Antiskating .... The last analog secret

What I find weird about the cart in Thomas' pic (is it a Lyra?) is that the cantilever appears to be permanently displaced. If the suspension is OK, and the cantilever HASN'T BEEN BENT! it seems to me it should return to the centerline or close to it. I think Kirk is likely correct about the thing getting whacked ;-)

Thank you for referring to the cartridge resonance calculator Nsgarch.

Chris

All this talk of setting A/S with a test record makes sense if all you do is play test records. In the real world, the proper test is what setup sounds better on records with music, and by that measure I have found that no A/S sounds best. Keep in mind that if you use A/S, it is operating at all times, not just on those loud climaxes that resemble the torture track on your test record. And, in my experience, I can always hear when the A/S is engaged, and that isn't worth the theoretical advantage of being able to track the torture track more cleanly. I say "theoretical" because I don't have any tracking problems when I play records without A/S.

I recall what Ed Villchur, the designer of the AR table, said back in the 1960's when he was asked why his arm didn't have any A/S. He said it wasn't necessary; all you had to do was set the tracking force about 10% higher and you would get the same tracking benefit as A/S.

Dave

FWIW, the methodology I posted does result in a zero antiskating setting (with our present arm and cartridge). That's where we play every day.

Other carts have produced different results however, so IME it would over-simplify to say "no antiskating". Different stylus profiles suspension behaviors can require "some" AS to avoid mistracking. Every setup is different, as is every LP.

Agree with Salectric about test records (I think we've agreed on this before!). Quite useless for real world purposes.

This whole "we don't listen to test records, so they don't matter" concept makes no sense to me. The reason I use test records is because when I listen to music, I DON'T want to think about turntable setup!! I want to know it's right, and enjoy the music . . . without mistracking.

Anti-skating adjustment is one thing that affects tracking ability, and tracking ability is the one parameter that anti-skating adjustment affects the most. Period. And if you want to know the tracking ability of your turntable setup, a test record is the fastest and most accurate way to ascertain it. Simply put, it's the correct tool for the job.

But if you're unfamiliar with how to get good results with these tools, or your tools aren't in good condition . . . then yes, a test record can be misleading. Just like if you don't know how to use a multimeter (or you have an inaccurate one), then testing 9V batteries with it may be problematic . . . but this doesn't mean that using your tongue is better!

A good multimeter is the proper instrument for testing 9V batteries, and the human tongue is the proper instrument for tasting food and drink. So for those that feel test records are useless . . . how do you think we should align tape decks? Or FM tuners? Or amplifier idle current?

I have a photo of a General Electric 2-way radio service facility from the late 1960s . . . a big sign is posted above the test benches that reads "TWIDDLERS WASTE TIME . . . AND MONEY!! FOLLOW PROPER SERVICE PROCEDURES!!" I couldn't agree more.