HiFi News Test Record Azimuth

Uh oh. Least important spec in all of cartridge setup. You will now be subjected to thousands of words to the contrary. After which if you spend an inordinate amount of time and money chasing this rabbit you will be forced by cognitive dissonance to agree with them. Cognitive dissonance being the mental condition that prohibits you from realizing you screwed up. Even though we all screw up all the time, indeed it is the normal way of the world, still we refuse to think of ourselves in this way. And so once having devoted untold hours of effort trying to understand and achieve perfect azimuth, winding up right back where you started, rather than admit it was a waste of time you will tell the next one how critically important it is. And so the wheels on the bus go round and round.  

First of all adjust the azimuth visually (without test record). 

I use the  Analogue Productions - The Ultimate Analogue Test LP and measure test tone with the Fozgometer.  Testing by ears can be difficult if that's what the HiFi News Test Record requires.  Always best to have some sort of measuring device (oscilloscope is another option) for the test tone.  

If you are going to adjust azimuth "visually" (Chakster), then you really ought not to have a tonearm with azimuth adjustment capability, because in most tonearms, the default position of the headshell will already give you 90 degrees of azimuth, assuming that is the goal Chak has in mind. After decades of fiddling with azimuth and in fact being motivated to buy my triplanar tonearm for the very fact that it permits easy azimuth adjustment, I have come down on the nihilist point of view put forth by MC. Incorrect azimuth adjustment, in my opinion, can do more damage to the stylus, to the LP, and to the SQ, than can just going with 90 degrees. Yes, in some cases with some cartridges, that will be not the perfect solution, and in those cases perhaps also damage can be done. But I decided in the past few years, I can live with that. I also own a Reed tonearm with azimuth adjustment, and I own a Signet Cartridge Analyzer which permits adjusting azimuth electrically, using a Shure test LP which I own. I don’t use them any longer (the Signet Analyzer and the test LP; of course I do use the Reed tonearm with azimuth set to 90 degrees [top of headshell parallel to LP surface]).

I get @millercarbon because from the outside to the inside - particularly with a weight/screw-down there is a curve/dish to the record. That said the hi Fi news adjustment is quite useful. Dr Feickhert at a talk informed the audience that mc’s almost always have a sideways tension on the cantilever by their nature/design. Shame there is no cheap plug in to check - both fozgometer and feickhert software aren’t cheap😢

I recently set up azimuth on a new cartridge with a VTA/Azimuth block - output was unbalanced. Then used a Fozgometer and got equal output but no magic. Then an o-scope and found 75/150 mv crosstalk. Adjusted it to 65/80 mv. Slightly unbalanced output but Glorious sound. Lesson?  Measure the right thing and azimuth matters a lot.

If you are going to adjust azimuth "visually" (Chakster), then you really ought not to have a tonearm with azimuth adjustment capability, because in most tonearms, the default position of the headshell will already give you 90 degrees of azimuth... 

-On many tonearms without azimuth adjustment detachable headshell can be rotated a a bit in tonearm's bayonet. Correction always needed. 

-There are also headshells with azimuth adjustment. 

-There are also tonearms like Reed 3p with azimuth on the fly. 

But I adjust visually anyway (looking at the cartridge body and cantilever), I have the same Hi-Fi News Test LP.

  

Wlutke, just want to make the point that azimuth adjustment is not done to correct channel imbalance; it’s done to minimize crosstalk. Adjusting azimuth does have a small effect on balance but the resulting angle required to produce a small change in balance will be ridiculously to one side or the other of 90 degrees, thus endangering the stylus and the LP if used that way for any length of time, and it will be way off the angle for optimal crosstalk.

Adjusting azimuth affects crosstalk and relative phase of the two channels.

People can accept some level of crosstalk, particularly from speakers since you're hearing each speaker with both ears, but many cartridges (particularly less expensive ones) may have crosstalk in the -20dB range which isn't great. Getting crosstalk to at least -30dB is better. A digital system will usually have crosstalk better than -80dB across the entire frequency response. And I've read that -40dB is about the threshold at which people don't really care much or notice anymore. (Not sure how correct that number is.)

