how to adjust the height on a turntables tone-arm

This is a video showing you how to adjust the height on the tone arm of a turntable.
Please note that in the video I did this with a technics turntable but this can be done on any turntable that has a height adjustable tone arm and it the same procedure.
If you have a technics SL 1200 or 1210 MK2 turntable and the height adjustment mechanism is very stiff or is jammed up you might want to check out my other video How to service/repair/replace the height adjustment on a technics 1200/1210 MK 2 turntable the link for this video is below.
• How to service/repair/...

[@naturalmystic67]

Technics should award this guy a medal.

[@jeffhickman723]

This is the clearest explanation of tonearm height I have ever seen. Thank you.

[@billwillard9410]

Finally! Someone actually showing us a way to get the VTA fairly close! Not like other “detailed” explanations on how to set up a cartridge and then twirl the height adjustment a little before they move on.

[@mrwardy7]

i've never done this in over 20 years. definitley going to do it now

[@kazywaz]

James you are so informative. I can't thank you enough for all the information and knowledge you've given me about my turntable, stuff that I had no idea about, that I for years never checked while playing my records. With all the crappy and cheap CD's they've been making over the years, squandering such a technological advancement and letting it go to pot, there's now a wonderful re emergence of records. Records that I still have tons of . Thanx again.You are spot on - and I love your accent.

[@mck_motion]

You just saved me a lot of money, I thought my tonearm was completely screwed and it turns out this was the problem, I had no idea height affects tracking so much. Thanks so much for doing these videos man.

[@djstevenlove]

I own 2 1200's and it's great to know how to take care and make the most of them. Thanks so much. All your videos have been extremely helpful and absolutely informative.

[@wonderb4017]

absolutely brilliant demonstration! I had just watched the other video on the antiskating setting and checked this one right after... You nailed it just like the other one! Thanks!!!

[@aboutsoundandvision]

Appreciate the clear explanation, I currently own an Audio Technica AT-LP120 and noticed that even in the zero height position my tonearm was not level. Luckily I was able to fix the issue by putting the stock mat below the cork mat I use and it raised the height just enough to be level, or as close as possible. Tested a few records and noticed less sibilance and even some records had less surface noise.

[@rnasap]

You are my source for technics 1200 info. Picked one up at a Pawn Shop for $20.00-"Twenty" and have been giving it a good cleaning and tuning. Your instructions are simple and effective. Thank you.

[@viperfrank]

@TheReIntegration no problem, thank you for your feed back and your kind works. I'm glad you like the video, thank you for your comment. nice one!!!

[@viperfrank]

@TheUzimis Thank you!!!, I never really taught of my self as much of a genius, but I'm glad you like the videos. I will try to get my stuff sorted and get some more videos up soon. Thanks again for your comment and kind words. nice one!!!

[@newburyg]

Thanks for your videos. I bought a pair of second hand 1210s a few months ago and they were stinking. The last owner never looked after them. Thanks to your videos I've now serviced then and adjusted the height, weight and anti skate to the correct settings. Thanks

[@plagueblack]

I learned all these techniques from A-trak & Infamous back in the 90s but never knew the why behind it all. Thanks James!!

[@viperfrank]

thank you very much for your comment and kind words. im glad the video was a help. hopefully more videos to come soon... nice one!!!

[@MrTrundleon]

I do professional electronics repair, I just started fiddling w/these 1200's, this was most informative, thanx

[@sixtyhz]

Top man Very usefull. Just got serrato and saw that the signals were very different. Had my decks for 12 years and never bothered setting them up properly. Thanks to your video help they are set up perfectly.

[@viperfrank]

@FerreNL thank you, I'm glad you like the video, I always like to keep things relaxed when I do my videos, I like people to enjoy watching my videos not feel like they are on a forum and there are too many rules. thanks for your comment and your kind words. nice one!!!

[@JeremySimms]

So helpful and easy to follow. I'd played about with this before but not really known what I was doing - also your anti-skating video was very useful as I'm about to come into an old 1200 which I'm sure will need a bit of reset. Plus; some of the decks I've played on in clubs have been all over the place and thanks to your video - I now have some idea of why. Cheers!

