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Should my tonearm look like this?

Isaac C.

Isaac C.

Cat Hoarder
Hello everyone, I just rewired this Syntec S-220 the other week and this has been bugging me. I didn't pay attention to it before disassembly, but something tells me it is not normal. At record height, the azimuth is fine, but at rest is leans to the left, and sitting on the table it leans to the right. The bearings seem fine, when I balanced it, it moves freely, barely blowing on the headshell makes it bob up and down. Also the arm tube is installed correctly. There does seem to be a tilt near the post with the horizontal bearings at certain positions. Is this an issue or is this the way the arm is made? It doesn't have antiskate so I'm not sure if this part of the design to counteract the force the record exerts pulling it towards the center. I would like some insight before I pay $$ to get a tech to look at it. Thanks!
I know this is common with unipivots but this is obviously not a unipivot. My Acos does not do this, thats what makes me wonder whats up with it.
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If that's the case, do I need to get it fixed before I use it? I tried adjusting it the other day and that is straight as I could get the bearings. They appear to be seated correctly as well.
 
No, it's not possible to do anything about it - it's the way the tonearm is designed.

This is what Syntec S-220 looks like. The angle of the bearings is offset relative to the headshell.

DB40D6E4-40F2-4017-9B80-45DC1ADF2A2B.jpeg

This is what most other tonearms look like (Audio-Technica AT-1005 in this case):

B061D234-1DD3-41FE-AAA1-F74CEF5A05D8.jpeg

As you can see, the angle of the headshell and of the vertical bearings is the same.

It shouldn't matter unless you're playing excessively warped records.
 
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I think your arm is made by Syntec (S-220, one of the best vintage arms). The Users Manual on Vinyl Engine doesn't mention it, but the picture shows 2 little Screws under the armtube, just behind the Headshell. This is the standard way to adjust Azimuth.

Stratokaster just posted as I was writing this, so I'll stop. You do NOT need to adjust anything — the Cartridge looks perfectly vertical at record height. That's what matters when playing a record. He mentions that an extreme warp can cause Azimuth to change a bit while "riding up the slope" but the change is so tiny you won't hear it and it makes no difference at all, so don't even think about it, it's just how the Syntec is. If you lift the arm high to cue it, you may also notice a slight tilt of the h'shell but it will be correct when you set it down in the groove.

Congrats on rewiring it and getting it all back together in fine factory-approved trim.
 
Ok thanks so much guys!! I have major OCD about stuff like this. When I rewired it I had to remove the vertical bearings so I could take the post out to run the wires, I was super worried I messed up the bearings or something. That's nice to know. I was reading another AK post talking about tonearms with vertical bearing offset, I didn't know that was a thing.
 
There's an argument to be made for not offsetting the bearings to match the shell. Left straight, they're equidistant from the stylus; offset, the distance varies, causing timing shifts in the reflections sent back to the cartridge. Most wouldn't notice this, but it becomes increasingly apparent as the distance between the bearings increases. By comparison, the tiny shift in azimuth is less obvious.
 
ripblade said:
There's an argument to be made for not offsetting the bearings to match the shell. Left straight, they're equidistant from the stylus; offset, the distance varies, causing timing shifts in the reflections sent back to the cartridge. Most wouldn't notice this, but it becomes increasingly apparent as the distance between the bearings increases. By comparison, the tiny shift in azimuth is less obvious.
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I think the main argument for a bearing axis perpendicular to the arm tube is the counterweight motion, it is up and down as opposed to moving in a more complex arc in both planes, but there are great designs using both methods, turntables are full of compromises :)
 
The Slider said:
I think the main argument for a bearing axis perpendicular to the arm tube is the counterweight motion, it is up and down as opposed to moving in a more complex arc in both planes, but there are great designs using both methods, turntables are full of compromises :)
Click to expand...
Another good point...
 
Place thin washer on the low side to get stylus vertical when placed on a record. Cheaper than a SME tone arm.
 
Now that I look at my Acos I see exactly what you mean, the vertical bearings in the gimbal are perpendicular to the headshell. I learn something new every day, that is extremely fascinating.
 
Before I got super anxious about this issue and I was listening to it for the first time after the rewire, it gave my Acos a run for its money. Same stylus and cartridge. Vocals are super crisp with this arm.
 
I'm just amazed at how knowledgeable ya'll are with this stuff. I mean, I started off not knowing the difference between a headshell and cartridge hahaha. But now I know how to recap, rewire, and restore equipment. But some of ya'lls knowledge is obviously decades of learning, I would like to get to that level eventually. Everyone's help is greatly appreciated!
 
ripblade said:
That's the timing thing I was talking about. Everything should be super crisp...
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I've got a 1977 Londons Collector Edition of Genesis's debut album - In the Beginning and Gabriel's vocals are already phenomenal, but it sounds like he is standing right there singing into the mic with this tonearm.
 
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