Uni-Protractor Set tonearm alignment


Looks like Dertonarm has put his money where his mouth is and designed the ultimate universal alignment tractor.

Early days, It would be great to hear from someone who has used it and compared to Mint, Feikert etc.

Given its high price, it will need to justify its superiority against all others. It does look in another league compared to those other alignemt devices

http://www.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/cls.pl?anlgtnrm&1303145487&/Uni-Protractor-Set-tonearm-ali
downunder
Dear Peterayer, there is an overhang gauge coming with the UNI-Protractor set to measure direct spindle to stylus distance (overhang).
The UNI-P2S will integrate into the UNI-Protractor as well as can be used as a stand-alone-device and allows precise spindle-to-pivot measurement.
Cheers,
D.
Peterayer, You may be interested in what I deed. My Kuzma
Stabi Ref. has just one armbase but because I own Basis
Exclusive phono-pre with two separate pres I wanted an second tonearm to put next to the TT. Both the arm pod and the tonearm are made for me by the Reed (www.reed.lt).
Thy produce those armpods on order. Ie according to your ownspecifications. On their web site you can see 'my' solution (by feedback) and the arm pod by the accessory.

Regards,
Dear Dertonearm,
I have not been following this thread, but as you know, I have a Uni on order. Please tell me, can the basic Uni that I will be receiving, without any of the extra and extra-cost items you are about to introduce, accurately cite the location of the tonearm pivot using the spindle as a reference? That's how I use my Dennesen and partly why I bought the Uni. Thanks.
Dear Lewm, and this is exactly what the UNI-Protractor does ... ;-) ...
Seriously, the UNI-Protractor works in exactly the very same way as the Dennesen, - which I have worked with for 25 years.
This discussion started by the reviews of the uNI-Pro by Downunder and Halcro was about the actual measurement of the spindle to pivot (i.e. mounting distance or P2S) distance which is not incorporated into the UNI-Protractor's design.
In the UNI-Protractor's set a stainless steel metric ruler with 0.5mm scale was included as a handy tool for the owner to check the P2S if one is curious. This however raised the question why it wasn't incorporated into the positioning arm - just like in several other templates on the market. This of course can't be an option due to geometrical reasons.
Originally I had in mind a super-precise P2S measurement device as a stand alone tool. To me mounting distance was rather a different topic as alignment and a pre-determined condition on most turntables anyway. As the UNI-Pro - just as the Dennesen to Baerwald IEC (Löfgren A IEC) - aligns to a certain geometry independently of the mounting distance, I originally saw no need for measuring the mounting distance (P2S). Some owners of the UNI-Pro did however find this to be the one shortcoming and thus I want to address the issue with an optional P2S-tool which can be incorporated into the UNI-Pro at wish.
It will now come as a relatively inexpensive add-on which can also be used as a stand alone instrument.
An option like the UNI-Scope - not mandatory at all for perfect function nor alignment with the UNI-Pro.
Cheers,
D.
Finally had time to try Dertonarm's VPI template. It is very close the VPI jig. The stylus hit the stylus mark on the template exactly. I saw it was canted slightly with the stylus end of the cantilever closer to the spindle. I made the adjustment and am listening now. The cartridge is the Grado Statement1 on a VPI 10.5i arm. The LP is John McLaughlin's Extrapolation.

Compared to the VPI, the music sounds more open and the individual instrument's are more clear in the stereo mix.

I don't have any idea what Daniel's VPI template is based on but it sure sounds good. This is the setup I will be using with my VPI table. Thanks, Daniel. The only wish I have is to have an easier way to find the exact center of the pivot. I found the regular pin easier to "see" the center of the pivot than the reticule.

Overall, I am quite happy with the Uni-Pro. The led light is very useful and the setup makes it very easy to see the cantilever.