Ortofon Blue is really great imo, way better than the Red. I think you should attach the Blue cart on your headshell that came with the Technics and try it out for like 20 hours and see what you think. Will take a bit longer though to fully break in.
use the supplied gauge for starters. the hardest part is making sure the cantilever is parallel with the diving board as you sight down the length. use a magnifier. when you look down the length of the cantilever from the front it should be straight and even like hitting a golf ball right down the middle. getting the tip lined up to the end of the diving board is easy. in the mean time order this one- and when it arrives you can refine for even better sound. Best Tractor / Arc Protractor / Mint Tractor / tonearm alignment / Yip Mint Protractor / Mintlp Protractor
Honestly you’re overthinking it by even worrying about a protractor. Tip even with the end of the gauge, cantilever straight down the center of the headshell, it will be aligned correctly.
Just make sure the Cart is straight in the headshell when you use the overhang gauge (screws in a straight parallel line and cart also straight with the headshell). There might be sibilance just because it's a AT95 cart or the pressing just has sibilance. I would use your new AT cartridge that you recently bought or the Ortofon Blue, they should not produce sibilance that easily if they are aligned. lower right corner in the picture.
Tonearm height should also be checked always when changing carts and headshells. I use 0 (zero height) on my Technics headshell + Ortofon Blue cartridge and it's fine. Technics own rubber mat in use.
Yes, this 100%. Proper alignment is only a piece of the puzzle in achieving good tracking. IMO, beyond alignment the most crucial aspect to tracking is stylus profile. So far it seems like OP has an arsenal of standard elliptical cuts. It's best to remember these types of styli will always exhibit some form of IGD and sibilance on troublesome records. OP's alignment is probably fine if they followed the instructions upthread. With that tier of stylus you just have to expect some failures in tracking, which is why more advanced cuts exist. I like many others would echo that now is the time to enjoy the record and the music. If the tracking is still driving you nuts after a while, you can look into different carts with more advanced styli. Also keep in mind some pressings are cut too hot to track even with MicroLine styli, and some used pressings are too worn to track properly as well.
Thank you, I think I am doing some progress, got more confidence. There's no job too immense when you've got Confidence With a 'C' and an 'O' and an 'N' and an 'F' And an 'I' and a 'D' and an 'ENCE' Put 'em all together and what have you got Confidence Confi ..... Confi .... Confidence
Good idea. I've used a Concorde as a reference point too. As other have mentioned, your overhang/alignment can be correct and you could still hear sibilance or other distortion based on the cartridge, record or some other issue.
As to this issue, I've found the suspension/compliance make a huge difference in tracking ability. My old Stanton 980LZS with a NOS Stereohedron can track anything, and the stylus shape is not as advanced as a microline (~3uM vs. ~8uM side radius).
I actually think it looks like it should come out a tiny bit? Hard to tell in a photo like this because of perspective, but to me, it looks like the end of the cantilever may be even with the gauge, not the stylus tip?
I need one too, but i will use it to check if the turntable is parallel to the tables surface. How do you use it to check if cartridge is parallel to record surface?