Is extremely accurate "VTA" adjustment necessary?

ok then i concede that the cutting angle varies form lp to lp with no real way to tell. so let's suppose using my method you landed at 22 degrees as optimum. that would leave you with a +/-2 degrees window for any given record.
Let us be generous and say by the golden ear method you are using a one minute passage of music to find the vta.
I could be mean, but I will not. Since you don't want to measure, I assume you have a contioulsy variable method of varying tonearm height. That would mean there is infinite number of settings and assuming you did not get lucky, you could be left sampling an infinite number of settings with no way to repeat them or even be sure you were listening to them all with any real consitency. If you remeber the abx comparator box one of the problems was sonic memory. But let's be nice and assume you have an arm which allows you to divide each degree into tenths. Again assuming you did not get lucky and have it "snap into focus" right away you would have to pick one setting and compare it to the 39 others. it would take atleast forty minutes to do that. That also assumes you were satisfied with only one pass, that you had the sonic memory to allow you to make just one pass and remember where the best one was. Since you don't measure, even if you could remeber the one you like ,how could you find it. I could go on, but i think you see why i am skeptical of the golden ear method.

Dear Doug: ".....why these attacks are with out basis...".
From the first time that I post in this forum you was attaking me, last time in the Shroeder tonearm thread. You don't like that I don't agree with you in every subject, sorry I can't do that, but when I disagree with you or with any people in this forum I never attack to anyone: I only expose facts about the subject and always trying to help. I know that many people don't agree with my points of view, but I don't attack them for that, as a fact I always learn from their points of view.
I'm not against you and I have not any bad fellings about.
Many times we think that we already learn everything in the music home reproduction and we close the door. Many of my points of view are very differents from the people point of view in this forum and many of those peoples are really close to learn/change/test/check/understand and that's why all of them ( including you ) have so many trouble with my posts.
If you or anyone don't accept differents facts on differents subjects from yours: it's ok for me and bad for you.
I think that in this kind of forum all of us wins one way or another: it is not who are right but how can help to all of us.
There are many ways to growing up in the knowledge in home audio. Doug for your last choices you choose one of the hardest roads for growing up, I explain this ( it is not nothing against you,please ):
as I already speak about and the time confirm it, you do a mistake when you choose the Origin live tonearm against the Moerch one: and that desicion do that you have to pay for two tonearms ( OL and Triplanar ) instead of only one, the Moerch.
Like five months ago you not only be happy with the Shelter 901, I read your posts about it and I can say you was in heaven with it. In that time I disagree with you and I post that the 901 was a hi-fi cartridge and that the 90X ( as you know I own both ) was the " lonely star ". Five months latter you find that the 901 is a hi-fi cartridge and you do another double mistake: buy the ZYX cartridge, why a double mistake?: you already like the Shelter sound and the 90X is an stellar performer, why don't change the 901 for the 90X?, instead you choose a cartridge that in its actual generation it is not in the same league that any other top highend cartridges, maybe " other peoples " take this desicion for you: Salvatore, reviews and all your audio friends. Yes, I already hear three differents models in my system ( one of them I buy it and two months latter I sold ). I think that this manufacturer is right on the road and that their next generation of cartridges will be on the very top.
I know that this is your money and that you can spend where you want, but there are better ways to spend our money: the audio is a expensive love for the music, don't do it very, very, very expensive.
As I already told you: no bad fellings.
Regards and enjoy the music.
Raul.

Raoul, what are you doing? I can see *you* need software: a complete DVD collection of "El Chapulín Colorado".

¡Cállate cállate que me desesperas!

Ooops, that's "El Chavo del Ocho." Same comedian, what the hell...

Raul, if you are buying all of these cartridges new, then "testing" them, only to sell them in a month or two, you are wasting more money that Doug ever dreamed of wasting! Of course, as you say, people are free to waste their money at their own whim.

You have indicated that you have tested quite a wide variety of tonearms and cartridges. Please provide us with your first-choice combo at, say, three different price levels. Should be easy for you after all of this testing and would give us your "reference points". Thanks

As a "newbie" (about one year) to analog, I cannot debate the views expressed here with any authority but I am interested in continuing to learn and improve my sound. My approach to setting VTA and azimuth has been to use a little bubble level with double stick tape, centered right over the arm pivot point to level the arm (with the needle dropped into the groove). I can very precisely adjust the VTA and azimuth of my armbord on the fly with this approach. One eighth of a turn in the allen bolts of the arm board is easy to detect with the level. Also, the record clamp causes the record to be pitched down towards the edge and this angle can be matched in the cartridge.
This is probably a "crude" adjustment by above standards but I am pleased with the sound and it seems that most used records have warp, even with a record clamp, that is 10 times the tollerances mentioned. Like the original poster, I am wondering if I am missing a great deal by not paying more attention to this? I would suggest to him that flatter records ( perhaps by using a rim weight) would need to be the first priority before more criticality in VTA adjustment.