But more egregious phase differences can really mess up the sound. If you imagine a singer but their voice is coming out of your left and right speakers are slightly different times, it will sound really off and bad. And that is what will happen with all of the instruments.

That being said, you need to correct azimuth and phase electrically or using software. The actual physical location that needs to be calibrated is inside the cartridge, where the magnet and coils are, and their alignment is not perfect with the cantilever. Small 0.25° of change in the azimuth make a difference in the measured crosstalk and phase. But that's a very difficult angle of change to try and measure by sight. And every cartridge's internal alignment is slightly different, even of the same make and model.

This is why paying for a professional calibration can be worth it. You can of course learn how to do it yourself and purchase the necessary tools and/of software. Alternatively, don't worry about it too much and just enjoy your music if it already sounds good to you.

That's not it. Everyone's missing it. The problem is there are at least three different aspects, and while yes they all matter there really is no way of aligning them all- unless it was done right at the factory.

From the ground up we have the azimuth of the stylus. This affects the stylus ability to accurately trace the groove. Then there is the azimuth of the generator. This can be MM, MC or MI, doesn't matter from the point of view of azimuth they are all the same and this definitely affects crosstalk. This is the one we are adjusting with test records.

Then there is the azimuth of the cartridge body, which is what we all see and know. We trust that the manufacturer built all this stuff in alignment, that the generator is not twisted within the cartridge body, that the stylus is not cockeyed on the cantilever. 

If they did then we can simply eyeball azimuth and be done. But if not then we get to play around with test record after test record, and can easily spend a small fortune in time and money on all the various ways of trying to second guess whether or not the dang thing was made the way it looks like it was made!

Maybe with a cheap cartridge that is a viable question. But cheap carts go on cheap arms, and they tend to not have a lot of adjustments. VTA is far more important, and look how few have VTA on the fly. By the time you get into the expensive arms and cartridges that have azimuth adjustment, well if you don't trust your mega buck cart to be built right why'd you buy it in the first place? So the whole thing is whack.

Finally, I notice we have a recent thread where the poor new guy was turned off vinyl, and why? Because of all the navel-gazers obsessed with every micro minutia theory who kept telling him how impossible it is to play a record. It is not impossible. It is easy. Just go back and read the second sentence of my first post again and relax and enjoy the music.

@lewm  when you find the Triplaner redundant, please let me know !!! I need another 

lewm,
Exactly.  That was the lesson.

Triplanar will not be for sale, except maybe from my estate.

By the way, the TP azimuth adjustment, because it’s achieved by twisting the arm wand, also affects zenith. This for me is another reason to set azimuth for 90 degrees and forget it.

The August issue of Stereophile Michael Fremer does a well written  article about cartridge setup. He uses Wallytools and oscilloscope.
It is a good read. I’m getting ready to purchase the Wallytool and get a new oscilloscope. My oscilloscope is very old. Be nice if a few people in your audio circle would go in together to buy needed tools. There not cheap but not outrageous in price What we do to get a micro small diamond to sound great. Joenies

+1 rdk777

"I use the  Analogue Productions - The Ultimate Analogue Test LP and measure test tone with the Fozgometer."

Cut and dry

I have the HiFi News test record, the bias tracks are a waste of time but I use the resonance tracks and I’ve tried the azimuth track, mono button depressed, but it’s very hard with a pure tone to gauge its relative volume to that you heard even a few seconds ago. There is a lower level tone just before the main tone and this is possibly more useful if adjusted to barely audible on that but it’s very hard to be sure when you have it minimised even so. I have a threaded azimuth weight inside the counterweight on my arm so I do the best I can with the test record then put a stereo disc on with good depth to the image, deselect mono on the pre and try either side of the setting from the test record, judged by the angle of the screwdriver blade in the adjuster, and listen for any change in soundstage. This has helped finalise my setting but you need to be close or there’s nothing to hear. 
I should get an oscilloscope I suppose, and one of those USB microscopes rather than use the cartridge body if Framer’s right about the QC levels of some of the cartridge manufacturers and he may be, as I found a Transfiguration Proteus I had for 5 years, and thought I had set pretty well, beaten by the SPU Royal N that replaced it in my system even when I didn’t have enough antiskate set. (This latter I know from the skewed cantilever it developed after a year.)

