio broadcast studios.   

Thanks

chakster
chakster's avatar
chakster OP
6,144 posts
 
Hi Raul, i’m gonna experiment with different alignment and different cartridges since the reconstruction of my new room is finished, finally. All set-up is ready to use and i’m looking forward to test everything.

Now about alignment for everybody:

Baerwald and Lofgren made their fundamental publications in the first half of 20th century. Later in the early 60s Stevenson (another mathematician) has calculated a new set of parameters taking into account that on records with classical music very often crescendos occur towards the innermost grooves! That make sence.
nandric's avatar
nandric
4,086 posts
 

Dear chakster, On the most ''tractors'' one can see those two

''zero points'' at which a tonearm is assumed to have zero errors.

Those two zero points are not at the same ''points'' in relation

to the record radius. This imply different geometries. Lofgren and

Bearwald calculated '' average values'' for the whole record radius

with minimal errors in ''average sense''. Stevenson calculated the

optimal values in relation to the ''innermost grooves'' as you called

this. For such tractor a zero point near the spindle is necessary. So

this tractor must be different from Lofgren/Bearwald. The most

of my records are classical music but I hardly own any with grooves

near the spindle. You assumption is the cotrary. However in the

West, in contradistiction to Japan, the most tonearms have Lofgren/

Bearwald geometrry.

chakster's avatar
chakster OP
6,144 posts
 
The key word for Stevenson is "crescendo" which is a passage played with a gradual increase in volume or intensity (in classical music). According to Stevenson's alignment method a new set of parameters taking into account that on records with classical music very often crescendos occur towards the innermost grooves. 

It's about arrangment of the classical music and where is the most complicated grooves located on the record surface (beggining, middle or toward the end on the record). It can be true if we are listening to a long (17 min for example) classical music track on 12'inch or 10'inch (or even a short 3 min track on 7'inch record). 

A crescendo is a way for composers to indicate that a passage of music should gradually increase in loudness over time (opposite of a decrease in volume which is described as a 'decrescendo'). It is also used in non-musical context to describe any situation in which volume is increasing.

BTW the most complicated grooves with cannon shots on Telarc 1812 Overture located in the end of the LP. 


nandric's avatar
nandric
4,086 posts
 

My Gosh, How could Tchaikovsky know on which part of the

record to put (write)  those shots ? Beethoven , on the other side, would  not care for his crescendos  because he was deaf (grin). 

astro58go
542 posts
 
I was recently interested in this subject. I was paying more attention to the accuracy of the tonearm geometry of my VPI Classic 3 Sig SE and the Feichert universal protractor. Upon using the Feichert, I'm measuring 260mm STP. After going to the VPI site, the best info from HW was 258mm. So, I asked THE question. I was told by the administrator, brf, to loosen either or both the armboard platform screws or the arm mounting board screws and use any slack, to compensate for any difference. Neither worked. So, I just paid around 5k for a tt that hasn't even been machined correctly to conform to industry standards. I also asked if Harry's supplied gauge is based upon any of the (3) standard geometries. I have yet to receive ONE answer. WOW!
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