Straight Tonearm + Integrated Headshell = Bad for Records???

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hey, guys.
a friend of mine gave me his stanton str8-80 turntable. it has a stanton groovemaster cart on it, with a straight tonearm. for some reason i've always thought these type of carts were for s shaped arms only. he says that isn't true.

so... is it bad for records?.

Creeztophair, Saturday, 5 November 2011 19:50 (twelve years ago) link

blah

Creeztophair, Sunday, 6 November 2011 04:19 (twelve years ago) link

I wouldn't say it's bad for records, but people generally want to adjust their cartridges their own way.

bamcquern, Sunday, 6 November 2011 05:53 (twelve years ago) link

i hooked the TT up to my receiver and it sounds beautiful. i went to a stereo shop down the street to buy a new stylus and the guy told me it's the best cart stanton make. very happy right now.

Creeztophair, Sunday, 6 November 2011 07:02 (twelve years ago) link

I suppose linear-tracking tonearms (where the back of the tonearm slides leftward as the record plays, keeping the tonearm at an exact 90 degrees and thus the stylus at a perfect tangent, which is how records are cut) are best, since the usual pivoting tonearms are inherently slightly out of alignment at the beginning and end of record playback. But in practice this is generally unnoticeable in either record/needle wear or sound quality.

I don't see how S-shaped vs. straight tonearms have any effect on cartridge placement, much less being "bad for records". The cartridge winds up in exactly the same place and angle with either.

Everything else is secondary (Lee626), Sunday, 6 November 2011 18:38 (twelve years ago) link

yeah, i'm not sure why i thought that... i swear i read it somewhere.

Creeztophair, Monday, 7 November 2011 00:23 (twelve years ago) link


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