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Ortofon MC A90 Cartridge VTF

I just spent the weekend at mikelavigne's where we did a comparison with three turntables all using the same Ortofon MC A90 cartridges. We had the cartridges setup at the recommended VTF and they did not all have the same amount of break-in time on them. I decided to see what would happen when we lightened the cartridges up.

We started on the first table and the weight was about 2.25. We lessened the weight until I thought that the sound really locked in. By the time we were done on the first turntable, the VTF was at around 1.56. When we did the second table we got the weight all the way down to 1.92. On the third table it ended up best at about 2.01.

All parties (myself, Mike and Steve) agreed that lightening up the carts really opened things up quite a bit without loss of bass. The inner detail and delicacy inreased as did speed and dynamics.

I called Ortofon and am awaiting a response but I was wondering if those of you who own this cartridge have gone outside the recommended range and if you could share your experiences.

There is more to read about this if you want under mikelavigne's system thread.
jtinn
smoffatt
205 posts
 
Hi all, I ain't getting a microscope. I have enough gizzmos as it is.

The A90 is a top shelf cartridge no doubt and i would suspect that tracking this puppy at a lower VTF then recommended by Ortofon (2.3g), you would have to raise the back of the arm quite significantly to obtain the 92 degrees SRA Mickey is referring to. So much so that you may run out of travel play at your arm's pivot if you track your A90 at let say 1.8 or even lower.
Tracking at 1.8g or lower with the arm parallel to the record surface i bet that you would be around 88 degrees SRA. Less than ideal sonically but some may prefer the sound at those settings.

Very good question downunder. For those without a microscope, If we track at 2.3g, how should the back of the Phantom be at from parallel?
dante1
3 posts
 
I mistakenly set VTF at 1.8g when I switched carts on my Ortofon AS 309S arm. Imagine my surprise when the A90 opened up gloriously and gave deeper and tighter bass. I stumbled upon this thread while searching for similar experiences from others. I can't go back to the manufacturer's recommended VTF range without feeling shortchanged. This is a wonderful cart at the 1.8 gram setting on my arm.
tbg
5,263 posts
 
Dante1, how did you set VTA?
dante1
3 posts
 
Tbg, I had the tail slightly up. I tried setting it flat but tail up sounded better, with more air but without losing the lower frequencies.
smoffatt
205 posts
 
I stand corrected from my previous post. If the VTF is lower (ie: 2.0 or lower), the VTA need to be less to attain the desired 92 degrees SRA. As VTF increases, the styli is pushed forward on the record surface and the base of the tonearm need to be somewhat higher to attain the same 92 degrees.
Best way is always to adjust by ear a tiny bit at a time up or down after the initial set up.
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