[@christwagon1980]

fantastic! Just got my Stanton ST150's today. So glad I watched your video today too! Thanks, you've got talent for teaching.

[@rkitchen69]

Frank you legend mate. Proper helped me out this did. Cheers.

[@Heavyloudsoftnever]

Thank you so much for your detailed video regarding VHA. I can't tell you how much you simplified the process of set-up. You rule and all the best to you and your vinyl acquisitions.

[@robertpurvis6106]

wow im so glad i found these old vids. i took a brake from playing for a few yrs. got the bug again and just bought a pair of used m3ds. after watching your vids i am confident to work on them myself if needed. after adjusting height with concords i noticed at 0 one deck sits about 6 mm higher at needle from deck case compared to the other. so my next move will be to take apart and grease/re calibrate/repair like your other video. might just replace tone arms as well and upgrade rca with internal ground and be done with it in one swoop. floating test with anti skate test kicks both arms to clip at 3 but does not totally kick them to spindle at 0. none of it seems to effect playing with traktor in absolute mode but new parts are fairly cheap online. by the way i like your taste in early 2000 dnb. my favorite genre is techy dnb. big ups for your detail videos!

[@viperfrank]

@ellollio No problem, thank you for your comment and feed back. Nice One ; )

[@xyanide1986]

Great guide, I think the tone arm height is is a good indicator but not the whole answer. I was eye-balling my LP120x putting more mats on and really checking the angle of the stylus and cantilever. It needed a bit higher up than I initially estimated purely going visually off the tone arm. You can see how the stylus behaves once everything drops.

[@billy73178]

all your videos really helped out tons. especially the led replacement of the target light. your the man. again thanks

[@DJAnthologic]

Great tutorials,,, saved me the trouble of having to explain much of it to some of my mates. Cheers

[@viperfrank]

@MsOliver02 thank you very much i'm happy you like the video. nice one!!!!

[@sheri1983]

Best video I saw on the subject even better than turntable manufacturers. You gained a subscriber my friend.

[@271production]

great vid! I have a tip for the different vinyl thickness problem. set it up with your slimmest vinyl why? because its better to have your tonearm too low than too high. if its too high the needle will totally hack away your precious vinyl. if you set it up with the slim vinyl, when you use a thicker one, it'll have the same effect as a lower tonerarm. which is your best bet.

[@TheAnunnaki-NYC]

Awesome video indeed. Very informative and helped greatly with understanding the significance of the Technics 1200's tonearm height adjustment & my vinyls.

[@viperfrank]

@mushroomleg yeah i can see your point it does seem a bit strange, but the reason is because all needles and cartages are different shapes and sizes, you could have an ortofon blue and set it level but if i than put a stanton 500 on there it will be a bit lower so ill have to re adjust it. hope this helped and thats for your comment. nice one!!!

[@BunkerMonkeyUK]

9yrs I owned some 1210's and never adjusted the arm height.. I know feel like a total plum! Great Vid and easy to understand!

[@allmyducksinarow]

Thanks so much! You're the only person on KZbin that could explain this well. You've earned yourself a new sub!

[@viperfrank]

+Bacon Grace thank you, i really appreciate the feed back. and thank you for your support.

[@swansong007]

Hi Bacon. See new post above to set up tone arm correctly

[@viperfrank]

@newburyg No problem, thank you for your feed back and kind words, I'm glad you like the videos, I will try to do some more soon. Thanks again for your comment. Nice One ; )

[@Samuel.mulinge]

thanks mate...i have learnt a great deal. i bought my turntables 6 months ago...and i didnt know these stuff, thanks alot

[@2000YearsOfTradition]

Excellent explanation! Thank you.

[@tekken278]

your vids are brilliant man!.thanks!

[@steveidxp]

Some excellent points. I honestly never gave it much thought of the thickness of the vinyl, sounds weird but I never have. Thanks again for the tips...

[@viperfrank]

@plagueblack thank you, I'm glad you like the videos, I never thought I could be much of a teacher but I actually like it. thanks again nice one!!!

