adjusting the weight on a turntables tone-arm

This is a video showing you how to adjust the weight on the tone arm of a turntable, this is a very important process as it will determine the life of your vinyl.
Please note that in the video I do this adjustment to a Technics turntable but this can be done on any vinyl turntable.
Also something to bear in mind is that it doesn't matter what cartridges you're using, although it would be ideal to know the exact make and model of cartridge you have in order to easily obtain information about the weight specifications.
The name of the record that i play in the video is "Dreadlock" by Future Prophecies.
nice one!!!

[@flowerbedmusic2674]

In all my years of looking at KZbin clips for information on everything under the sun, this guy is the best teacher. No gimmicks, no split screens, no lame jokes. He isn't called Brad and saying 'hey don't you just hate it when this happens?' with a goofy wide-eyed, wake up dude attitude. He isn't breathing heavily into a headset mic, it isn't over-edited, nor under-edited....he's nicely paced, he's CLEAR and HE GETS ON WITH IT!! The ego is left out of the programme. He's here to help. And...sorry but it's nice to have someone with a straightforward South East accent (and this is coming from a Geordie!) without all the 'yo's' and 'dude' and 'check this out' nonsense. Well done this man!

[@martianspeed]

100% agree. He's just saved my vinyl collection from further damage. My counter-weight was the wrong way round, after I sent it for servicing; and I didn't notice.. records damaged !

[@marklee2910]

I still check back to your 3 videos when resetting my tone arm and anti skate, must be at least 10 yrs now, fair play to you mate, 👏

[@neilmac6360]

Haha, same here, been watching this video on & off for about 10 years as well. Always wondered what happened to the lad that did it. Superb, easy to follow practical advice, it was top work.

[@christwagon1980]

You have to know you're doing a good job if all of your comments are positive on KZbin, of all places. So, I'll add another one, gold mine of knowledge, thanks again!

[@thepioneerclub]

Many thanks for you videos on height, anti-skate, weight-arm and cleaning the cartridge connections.. I've had by 1210's for 20 years and this is the first time I've got them properly setup and have resolved issue with poor sound quality after watching your vids!

[@ezrajohn5233]

Totally had my weights on backward. Adjusted per your instruction and cartridge specs. Wow! Improved sound and now my records don't skip. Thank you for your help. Totally useful contribution.

[@viperfrank]

no worries, I'm glad the video was of some help, it's always nice to know my videos are helping others. thank you for your comment.

[@martianspeed]

After watching this video and crying for some of my rare jazz vinyls that have been jumping; then reading your useful comment, I have some hope that maybe some of my tunes are not completely wrecked. .

[@whitelionmuzikproductionz9725]

instant classic!...needed this to get my sl1200mk2 going..used your other video to replace the RCAs and the Tone arm height adjuster which was seized up! thanks from cross the pond!

[@sfdoomed]

I've been spinning vinyl for decades but admittedly I've been a total amateur regarding proper tone-are functions. Your video was very useful and well made. Thank you!

[@baggoz1000]

hello mate. first you forgot to mention that before adjusting the tonearm weight you have to adjust the anti-skating to 0. also based on the "ortofon" specification about the cartridge you use the correct amounts are: Tracking force range : 2,0-4,0 g Tracking force recommended : 3,0 g so the correct weight you should put isn't between 2,0-2,8 g but between 2,0-4,0 g , with 3,0g recommended. also there are concorde (banana) cartridges,e.g. ortofon scratch,elektro,etc. that the recommended tracking force is 4,0 g. always friendly,Vaggelis.

[@DavidAStyles]

Fair play mate - this and the other three tone arm videos are exactly what I needed to refresh myself on how to set up my old Technics. Thanks for this!

[@deanoallen5096]

Very helpful information my friend. Even though I grew up with vinyl the turntables I used to were not able to be dialed in like this, probably why that old vinyl is now ruined. Again, very informative video's.

[@Titoroski187]

11 years later and was still A BIG HELP!

[@alphajuliette92]

Legit technical / tutorial videos Bro. I have been watching your videos back to back, learning about turntables and my Technics 1200 I bought. You have been a great help, thank you very much Mate. Big thumbs up from Down under in Oz haha.

