Clearaudio Concept Setup

[richidoo]

My friend Den from Charlotte helped me with my setup today. He has a higher model of Clearaudio TT and he has his dialed in so he had some good suggestions.

Using his recommended printed protractor I found that the cart body was straight, but the stylus was angled off a couple degrees. I loosened the cart screws and there was enough slop to dial out the bent needle. The arm has foolproof cart mount that doesn't allow much yaw adjustment. But there was just enough. I didn't notice that the needle was off when I used Pman's Geodisk a couple months ago.

Den also told me that the VTF changes a little with VTA adjustments, so I rechecked that and I found it was way off, like 3+g! I did set that recently, but I obviously f'd it up.  I readjusted that down to 2.2g as recommended for the cart.

I cleaned the stylus with MoFi LP#9 and inspected it. There was a micro dust hair hanging off the stylus. I pulled it off with tweezies and stuck on a record that I listen to a lot, Mulligan and Desmond, Two of a Mind.

Wowzies!! What a huge improvement. Just better in every way. More detail, denser tone, more space, deeper and louder bass. I could hear the very slight echo in the reverb on Desmond's sax.

Thanks to Den for the big assist.

[rollo]

  Coolio Richidoo. Next time clean that stylus with a small piece of Blu-tak or equivilent. Just drop the styus on it and lift after 3 seconds or so. Cleaner than clean, newer than new , better than better, better and improved and so on. 



charles

[richidoo]

Thanks Charles. I have ZeroDust sticky blob needle cleaner but it would not remove this piece of lint, nor did liquid cleaner. It must have been wrapped around something. Blu Tack is a good idea.

[toobluvr]

Use a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to make your stylus like brand new.  Works amazing!     

How to clean your stylus with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser

[Triode Pete]

Use a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser to make your stylus like brand new.  Works amazing!     

How to clean your stylus with a Mr. Clean Magic Eraser

Yes, very effective! Been doing that for ~5 years... got the idea from the gentleman who makes the Bren1 record clamps...

Cool!

[richidoo]

Thank you Gentlemen!  I have scrubbed crayons off of walls with it, works like a miracle... but not tried it on stylus - yet!

[tmazz]

Thank you Gentlemen!  I have scrubbed crayons off of walls with it, works like a miracle... but not tried it on stylus - yet!

Be sure to use a fresh piece. You wouldn't want to get any crayon wax on that stylus would you?     

[richidoo]

Be sure to use a fresh piece. You wouldn't want to get any crayon wax on that stylus would you?     

Funny!! Thankfully, the crayon scrubbing was 12 years ago.   

[SandyU]

Hey, man, thanks for posting. I just picked up a demo version of the Clearaudio Concept w/o cartridge, and had many of the the same issues.

Your post and your threads have helped me tremendously, so I wanted to contribute something back to you, in turn.

First, I want to suggest that you really should be haunting Mapleshade Audio and Analog Planet.  Both of them have solutions, many of them free, for the same issues that seem to plague you most.

Note: I have found that Pierre at Mapleshade can sometimes be too "my way or the highway" for my taste, even though he's often correct. So I prefer Mikey Fremer's AP approach, which is far more open and relaxed, open to contradictory opinions, and changes of mind.

_______________________

A word about protractors.

First, suggestions you've received about print-out protractors from this or that website is too ridiculous to seriously consider. And I'll remind you why: Paper protractors align the cartridge body, not the stylus cantilever, but your stylus/cantilever most likely isn't aligned with your cartridge body, anyway — especially, if you have a sub-$2,000 cartridge.)

Does it even matter if your cartridge body is aligned? No. But does it matter if the stylus/cantilever is? Well, it's the only thing that DOES!!

I trust the old saying, "Not worth the paper it's printed on," isn't entirely unknown to you. And it applies here.

_____________

Building your own protractor, on the other hand, is a great idea — IF you make sure to create a good business plan, since you are now entering the protractor-building (and selling) business. As opposed to the music-listening-to hobby. (But who knows, it may pay for your audio hobby.)

Since the dB company makes a universal protractor for under $100, and has been selling the same model since the Seventies, it's probably not a bad business to be in.

Unfortunately, protractor-building will likely take you about a year before your first working model, so that might not be what you have in mind for right now.

