Ha, I can attest to that! It doesn't do anything, but I was misled. I checked and the headshell is crooked. When I put in another headshell it is perfectly level. Insane at this price point. I didn't want to use an aftermarket headshell because I love the idea of having the reference for adjusting arm height. To quote Robert Hays, "what a pisser".
loosen the collar locking but a bit Rotate the headshell (there is some play) Hold it steady and tighten the collar I used it to adjust azimuth and got it spot on.
There are 2 screws on mine. Both have a small gap around the circumference and protrude a bit, not flush,1/2 mm. Never touched them. And never will. these? How did you get a screwdriver square on it? It only has a few inches clearance? Or these 2? Even tighter?
You can look up various methods for the MK2 online, same applies to GR, really just something that clears it without putting strain in the arm. If you’ve never done it on an older deck idk if I’d recommend doing it on a new one. It’s really something you want to make sure you have a steady hand and basic repair skills for, or you can risk damaging the arm. If the arm’s azimuth is fine those screws should never be touched, they’re locking it in for assembly like the headshell does as mentioned above, a little less than flush is fine.
This is pretty common with many tone arms.It's actually a very easy setup technique that i have appreciated on past arms/tables
Azimuth is adjusted by loosening the set screw on the underside headshell just forward of the bayonet. All you’re seeing is a misadjusted azimuth. Loosen the set screw, turn the headshell until it’s level, retighten the set screw. Read your user manual.
I have a new 1200M7L and the headshell is also not spot on with azimuth. I tried a 30 year old Technics headshell and same thing. My AT headshells are spot on. At any rate, there was enough play in the collar on mine to get the stock headshell level. But just barely. It's silly that Technics charges up to $100 for these headshells. They aren't any better than even some of their generic clones. I'm switching my main cart over to an AT HS10 soon. Or maybe try a gold colored generic to match the tonearm.
??? here's the manual All they say is to make sure the HS is level when tightening the locking collar. https://av.jpn.support.panasonic.co...ng-instructions/SL-1200GR_TQBM0053_EB_eng.pdf
Yes but then the screw misses the hole it's supposed to thread into and grinds into the side of the headshell. It's not meant to do that and could come loose and fall apart.
It's a locking set-screw fit into a dimple. Not an adjustment screw. I can get my HS level with a bubble level...BUT azimuth is waaaay off when measured with a test lp and VOM. To get it even ch-ch it needs tilted inside down a bit.
Never, ever twist the headshell - at all - while it’s mounted in the arm. That’s very hard on the arm and bearings. If a headshell is visibly non-level, use a small allen key to to loosen the azimuth screw located on the underside of the headshell just forward of the bayonet. Okay. Look at the underside of the headshell, just forward of the bayonet. You’ll see a set screw. It is there specifically to adjust azimuth when needed.
Of course not. Don't tighten it before twisting it. There is play on all of these mounts. Adjust before tightening and see if you get a level headshell. If not, try another headshell or get one with azimuth adjustment. The stock Technics headshell does not have it.
OK I'll do what the manual says. With collar LOOSE adjust HS and tighten. I did that and got this after tweeking. Only took a degree or two.
Don't mess with the screws on the tonearm pivot unless you're an experienced tech. Those are for the tonearm bearing housing and can screw up your tonearm bigtime.
I only do what is in the manual. The pic shows 2 small black ones underneath that secure the arm tube to the pivot housing.
Yeah I was just looking at the OP's last picture which shows the pivot screws, not the one's on the tonearm. Your right. Those are for removing the arm tube from the pivot if it needs work or replacing.
Sorry to OP that they "got a bad one". Unfortunately with demand being what it is for these decks, bad QC will sometimes slip through. RE: the cueing mechanism, I would strongly suggest looking at the manual. Out of the box these tables are adjusted so that when the cue lever is lifted to the top, the stylus will be something like 13mm above the record. It wasn't what I was used to, so I lowered mine per the manual. Typically I liked to have the stylus 6-8mm above the record when the cue lever is in the up position. YMMV. The stock headshells Technics makes now aren't great IMHO. Some folks like them but if you got a crooked one I'm afraid that simply adjusting the set screw will not fix it. If you disassemble the headshell entirely you'll see there is a large, deep divot hammered into the metal plug. Adjusting the set screw may work temporarily, but it will have a tendency to return to that divot, especially if you don't tighten it down very hard. FWIW I prefer aftermarket headshells so I don't care about the stock one at all. Bottom line is that something is wrong with the jig used to make the divot in the metal plug at the factory. The arm collar azimuth is another story. That should have been straight out of the factory. I never had that issue with my deck, but some people have. It's an easy fix if you know what you are doing like @zombiemodernist said but not a good idea for a first time adjustment if you've never done it and don't have the proper tools. One of the reasons I highly recommend people go with a good retailer like Crutchfield or Sweetwater is so you can get issues resolved through the retailer if you need to swap for another unit.
I tried this, but it doesn't bring it over enough. I will just set it up with a Jelco shell, just unfortunate that the Technics one is defective.
It’s not in the manual because it’s not for azimuth adjustment. They meant to rotate the headshell in the SME connector -before- locking.
I set it up with an aftermarket (Jelco) headshell and everything is perfect. I will try to get a new headshell from the seller. Sounds great and I love the platter brake.
