Hana ML set up ... nasty IGD problem

Have really been struggling to set up my Hana ML. After a professional setup and a trip the store's tech, a noted industry person, I have been having problems with inner groove distortion on several records...most notably a RUSH fist pressing of Hemispheres ... track La Villa Strangiato. On another table I own, no issues ... The cart is in alignment ... i've looked at both measurements inner and outer and under magnification they look spot on. Azimuth using standard and electronic measurement is spot on. All of the IGD is coming from the left channel and with the Hana it will actually skip on the worst bits. Force tracking is also at 2Gs which is the recommended setting. The only thing I have not tried is VTA ... the doc that came with it does not have a recommended value... 2 questions... what would be the recommended VTA for the Hana ML and is there anything else recommended to check/try? the issue happens regardless of phono stage and wiring as i've eliminated those as well....the turn table in question, like my avitar, is a VPI Aries 1 with a stock JMW 10 tonearm. The arm was thoroughly looked at and the only defect found, which i've ordered parts to replace, was the male bearing spur showed some wear as did the female bearing...the record question is NM and was was ultrasonically cleaned and the stylus is free of any dirt.

 

How do you set VTF, and how much anti-skate are you using? Not really enough information for outsiders to diagnose, did you talk to the setup professional?

 

Check antiskate and azimuth. Double check the entire setup preferably. Zenith needs to be on the money too. Beyond that, my Hana had to be run in 100hrs or so before it could track a couple torture tracks on an old Henry Mancini pressing. It’s been stellar ever since.

 

Stupid question, but is your cantilever perfectly straight? Do you have any channel imbalance on top of the IGD?

 

If all else is good I would check the tip zenith under a microscope with at least 100x magnification. But wait until the arm bearing is replaced, as that could be the issue as well. If everything else is good there may be a problem with the suspension.

 

IIRC someone else got a dud Hana recently. Could be the issue. The other thing is the cart is only rated to track up to 70um, which does not inspire confidence.

 

Your Hemispheres pressing probably has groove damage or it's just a bad pressing.

 

Try another album with grooves close to the spindle to see how it tracks?

 

Its a used record, never test IGD on used records as it could just be groove wear. Wont fix that.

Most of my original Rush LPs have wear even though they look clean.

 

I had some issues on my VPI with distortion when the bearing was worn. Even though the wear seemed minor, there was enough slop to cause issues. A new male pivot fixed it. See what it sounds like with the new parts before looking at other things.

JohnK

 

Tinkering with VTA cured it.

 

I was having issues with my EH. Adjusting the VTA also fixed the problem.

 

I don't really see how small VTA adjustments would cure nasty IGD, but glad to hear the problems are resolved.

 

Sorry to revive an old thread, but did you increase or decrease VTA to improve IGD? Thanks.