lewm
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.This actually makes perfect sense, @lewm, and it's nice to be able to discuss this with someone who understands what azimuth actually is.
But this effect, like very small changes in VTA, is tiny.Quite!
If azimuth is set at a perfect 90 degree angle to the groove, none of this would happen.Exactly. Azimuth should be independent of VTA, unless something else is misaligned or, as I explained previously, not "true."