Slight increase of tracking force = Big Improvement

I have a Kiseki Purple Heart cartridge on my SME 20/2 with an SME IV mk vi tonearm.  For a while now the sound quality I was getting from my analog rig was less than satisfying.  It didn't sound bad, it just didn't move me the way it had in the past.  This was not always the case.  I can't explain why there was sound degradation.   

I thought my cartridge must be worn out and started shopping new ones (still haven't ruled out an upgrade, but that's another story).  Then, last night I decided to up the tracking force a bit to see if that would help.  I had been running 2.0 grams the entire time I've had it, and that seemed to be great for most of the time I've had it.  I adjusted it to 2.25 grams and immediately noticed a huge improvement.  It was night and day.  Everything is a lot better now.  Imaging, dynamics, bass, midrange and treble are all dramatically improved.  

It's funny because I had never given tracking force adjustments any serious consideration in achieving the best sound from a turntable.  I figured it was best to set it at the lightest recommended setting and as long as it sounded good, don't mess with it anymore.  This revelation is something that has changed my strategy going forward when setting up and tweaking in the future.  

The Purple Heart specs recommend tracking force between 2.0 and 2.6 grams, with optimum force being 2.4 grams.  I am planning to experiment some more in the next few days.