Set up tips
The meaning of tight
There is a great deal of debate about how tightly you should tighten all of the little
screws and bolts when setting up a turntable. While we will not offer our thoughts on
other manufacturers recommendations, we thought you should know about our
recommendations for our turntable.
Tom Fletcher (Founder and head designer at Nottingham Analogue) says: “You
should tighten just enough to hold in place. Our turntables are generally on the warm
side of neutral, by tightening you have the ability to raise frequencies slightly. There are
not many situations where this will help.” Over tightening things will raise the frequency
of the turntable thereby exaggerating surface noise and making the table bright and
strident.
Thoughts on VTA
Setting VTA causes a great deal of anxiety. I’ve never really understood why in
light of the fact that no records are really the same thickness. Take a variety of records
and listen.
Tom says: “Start with the arm parallel to the record. No diamond on the end of
the styli is where it should be, so adjust the VTA up /down until you hear the best
possible compromise. This is done in conjunction with the bias. Test records will not do
the job for you, they may get you to the right haystack, but you will have to find the
needle.”
Thoughts on Bias (anti-skate)
A good place to start is to set the stylus on the blank space between the lead out
grooves. Adjust the bias weight until the stylus runs neither to the inside nor to the
outside of the record. The dynamics of blank plastic are not the same as when the stylus
is in the groove, so once you’ve done this add some bias, subtract some bias and listen.
Tom says: “On some cartridges, the bias mechanics can be used more beneficially
if there are two small bias weights on the end of the lever. Some moving coils can need
two bias weights, but these are the exception rather than the rule.” Call us at Audiophile
Systems if you need additional weights.
Motor height
The motor height is adjustable and it is important to line up the grooves on the
pulley with the grooves on the platter. Make sure the table is leveled first. If you need to
raise or lower the motor, do so by pushing on the motor itself. It is snug in its housing,
but it will move.
DO NOT PUSH ON THE PULLEY!
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