VPI Scout and Scoutmaster owners.

Don't believe everything you hear. While I respect HW's informed opinion on antiskate, the very statement you quote makes no sense. Why would he advise people to twist the wire in the first place if no antiskate was better? Maybe antiskate is less critical on a unipivot arm? But then why, if he didn't find any advantage to it, did VPI develop an antiskate for the arm? I don't believe he would state that twisting the wires does the same thing his antiskate device that he's now selling. I also don't think he'd sell something just because people thought they needed it. It would really cast a negative light on VPI, a company that fosters a healthy upgrade path for it's customers.
Simple fact is there was no reliable way of setting antiskate by twisting wires, needed or not. While you can get really satisfactory sound twisting or not, 1 twist or 3, there was no set method and everyone did what they thought was best. Lots of posts on that. The new method is much more reliable and consistant.
Maybe they did do it to sell more tonearms. Antiskate has to my knowledge always been an issue long before HW came around. It only helps to at least have the capability to adjust it. I have heard of statements from another person in VPI who said the antiskate was effective.
It does make a very subtle improvement to my ears, and it is a much more accurate method of controlling the antiskate. I assume more people will eventually reach their own conclusions after they compare themselves. Most of the post I've read are of people not using it simply because of what they read. That's really the reason for my long rant.

Jamnperry,Well put...

Jamnperry,
I think the quote, which is out of context anyway, was misunderstood. HW never said that antiskating control wasn't needed. His comments were pertaining to MECHANICAL antiskating solutions. His view is that the wire-twist technique is preferable to a mechanical antiskating device. The mechanical antiskating option was added because so many people wanted it. Even though HW might not like it, he might as well provide it since people want it. After all, he is a businessman, too.

Cheers.

Twisting the wires is also a mechanical solution to antiskating, isn't it?
I'd be more interested in hearing from HW himself. I'm not aware of any comments from him since coming out with the device. We can only postulate what he's thinking now. I would respect him even more whatever his reponse was. If he really did just do it just to meet demand and admitted as much, then I applaud his honesty. But if he's since found a better way than twisting wires or if he's found it to be an improvement to any degree, then I'd applaud his humility to admit his previous stance has changed. Either way, it's a good debate.
I don't think you can thread the needle by calling the twisted wires non mechanical though. It's almost starting to sound like a political debate to save face.

HW still feels that to add a mechanical anti skating device, add add'l noise, and has always found, when doing an A/B comparison, that the particular table sounds better, when using the wire twist method, as opposed to adding a mechanical device, it is true, that so many people opposed the idea of the wire twist, that he started offering the new mecanical anti skate device, but as stated above, only to appease the people who wanted it, from what i understand, his stance has not changed.