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Mint LP provides Stevenson Alignment

First, I happen to own and like a Mint LP protractor, but over the course of time it has become obvious to me that no one up to now has pointed out that it is providing the Stevenson alignment.  I have even read several self appointed  experts here argue vehemently that either Lofgren or Baerwald alignments are far superior to Stevenson, but then go on to equally strongly advocate the use of the Mint LP.  If ever there were an argument that alignment is somewhat over emphasized in our hobby, this is perhaps a good example of the truth of that thought.  Recently I bought a Feickert protractor, which is very easy to use and have tried all the alignments using it.  I can hear differences, but not always, certainly not on every track of every record, and honestly they are all good.  So don't get you pants in a bunch over this trivial issue.
billstevenson
chakster's avatar
chakster
6,144 posts
 
I guess when it comes to accuracy in microns no one can detect it by ears, so when something is more accurate than Feickert i don’t know what to think (only some sort of UBS microscope comes to my mind if a person is so concerned about absolute accuracy of everything). I believe it’s irrelevant when we’re comparing precision tools like Feickert or Mint. Personally i’ve never noticed that Feickers is not accurate, it’s always spot on with 6 tonearms i’m currently using from time to time.
sbank's avatar
sbank
3,382 posts
 
@chakster Sounds like "believe" is the key word in your last post. Have you ever tried the SMARTractor or the Mint? If so, and you don't observe a difference, I can respect that. Please elaborate. If not, it's sounds like your belief might just just be the bias of ownership and wanting to justify your decision. Not the high level of informed content that I usually see from you. Cheers,
Spencer
chakster's avatar
chakster
6,144 posts
 
@sbank i have had at least 4 different protractors, i hate those with the mirror, i’m not crazy to buy more expensive protractors than Feickert and as i said all i need in addition to Feickert is a lamp and magnifying glass. After adjusting of at leats 10 different tonearm and maybe 60 cartridges with Feickers i don’t see any disadvantages of this protractor and this is the reason i highly recommend it to the others. Also, as i said, i am the one who use many tonearms, and it’s so stupid to buy protractor for each tonearm if the Feickert can serve all of them with 3 different alignment methods. In my opinion this is a precision tool, the spindle hole in it is just fine for my Luxman or Technics turntables. The PS ruler is always spot on. 

You can advise people to buy a new protractor everyday, or a new one for each toneam and claiming you’re able to hear a difference in microns (in my opinion it’s just a waste of time and money), but i would recommend just one protractor for all toneams and all turntables for those who’re looking for "real" tool for reasonable price with all 3 methods of alignment, not just a piece of glass or plastic or paper.

Comparing Feickert to the original paper protractors provided by the tonearm manufacturer i can’t detect any difference.

People often overestimate a problems with cartridge alignment, i am here to add a bit of common sense. For the maniacs USB microscopes available on the market to check avymuth etc., but it’s not necessary for people with 20/20 vision.
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