Azimuth 2020

@cleeds,

"VTA and azimuth are two completely independent angles."  Only with a tangential tonearm, not with a pivoted, offset, one.  The effect may be minor, depending on the degree of offset, but it's there.

melm

"VTA and azimuth are two completely independent angles." Only with a tangential tonearm, not with a pivoted, offset, one. The effect may be minor, depending on the degree of offset, but it's there.

Your claim can only be accurate if the pickup arm (or turntable) itself is not "true."  That is, the arm cannot be raised or lowered while also remaining absolutely perpendicular to the turntable platter.

Or perhaps, like mijostyn, you don't understand what these angles define.

"Cross talk is affected by azimuth. Phase is affected by tracking error."
And phase between the two channels is also affected by azimuth.  All the adjustments on a TT are interrelated to some degree.  And these changes can be measured and heard.

I think what can happen, if azimuth is set at any angle different from 90 degrees, is that as you raise or lower the VTA. the contact points of the stylus, depending upon stylus shape, might alter their contact with the groove and certainly the distribution of forces on the groove walls would shift a bit.  But this effect, like very small changes in VTA, is tiny.  If azimuth is set at a perfect 90 degree angle to the groove, none of this would happen.  You'd have only the effect of VTA per se on groove contact.

Cleeds you are smoking too much pot and like usual you have no idea what you are talking about and are only confusing others who are trying to understand this. You should be ashamed of yourself. When you have no idea what you are talking about we would all be better served if you would just shut up.  edwyun in no way is phase affected by azimuth. Fortunately, phase shift between the two channels is frequency sensitive. Only high frequencies suffer significant phase shift with tracking error. Bass frequencies are not significantly affected. 
Melm, absolutely correct.