As lewm suggested the important issue is record wear. To minimize this it is important that the stylus be perpendicular to the record. With well made cartridges this will also optimize crosstalk. The easiest way to get the stylus perpendicular to the record is to look at it. You can increase your accuracy dramatically by putting the stylus down on a mirror the thickness of a 180 Gm record. With two lights aimed at the sides of the stylus you will see a distinct hourglass shape. If it is leaning to one side or the other adjust the azimuth until it is perfectly upright and symmetrical which is painfully easy to see, even for somebody who listens to Tekton loudspeakers. This method is more than accurate enough in regard to record wear. If the geometry of the cartridge is off it will not optimize audio performance. The solution to this dilemma is to get a better cartridge or maybe get a warranty replacement. 
The one tool that really makes this easy is the SmarTractor. With the stylus down on the mirrored surface you can use it's special magnifier to give you the big picture. Brilliant if expensive tool. 

I’ll go with MC’s #1

Analog is not perfect. Importance is based on sound quality.

While listening, sibilance will turn into detail with longer trails when azimuth is correct.

While somewhat closely related to Anti-Skating, more than other setup parameters, the objective in simple terms is to get the U shaped stylus properly oriented in the V shaped groove for optimal contact of the groove walls.

Use of Acoustic Sounds Ultimate Analogue Test LP and Fozgometer can often be optimal is my go to for starters. Realize though that we are introducing an electrical variable to a mechanical measurement and coil separation differences between channels can sometimes mess things up.

boothroyd, Preservation of your records will do a whole lot more for sound quality than an overpriced meter will ever hope to. The mirror method will properly orient the diamond and if the cartridge is well made the coils also. If it's not...then what does it matter. Crosstalk in cartridges is terrible to begin with, a dB here or there really does not matter. I have checked the mirror method with my Hi Fi News record and an oscilloscope. I check every cartridge when I set it up for the first time to make sure it is constructed well. Every cartridge I have gotten since I have been doing this has been easily within a dB. In other words most cartridges are well made today and the mirror method gets you real close while optimizing record wear. The benefit being no need to waste money on a meter.

The mirror method will properly orient the diamond and if the cartridge is well made the
coils also. 

What is the mirror method?

kunalraiker

What is the mirror method?

You can use the reflection of the bottom of a phono cartridge in a mirror to set azimuth, by ensuring the bottom of the cartridge is parallel to its reflection.

Some mirrored phono alignment gauges also include a point indicating proper overhang for the stylus, and a line inscribed on the mirror to aid in setting horizontal tracking angle ("zenith"). In use, the user aligns the reflection of the line so it evenly aligns with the phono cartridge cantilever.

The older Wallytractor gauges work this way. It’s more difficult to describe than it is in actual use.

The mirror method will properly orient the diamond and if the cartridge is well made the
coils also.

What is the mirror method?

If the cartridge is well made then the stylus is aligned with the cantilever is aligned with the generator is aligned with the body. Therefore we can look at the body. So what do we need a mirror for? 

Audiophiles always making things unnecessarily, illogically, complicated.

All fear aside, the wonderful thing about analog is that if it sounds good, it is good.

 I whole heartedly agree on eliminating unnecessary setup tools. A trusty metal Dennison & a few other pieces, bits and records can get me as far down the road as any system will allow. I must say though, access to a real microscope can be a big plus if things don’t come together from a way off microscopic stylus alignment.
After 200x viewing of enough cartridge styli under the big lens, I fail to see the importance of many procedures which promote intense alignment to objects that simply don’t matter.

