Best cartridge you've never heard of: the Audio-Technica AT33PTG/II

I had some trouble weighting cartridges with "jewellery" scales.
I did remember that these cartridges have magnetic devices inside.

So to get rid of "magnetic field", I put on the scale a good thickness of plastic, foam or carboard (two cms are fine) , tare to compensate then I have better weighting cartridges.
My two 33PTG/II are mounted, I'm too lazy to take one off the headshell to weight.

 

VTA of the cutter heads range from 16 to 22 degrees in general and only important when there is warp on the record. If you match your cartridge’s VTA with cutter heads’s then your cartridge will act same on vertical dimension on warps. But you can not change VTA without changing SRA and SRA is very important compared to VTA. Setting SRA to 92 degrees is a requirement for accurate playback. So don’t bother with VTA and concentrate on SRA.

(Sometimes people refer to SRA when they use VTA)

 

You don't need to weigh the cartridge. It's already given on the spec sheet.

jeff

 

Hello Jeff,
You are right, I think I never weight one cartridge.
My response is for @mirnuj_atom.
post #873
I used mainly this trick to set the VTF and with jewellry scale and metallic ( magnetic ? ) plate.
I have one scale which when in touch with the cartridge shows about 10g, with my "trick" the set 2g was there.

 

that was my question as I’m trying to calculate the effective mass of my Tt’s tonearm, the Teac tn-3b.

 

Yes I have herd of it and I am hearing it right now.

 

Why do people use these clamps if record is non warped ?

 

Because we can. I think you should go over to ASR.

 

Its was a genuine valid question, no offense intended, just basic information as I have a clamp in the drawer, never use it.
No idea what ASR is ?

 

No harm. The clamp is used so there better contact to the platter in the case of the SG3 the platter is made of the same vinyl as records. The best device for warped records is a vacuum system like in my SOTA sapphire.

 

Oh Audio Science Review.com

 

Is that a sort of punishment place ?

 

Who told you that the VTA is only relevant on warps? That is incorrect. The cutting head modulates the groove at all times, failing to match the generator alignment angle to the cutting head angle results in the side channel information stored in the vertical component of the movement distorted , affecting the soundstage at all dimensions. It's not either or, both SRA and VTA are important, and it's not about a single correct value, but rather a range that on average suits the best your particular set of records.

 

@mirnuj_atom It means they put extra love into yours. Actually, I think the magnet explanation is it, too.

 

Please take my advice an concentrate on correct SRA alignment which is 92 degrees.

 

Yes and they think we are the nuts.

 

I've ordered the better scale, so I'll find out how much love they've put

 

Your advice that VTA only matters on warps? That's bullcrap. The exactly 92 degrees SRA by Fremer at al. is true enugh in that is close enough to 90 degrees and leaves a few degrees of compensation exactly for the warps.

 

You can not change VTA without changing SRA and SRA is more important. That’s the first thing you should learn.

 

You don't tell me what I should learn, OK? How many songs have you personally written, recorded, mixed, or mastered?
One question for you, the wise guy: is the effective VTA the cantilever vs record surface angle, or stylus tip to the cantilever suspension line vs the record surface angle?
To judge what is more important, SRA or VTA, or anti-skate, or VTF, I rely on my ears, not wives' tales, OK?

 

I use a mofi weight instead of clamp as I run direct to platter w/ no mat & don't want startup slippage , especially on 45's. I real spindle clamp would do the same thing.

 

@Jaxjax67
I don't know what mofi weight is.
can you please educate me, what is it different from clamp?

 

Record weights also slip over spindle & look the same as clamps. They just don't have the clamp to spindle function.

 

Thanks for your explanation.
This is subtle, indeed.
So with my Transrotor Max, I have clamp that is a pain to use with small or very "light" benefit when I play warped LP.
With this clamp, I need to screw-in endless turns before playing, so I may find a weight instead for "mildly" warped LPs.
I rarely use the clamp on flat records.

The spindle is so short on LP12 that the Max clamp can be used as "weight" , but I did not hear any "benefit" doing so.

 

Saw this classified with the price being less than a half of that for a new cart, so I could not pass on that. But after some close examination, I am sure the cart was re-tipped? see the stylus size, shape and angle - seems like a bonded diamond not perpendicular to the cantilever flat surface cut?