Help me with turntable cartridge alignment

[rteneycke]

i just ordered a dual cs-503-1 audiophile concept table that came with a new stylus and the cartridge is an m95ed i think. I dont know if i should get a new cartridge and if so which one(i think i need a high compliance one) or should i stay. and how should i align this cartridge, which method/protractor tool should i use?

 

[TLS Guy]

i just ordered a dual cs-503-1 audiophile concept table that came with a new stylus and the cartridge is an m95ed i think. I dont know if i should get a new cartridge and if so which one(i think i need a high compliance one) or should i stay. and how should i align this cartridge, which method/protractor tool should i use?

Is this your turntable?

Great care and attention to detail is essential when setting up a turntable, otherwise results are poor and record damage occurs.

Your cartridge should be fine.

Always set the correct overhang to minimize tracking error with an alignment protractor. Set the perfect tangent on the inside grooves.

Here is a guide and there are others on the NET.

 

[rteneycke]

blakn

yes that is the one. i don't have anything to read, i'm using the m95ed, i dont know what antiskate to set or which weight(the weight changer doesnt even have numbers and i dont have a scale).

 

[TLS Guy]

yes that is the one. i don't have anything to read, i'm using the m95ed, i dont know what antiskate to set or which weight(the weight changer doesnt even have numbers and i dont have a scale).

Then you will have to buy a scale or do serious damage to records and cartridge. This is no something you can guess.

You set the anti skating to the same level as your tracking force. That should have a calibration on your turntable.

See if you can find a manual for your turntable on line.

You will need and alignment protractor that is a must. If you don't want to buy one, then make one. I can show you how. I still use the one I made as a child over fifty years ago!

 

[rteneycke]

from my understanding, red is the tracking force, yellow is the counterweight, and the dial type thing at the bottom blue is antiskate.

 

[TLS Guy]

from my understanding, red is the tracking force, yellow is the counterweight, and the dial type thing at the bottom blue is antiskate.

The first thing to do is set the cartridge overhang with an alignment protractor.

You can make one from cardboard. Put a hole for the spindle, inscribe a radius from that point and then make a bunch of tangents every 1/2" from the label area to the edge of the LP. Place the stylus at a radius/tangent intersection near the inner groves, and set the stylus overhang so the cartridge is parallel to the tangents.

Now set the tracking force.

Set tracking force to zero and adjust main wight to find the point of balance of the arm. Then set the tracking force to what you want. Set the antis skating to the same value as the tracking force.

Make sure you adjust arm height so the arm is parallel to the record surface.

 

[rteneycke]

k

okay, so i figured out the weight system lol... I was like, why is there no numbers on the counterweight, but now i relize that you're suppose to set the tracking force to 0 and then balance the tonearm with the counterbalance.
and is there any cartridge alignment i can get online or do i have to make one?

 

[TLS Guy]

okay, so i figured out the weight system lol... I was like, why is there no numbers on the counterweight, but now i relize that you're suppose to set the tracking force to 0 and then balance the tonearm with the counterbalance.
and is there any cartridge alignment i can get online or do i have to make one?

The Vinyl engine has a variety to Download.

 

[rteneycke]

another thing is, when i turn antiskate from 0 to 2, the arm wants to move to the outside of the record, isn't it suppose to make it want to go to the inside because it's already being pushed outside do to centripetal force?

 

[TLS Guy]

another thing is, when i turn antiskate from 0 to 2, the arm wants to move to the outside of the record, isn't it suppose to make it want to go to the inside because it's already being pushed outside do to centripetal force?

Centrifugal force does not come into it! The arm is static.

The issue is resolution of forces, as force is a vector.

The cartridge is off set to long axis of the arm. So the force created by the friction of the stylus in the groove resolves in direction towards the center. (Remember force being a vector has both magnitude and direction),

So the anti skating control applies a force in the opposite direction. Hence when the stylus is not in a groove creating a force to the center, the anti skating force will not be balanced and the arm will and should move away from the center.

Here you can see one of my anti skating weights. You will note the weight is attached behind the pivot and so creating a force rotating the arm away from the center.

 

[TLS Guy]

Here you go, this will explain things.

The forces to be resolved in you case, is the frictional drag of the stylus and the reaction from the arm base. The angle between these forces is not 180 degrees. The resultant force is towards the center of the turntable.