HiFi News Test Record Azimuth

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.

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.

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.

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.