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Magenta TT10 Adjusting Instructions

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ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE

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  • Page 1 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE...
  • Page 2 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE This drawing of the stereo groove may look frightening. Yet..if you stick to the basic adjustments, you can enjoy the sound of analog recordings engraved in the vinyl record. It is not at all necessary to make things complicated. Start by adjusting down force and bias, put on a record and listen. From there you can refine the set up and adjustments if you want the highest quality in sound.
  • Page 3 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE entire audio spectrum and far beyond, which no other format can deliver. The analog LP is not restricted to 16 bits and a limited frequency band, but has 700 bits - so to speak - and the minute upper harmonics which digital formats are missing.

  • Page 4: Leveling The Turntable

    ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE LEVELING THE TURNTABLE It is of the utmost importance to adjust the turntable with arm and phono cartridge correctly. Place the turntable on a strong cabinet, in an audio rack or on a special construction that is bolted to the stone wall of the listening room.
  • Page 5 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE...
  • Page 6 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE The TT10 To check if you have done it right just push the spindle down with your index finger, the platter should go down and come up always staying level. That means that the platter should not rock or wobble.

  • Page 7: Azimuth Adjustment

    The VTA adjustment is possible thanks to three screws in the base of the arm. The Margules A1.2 TT10 arm is unipivot, It is important that the tonearm is free and can have movement to the sides up and down.
  • Page 8 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE AZIMUTH REPLACEMENT STYLUS If you have bought a replacement needle, check if the tip is really well mounted. Check the cantilever from the front with a magnifying glass. The cantilever should be perpendicular to the cartridge body.
  • Page 9 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE LATERAL TRACKING ERROR While engraving the laquer disc (from which the matrix is made), the cutter head moves laterally from the outside of the lacquer to the inside. At all instances the cutter diamond makes a 90 degree angle with the groove it has cut. This movement can be imitated by a tangential tonearm.
  • Page 10 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE...
  • Page 11 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE TECHNICAL SPECIFICATIONS OF THE ARM The alignment of cartridge and arm has to be done in accordance with the technical specifications given by the manufacturer of the pick up arm: * total tonearm length, * effective length, * overhang and * offset angle (angle of headshell in relation to the arm tube;...
  • Page 12 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE adjust the size of the image so that two squares are 10 mm (=1 cm). A member of a forum rightfully pointed out that, for a long time, I had given different measurements: 63 and 120 mm. He was right of course.
  • Page 13 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE This template gives a general and useful indication. However, there are arms that were designed with a completely different geometry. I recently acquired the SAEC WE 308 arm and the makers strived for the least error at the end of the record where the most distortion can occur because in a shorter groove length the same info has to be engraved as in the outer groove.
  • Page 14 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE The template enables you to check the error of the Lateral Tracking Angle at every position of the arm. You can start at the small circle. But you also can choose a different point of departure, closer to the spindle.
  • Page 15 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE If you do not use an original diamond tip offered by the manufacturer of the cartridge, you cannot rely on the specifications of DOWNFORCE - VTF the cartridge any longer. Specifically if it is an old cartridge. The...
  • Page 16 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE BIAS OR SIDE THRUST...
  • Page 17 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE READING THE HORIZONTAL AND VERTICAL SIGNAL When Edison designed his Phonograph Cylinder, he engraved the sound in a vertical movement: the needle went up and down, or "hill and dale" as it is called. Emil Berliner from Germany designed the gramophone record and he engraved the signal in a lateral or horizontal movement.
  • Page 18 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE BIAS COMPENSATION When a disc is spinning and you place a small object on it, the object will be swept off the disc by the centrifugal force (CF). You can try this yourself by placing a small object on the platter.
  • Page 19 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE If you are a perfectionist, you may connect an oscilloscope alternately to the left and right outputs of your preamplifier (or the Record Out sockets), and check the bias adjustment by playing the test with separate left and right channel signals, in various modulations, starting at 50 um.
