Tracking Force

Rather than starting a new thread, I'm going to try resurrecting this one with a slightly adjusted scenario. I've got a Pioneer PL-530 and I've recently mounted up a Denon DL-301ii cart. When setting it to the recommended tracking force (1.4g ± 0.2g, checked on my scale) it sounds a little sparse and the highs are a bit harsh). The closer I get to 2g or even a smidge over the better it sounds. I think the cart is a pretty good match for the arm. Is this just a matter of needing to wait for the cart to break in at 1.4 - or - should I say screw it and run where it sounds best? 

Dear Slick: You could have ( too ) a mis-match between the Pioneer tonearm and the Grado cartridge or maybe the tonearm ( alone ) is not working properly, these could be another posibilities to examine.

regards and enjoy the music.
raul.

The key to the tonearm not jumping the groove is damping. I used to use a Shure M97xE; with the damper brush deployed it would track anything, and I mean records with a 1/2" wave at the outer edge. And it was tracking at 1.25 to 1.5g.

Since then I've moved on to a much better sounding Denon DL-160, but I added KAB's damping trough to my Technics SL1210. This setup will also track the most hideously warped records at 1.6g.

Dear Slikric300: The cartridge manufacturer VTF advise range is where that cartridge perform at its best ( was designed for that ), out of those VTF limits degrade its performance: if it is lower than the low VTF limit the cartridge could skip on playing records/track and add a lot of tracking distortions to the sound reproduction and could damage your LPs, at the other side ( VTF up limit ) the sound performance suffer too a degradation but for other factors: when you set the VTF of a cartridge higher than its up limit the cartridge's suspension will work out of its limits making that increment the tracking distortion and that that suspension go out of work a lot before of what will be its " normal " life, that higher VTF could means too that the coild will be out of center and this fact is a sound reproduction heavy degradation, the higher VTF could damage your LP's too and the cartridge stylus.

There are other subjects about but IMHO you have to set the cartridge VTF as is the manufacturer advise if you have problems with what you are hearing with that >VTF then maybe the cartridge is out of specs and you have to look for dealer/manufacturer support.

Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Considering that optimising your cartridge performance with adjustments of as little 1/100 of a gram can make audible improvement, I think you're way out of line and certainly not getting the intended sound quality. Get a record clamp, outer ring clamp/weight and/or a record press for your warped LPs.

By "hilly ones" I assume you mean warped. If it were me, I'd keep the VTF at a more reasonable setting and find a better copy of those warped LPs. You may not be hurting the records but you are squashing the life out of the cartridge's suspension. That can't sound as good as it should and it may shorten the cart's lifespan.

I had a Grado Sonata low output and it tracked anything at the manufacturers suggested tracking weight. Remember as you add (or subtract) VTF, you should adjust the VTA

Tracking heavy is said to be better than tracking light because less damage is done to a record if the cartridge is stable.Tracking at 3 could be a bit much.You could probably be alright at 2 but you may have a set-up issue it seems.