[@snakeplisskenish]

Awesome video - well made tutorial. Now I have balanced my 1210s to perfection with fresh needles on them. Thanks Viper ;)

[@alec7519]

Great informative and simple to follow videos, thanks!

[@davidst489]

Key is "height adjustable tone arm". A lot of turntables lower end or vintage don't have that. So you can change the platter mat or if your using a standard type 1/2" mount head shell you can shim between the top of the cartridge and and bottom inside of head shell.

[@berlewi]

Very helpful. Many thanks for posting this!!

[@oneam9533]

Thanks mate this and your anti skate one are brilliant. You have a knack for explaining these concepts clearly.I've owned 1210s for twenty years now and finally understand anti skate properly.

[@yomommastupid]

what you been doing for the past 20 years...

[@EmotionalContagion]

Same here. Subbed.

[@ladduro]

great video. 5 stars waiting for weight tonearm adjustment video. thanks

[@sidewalk-star]

Nicely presented, very easy to follow. Cheers.

[@A1ZUDD1N]

Awesome videos james... thanks to you i managed to replace both my tonearms and now my 15year old 1200s sounds much much better and SHINY!!! :) but one problem... they still somewhat skip every now and den when i do simple scratching, i calibrated both the tonearms with new headshell+carts&stylus and also levelled it as in this video.... hope you could advice on some other problems that might be happening :) thanks again james!!! nice record collection btw :)

[@MakingMadBeats]

Got a pair of 1200s recently and I' m doing this straight ahead, once I have them freshly serviced and I got my new Ortofon cartridges. Thx 🙏

[@RobertJason11]

Thank you. I love your videos. I have an SL-1500 and am going to get it into shape.

[@georgedoughly6344]

RobertJason11 That is an awesome Turntable!

[@viperfrank]

Thank you, I'm glad you like the videos, i will hopefully have some more on the way soon. Thank you for your comment. Nice One ; )

[@simonm5839]

Cheers for all you put up mate, much appreciated! Already replaced an rca cable from one of your videos and just sorted anti skating (on one only as one not doing it), tone arm height and cleaned contacts for needles etc. and seems a lot better sound wise :) Think my mixer and speakers need servicing but defo way better at the minute!

[@viperfrank]

that's great, I always like hearing that my videos are helping people, glad to hear they are helping you. thank you for your comment.

[@TheGoatlicker]

thx man, I have my 1200's for 7 years and really didn't had a clue!!

[@thejazz008]

thank you for the advice! definitely helped me to level ma turntable. Cheers from nyc

[@viperfrank]

@robbies1 Hi there, thank you for your comment, its probably going to be best to set the weight first, as the weight will effect the height a little bit, as the needle pushes in slightly. I hope this helped and thanks again for your comment. nice one!!!

[@stephenparker4735]

Very helpful. Many thanks and nice one back !

[@the38parallel]

Thanks for the video, the sound quality is way much more better! Anybody tried listening to the Lp without a Slipmat?

[@CRAM1REZ51]

Agreed, like your door organizer! Sweet!

[@stephencutler459]

Thank-You. It's probably been 30 years since I used a turntable & I had forgotten about the "setup" after moving it. You saved me from a big Oopz!

[@viperfrank]

no worries, I'm glad the video was useful. thank you for your comment.

[@eky49]

Great vid mate !!! Cheers from Tasmania

[@jeffhanson1]

I have a Audio-Technica AT-PL120 which looks exactly like your Technics, just silver instead of black. They must be made by the same company. Very solid direct drive turntable for the past 5 years.

[@stevend77]

thanks for the vid man,keep up the good work

[@youllgrowonme]

You're a very good orator.

[@viperfrank]

@billybob7814 Thank you, I'm glad that the v video was of some use and that you managed to sort your issue. hopefully more videos on the way soon. Thanks again. Nice One ; )

[@dj-ric-derr-c9436]

Nice Job On The Video. Where Were You 20 years Ago I definitely Needed You Then.

[@viperfrank]

@kazywaz Thank you very much for all your kind words. I am so glad you like the videos. I haven't done any videos for a long time, I will hopefully be doing some more videos soon. thank you again for all your kind words. nice one!!!

