ZETA
THE ADDITION OF THIS ARM TO YOUR MUSIC SYSTEM REPRESENTS ONE OF THE BIGGEST SONIC IMPROVEMENTS YOU WILL EXPERIENCE, IF IT IS SET UP CORRECTLY.
In order to ensure that maximum sound quality is achieved we insist the arm be correctly installed by your dealer, who then shows you how to maintain its performance should you move or change cartridges. However, circumstances may be such that the following steps will be useful.
I.) Having removed the arm from the wooden box, remove the arm base plate by loosening the two locking allen setscrews and slide off the pillar. The base plate can now be mounted on the turntable arm mounting board or plate supplied with the turntable. Most good turntable manufacturers can supply pre-cut arm mounting boards. The six bolts should be used for maximum intimate contact, although three will be adequate.
2.) Place the arm upside down on a table and mount the cartridge. Use tweezers or needle nose pliers to push the four signal leads onto the cartridge pins, following the color code. High tensile allen bolts are supplied for fixing the cartridge and must be used whenever possible. Steel washers are also provided and again must be used on the top side of the headshell. Valid arguments are made against washers but mainly apply to the plastic or nylon variety, which are soft and compliant. The steel washers effectively spread the load applied by the small head area of the allen bolt. Normally 50% of the contact area is lost by the slots so the washers restore that loss.
3.) Now slide the arm into the base plate mounted on the turntable, locking one setscrew loosely. Due to the varying weight of cartridges, the counterweight has two removable steel plates inside to allow the arm to balance with the counterweight as near to the bearing housing as possible. This is sonically very important and is indeed audible. So start with the counterweight about a quarter inch from the bearing housing. If the arm tube balances fairly level then proceed with the cartridge aligment using the metal alignment plate provided. If the arm tube is pointing upwards, remove one steel plate from inside counterweight. The other may also need to be removed if the arm still will not balance. On Van Den Hul wired arms, the stiffness of the internal wires produces some anti-skating force even when the anti-skate is set at zero. This is normal.
4.) With the arm approximately zero balanced, just add about a gram of tracking force. Place the black metal alignment plate on the platter and align the cartridge square and parallel to the headshell and the lines on the plate when the stylus is resting on either of the two crossed markings. It is very important that the cartridge is parallel to both sets of lines when the stylus is on each respective cross. Check and double check this part of the set up until satisfied to the accuracy of the adjustment. Then tighten the allen bolts very tight but beware of breaking the cartridge body. To facilitate alignment, a pin prick can be made on each cross for the stylus to rest in.
5.) Adjust tonearm so that the arm tube is approximately parallel to the record when the stylus is in the groove. Now the correct tracking force may be applied. A set of accurate stylus scales will be required. Having set the counterweight in step number four, it will be necessary now to move the counterweight slightly further forward nearer the bearing housing. When tracking force is set, lock the counterweight with the single allen screw. Always set tracking force to the maximum recommended not the minimum. i.e. 1.5 grams +/- .2 grams, therefore set at 1.7 grams. This will reduce stylus chatter, apparent surface noise, record and stylus wear.
6.) Place a record on the platter and cue the arm onto it. As a starting point adjust the arm tube to be parallel with the record by loosening the two locking allen bolts in the base plate and raise or lower, whichever is required. This adjustment again is very critical and effects the relationship between the stylus tip rake angle, set by the cartridge manufacturer, and the rake angle in the record groove cut by the record manufacturer. These may not be the same and indeed records vary. Allowances for manufacturing tolerances have also to be accounted for. Tighten the two pillar locking screws when you are satisfied with the setup. The range of the cueing can now be adjusted by raising or lowering the complete cueing assembly after first loosening the allen setscrew that retains it. Do not overtighten this setscrew.
7.) Anti-skate now needs to be set and should be again adjusted by ear. A good starting point is just prior to the first click. OFF is fully anti clockwise and maximum is fully clockwise. Adjustment is made by the small knurled knob on the top of the bearing housing.
8.) Finally check that the mounting bolts and cartridge bolts are tight, Now play your first record album and determine whether the music is lucid and controlled. As a simple guide, if the sound is too heavy or boomy then the arm needs raising at the pivot point, so that the arm
tube gently slopes down towards the cartridge end. Keep raising the arm until the bass performance becomes tight and solid, but if the highs are now too bright, harsh or aggressive then just lower the arm until you get the best compromise between the two. Once this is achieved, focus, imaging and depth etc... should become optimised. Anti-skate may also be adjusted. If distortion or crackling is heard, this may indicate too much or too little.
Although this am will demonstrably improve the performance of inexpensive cartridges, it is important to note that it is entirely dependent upon the sympathetic matching of the effective arm mass, the cartridge mass and the vertical dynamic compliance of the cartridge. The effective mass of the Zeta is approximately 16.0 grams, therefore cartridges of between 6-15 cu will be suitable.
A final note about handling your Zeta tonearm You must consider the arm a delicate precision instrument designed for the sole purpose of assisting your cartridge in extracting the maximum amount of musical information with the least amount of coloration. The zeta has been designed utilizing traditional precision aircraft engineering practices. Manufacture and assembly are tightly controlled and inspection by Artech Electronics is conducted on every single arm The beautiful hand polished black anodised finish can be maintained by a gentle furniture polish and buffing. Beware of the polishing cloth catching the stylus!
Do not attempt to dismantle the arm or connectors or to adjust the bearings ! Permanent damage may result and the warranty will be voided.
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