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Setting Azimuth

Details:
VPI Scoutmaster
JMW 9 standard tonearm
Soundsmith Zephyr cartridge band new
Using a Fozgometer and Hi Fi News Test LP both also brand new
I'm measuring at the interconnects off the turntable.
I cannot seem to achieve a proper azimuth that will give even channel balance. The only adjustment on this tonearm is the counterweight which is weighted a the bottom so turning it side to side should effect azimuth. Only extreme changes are affecting channel balance. I changed the interconnects in case they were causing the problem, but I get the same results. The right channel is a few decibels louder no matter what I do to the azimuth unless I make an extreme adjustment which has the tonearm cocked to one side and obviously this is not correct.
arnold_layne
dougdeacon
3,338 posts
 
Agree... despite responses from me, Essentialaudio and Lewm trying to help, the OP still seems fixated on trying to adjust channel balance.

Until he understands that azimuth does not particularly affect channel output it won't matter what widgets he sticks on his tonearm, what test records he uses or what measuring devices he buys. One can't optimize a car's front end alignment by checking the oil. Buying a better oil filter and a dipstick with a digital readout won't change that. ;-)

Like many I optimize azimuth (and VTF... and SRA) by listening to music with a thoughtful ear. The endless fascination for overpriced gadgets like the Foz amongst vinylphiles astounds me. What happened to learning what music actually sounds like. then working toward getting your rig to sound closer to reality?
bpwalsh
1,207 posts
 
Lewm: No, I take no issue with the point about azimuth adjustment not being a way to change channel balance. Far from it.

Doug: I agree with your remark about overpriced gadgets, but adjusting by trial and error without measurement can be akin to throwing darts blindfolded. I charge a nominal fee for my alignment service and get raves every time.
lewm
13,576 posts
 
Dear Brian,
Doug Deacon and I agree: Azimuth does not have much effect on channel balance. But I am just a shlub. Don't take my word for it, although I did experiment with this just to prove to myself that it is true. Using the suitable test track and my Signet Cartridge Analyzer, I was able to demonstrate to myself that changing azimuth from one extreme to the other, using my Triplanar tonearm which has easily adjustable azimuth, had a less than 2 db effect on channel balance, and to get that much difference, you have to go to ridiculous extremes with the azimuth setting, as much as 10 or 20 degrees off the vertical. Also, if you go to Vinyl Asylum and search the archives, you will find white papers on azimuth by both Victor Khomenko (chief engineer at BAT) and by Brian Kearns; these make similar statements vis a vis channel balance. Those two treatises plus the experiment I personally conducted are the bases for my statement. Please tell me why you disagree, with some supporting data or a reference, if possible. I am willing to be proven wrong, but not by a mere assertion from you.

By the way, it would seem that the OP's own results support my thesis. He admits that he made large changes in azimuth, and it had little to no effect on channel balance. For this he blames the Fozgometer. My point is that he should not have expected azimuth to affect channel balance. Thus the Fozgometer may not be defective at all. I think this is Doug's point, too.
arnold_layne OP
141 posts
 
Ok, I get that azimuth has to do with proper phase; the needle sits between the walls of the groove equally. How does one adjust channel balance? I would think if the right channel is louder than the left by a few decibels, this results in the the sound stage shifting to the right. This is my first attempt at trying to get accurate alignment. Before I would line up the cartridge and forget about it. But since investing in a $1000 cartridge, I feel it worthwhile to check all the settings and make sure it's aligned properly.
lewm
13,576 posts
 
"How does one adjust channel balance?" When all else fails, you need a classic balance control on your preamp/linestage. Modern equipment frequently omits such a control. The two channels may be different in output for any one of a number of reasons. All you have to do is think about the signal chain. Anything in the chain where gain is added to the signal could be creating the imbalance you perceive. Starting with the cartridge itself. Then we have the phono section and the linestage, if you are using two boxes. But even one-box preamps have a phono stage feeding a hi-level or linestage. Both sections add gain to the signal, so either could be at fault. If you have tube gear, it would be a simple matter to swap tubes between L and R channels, and see whether the problem follows the tube swap. If tube swapping does not reveal that the problem resides in either the phono section of the linestage, then one has to blame the cartridge.
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