Before proceeding further, take the time to watch Mikey Fremer use a protractor to set up a turntable, just to see what's involved and hear the explanations for what he's doing:

RMAF09: Turntable Set-up

BTW, Clearaudio makes a protractor for its turntables that's less expensive than the one Mikey uses on YouTube, available from Music Direct ( music direct.com ) as the "Clearaudio - Cartridge Alignment Gauge."

The advantage of the Clearaudio protractor over Mikey's is the overhang and offset angle are adjusted simultaneously; you'll notice Mikey has to set one, then set the other... and then he has to go back to set the first one again.

Another alternative: You could have Mint custom-build you a protractor for your particular arm and your particular cartridge. However, this won't fit any other arm or cartridge. Your custom protractor will take about 10 days to create. (See mintlp.com for more.)

_______________________

As you seem to have already discovered (maybe, maybe not), there are three allen wrenches you need for the Clearaudio Concept. Two are included with the product in the box, to set the tonearm height and adjust the cartridge. A third is not included, a 1.5 mm one, to set the height of the cueing (armlift) mechanism.

Incidentally, my Grado cartridge is 5/8" tall, same as the Clearaudio cartridge that ships with the Concept.

(BTW, did you actually measure your cartridge's height before you adjusted the arm height, or did you guess? Originally, I guessed, and was wrong.)

Also, like yours my cartridge is wood, with six sides, not a four-sided rectangle with two parallel sides.

_____________

You'll require a 180 g. LP for most of the tonearm + headshell settings you need to make on the Concept, according to Clearaudio.

NOTE: A "parallel" tonearm is parallel to the LP's surface with the 180 g. record on it. If you are using a mat, the mat would be between the platter and the record. You can pick up a bubble mini-level at Home Depot, Lowe's etc.

NOTE!! "Level with" does NOT equal "parallel." (See your May 9 2013 11:58 posting.) They are referring to different ideals. "Level with" here just refers to mounting crookedly, at an angle, on the plinth.

A handy set-up trick: Place a CD, shiny side up, on the platter (or the 180 g. LP) when you need to see a mirror reflection.

You want alignment tools? You say you want alignment tools, boy? Well, Clearaudio has got 'em!! How much money do ya have, son? Clearaudio is ready to take it all!! (You can print out a PDF of the Clearaudio catalog, including set-up tools, at the Clearaudio website.)

If you've removed/modded the arm lifter for cueing, you've probably done something wrong. But I have no idea what.

I have a mini-level gauge (with bubbles) to check if a tonearm is parallel to the platter with an LP on it. Mini-levels like this are dirt cheap at Home Depot, Lowe's etc. Endlessly useful in hifi.

Tragically, a Shure tracking force gauge WILL NOT work with the Concept tonearm, which requires a special tracking force gauge (or another, more costly Clearaudio equivalent) that's included with the new product in the box.

The reason: The Shure gauge is just too high for your tonearm's magnetic bearing to function properly. (I have this from the turntable setup guy at a Clearaudio dealership.)

The Clearaudio gauge is MUCH lower profile than the Shure; in fact, the thickness of the WHOLE Clearaudio gauge is the same as just the balance beam on the Shure.

____________

Using a mat is probably a good idea. (Mats are mandatory for metal platters, but Clearaudio makes their Concept platters out of Delrin, a thermoplastic used in precision parts requiring high stiffness, low friction, and excellent dimensional stability.)

Obviously, you don't want your LP's vibrations to travel down to the platter. In addition, drag from the stylus in the groove can affect platter speed. Hence, for both reasons, you really want to use a mat.

Avoid a felt mat, at least during setup, as felt can trap the stylus and twist it, destroying your cantilever. (Also, felt attracts dust.)

Incidentally, mats represent a huge (and controversial) subject in themselves, so you should search the Web for various opinions and come to your own conclusion. I see most high end turntable manufacturers have standardized on cork for their mat material.

Also, check out Mapleshade, which — of course!! — has a "better" idea: Brass micropoints and a record clamp instead of mats.

Whether or not you choose to use a mat, you'll definitely need a record clamp. Clearaudio has an inexpensive plastic model for their Concept (and other models) known as the "Clever Clamp."

When selecting your clamp, make sure it won't bump your cartridge on the runout groove at the end of each side of an LP. NOTE: Runout grooves on LPs aren't standardized, and neither are cartridge body dimensions, so you'll need to check several examples just to be sure.

