I'm curious which table you refer to. I have 4 linear tables, all from different manufacturers. One of them requires virtually no setup (Technics SL-5), and the other three (Pio PL-L800, Sony PX-LX500, Sansui P-L50) aren't significantly different than a conventional table. The Pio is perhaps a bit more fiddly, but not more than some conventional tables that I have.
Another Linear Turntable
- Thread starter vintage 5.0
- Start date
There was a bunch of fur flying over at Vinyl Engine on the subject of linear turntable cartridge alignment. The cause of the disagreements seemed to me (a participant, and maybe even the instigator of the argument, so not unbiased) to be this: If you have a alignment jig or the arm uses a pmount cartridge, aligning linear arms is exactly the same as aligning pivoted arms. If you have specific linear arms, you can move the arm far enough inward to place the stylus tip on the top of the spindle and be done with it (leave aside that the spindle is considerably higher than the record, so you are building in some error). And if your arm, like Rabcos, can be manually slid along the track, you can make a simple radial line on a piece of cardboard with a v groove to center the spindle and move the stylus along the line. But if you have a turntable with a built in arm with limited travel, and an interlocked arm movement/turntable spinning mechanism, it becomes very difficult to align a cartridge without some specifications since you can't drop the stylus to a protractor without turning on the platter.
I tried to align my new to me Mitsubishi LT 20 with a handwritten note that was on the manual downloadable from Vinyl Engine -- turned out it was either wrong or misleading -- and finally I figured out by a process of elimination based on effective lengths of a couple of Mitsu arms. As the table came to me, it was off by 3mm, which is audible. I'm sure the table originally had a jig, but once it goes missing, its hard to align unless you know the bayonet mount to stylus distance. (For anyone wondering, it appears to be 50mm, not the 49 from the inside edge of the bayonet of the headshell.)
I tried to align my new to me Mitsubishi LT 20 with a handwritten note that was on the manual downloadable from Vinyl Engine -- turned out it was either wrong or misleading -- and finally I figured out by a process of elimination based on effective lengths of a couple of Mitsu arms. As the table came to me, it was off by 3mm, which is audible. I'm sure the table originally had a jig, but once it goes missing, its hard to align unless you know the bayonet mount to stylus distance. (For anyone wondering, it appears to be 50mm, not the 49 from the inside edge of the bayonet of the headshell.)
Harvey/ Ga
Super Member
My PL-L1000 came with a cartridge jig. Very simple "L" shaped piece of clear plastic. The connector of the head shell fit in a cutout at the short end, and a scribe line with indent at the center was the spot where the diamond needlepoint went. It's at 50mm, IIRC (maybe 49??)
Once set, I doubt that any other setup protractor is needed. (But I still let the shop where GordonW works do my setups :thmbsp
I don't understand how there could be any argument on how to align the cartridge on a LT table...it's simple geometry. A T-square of some sort will give you a 90 degree angle, set one side parellel to the edge of the table (or the arm), and have the other line intersect the center of the spindle, and drop the cartridge anywhere on that line.
I think I actually have an alignment jig for the LT-30, but I'll have to check. I ended up with the owners manual and accessories to one at one point.
Susurus
Resolution:6.62×10^-34
Thanks Vinylengine.
Dual CST 100
2-speed belt drive turntable with tacho-controlled DC motor and linear tracking tonearm
Specifications
Motor: Dual DC 260 tacho-controlled motor
Speeds: 33.33 and 45rpm
Wow and flutter: 0.08%
Platter: 304mm
Effective tonearm length: 165.5mm
Cartridge: Dual MMD 360E
Cartridge weight: 3.5g
Stylus pressure:1.5g
Frequency response: 10Hz to 22kHz
Rumble: 70dB
My PL-L1000 came with a cartridge jig. Very simple "L" shaped piece of clear plastic. The connector of the head shell fit in a cutout at the short end, and a scribe line with indent at the center was the spot where the diamond needlepoint went. It's at 50mm, IIRC (maybe 49??)
Once set, I doubt that any other setup protractor is needed. (But I still let the shop where GordonW works do my setups :thmbsp
Your proceedure is exactly what I might expect with an arm that is fixed relative to the spindle/platter. Is the shop where you got your table set up the shop in Marietta?
My arm, a Souther, came with a plastic alignment line (poor description) that fits over the spindle. It doesn't matter where you have mounted the arm just that it lowers dead on the line at both the outside and inside positions. That guarantees that the stylus scribes a radius.
SaSi
Seriously Illogical
Oops, I recall you asking for a picture of the TT. I did take a couple of pics but never found the time to upload them from my camera to the PC.
And yes, there is a pic at VinylEngine. I will do my best to upload my pics as well.
