[mr_superlove]

Hey guys, I received a Music Hall MMF-5 for Christmas and am very excited about getting it to its optimum playing potential. But I'm having trouble with the anti-skating weight.

I can balance it and set the tracking force (using the tracking force gauge supplied with the table, there's a Shure gauge on the way) with no problem. But the moment that I attach the anti-skating weight, the tonearm is pulled (almost violently) away from the spindle. Aside from moving the position of the weight's line, I can't see anyway to overcome this. Even with a different position, the arm is still pulled away from the center of the album to the point that it won't stay in the groove.

The only way I've found to get it to work is to set the tracking force very high.

Any suggestions? Seems like I'm missing something obvious here.

 

[derekbmn]

Have you tried running it with no antiskating ??

 

[mr_superlove]

I have and that works. I just assumed that it was always something that had to be corrected. The instructions didn't have any language like "if 'skating' is a problem use the anti-skating weight ..." So if I'm not experiencing it, or not seeming to experience it, it can be bypassed? Thanks for the reply.

 

[Todd R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr_superlove /img/forum/go_quote.gif Hey guys, I received a Music Hall MMF-5 for Christmas and am very excited about getting it to its optimum playing potential. But I'm having trouble with the anti-skating weight. I can balance it and set the tracking force (using the tracking force gauge supplied with the table, there's a Shure gauge on the way) with no problem. But the moment that I attach the anti-skating weight, the tonearm is pulled (almost violently) away from the spindle. Aside from moving the position of the weight's line, I can't see anyway to overcome this. Even with a different position, the arm is still pulled away from the center of the album to the point that it won't stay in the groove. The only way I've found to get it to work is to set the tracking force very high. Any suggestions? Seems like I'm missing something obvious here.

What are you setting the tracking force at?
I'll bet you have it too light, and/or your table isn't level.
TR

 

[mr_superlove]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Todd R /img/forum/go_quote.gif What are you setting the tracking force at? I'll bet you have it too light, and/or your table isn't level. TR

It's currently at 1.75g.

I did just check it with a carpentry level rather than the integrated bubble level and it did look to be off a bit. After proper leveling, it doesn't seem to be sliding to the right AS badly. It'll stay on the album, but there's right channel distortion and when I lift the cue arm up, the tonearm travels a good bit to the right of the "current" groove.

 

[Todd R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr_superlove /img/forum/go_quote.gif It's currently at 1.75g. I did just check it with a carpentry level rather than the integrated bubble level and it did look to be off a bit. After proper leveling, it doesn't seem to be sliding to the right AS badly. It'll stay on the album, but there's right channel distortion and when I lift the cue arm up, the tonearm travels a good bit to the right of the "current" groove.

Strange,
RIGHT channel distortion is usually a sign of not enough tracking force (provided you have it hooked up correctly). There is too little pressure on the outer wall of the groove, which is the right channel.
Recheck your cart and interconnect wiring to verify L&R channels are connected properly.
TR

 

[mr_superlove]

Todd, looks like you were right about that tracking force. Complete bonehead move on my part.

So, in the future, should any other boneheads be looking for a solution to why their tonearm won't stay in contact with the album with the anti-skating weight applied here's a possibility:

In 3rd paragraph of Step #10 of the instruction manual it states that once the tonearm is balanced, "Hold the rear of the counterweight with one hand securing its position. ... lightly grip and turn the tracking force scale until the zero is in the twelve o'clock position."

Paragraph 4 is where I went wrong and didn't read carefully enough, as it reads "Turn the counterweight counterclockwise to 1.75g." My problem was that I continued to hold the counterweight in position with one hand and turned only the independently moving tracking force scale. This effectively kept the tracking force at 0g.

Took only 56 hours to learn that little lesson. I appreciate the help and suggestions, Gents!

 

[Todd R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr_superlove /img/forum/go_quote.gif Todd, looks like you were right about that tracking force. Complete bonehead move on my part. So, in the future, should any other boneheads be looking for a solution to why their tonearm won't stay in contact with the album with the anti-skating weight applied here's a possibility: In 3rd paragraph of Step #10 of the instruction manual it states that once the tonearm is balanced, "Hold the rear of the counterweight with one hand securing its position. ... lightly grip and turn the tracking force scale until the zero is in the twelve o'clock position." Paragraph 4 is where I went wrong and didn't read carefully enough, as it reads "Turn the counterweight counterclockwise to 1.75g." My problem was that I continued to hold the counterweight in position with one hand and turned only the independently moving tracking force scale. This effectively kept the tracking force at 0g. Took only 56 hours to learn that little lesson. I appreciate the help and suggestions, Gents!

I figured that's what you did but am glad to see you were able to catch your mistake

Glad you got it.
TR

 

[nelamvr6]

Quote:

Originally Posted by mr_superlove /img/forum/go_quote.gif Todd, looks like you were right about that tracking force. Complete bonehead move on my part. So, in the future, should any other boneheads be looking for a solution to why their tonearm won't stay in contact with the album with the anti-skating weight applied here's a possibility: In 3rd paragraph of Step #10 of the instruction manual it states that once the tonearm is balanced, "Hold the rear of the counterweight with one hand securing its position. ... lightly grip and turn the tracking force scale until the zero is in the twelve o'clock position." Paragraph 4 is where I went wrong and didn't read carefully enough, as it reads "Turn the counterweight counterclockwise to 1.75g." My problem was that I continued to hold the counterweight in position with one hand and turned only the independently moving tracking force scale. This effectively kept the tracking force at 0g. Took only 56 hours to learn that little lesson. I appreciate the help and suggestions, Gents!

[homer_voice]Doh![/homer_voice]

Glad to see you got it sorted.

Are you now using the anti-skate weight?