Tonearms with no anti-skate adjustment

@cleeds  - 

That is mistaken. Anti-skate is used to compensate for a force that an offset pickup arm exerts that gives it a tendency to "skate" towards the spindle.  

Thanks for  the correction - That was what I was attempting to say in my rather "clumsy" manner.

I also forgot to include the important aspect of Anti Skate, which is

" that gives it a tendency to "skate" towards the spindle"

 
Again - thanks for the clarity

Cheers

moonglum

Unipivots are generally designed to be as stable as that configuration permits. This means that ”lowering the tail end” increases downforce not decreases it as you have suggested.

It isn’t clear what you mean here when you use the word "downforce." If you lower any statically balanced pivoted arm - regardless of bearing type - you will decrease VTF, all other things being equal. That’s just simple physics, and what I was trying to clarify.

VTF is maximized when the stylus/record interface and tonearm bearing are horizontally inline with one another. Any deviation from this reference will reduce VTF.  Although the VTA will affect VTF, it is not used to set VTF, that's the job of the counter weight.  

testpilot

VTF is maximized when the stylus/record interface and tonearm bearing are horizontally inline with one another. Any deviation from this reference will reduce VTF.

Sorry, but this is mistaken and makes no sense.

VTF stands for "Vertical Tracking Force." By definition, it is measured at the stylus. As you raise the arm - all other things being equal - you will increase VTF. This is simple physics. Consider two people carrying a heavy item up a stairs. Who has the heavier load: The guy at the bottom of the stairs, or the guy standing a few stairsteps higher?

You can measure VTF using a proper gauge and see for yourself the change as you raise and lower the arm.

I do agree that keeping the stylus and the pickup arm bearing on the same plane improves tracking as opposed to designs that place them on different planes (again, all other things being equal). But that really has nothing at all to do with VTF. Perhaps that is what is causing your confusion.

Cleeds is correct. VTF goes down if the pivot point is moved down.
Also,  The skating force is due to the friction of the stylus in the groove. Therefore the magnitude of the skating force will vary based on the stylus shape, the degree of tracking angle error, the headshell offset angle, and the modulations in the groove wall. This is why no one value of anti-skate force will be absolutely correct across the surface of any LP. It’s a moving target.

Any tonearm which is designed to be mounted so that the stylus tip overhangs the spindle will develop a skating force at all points across the surface of the LP. There are no exceptions. Therefore to say that some tone arms do not need anti-skate is to me a bit of self deception. If you cannot hear the effect of the absence of anti-skate, nevertheless there is a skating force. And that force can result in aberrant wear on the stylus.