[@stevenchampion8137]

Annabelle Jones ... ditto!

[@Jimmywillmott]

Wish I watched this one before the other dribble out there. Cheers , answered a lot of questions.

[@steveamies4997]

thank dude you save me according to sherwoods instructions and a lot of other utube vids they were saying just to move the gram dial to set you weight after balancing, to which I would just get my arm skateing across, until I saw your vid on turning the whole weight great stuff thanks

[@stofopdenaald132]

Thanks for all the tips 👍 really helped me out on my 1210 mk2. The seller said it was set professionaly to all the stats of my catredige. But the tonearm, weight and anti skate were way off as I found out about two weeks later.

[@paulstiffle8443]

I watched 10 videos on this and only yours was simple to understand - my turntable sounds awesome now! Thankyou!! 😀🙌

[@Greenjah81]

Awesome tutorial, I knew the first 3 steps, but then I didn't knew that there is a huge difference between normal Tech's Cartridges and Bananas... Thanks a lot. Great job.

[@mubarakal-mansouri5979]

thank you for the help. I just got my first record player ever the lp120 and needed more guidance trying to figure it out. I will keep watching more and learn. I got stuck on how to make correct every time and make I get it the right way.

[@viperfrank]

thank you!! im glad it was helpful, thanks for all your positive feed back and thank you for your kind words. nice one!!!

[@djfredmk2]

old video but still the best adjustment video. keep up the good work.

[@JOE1986D]

This is the forth video on your channel that I've found really helpful for my new 1210 Technics mk2. Really appreciate what you are doing. All the best!

[@steveidxp]

Excellent tips mate....thanks a ton. It's always a great idea to check and re-calibrate several things after the decks have been moved. As always....good job...!!!

[@EzeeLinux]

Back when I was playing records on the radio, we called the hissy nasty sound 'cue burn' Great video. :) JC

[@bencheshire]

Wow, thanks so much. Not a DJ, just getting into vinyl for listening, but this improved my sound quality by at least 50%. Wow, cheers!

[@stevenchampion8137]

... I’ve been bunglefucking and guessing at this on SLs for around 25 years until now. Nothing but total gratitude for your tutorials boss

[@eduardoolivares4317]

Steven Champion ecpfkhxis lzhmb. Hggywad ayn

[@allan77clash]

Yes, finally sorted out a problem I've had for a while: my counterweight was set up completely wrong. Great tutorial, thanks.

[@MarkPMus]

Setting the weight up correctly on the tonearm IS definitely the most important part of tonearm set up. I'm a vinyl hi-fi enthusiast, not a DJ, using Rega decks, with cartridges that track at between 1.75 and 2g. Getting the arm to float is probably the hardest bit, and Shure make a reasonably cheap tracking force gauge so that you can check it properly. I'd advocate this above and beyond digital versions, because the really cheap digital versions fail very quickly, and the good ones, such as the one made by Rega, cost an arm and a leg. Incidentally, you can help save your turntable when transporting it, by removing the platter and the counterweight during transit. So, as you say, you are then forced to re-calibrate the arm every time the deck is moved. It's a faff, but the job of calibrating takes 5 mins, and it's worth it to preserve the deck and the records.

[@thevibrationbaby]

Great tutorial and excellent explanation, very helpful and completely solved the audio issues I was having with my turntables.

[@tomjack5304]

Thank you, really helpful. Didn’t have a problem till a bought a brand new vinyl and randomly started to skip really aggressively but everything’s fine now

[@MansuDC2]

I got SHURE M447-H preloaded cartridge with Technics headshell and says to use 1.5-3 grams, I use from 2.5-3 grams on mine, this vid helped me a lot thanks viperfrank...

[@marcosa.catena6414]

yeah... read in another video that you were good .... and you are!, thank you for sharing this!

[@daft9097]

Bro so many years and your videos still help! Btw I had that Stanton mixer and it sucks balls you probably know this too lol

[@TheRealSmiTTTen]

You just totally solved a problem for me! I picked up a pair of 2nd hand Numark TTX1s a few months back. Went through all the balancing and height adjustment and they were still jumping. I just assumed the guy that sold them to me had some kind of clue - he didn't. He had the counter weight on backwards. Kicking myself for not seeing such a school boy error! Cheers mate.

