If your cartridge does not have a threaded body, then you’ll have to resort to using nuts to secure the cartridge screws. Threaded holes are more convenient to use, as they they obviate the need for the small, difficult-to-handle nuts required to secure the cartridge screws to a non-threaded cartridge body. The holes in a cartridge body, meant to accept the screws which affix the cartridge to the headshell, generally come in two flavors: threaded (or tapped), and non-threaded. They do, however, make setup of compatible cartridges relatively simple (tonearm manufacturers who advocate fixed-hole headshells usually have a particular cartridge, or set of cartridges, in mind at the time of design – namely their own or those of a manufacturer whose products are believed to work well with the arm in question). Unfortunately, tonearms whose headshells contain fixed holes will not allow for correct alignment of all cartridges. Headshells containing fixed-position holes (such as those of the venerable Rega RB300 and Naim Aro) assume that the geometry of the partnering cartridge is such that correct alignment will be achieved using the holes supplied. Slotted headshells allow for the position of the cartridge to be adjusted for correct alignment. Tonearm headshells typically contain either slots or holes through which screws (usually supplied with the cartridge, and should be of the non-magnetic variety) may be passed into the cartridge body. A test record such as Hi Fi News and Record Review’s HFN-1įirstly, if your cartridge was supplied with a cover that clips over the stylus/cantilever assembly, keep it in place throughout this step and the wiring step described below – it might just prevent you from shearing off the cantilever on your $2000 cartridge during an untimely lapse in concentration!Ĭartridge installation begins by affixing the cartridge body to the tonearm headshell.An alignment gauge such as the DB Systems DBP-10 (or the one provided by your tonearm manufacturer).A lighted magnifying glass of at least 10X power.Stylus pressure gauge, like the Shure SFG-2.Non-magnetic headshell screws, washers and, possibly, nuts if not provided by the cartridge manufacturer.
Garrard zero 100 headshell wiring diagram install#
Here’s a quick summary of the tools you’ll likely need to install your phono cartridge: Even exercising the utmost care and patience during setup, the best we can hope for is a good approximation of the original signal, which, in practice, turns out to be more than sufficient for superb musical results. Of course there are many reasons why correct stylus geometry with respect to the groove is insufficient to guarantee perfect analog signal extraction, the electromagnetic properties of the cartridge’s internal wiring and magnet structure, and the shape of the stylus itself being but two. If the stylus replicates exactly (in three dimensions) the cutter’s path through the record groove, then the signal extracted should be an exact replica of the one deposited in the groove by the cutter. The goal of vinyl playback is to extract, as faithfully as possible, the tiny signal carved into the surface of the record by the record cutting lathe. And while correctly setting up these delicate devices does require relatively vast amounts of both time and patience, the steps involved are well within the scope of the audio enthusiast with a steady hand and the right tools at his disposal. With the near-complete erosion of support for vinyl playback at the retail level , audiophiles devoted to the analog disc have little recourse but to become adept at the finer points of cartridge setup.