Antiskating .... The last analog secret

Everyone is talking about minimizing distortion during playback. Fact of life: some LP's already sound distorted and there is no way of getting rid of this even if you let the Zen master of the 10th+ level do the necessary adjustments.

Chris

Dazzdax poor recordings are poor recordings in every medium, but good set ups, set up correctly with good recordings, are what it is all about.

If an LP sounds distorted the primary causes are vinyl damage and misalignment. Others are excessive gain, etc.

You're right when you say "there is no getting rid of this" if the record is damaged. That is irreversible.

However, given an undamaged record, a properly aligned cartridge, and a well matched tonearm, distortion can be minimized to an imperceptible level. A zen master is not necessary; only patience and a little know how.

There is a good summary post out on AudioAsylum by Rob Doorack on October 26, 2007:

Jonathan Carr, the auteur behind the Lyra line, once wrote that he tried to design an arm that varied AS compensation as the arm arced across the record; he abandoned the effort when the design got too complicated to be practical.

For me, it's get-it-close-and-call-it-good-enough.

Hey Stltrains and Doug,

I haven't tried any real torture tracks but so far I'm having very good results running with no AS weight at all with my heavier XV-1s. But I'm wondering why not just loosen the screw holding the end of that line on the AS rather than tying it up?