[@garybennett3256]

Says the man with a guitar in the background ffs! Thanks nutts your a great help!

[@Tommymang]

Thanks for the tutorial! I had no idea the adjustment was so important.

[@christianbell2191]

Very useful video James. Easily explained and handy. Thank you

[@MeisterEck]

Thank you very very much!! I am so stupid and thought a bit of distortion has to be.... now it sounds better than any cd! :)

[@MrRBALLZ13]

This is the SECOND time this same vid has helped me out. Thank a million my friend! PEACE

[@HirogenCD]

thanks, now i know how much weight i have to put on my tone arm, stupid technics manuel didn't say anything, thank you very much :)

[@edgarcasey]

Yes, very informative. Much appreciated. Only thing I'm not so sure about is when you emphatically state that all turntables have an adjustable tonearm (unless I misunderstood). In fact, one of my turntables is a Technics SD-22. The weight is factory set, and it is not adjustable. But it's good to know that the optimal weight is generally around 2.5 grams. So a penny is good - a nickel is bad, because it weighs twice as much, and will wreak havoc on my vinyl.

[@beetleboyguitars]

I had a similar problem, I got a Stanton T.62 It was apart new in box. I had to assemble the tone arm, they said to balance the tone arm without the stylus cartridge attached, I couldn't get it right till I seen this video. Thanks for your help!

[@viperfrank]

no worries, glad I can help. thank you for your comment.

[@kragskov54]

Thanks for the refresher course. Concise and to the point. Well done.

[@pdude1911]

Nice one, James! I turned my 1210 upside down yesterday to take it partially apart to install dust cover hinge sockets. When I flipped it back up again the weight must have been changed slightly (when upside down I put it on a pillow). I forgot how to set the counterweight, this video helped me a lot, thanks!

[@bamsalvani]

Such a big help. How come I just found your tutorial just now? And wait, had somebody told you you're cute? Thank you so much.🙂

[@Ryansrangereport]

Perfect video, I bought a new platter and cart and this made it very easy to understand.

[@ThePrinspascal]

great tip about listening to the needle, thanks

[@viperfrank]

No problem, just glad the video was useful, thank you for your comment and your feed back, hopefully more videos on the way soon. thank again. Nice One ; )

[@xxxpurpose13xxx]

Much thanks for taking the time to make these videos. They are easy to watch and extremely helpful. Great job!

[@russellhope4732]

Great vids - I've just bought a couple of decks and one of them is distorting and jumping so now I know what to do - thanks James

[@willpower7885]

Thanks alot. Great tutorials. I'd never been sure about setting up the the anti-skating before.

[@Djbastine]

Love your explanations and musical taste!

[@DJbuero]

Great video, James. Thanks a lot with all your helping, it's been of very great use! Greetings from Germany.

[@markdeangelis2433]

Great thank you James! Trying to set up an old Garard TT to play my dad's old 78 collection...the volume dawn...ear trick... Should help me a lot! Thanks again Cheers!

[@H_Oscarsson]

Thanks for great video! Best explained on youtube by far!

[@classic287]

Yes, I agree with the other Gentleman, you are a Gentleman. I've been guessing at it until I watched your video. Good job, thanks.

[@deepreach7821]

Best video covering this subject. Much appreciated guy.

[@Dreez76]

Thanks. This helped giving me a more "secure" setting for my recordplayer. AT125LC Cartridge could take 1-1.8grams pressure, so i put mine at 1.4grams.

[@msptkp]

Thanks! I believe my tone arm is putting too much weight on the needle. I get distortion, especially during the higher pitch portions of music. I've also done the test recommended and it sounds fuzzy. At any rate, when trying to do the initial balance, the weight must be turned all the way back to get close to balancing, so it looks needle heavy. Just as it's about to get balanced, the weight disengages a bit and feels lose on the arm and then it looks weight heavy.

[@HarveyLeeSummers]

Top post! Cheers! To the point & great advice, not enough like this on youtube!

[@snowb44]

Your videos are extremely helpful and thank you for providing so much information!

[@MrIzo56]

Dude, 5/5 no joke, your vids are indeed helpful! Cheers.

[@garym8463]

Helped a lot with my Denon turntable. Thanks, James!