Like driving, we must be aware of the contact patch.

A straight forward setup is the best place to begin the combing-through process. The more serious the stylus profile - the more work you’ll have to comb through.

What is a good and easy microscope that you would recommend?

The electron microscope. By far the best images are obtained with electron microscopy. What is especially lovely about this is it only works with metal. So the record is cut up, the stylus and record and everything vapor deposition coated with metal. The beauty of this is you have a super clear image that totally absolutely destroys the cartridge and record. Which is pretty much what you do when you start dissecting anything this obsessively.

Audiophiles can suffer, because only Flat Profile from the lead-in groove to the run-out groove can guarantee there is no pitch to the profile, allowing your stylus to play truly perpendicular to the grooves from edge to center.

For better understanding we have to cut the vinyl in two pieces in the middle and look at the profile thickness, conventional vinyl record profile is thicker under the label area and thinner on the edge. In this situation (if you don’t have azimuth adjustment) you stylus is is not perpendicular to the record surface, because the thickness of the record is different from lean-in groove to run-out groove.

Conventional records does not have a flat profile like those flat profile pressing of the early Blue Note from the ’50s for example. If you cut such record in the middle you will see the profile is absolutely flat (same thickness everywhere).

Who else nowadays can press a flat profile and UHQR except for the Quality Record Pressings and Anlogue Productions?

Probably most of us have been listening to our records with cartridge azimuth slightly off, did you noticed that by ears? Or does it change anything in your enjoyment with vinyl over the last 20-40 years?

millercarbon

If the cartridge is well made then the stylus is aligned with the cantilever is aligned with the generator is aligned with the body. Therefore we can look at the body. So what do we need a mirror for?

Using the reflection magnifies the error, which makes alignment more precise.

chakster

... only Flat Profile from the lead-in groove to the run-out groove can guarantee there is no pitch to the profile, allowing your stylus to play truly perpendicular to the grooves from edge to center ... look at the profile thickness, conventional vinyl record profile is thicker under the label area and thinner on the edge ...

That’s true only if your turntable’s platter is flat. Mine is recessed under the label area, and the LP overhangs the platter because the platter does not extend to the raised lip. A reflex clamp tightens the LP to the platter so it always lays flat. No platter mat.

@cleeds No, I think you didn’t get the point. It’s not about platter, mat or clamp or ring weight that anyone can use. It’s about vinyl record profile (you can’t change it), the so called “flat profile” is new feature of Analogue Productions and they explained very well what it is. The reference is Blue Note flat profile vinyl pressing from the ‘50s.

kunaraiker, there seems to be some confusion about what the "mirror method" is. It is extremely simple unless you are millercarbon. You are not aligning the cartridge, you are aligning the stylus. To minimize record and stylus wear the stylus (not the cartridge) has to be perfectly perpendicular to the groove. If you place a pocket mirror under the stylus, the stylus and it's reflection in the mirror form an hourglass shape. This doubles the error when the stylus is not perpendicular making it very easy to see. You can easily get the stylus within a few minutes of a perfect 90 degrees. You adjust the azimuth until the "hourglass" is perfectly symmetrical and upright. Lighting is important. Two flashlights usually works great. I use to be able to do it easily by eye only but now I find a little magnification helps. I used loops until I got a SmarTractor which has a mirrored surface and a great magnifier. 
As VTA changes azimuth will change so it helps to have a mirror the thickness of a 150 gm record.
I do not care at all about crosstalk. 

chakster

@cleeds No, I think you didn’t get the point. It’s not about platter, mat or clamp or ring weight that anyone can use. It’s about vinyl record profile (you can’t change it)

@chakster I understand your point about the LP's profile. My point is that it can still be made to lay flat by designing the platter around that profile.

Here is Chad about the history of FLAT PROFILE pressing (at 2:11 in this video). There is a JVC brochure with an example of their FLAT FACE and flat edge UHQR and conventional pressing @cleeds