Adikt

Mikeg · Post by **Mikeg** » 2011-11-19 21:36

Some time ago it was mentioned that setup was particularly important to get the best out of this cartridge. A torque figure of 0.3nm was suggested. Without a torque driver how do you achieve this? In earler Linn instructions 6x360 degrees was suggested but this is no longer in the instructions. Mine is 5.5x360 degrees which seems pretty tight as the allen key was bending quite a lot.

Any other tips for getting the best from this cartridge?

Mike

Mikeg · Post by **Mikeg** » 2011-11-22 13:43

Having re-read my post I can see why it might not be clear what I was asking. Over the years I have come to appreciate the importance of good setup particularly getting the torque right. Recently I had to change my cartridge from a damaged DV20H to an Adikt and after reading Lejonklou’s posts (below) in the 'Adikt replacement' topic I wanted to ensure I was getting the best out of this cartridge. I made sure it was setup as accurately as I could but getting the torque right has always bothered me. The Adikt does many things better than my aging (but in good condition) DV20H but the Dynavector seemed sweeter and my Adikt seems to have a brighter edge to the highs –as if the cymbals where made of steel. That is why I wondered if the torque was wrong but without a torque driver that covers that range I can’t check. My initial thoughts are to use the wrong end of the allen key and just give it an extra nip at the end.

Thanks for your help

Mike

– Lejonklou’s post

“The alignment is easily checked with a protractor, there is nothing to discuss there. If it's not straight to the eye, you can discuss how close to perfect it really needs to be. The stylus is only occasionally perfectly straight in the groove when playing a record. And anyone is free to stand up and voice their opinion on this matter.

Mine is that it does pay off getting it rather close to perfect. And that the tightness of the screws is really important. Linn's recommendation in the tiny Adikt manual is quite good: It says how many turns the headshell screws should be tightened, and this results in a reasonably good torque when I have tried it. But most Adikts I have come across are mounted much too tight.”

Charlie1 · Post by **Charlie1** » 2011-11-22 14:08

Hi Mike. As an aside, why not just pick up a 2nd hand Sturtevant Richmont cal 4-36 torque driver? I would have thought some of these torque figures are too low to measure with turns of a screwdriver/allen key. If you appreciate the benefits of optimised torque settings then you can use the wrench on your speaker drivers and LP12 main bearing easily enough. Obviously, other elements of the LP12 are not so accessible.

Here's one on ebay similar price to what I paid a few years ago:
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Sturtevant-Ri ... 3cb83a99b5

There was also talk on the forum a while back about removing the arm when adjusting the cartridge screws. Apologies if this is obvious to you and you already do this, but just thought it was worth a brief mention.

Mikeg · Post by **Mikeg** » 2011-11-22 15:24

Hi Charlie

I already have a torque driver that cover the range I need from 0.5nm. It is really because I have been able to see/hear the benefits of correct torque elsewhere that I want to get this right, however the drivers that cover this range are almost as expensive as the cartridge.

Charlie1 · Post by **Charlie1** » 2011-11-22 15:35

The SR in the link above covers 0.2nm to 4nm. £38 + shipping. It's what Fredrik and Thomas use. If interested, then just check with them that it is the right type as I seem to recall there is a less common variant of the CAL 36/4 that you should avoid.

Post by **lejonklou** » 2011-11-22 15:44

Hi Mikeg!

Without a torque tool, you should tighten the screws of the Adikt extremely little. I have tried a large range of torques from very hard to almost loose in the arm's headshell and the optimal torque is not far from the latter (between 0.2 and 0.3 Nm).

The good news is that the torque is low enough to safely be used when the arm is mounted on the turntable. Holding the short end of the allen key between thumb and index finger, start at the point just where the Adikt stops moving around in the headshell. Then repeatedly tighten a few degrees with the allen key, listening to 5 seconds of a record in between.

Mikeg · Post by **Mikeg** » 2011-11-22 16:15

Thats great

Thanks

Post by **lejonklou** » 2011-11-22 16:43

Good luck!

Although MM cartridges are seldom as sweet in the treble as good MC's are, I find that when the torque is correct on the Adikt, it sounds considerably more clean and harmonic than when it's overtightened.

Sadly, almost every LP12 with Adikt that I've serviced has had the Adikt overtightened when it arrived.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » 2011-11-22 21:36

Hi I cant remember if I used the recommendation from Linn or if I have overtightened my cartridge. Would it be reasonable to lose the cartridge and re-tightening it? What if I find the recommendation paper on cartridge mounting that was supplied with the cartridge.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » 2011-11-22 22:32

Hm found the installation instruction but I can't see anywhere about how many turns i should use, so I guess that it is over-tighten.

Post by **lejonklou** » 2011-11-28 21:37

Hi hepcat and sorry for the late reply!

I remember that when I bought my first Adikt, it came with a piece of paper that stated the number of turns for the screws. I tried it and found the torque to be surprisingly low. Later, when Thomas had gotten me into the use of a torque tool, I found the optimal torque by trial and error. And at that point I once again tried the number of turns stated in that old piece of paper. And it wasn't too far off the optimal torque I had arrived at.

Did you try retightening it and if so, what was the result?

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » 2011-11-29 13:16

lejonklou wrote:Hi hepcat and sorry for the late reply!

I remember that when I bought my first Adikt, it came with a piece of paper that stated the number of turns for the screws. I tried it and found the torque to be surprisingly low. Later, when Thomas had gotten me into the use of a torque tool, I found the optimal torque by trial and error. And at that point I once again tried the number of turns stated in that old piece of paper. And it wasn't too far off the optimal torque I had arrived at.

Did you try retightening it and if so, what was the result?

Yes I have retighten it and even though it played music pretty good before its like night and day. The music flows more easy and it's a lot easier to follow a tune. Before i suspected that my stylus was beginning to wear out but now I'm not so sure about that, even though it has a lot of hours behind as usual when you have a LP12 ;).

BTW it was very tight mounted before the long side of the Allen key started to bend a little then I loosened the bolts. I'm not sure if its at the right torque now but its definitively a lot better than before.

ThomasOK · Post by **ThomasOK** » 2011-11-29 23:32

I've been out of town for about a week and haven't had access to the forum so I wasn't able to reply earlier. I just wanted to add my agreement with Fredrik that the most musical setting for the Adikt is fairly low - just a bit above .2Nm. Without a torque driver that works in that range the technique Fredrik outlines should work well. Get the Adikt where it is just snug and try additional tightening a few degrees at a time. It is definitely worthwhile to loosen and retighten an Adikt that has been overtightened and getting it right does produce quite an audible improvement.