  • Page 20 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE...
  • Page 21 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE A correctly adjusted downforce combined with the right bias will give a pure stereo image with the least distortion.
  • Page 22 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE FINAL ADJUSTMENT OF THE VERTICAL TRACKING ANGLE At left a drawing of the cutterhead of a lathe. The cutter diamond moves in a complex way so both left and right signals (for the left and right channels) are engraved in the lacquer.
  • Page 23 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE When engraving the lacquer, the cutter diamond moves up and down over a short distance. Whether the movement is more an arc or just a straight line depends on the position of the cutter head and the position of the diamond. In theory this movement is a perpendicular movement (a), but it is likely not to be a straight line (b).
  • Page 24 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE For monophonic records only the adjustment of the lateral tracking angle is of importance. The stylus should ride in the middle of the groove at the correct down force. With the introduction of the stereo record and its complicated signal, it became clear that a record can be cut in more than just one way.
  • Page 25 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE The engineers explained what the Vertical Tracking Angle is. A few mentioned other parameters of significance as well. VCU = the Vertical Cutting Angle. It should be set exactly as prescribed in the manual of the cutting lathe.
  • Page 26 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE Let us view the other drawings. A represents the theoretical ideal: CRA, VCA, SRA and VTA are all the same, they coincide. In B the stylus is perpendicular to the record's surface, but the Vertical Tracking Angle is incorrect. Because the stylus is...
  • Page 27 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE the same time. Lowering the arm at the pivot so that the cartridge will lean slightly back will give a round and less detailed midband. Adjusting the arm at the pivot so that the cartridge leans more forward gives a more detailed sound.
  • Page 28 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE CHOOSE THE VTA WITH WHICH ALL RECORDS SOUND GOOD As not all records have been cut at the same angle, there is a slight problem. At the end of the nineteen seventies The Audio Critic suggested the idea of optimizing the VTA for each and every record you would play. The idea was simple: use cardboard of varying thickness (millimeters) and cut these to the size of the turntable mat (or I would suggest: about 28 cm in diameter).
  • Page 29 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE If the platter is very high it can be necessary to add an extra base plate In case the arm does not allow varying the height at the pivot, you can put a wedge between cartridge and head shell.
  • Page 30 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE IMPORTANT: Some audiophiles add a small wedge when they think it necessary to adjust the VTA in specific cases. Placing a wedge can help in rare cases. But placing a plate, piece of rubber, felt, or whatever material you choose (as is sometimes advised by so called knowledgeable audiophiles) in between cartridge and headshell should not be done.
  • Page 31 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE DIAMOND CHECK If the mechanical adjustments are not correctly made a distorted signal will be the result. If you have done your best and distortion persists, and it is not caused by the maltreated record groove, you should check the diamond tip of the cartridge or have it checked by a professional.
  • Page 32 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE CHOOSING THE RIGHT SYSTEM For the older records a monaural cartridge with a spherical tip in combination with the appropriate mass of the arm and the appropriate down force is needed. Sometimes one encounters a very old mono record from the early ineteen fifties which will sound very well when played with a crystal pick up and a downforce of even 8 gr.
  • Page 33 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE RIGHT CONNECTIONS OF HEADSHELL LEADS The position of the connecting pins at the back of the cartridge varies from manufacturer to manufacturer. The connections for the cartridge wires on the inside of the head shell however always have the same configuration if a standard SME type shell is used. Make the correct connections for the leads.

  • Page 34: Cartridge Loading

    ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE CARTRIDGE LOADING Is the sound shrill and are the high frequencies accentuated? Or is the sound too dull and lacks transparency? In any case you should check the loading of the cartridge. The phono input of your (pre-) amplifier should have the right capacitance to meet a specific moving magnet cartridge.
  • Page 35 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE RECORD CLAMP / WEIGHT / STABILIZING RING A record clamp or record weight will improve the contact of record and turntable mat. Vibrations and all sorts of resonances will have lesser chance to be generated. False high frequencies will not occur. The overall signal will be more precise and the sound will have less distortion..
  • Page 36 ADJUSTING THE MAGENTA TT10 TURNTABLE...