Test Lp

shure era IV if you can find one

What do you want to test? There are a number of test LPs and many are useless. There are a few good one for different areas of playback, but need to know what you are looking for.
Bob

If you can only have one test lp, this is the one to get. The Cardas Frequency Sweep and Test LP is the one that most people find the most useful. Besides tracks that are helpful for setup, it also has a frequency sweep that helps keep your analog chain sounding great.

The Hi-Fi News and Record Review Test LP is also useful for setup. I use it mainly for testing the resonant frequency of the arm and cartridge combo I'm using at the time. Most people don't use the tracks designed to test anti-skate as they are just not realistic. That is, by the time you set anti-skate high enough to pass these torture tracks you will be squashing the dynamics out of the music.

Shure V15 Era IV - Test record -good for testing your turntable tonearm and cartridge only, helpful in finding resonant frequency of tonearm cartridge. This was designed and optimized for the Shure with the dampening brush.

Cardas visit cardas site to view.

Hi Fi News may be hard to find in the U.S.

Listeing test:

*Opus 3 Depth of Field on vinyl Helps you determine if sound stage has depth, width, etc.

Ohm made a nice test record back in the day on vinyl

NAD made a demonstration record that was interesting

* Bose made a Demo record that has cuts, from various Mercury Living Presence recordings ( cost between $10 and $40 on Ebay)Make sure it is mint. You will enjoy it. It covers the entire spectrum.

All mentioned above is vintage test and demo records.

Thanks for all input.

Because i never own one i am looking for the one it can cover most realistic parts that effect the most in the analog set up such as left/right channel, high, mid, low, resonance...
Has anyone tried Ultimate Analog Test Lp that is listed on Acousticsounds.com

Hello Houstonreef, I adjust VTA, tracking force, and anti-skate by ear. The walker website goes into more detail. On my system it is easy to hear anti-skate adjustments of as little as 1/8 gram.

If I could only take one of my test LP's to a desert island I'd choose the one with a gatefold cover. It would provide more shade!

As Headsnappin' and Dan_Ed said, you're more likely to be misled then well led by the tracks on many of them. Learn to adjust by listening to music, you'll be much better off. The Walker site and the archived threads here have more practical info than a dozen test records.

I do use the Cardas LP but only for its frequency sweeps, which clear the cobwebs out of the system and keep things sounding clear. That's not setup however, it's maintenance.