Setting Up Audio Technica AT95E With Technics Headshell?

So recently, I've come into being the new owner of a Pioneer PL-500, which came preinstalled with a Shure M95HE cart and headshell, but I ordered an AT95E cart and a Technics SFPCC31001K headshell as a backup. The Shure cart works fine, but I'd also like to have the option of the AT95E, but I'm sort of a newb at setting this kind of stuff up, so this is what I have so far:

Cart connected to headshell by the wires

Two long screws, two short screws, two metal washers, and two clear plastic washers

Instructino manual for the cart that isn't much help with instalation (the headshell didn't come with anything else).

Now, I know at some point, I'm going to need something called a "overhang gauge" for this, but at this point, the screws aren't really "screwing" in, as in they seem a little too small for the holes and just slip in. Any help on this would be much appreciated!

 

Alright, was able to figure out the screws, I found a protractor generator and I input the credentials here, using the Stevenson protractor:
http://www.vinylengine.com/tonearm_alignment_calculator_pro.php?arm1=221mm eff&l1=el&a1lv=221&a1=la&oh1v=&oa1v=&arm2=Lofgren A&l2=el&a2lv=&a2=la&oh2v=&oa2v=&arm3=Lofgren B&l3=el&a3lv=&a3=lb&oh3v=&oa3v=&arm4=Stevenson&l4=el&a4lv=&a4=st&oh4v=&oa4v=&og=iec1&ogv=&ig=iec&igv=&cal=y&submit=calculate
I adjusted the screws so it fit like this:


Look good? I ask because I had to set the screws almost all the way to the back, with a slight angle to the left, and it's supposed to have "15.5mm of overhang"

Edit: Just measured it stylus tip to rubber washer looks to be 49mm, which is what it should be! I may have just solved my own problem.

 

Looks close enough to me, as long as:-

1. The stylus tracks the arc without moving the proctractor or platter, and
2. The cantilever aligns to both the grids when the stylus is on the crossing point.

Stevenson, by definition, will force the cartridge further back in the slots than Baerwald, so I reckon you're not a million miles away, assuming you meet the criteria above.

 

Personally, I am not brave enough to attempt this yet, I am a newb too when it comes to cartridges. I recently had to replace my AT95E but luckily all I had to do was purchase the "green" part and slide it on in about 10 seconds. There are so many different protractors out there, I did download one from http://www.enjoythemusic.com but I ended up not needing it. Let us know how it sounds, I like the AT95E.

 

Had a severe tracking error while playing a LP, guess it's back to square one. If I were to buy a protractor, which is a good one? I've heard that Pioneer tables use the "Stevenson" standard, and I need one preferably on Amazon Prime.

 

Will a Geo-Disc work with a Pioneer table?

 

The arc protractor should be fine.

Can I just double check - I ran one myself based on your turntable's specs. I just want to make sure that you didn't enter your effective length in the generator instead of your pivot-to-spindle

The data strip to the right of the arc should read:
- Stevenson A
Inner groove radius = 57.500 (DIN)
Outer groove radius = 146.050 (DIN/IEC)
Pivot to spindle distance = 205.500
Inner null radius = 57.500
Outer null radius = 115.522
Effective length = 221.072
Overhang = 15.572
Offset angle = 23.037°

 

49mm is Pioneer's standard overhang. Yes, you solved that.

 

I have 49mm, but I'm curious as to what angle the cart should be at. Will a Geo Disc help with this, because I ordered one.

 

When one buys a protractor that costs more then the cartridge they're looking to set up, it could be overkill. I'm surprised the Stevenson protractor wasn't enough.

 

Ah, I put in the effective length by accident, I printed out a new one with your specs, did a minor adjustment. I'm still not sure at what angle it should be at, should it be straight on (0 degrees)? I'm not really enough of a mathmetician to figure out what angle a cart is at.

 

Try straight on and see how it works. If this were a Technics vs. a Pioneer, the instructions would be to use 52mm overhang with it pointed straight ahead, for instance.

Edit: for some additional context, there are cartridge/tonearm combinations that are really finicky and the slightest adjustments matter. You're not using one of those combinations, so it shouldn't take much to get things right. AT95's shouldn't require ultra-precise alignment.

 

Is there a good way to make sure it's straight on? Setting it by hand/eye might give an angle of a few degrees

 

Yes, it might. See the edit of my last post . Laser-precision isn't required to set up $38 cartridges.

 

Don't worry about that, because using the protractor correctly will set it all for you.

Put the cart square in the headshell as a starting point, then get the stylus to track the arc properly, ie right through it's length, purely by moving the cart forwards and backwards, and you've got correct overhang. I laminated the protractor, and put a few small pinholes on the arc including on the grid crosses, so that if the stylus dropped into all pinholes without moving the protractor, my overhang was right. The way I work it is to drop the stylus into the inner (ie closest to the spindle) grid pinhole, make sure it is seated and - without moving the protractor - I try and drop the stylus into the outer grid. If the stylus is in front of the arc, the cartridge needs to move forward towards the end of the arm. If the stylus is behind the line, move the cart back towards the pivot. Repeat until the stylus drops onto both grids/into both holes without moving the protractor. Then double check by using the rest of the arc.

With the protractor now in the right place and the overhang set, put the stylus on the grid cross (possibly in the pinhole if you decided to do so), get the cantilever aligned with the centre line of the 2 grids - purely by twisting. Drop the stylus onto a grid cross/into a grid pinhole (doesn't matter which one first as the overhang is set), get the cantilever aligned, check it with the other grid, adjust if required and once they agree that will give you the correct angle, even if that means you have twisted the cart slightly from square.

Then go back to the overhang step in case your twisting slightly changed overhang and go through again. It's kind of a case of fix one, check the other until everything works without any adjustment required.

Sounds like a tedious process, but once the first pass is done, it's micro adjustments in general - and all the steps mean you don't have to worry about the initial angle

 

Went to a local record joint and had a guy help me set up both my carts