See http://www.vinylcare.co.uk/dry-clean-stylus-cleaner.html for a foam-style stylus cleaner. I have one like this, but forget where I bought it. Someplace in the US, though. This thing will work when the gels can't/don't. Me, I just got my $600 cartridge retyped for $400. C'mon, d'ya SERIOUSLY think I'm going to trust a Magic Eraser with my stylus?!

_____________________

And now, to the subject of VTA, or "vertical tracking angle."

The first thing to know: By vertical, we don't mean vertical, or 90 degrees, we mean not-vertical, more like 92 degrees.

The second thing to know: By "tracking,"  we don't mean we measure it while the stylus is actually tracking, but, instead, while it's static.

The third thing to know: By the "correct angle," we don't refer to something you can measure visually, even with a microscope, but something we an only hear.

Also, we're not speaking of the cantilever's angle, something we can see, but rather the stylus' angle, which we can't — at least, not without a USB microscope and specialized computer software.

Now, I'm someone who can't write the word "reality" without putting quotes around it, but even a guy like me remains bedaffled by the term VTA and what it "really means."

For what it's worth (i.e., not much): "Perfect" VTA is (usually) said to be about 91.5 degrees. But that number changes with every LP. (Why, for your Concept, you'll need a 180 g. LP to set the VTA.)

Oh, and  by the way: Yes, there really are people who set a different VTA for for each recording they play. (There is a technical term for this, and that term is "silly.") Which is why there are, in fact, manufacturers selling tonearms that can be adjusted for "correct" VTA while playing a record. (Thankfully, your Concept isn't one of those!!)

Incidentally, Mapleshade suggests you reset the VTA every six months. Sounds like fun.

Finally, I will say this: The best explanations I've seen of VTA come from Mikey Fremer at Analog Planet (and his interviews on YouTube), and the worst come from Pierre at Mapleshade.

(Incidentally, you speak of a "minus 2 degrees" VTA, but that's impossible. What are you really measuring?)

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Re: Using "electronic test bench equipment," as tmazz suggests for setup.

No.

A better plan: Using a USB microscope from amazon.com plugged into your computer, plus Adjust+ ( from adjust plus.com ) software.

"Electronic test bench equipment" in this case means MEASURING downstream of your amplifier, using a voltmeter and a black box you build, when what you really want to do is to SEE what you're doing, visually.

For details and recommended materials, visit Analog Planet.

________________________

On using a strobe: So, what do you do if you see an issue with platter speed? How would you adjust for that? One thought: Clearaudio sells a speed control for their turntables.

Also, the most delicate, most critical, most weight-sensitive part of your platter is the rim. Right, so Tom S suggests just hanging strobe tape onto the rim with BluTack. Right, what could possibly go wrong? (Predictably, he measured a speed discrepancy.)

A better plan: Just buy yourself a Clearaudio metal strobe disc. At least your readings will be semi-accurate then!

As for paper strobes downloaded from the Web? Well, I could never get mine to lie flat on the platter, so all I ever get's a blur. I'd go for the metal one.

Once again, thanks for sharing your advents, and your advice. It was invaluable to me.

Sandy

[richidoo]

Thanks Sandy!! Some great information there, and a lot to consider.

I'm glad that my blind and stupid stumblings in TT-land have been entertaining to someone!

With the guidance of some helpful and patient friends on this forum and AudioCircle I was able to achieve a very wonderful sound on my TT, so I won't be changing anything until this cart wears out, which, at the rate I am listening to vinyl these days will be a long time from now.  Hopefully Rega RP8 will still be available by then...

Welcome to AudioNervosa, and congratulations on making (imo) the longest, most opinionated, most valuable, most humorous first post evah! 

Rich

[rollo]

Hey Sandy welcome aboard. good post.


charles

[jimbones]

Not to hijack the thread this is related: I have a Linn with Ittok LIV (?) arm. I believe there is an allen screw that allows me to adjust VTA. I have never messed around with the adjustment even though I have changed cartridges (now a Benz Micro SMS) Should I experiment with this? any suggestions

[richidoo]

Yeah, VTA is worth playing with. It affects the overall tonal balance. My sound improved greatly by fiddling with it, but I had tried adjusting it before without much improvement. Then I stumbled across the right setting and BAM, liquid ear sex.

Mark your starting place before you start
Make small adjustments
Learn what happens moving in each direction from your starting point
Be patient, it is even more frustrating than speaker positioning

Try putting an old rubber mat or two on the platter just to see how it affects the sound.

Sandy, I didn't know that the cue mechanism height was adjustable! Thanks