I have found that having the arm slant slightly down toward the pivot USUALLY sounds better to me but there is no hard and fast rule. If you have a good quality stylus there is less danger tracking at slightly higher weight than too low. I am a VPI dealer and have been setting up tables since the 60s but the main thing I have discovered in that time is that it is a time consuming trial and error process.
Setting VTA on a VPI Scout
I recently purchased a used Scout with JMW 9 arm. I am using a Shure M97 XE cartridge. Can someone explain in very easy terms what I am looking for when raising/lowering the arm to adjust for vta? I have left the vta where the previous owner had it, but I want to be able to dial in the sound. From what I understand, the stylus should be parallel to the record? I would love to hear from other Scout owners on how they were able to adjust it