[@rockabillyrogues9202]

Thank you! Very well explained!

[@flowerbedmusic2674]

Another neat move I've just read is to place the needle on the run-in of the stationary record and raise the height at the tonearm base until the bottom of the stylus housing is parallel with the record. Then do the measurements. This might be more protective of the stylus as you don't need to hold the tonearm level while adjusting with no chance of dropping or bumping.

[@DJMikeron]

Thanks this was very helpful. 👍

[@fraicheness]

Great explanation, thanks!

[@raychelh]

@viperfrank, cheers mate your vids r excellent. i have followed the tone arm and counterweight vids and still have really distorted sound.when i apply more pressure it sorts it. first i swapped the weight round, then moved it after seeing you say it was wrong. i put the tone arms at zero gravity, but then the weight only moves to 2 on dial. not enough tone arm space to move towards the needle end.. technics 1200. 1 ortofon & 1 technics head. ortofon more than technics but both still not perfect

[@Brukniguzi43v]

Pretty helpful! Thanks a million!

[@Barb5001]

What setting the Stylus rake angle (SRA) the stylus should "rake": forward about 1 -2 degrees to match the average rake angle of the cutting sting stylus on the master . When people talk about the VTA,, there are actually referring to the SRA.

[@Derrick8657]

Thanks, very helpful, good info.

[@MrDeejay45]

Thanks for this informative video, I learnt something new about Technics decks :o)

[@RAVINGOONER92]

superb mate, thanks for upping!

[@Mortimix]

Hi there, Really useful video, well explained, everything's clear: you know how and why to do "this" or "that", and that's not the case of other guys I've seen in other videos: they should check yours ! I also give you 5 stars ! Cheers !

[@philipthomas7611]

Thank You, James!

[@alexandrosgalanos8839]

It is of great help, thank you.

[@TheUzimis]

you're a turntable genius, dude ;)

[@d3rb25]

I had a similar problem and whilst this tutorial is good I think it may be slightly inaccurate, I found a very handy tutorial on the ortofon website. Cant post the link but if you google, "ortofon how to set up a turntable" you should find the tutorial easy enough. Hope this helps.

[@jamespeters2859]

Superb, as ever. Well done thanks.

[@aaronjones394]

Very helpful, I have a Technics SL1500C with a Ortofon 2m red, and it will be replaced by a Ortofon 2m black very soon, thanks for the information.

[@jamesvespa1]

Thank you just watched this and your anti skating video, I have now fixed the issue on one of my turntables :)👍

[@viperfrank]

that nice to hear, I'm always happy when someone is able to fix an issue using my video. thank you for your comment.

[@yerikkaslow7655]

I've owned 5 1200s, 1999-present. I got my original set right from trial and error, but good grief, this video breaks it all down. It's amazing. Thank you so much @viperfrank

[@Gwaarn]

Exactly what I needed, thanks!

[@Woweeeeee100]

Cheers mate, this had been confusing me. People said use a mirror but i wasn't sure what i was looking for

[@mikeargentina1]

the best tutorial thanks !

[@ajbell2965]

Thanks for the informative video, I now know I was sold a 1200 with a bent tone arm, haha.

[@philipswain5800]

Brilliant. Thank you so much.

[@TobesEtc]

Thanks, that's a really great video.

[@tommyfriend9804]

Very informative thanks mate 👍

[@JINSTASUTUBE]

New to vinyl (again) so nice video, very useful info!

[@brandxreviews]

Great vid. Helps a lot

[@planey2k]

very helpful and articulate - thanks

[@FlyFlicks]

thanks a million for this Video.

[@labota51]

Thanks for the vid. Very informative. I have one turntable but the height adjustment wont budge. I unlock it and try to adjust up or down but its stuck. Do I need to replace the whole tonearms or what would you recommend? Thanks.

[@jeffehrenberg8916]

Well described. Thank you

[@punkdetective]

Thanks - tuning for dummies. Needed that !!!

[@nevilleangel8000]

Hi. I hope you are the miracle I need ! I have about CD 4 vynyl

[@gmonet46]

Excellent, and thank you.