Stylus Profile Discussion
I've been reading a bit lately about different stylus profiles--trying to get a handle on the different shapes, pros and cons, etc. Here is a question I've been pondering: Which stylus shape represents the "sweet spot" between ease of set up and sonic performance? In other words, at what point does the demand for fully optimized alignment (and the difficulty and tedious time commitment involved in obtaining this and the neurotic tendency to fear that you may not have) become such a detriment that you would be better off with a less challenging profile that would be easier to set up correctly?
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- 17 posts total
Advanced stylus profile setup problem is a myth. I have no problem to align any stylus profile, this is what a good tonearm/headshell can handle. The less sensitive is only conical, but it is also the worst and the cheapest. In my opinion a cartridge alignment with electronic microscope and some very special exotic devices is not necessary. Your arm must have VTA on the fly, a good bonus is headshell with azimuth adjustment. Dr.Feickert protractor is a must have for any turntable and cartridge. The most complicated profile in my collection was Replicant-100 and i did not notice any different in setup process at all. The best profiles last much longer (up to 2000 hrs), so i don’t understand why do i need those cheap profiles in high-end system if they last only about 300-500hrs and does not read the grooves correctly even properly aligned? |
1+ Millercarbon. Darn millercarbon, you are starting to make sense! All of the top cartridges are using one form of fine line profile or another and I am beginning to think it is more for marketing than anything, another one of those secret sauces. Regardless of the profile a cartridge has to be set up correctly to minimize distortion and record wear particularly overhang, offset and azimuth. I'm one of those people who think VTA is not so critical. A stylus rake angle around 20 degrees is fine. You can only tell a difference at the extremes and every record is different anyway. I saw from 18 to 23 degrees once. It can actually change through the record with modulation generally going lower with higher modulation. A tonearm without a VTA tower is not a deal breaker for me. But to do it right you need one of these, http://www.analogueartisan.com/Reference.html |
mijostyn A stylus rake angle around 20 degrees is fine. You can only tell a difference at the extremes and every record is different anyway.You're confusing SRA with VTA - they are two different things. SRA should be set around 92 degrees, VTA around 20 is usually fine. The main advantage to the "fine-line" type styli shapes is higher frequency response - that's what they were originally developed for. |
- 17 posts total