VTF and VTA- Constant or not?

When our current UNIverse was new it needed ~1.70g. Today (2+ years later) it plays optimally (better in fact) at ~1.20g. That is not a typo.

Doug!!! 1.2gm for the Universe?
I seem to remember a post of yours saying anyone brave enough to go below 1.7gm is on his own?

OK...I'm going to adjust my DaVinci/Universe to negative VTA and 1.5gm to see if I agree?

Regards
Henry

Henry,

Most people believe I'm very much on my own. Why disappoint them? ;-)

Do remember that our cartridge reached this stage in small steps. We did not wake up one morning and ask, "What would happen if we dropped VTF from 1.70 to 1.20?".

Of course there's no reason to believe 1.50g or any other randomly selected number will be optimal. That's neither science nor craft nor even art, its guessing.

IME with 10-12 UNIverses, each one's VTF is best adjusted using the protocol I've posted before: find its mistracking point on very dynamic passages, work very slightly upwards from there by listening.

Have fun!
Doug

BTW, if you can play a UNIverse (or any cartridge) with "negative VTA", we'd all like to see photos. ;-)

Every other record I've purchased since I got into analog heavily about half a year ago has been visibly warped. (I returned first few but soon gave up since it seems to be the norm, not the exception, sadly. At least for jazz records. But that's a topic for another thread already discussed here.) Doubtless, warpage affects VTA/SRA setting even for the same record making any valid comparison very difficult and probably not very meaningful. So unless all of your records are perfectly flat, I'd question the benefit of recording settings for every LP and advocate for a setting that seems to work for most records, just to retain my sanity. But then again, I have neither Doug's or Paul's ears, nor their equipment, so I can only speak for myself.

Doug,

I lowered the VTF to 1.5gm and TRIED to get "negative VTA :-)" but with the DaVinci 12" it is very difficult (as Dertonarm stated).
Nevertheless, with the DaVinci parallel the "magic" of the Universe returned to its former domain.
As you have indicated, it must be a slow process of the suspension lowering that requires a keen ear on things at all times?

I will now attempt your 1.2gm benchmark and work up as you suggest but now as I sit blissfully listening to the Universe in full flight, I look at my wife and say....."damn, I bet Doug could get it better than this!?" :-(

I also have a list like Dertonarm's, though self generated and a bit half-assed.

To me, Doug, absolutely "Not". You are a real vinyl enthusiast! And it's nothing to do with how high pricey your equipments are.

I will try to experiment your "mistracking point" method to reset the VTF and report back later;)

Best regards
Dan