Audiomods Series 5 tonearm Alignment Example

Andrew from UK

Audiomods Tonearm on Rega RP6

The Mint protractor was received today (8 days from HK which is very good) and I had an afternoon to install it in peace and quiet.
I found this quite easy because I have used Conrad Hoffman & other printed protractors previously and already knew how to go about setting the overhang etc, having done this many times over the years with my two current Turntables.
The cartridge I am using below is an AT150ANV

My TT already sounded excellent and I had resigned myself to just one or two LP tracks where there was very slight mistracking on one channel in a couple of places (but never inner groove so I put it down to previous damage). I expected a little improvement but nothing dramatic.

What I never expected was the easily audible step-up in imaging, clarity and tracking after using the Mint.
I have just played the worst two albums and there is no mistracking whatsoever. This is amazing !

I was quite cynical that I would hear a difference but like everyone else seems to find, this tool achieves exactly what it sets out to do

I also found that when I first placed the stylus exactly centre of the arc line at the outer extreme of the Mint, when moved to the inner & almost touching the spindle, it was about 1mm back so even though I had adjusted my printer to 4 decimal places and checked with a scale rule, the printed arc was clearly still quite a way off being correct for this arm at 221.5mm pivot-spindle

I give the process I used as below. I had good lighting from several directions + above and I used your 3x magnifier together with a 20x loupe for hitting the protractor line very precisely in the middle. It is also worth thoroughly brushing the stylus/cantilever first to remove all fluff because at x20 it is very clear and precise

….In all, less than 2 hours and very easy and enjoyable. Plenty of practice on less accurate paper protractors meant I was at ease and calm and it helps a lot to know what you are doing.

Your product is fantastic to use and the results are even better !

Now it just so happens that my other Rega (Planar 3) TT has the same unmodified arm as the Audiomods (RB303, originally from the RP6 above) and also deliberately aligned at 221.5mm spindle-pivot (I set it this way using the same platter counterweight/calibrated ruler I showed you when I measured the RP6).

The Mint also fits exactly onto that Groovetracer spindle so I will repeat this process with my other TT and Ortofon 2M Black. Sorry you don’t get a second sale but as you can see I am quite a precise person and made sure both arms & spindle-pivot were as identical as I could make them

I know you have heard this so many times before but you are one of the finest people with one of the most precise products i have dealt with in this hobby so thank you Mr Yip. I wish you ongoing health and success

Andrew from UK Audiomods Tonearm on Rega RP6 The Mint protractor was received today (8 days from HK which is very good) and I had an afternoon to install it in peace and quiet. I found this quite easy because I have used Conrad Hoffman & other printed protractors previously and already knew how to go about setting the overhang etc, having done this many times over the years with my two current Turntables. The cartridge I am using below is an AT150ANV My TT already sounded excellent and I had resigned myself to just one or two LP tracks where there was very slight mistracking on one channel in a couple of places (but never inner groove so I put it down to previous damage). I expected a little improvement but nothing dramatic. What I never expected was the easily audible step-up in imaging, clarity and tracking after using the Mint. I have just played the worst two albums and there is no mistracking whatsoever. This is amazing ! I was quite cynical that I would hear a difference but like everyone else seems to find, this tool achieves exactly what it sets out to do I also found that when I first placed the stylus exactly centre of the arc line at the outer extreme of the Mint, when moved to the inner & almost touching the spindle, it was about 1mm back so even though I had adjusted my printer to 4 decimal places and checked with a scale rule, the printed arc was clearly still quite a way off being correct for this arm at 221.5mm pivot-spindle I give the process I used as below. I had good lighting from several directions + above and I used your 3x magnifier together with a 20x loupe for hitting the protractor line very precisely in the middle. It is also worth thoroughly brushing the stylus/cantilever first to remove all fluff because at x20 it is very clear and precise
I raised the anti-skate counterweight onto a small pot and made sure that as the arm tracked the platter, the nylon chord remained slack so there was zero bias. I also placed a blob of Blu-Tac (visible beforehand in the picture) onto the rear of the main counterweight to achieve half the standard tracking force (checked with digital scales). Audiomods arms use a small threaded lower stub counterweight and turning this this was sufficient to re-set tracking force after using the Mint and after removal of the temporary Blu-Tac. This avoids moving the main counterweight again
Sliding the Mint onto the Groovetracer spindle was extremely ’snug' but a perfect fit. I put three soft wedges under the TT platter to stop movement and checked with 2 bubble levels as below. The one on the protractor confirmed it was completely level at all places on the arc, likewise for the small one on the headshell, You can see both bubbles are exactly in the centre. I used the Audiomods arm micrometer to equalise arm height so this second bubble was also correct. Everything was now ready….
Next I used the standard procedure to achieve overhang - quite easy using the 20x magnifier shown below, the small screwdriver and very steady hands combined with the ‘force’ you mention in the instructions ! Once overhang was set, I taped the Mint carefully to the platter and re-checked at both the extreme inner and outer points on the arc to make sure I was still centred on the line.
Finally, offset angle was set. This is a fabulous feature of the Mint Protractor and an absolute joy. Firstly I used the small 20x magnifier viewing from the front to check I was exactly on the centre line, then your 3x magnifier as shown below to check parallax and twisted the headshell slightly left until spot-on. After that I also re checked both the extreme inner and outer points on the arc once more to confirm the stylus was still centred at all points. A tiny adjustment and then another check against parallax. Repeated until perfect (or men in white coats came to take me away to an asylum…..)
After gently removing the protractor from the platter (the only nerve-wracking part of the process, very gentle twisting and lifting eventually freed it) & the counterweight Blu-Tac I then used my digital scales to re adjust tracking force, finally removing the small pot under the anti-skate chord and the 3 platter wedges ….In all, less than 2 hours and very easy and enjoyable. Plenty of practice on less accurate paper protractors meant I was at ease and calm and it helps a lot to know what you are doing. Your product is fantastic to use and the results are even better ! Now it just so happens that my other Rega (Planar 3) TT has the same unmodified arm as the Audiomods (RB303, originally from the RP6 above) and also deliberately aligned at 221.5mm spindle-pivot (I set it this way using the same platter counterweight/calibrated ruler I showed you when I measured the RP6). The Mint also fits exactly onto that Groovetracer spindle so I will repeat this process with my other TT and Ortofon 2M Black. Sorry you don’t get a second sale but as you can see I am quite a precise person and made sure both arms & spindle-pivot were as identical as I could make them I know you have heard this so many times before but you are one of the finest people with one of the most precise products i have dealt with in this hobby so thank you Mr Yip. I wish you ongoing health and success