Reading all this, you can see how intellectual arguments can lead anywhere(especially if you get one thing wrong). I use parameters as an outside guiding force-not the be all and end all of all things. You need to get in the ballpark(with these), and then use your ears to actually hear what anti-skate does. I think, once again, focusing on one aspect of the sound, is a mistake. You can make a minute adjustment-let's say one where the channels seem correctly balanced-but find, after sleeping on it, that your desire to listen has diminished. This method introduces your subconscious, which holds many more parameters than your conscious, or intellectual mind. In short, adjust anti-skate based on what anti-skate actually does(learned by incremental changes to it), and not what it does to your system(heck, your speakers could be positioned slightly off, or you amp is slightly different between the channels, etc.).
Lyra Atlas experiences
A few years ago, I invested in a Lyra Atlas cartridge / pickup. I have moved up, from Lyra Clavis in the early 2000s and Lyra Titan i later. The Atlas was expensive, but I have not looked back. Yet I wonder, can something more be done, to optimize the Atlas, in my system, and others. How can this remarkable pickup run its best. What are the best phono preamp and system matches. Should the system be rearranged. Have anyone done mods or DIYs to their systems to get the "reception" right? What happened? Comments welcome. You dont need to own a Lyra Atlas but you should have heard it, to join this discussion. Comments from the folks at Lyra are extra welcome - what is your experience.
Oystein
Oystein