TriPlanar Tips


The manual that comes with the TriPlanar Mk VII tonearm is fairly complete, but there are a few things I’ve learned only by living with the arm. Note: I do not know which if any of these would apply to previous versions of the arm. My only experience is with the Mk VII.

1. NEVER raise the cueing lever while the arm is locked in the arm rest. This pressures the damping cylinder and could cause a silicone leak. For this reason and also for safety, whenever the arm is in the arm rest the cueing lever should be DOWN. This is backwards from most arms and takes some getting used to.

2. If your Tri-Planar doesn't cue straight down there's a quick fix, which may be included on some new arms. The problem is insufficient friction between the arm tube and the hard rubber cueing support bar. Just glue a bit of thin sandpaper to the underside of the arm tube. Make it big enough and position it so it hits the cueing support bar at all points across the arm’s arc. (Note: after doing this you will need to adjust the cueing height, see Tip #3.)

3. When adjusting cueing height (instructions are in the manual) always do so with the arm in the UP position. This adjustment is VERY touchy, since the cueing support bar is so close to the pivot. Be patient and be careful of your cartridge. (Note: after doing this you may need to adjust the anti-skate initiation point, see Tip #4.)

Chris Brady of Teres told me of a way to improve cueing even more by re-shaping the cueing support. Moving the cueing support point farther from the pivot improves its mechanical advantage and makes the cueing height and speed adjustments less touchy. This mod is easier than it sounds and requires only a length of coat hanger (!), but I don’t have pix and haven’t yet done it myself.

4. Changing the cueing height affects the point where anti-skate kicks in. (Yes, it's weird.) Once cueing height is satisfactory, adjust the short pin that sticks out of the front of the cueing frame. That pin controls where the anti-skate dogleg first engages the knot on the string.

5. The Tri-Planar comes with three counterweight donuts of differing masses. Many cartridges can be balanced using either of two. The arm usually tracks best with the heaviest donut that will work, mounted closer to the pivot. Of course this also reduces effective mass, which may or may not be sonically desirable depending on the cartridge. It also leaves more room for Tip #6.

6. For fine VTF adjustments don’t futz with the counterweight, there’s an easier way. Set the counterweight for the highest VTF you think you’ll need (ie, close to the pivot). Pick up some 1/4" I.D. O-rings from Home Depot. To reduce VTF a bit just slip an O-ring or two on the end stub. Thin O-rings reduce VTF by .01-.02g, thick ones by .04-.05g. Quick, cheap, effective. (For safety, always lock the arm down while adding or removing O-rings.)

7. When adjusting VTA, always bring the pointer to the setting you want by turning it counter-clockwise at least ¼ of a turn. This brings the arm UP to the spot you've selected, which takes up the slop in the threads. You can easily feel this happening.

Hope someone finds these useful. If you know any more, please bring ‘em on!
dougdeacon
Hold the phone, Doug. In order to make the Colibri mount-able on my Triplanar, I had to use an alu insert between the cartridge and the headshell. The insert, after I machined it to a minimum mass, weighs almost 3g. Then because of the insert, I had to use extra-long screws, which probably adds yet another gram or so to the mass at the very end of the tonearm, where it maximally affects effective mass. So the gross weight of the Colibri plus insert plus screws is probably not in the "light" class. So may be more comparable to the Urushi. VTF for Urushi in my system is typically 2g, for Colibri, 1.5g. However, I do take your point that cartridge mass and VTF, among many other things, will affect skating force. After I wrote what I wrote yesterday, I came to that realization independently; my first statement was incorrect. Thank you for saying so. These are the things that I dwell upon just before sleep sets in. I am much smarter then.

But then too, last night I listened to the Colibri WITH the brass anti-skate weight installed about one-third of the distance down the lever, from the elbow. I do believe it sounds (even) better with this small (by my standards) amount of anti-skating. The jury is still out on this; I have to do more listening. It could be that the Colibri is just waking up from long storage. But tracking seemed better, etc. I will try the O-ring trick.
Dear Lewm, We have obviously some kind of anti-skate enigma.I used to adjust this 'force' with an 'blanco' LP with the advantage that I was able to see the forces involved. Then I learned that I am an imbecile and thatthe right manner was to use the 'tracking ability test' from am test-record. I.e. if you hear the 'buzz' from (mostly) the R. chanel you need to increase the weight. I got 90mu with my (then) FR-64 + Ortofon MC 30S without eny 'buzz'. I must confess that I was very proud with this result. Then I come across an worning from Van den Hul himself: don't try to get 70mu or more,you will destroy your LP. So I give up the concept 'anti-skate' as well as the attempts.
Then Doug come along with his O rings. No way one can get these rings in Holland so I emailed Doug asking for,say,10
of those rings. No answer at all .So I must give up for the second time.
Regards,
Doug,
I done it. In less than 2 mins removed the AS.As ever your your instructions were comprehensive and superb. Not sure if the improvement is mildly subtle or subtly mild, but it sure is very ,very nice. Does it really get better than this !!
In awe and with regards
Pradeep
Pradeep,
Glad you took the time to try this teeny tweak. A subtle and mild "you're welcome" back to you. :-)
Nandric, You were correct to abandon the use of a groove-less disc to set AS. I just do it by ear. It was very obvious that the Urushi was in need of AS after a short listen without it, since I knew well how the Urushi sounded with AS. Without it, there was obvious distortion in the R channel and the L side of the "soundstage" or "image" fell apart. With the Colibri, the issue is still unsettled. However, given Doug's (correct) reasoning, it would not be surprising that it also "needs" a little AS, because I have increased the effective mass and the weight of the cartridge and related parts. I am also using 1.5g VTF (the top of the vdH recommended range). I usually use 2.0g with the Urushi. My quick listen both ways suggests that the Colibri needs some AS compensation.