JohnVF et al:
The protractor/T square/line drawn from the spindle idea works for linears where the arm and the platter functions are separate. The issue that I raised is what to do with tables where the functions are linked -- where you can't move the arm without having the platter rotate, and in some cases, you can't even lower the arm without the platter rotating. Then you have a choice of jig, hoping to find the appropriate measurement, or putting a record on the turntable, positioning the arm, lowering it, unplugging the table, lifting the arm by hand, carefully sliding the record out, without destroying the stylus, sliding the alignment tool in, seeing if the cartridge is aligned, if its not, adjusting it, and then removing tool, inserting record, plugging in player, moving arm to new position and seeing if its still aligned, and repeating.
I think you need to try a couple of positions because most of these tables don't have any easy reference to align the positioning line -- there are all sorts of things in the way of laying the T square in place or using it to align a card.
None of this is insuperable, but its a big pain --hence my looking for actual specifications.
The protractor/T square/line drawn from the spindle idea works for linears where the arm and the platter functions are separate. The issue that I raised is what to do with tables where the functions are linked -- where you can't move the arm without having the platter rotate, and in some cases, you can't even lower the arm without the platter rotating. Then you have a choice of jig, hoping to find the appropriate measurement, or putting a record on the turntable, positioning the arm, lowering it, unplugging the table, lifting the arm by hand, carefully sliding the record out, without destroying the stylus, sliding the alignment tool in, seeing if the cartridge is aligned, if its not, adjusting it, and then removing tool, inserting record, plugging in player, moving arm to new position and seeing if its still aligned, and repeating.
I think you need to try a couple of positions because most of these tables don't have any easy reference to align the positioning line -- there are all sorts of things in the way of laying the T square in place or using it to align a card.
None of this is insuperable, but its a big pain --hence my looking for actual specifications.
I see now how that could be a pain. I think the first time I aligned the cartridge on my LT-20 I used a protractor (not a TT protractor, just a protractor) at the edge of the table and a string to the spindle. I marked with a piece of tape a reference point on the edge of the table and did the alignment by eye, like lining up the sites on a rifle...edge of table, stylus, spindle. Very crude, but worked. A jig or specs would have made that much easier!
SA-708
Appalachian-American
Don't need it for alignment (because it uses p-mount cartridges) but the SL-M3 has a "manual" mode where I can start the turntable spinning without engaging the arm (handy for a quick dusting of a record with a brush) or move the arm (up, down, and across) while the platter is still (useful for measuring tracking force).
Speaking of which, if a model doesn't allow you to engage the arm without the platter spinning, how do you measure tracking force?
Speaking of which, if a model doesn't allow you to engage the arm without the platter spinning, how do you measure tracking force?
I know that two points ought to nail it, but when I was setting up an HK Rabco ST 7, I used a 3x5 card with a v groove cut to one one the lines, and was just eyeballing the lines parallelism to the rod the arm rides on. I figured if the stylus tip hit the line at all points on the line, it was the line was actually perpendicular to the stylus, but until I hit on exactly the right location for the card, I was going back and forth.
As for tracking force, Koseltri's method is the one I use, though the variable mass/tracking force weight on the LT 20 is pretty accurate. I think the ST 7 used the same method, equally accurate.
As for tracking force, Koseltri's method is the one I use, though the variable mass/tracking force weight on the LT 20 is pretty accurate. I think the ST 7 used the same method, equally accurate.
I agree, multiple points might make you feel better. I wouldn't trust the printing on a 3X5 card to be straight. But, you know, 2 points define a line so I check at the very outside and as near the inside as possible. That gives the maximum room for deviation. I got mine set within a fraction (1/4) of a millimeter. And I got to keep most of the sanity I have left.
I picked up a Technics SL-7 yesterday that comes on, spins properly, the latches lock okay but the tonearm won't move.
I got the service manual and will pull the cover off tonight to check out the belt.
Hopefully I can get it working as I really want to try it out, it seems really well built.
I got the service manual and will pull the cover off tonight to check out the belt.
Hopefully I can get it working as I really want to try it out, it seems really well built.
play a record, unplug (or turn off in my case) the turntable. platter will stop. tone arm will remain where it is. you have to measure weight with an lp there mind you, so use something you don't mind scratching up with your stylus gauge....
I specifically bought a church songs LP for this purpose for $1.
so, are linear trackers good then? I just don't like the look of them really.
yes. they are superior in theory, and from what I've seen their superior in execution with the exception that ANY turntable with poor isolation will feedback or skip if you walk around or play speakers loudly, and ANY turntable with a poor cartridge and stylus will suck, period. So with those things in mind, I feel that linear trackers are great.
there is, in some cases, more to wear out though... and they might not track bad warps all that well in the case of the short p-mount arms (vertical tracking error should be worse with a short tonearm). something unimportant to me currently.
Toad, Make sure you clean off and re-lubricate the tonearm rod and guide rail as part of your belt replacement. You will like it. And my PL-L1000 tracks warps you wouldn't believe. The 'close and play' types like most of the technics, or any type with the tonarm in the lid, are silicone-damped and don't do well with bad warps, since the arm can't 'react' fast enough.
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