by Skaffern » 28 May 2011 14:53
Hello everyone.
I just wonder how can you identify the AT carts like the one for AT95E, they has no numbers on the cartridge house.
I can come with several AT carts name who looks the same and I have several needles who will fit the same house. Like the needles for ATN3401, ATN 3410, ATN3450, ATN3451/93, ATN3451E/95E, ATN3452E, ATN3400C, ATN3450C and ATN3450L all this one will fit the same cartridge.
The composition and construction of the cantilever have the greatest impact on the frequency response range of the cartridge. The really good ones are expensive.
The cantilever is the larger, more visible piece that connects the stylus tip to the magnetic coils in the cartridge. It is a part of the replaceable stylus assembly. To work optimally, the cantilever must be very stiff, so that it accurately transmits the mechanical signal, and also very light, so that it does not impede the rapid acceleration of the stylus assembly back and forth. Making it both stiff and light requires the use of exotic materials and nano-assembly procedures. It's not just the stylus that matters.
The cheapest type diamond is Spherical, and is to be avoided. Elliptical diamond styli are acceptable, but you're better off with a smaller sized one, i. e. 0.3 mil by 0.7 mil is better than 0.4 mil by 0.7 mil. Smaller styli fit more accurately into the groove and match the contours of the groove wall better.
Premium needles are often called Linear Contact, Micro Line, etc. These are much more accurately cut and are designed to have the exact same shape as the cutting stylus that made the original master disc.
The best is to have the stylus meet the groove wall over the largest amount of surface area as possible.
Its not only the cartridge and needle who need to be correct.
There are a few other critical adjustments too.
Your ear may also be your best test instrument.
You need a level turntable. Use a quality carpenter's level. Some people like the Shure stylus force gage for setting stylus pressure accurately. Other tools which are well recommended are the Geo-disk, a good protractor, and above all, the Cart-Align, which uses a very precise etched plastic mirror for cantilever alignment.
You'll also want to set the tracking angle. It CAN be done by eyeball, but is best done with test instrumentation and a record. There is also the cartridge angle, tonearm height, etc. Read the instructions which came with your tonearm for the best specific advice for that tonearm.
Tonearm cable is more critical than any cable anywhere else in the signal chain. Cable capacitance directly sets the high frequency characteristics of the cartridge. In addition, the correct grounding of the shield is essential to minimize hum. It may be necessary to change preamp input capacitors so that the cable/preamp combination loads the cartridge with the right overall capacitance. Replacing tonearm cable will have a similar effect, but may be harder to change tonearm cable than to change preamp input capacitors. Consult the cartridge, tonearm, and preamp manuals for specific advice.
Stylus pressure.
Do not, under any circumstances, use a lower than recommended force, as the cartridge may lose the ability to maintain contact with the groove wall on passages of large amplitude. This WILL result in RECORD DAMAGE.
If you want the best possible tracking and sound quality, you will want to fine-tune the tracking force. Use a test record and listen very carefully.
Set the anti-skating on a tonearm.
If you have a recommendation or suggestion from the tonearm manufacturer, follow their advice first. They will give you the best starting point.
Some tonearms come with calibrated anti-skate. The manufacturer of these tonearms has tried to calibrate the anti-skate control so that if you match the setting of the anti-skate to the setting of the stylus pressure, you will have nearly perfect anti-skate. Read the manufacturer's recommendations to see if this applies to your tonearm.
You can see gross errors in anti-skate by looking at the stylus. If you shine a light on the front of the tonearm while playing a record, you will be able to see whether the stylus is centered in the stylus holder. If the stylus is biased to one side or another while playing a record, then the anti-skate is way off.
Its a lot of different adjustments who are critical before the turntable, arm, cartridge and needle are perfect adjusted for listening to your favorite music.