[@mifune141]

Can't thank you enough, this is a huge help in setting up my new turntable.

[@FANKANable]

Thanks again. Always very helpful.

[@sudsp9328]

Thanks dude. Very straightforward and helpful. I'm trying to sort out my Sharp Optonica RP1400. I've got Star Wars to play on it.

[@ntintini]

James please keep up the good work.You're great mate.This is John from Greece!

[@viperfrank]

@undatone hi there, thanks for your comment, its doesn't normally matter too much what order you do it in but it's quite a good idea to do the weight first and than the anti skate, you may find it easer to adjust the anti skate when the weight is set properly. but generally as long as you do them its don't really matter what order you do them in, im glad the video was helpful and thanks again for your comment. nice one!!!

[@gramoukdoom]

Slick as fuck man. Seriously, soooo many people out there should see your vid. I've seen so many DJs putting like 86kg on their vynils... some guys just don't get it. Im gonna forward this - really good tutorial.

[@aec1118]

Great video! You explained things really well. Thank you!

[@Viviennom]

You just saved my day! Thanks mate!

[@frankystylezdjfrost]

tanx for sharing all your videos really help me two thumbs up !

[@squirrelguy2195]

Thank you so much! This fixed my issues, thought my needle was going bad, turns out I didn't have enough tracking force

[@ChaseGuindon]

that was soo cool when he did a close up of the grooves

[@jamiemccort8388]

Thanks a lot mate, this was very helpful 👌🏻

[@elliotfairhurst1]

sorted us right out! Nice one lad!

[@yamaforever]

Good video you got here, really helped me. It was pretty much the same info as in my installation manual that came with my new turntable. Seems like i've done the adjustments right. Thanks:)

[@mbrifkin]

definitely the best video i've watched on youtube about this... One question though, on one of my tables, the tonearm weight is pushed way further up on the arm in order to achieve weightlessness than in some of the videos I've seen. Does that mean there's something I need to fix? It seems like I'm putting too much weight on it with the weight so far forward. Thanks again, your videos are super helpful!

[@MeanManu]

Thanks for the advice! Very well explained!

[@pharmd718]

Very helpful. Thank you.

[@t.r.ushoxx595]

four dislikes ?? the guy knows his stuff and is helping people out. fucking haters man

[@conflict1960]

Very helpful, nice one

[@jeffehrenberg8916]

Interesting - ready to watch your other videos

[@danchaplin134]

Great video mate as wheats very to the point

[@HR-zr4tc]

If you let the cartridge to float that high from the platter, you will end up getting lower tracking force than you intended. I would aim to get the space equal to record thickness between mat and floating stylus and then set the scale ring to zero.

[@viperfrank]

@nverwijk If you don't have enough weight on the needle than the needle will not sit right into the groove, this will effect sound quality and cause the needle to jump when queuing up/scratching. another thing that tends to happen is when the record reaches the end that the needle gets to the end groove and it jumps out on goes across the label. Hope this was a help and thank you for your comment. Nice One ; )

[@viperfrank]

@Jimmywillmott thank you very much, im glad the video was helpful and thanks for your comment. nice one!!!

[@gramoukdoom]

You should mention that the best way to adjust the weight (once all those steps are achieved) is to use a scale! Just turn the antiskate off, place your scale on the platter and gently drop the needle on the scale. That will give you the exact weight. Now adjust according to the cartridge recomendations (usually on the packaging or instructions leaflet). peace

[@acawroom79]

Awesome mate! Very clearly explained! Thanks! Cheers!

[@viperfrank]

@pdripps8866 No problem, thank you for your comment and support. Nice One ; )

[@bareknuckles2u]

Awesome video! Thanks, bro!

[@penguinshoes6256]

Thanks for the video you have shared a lot of great tips! thanks again man!

[@drmarciano]

Thanks man just saved my life

[@sexpistoljohnny]

Thanks so much, a well put together video:)

[@evanmmorgans]

This saved me! Thank you!

[@33rbp]

Thanks mate, well done

[@toomuchtoofast4533]

Great tips man, keep up the great work.

[@jfaulkner7753]

One thing not mentioned is the weight that screws into the end of the tone arm making it longer. Its addition makes the weight felt through the stylus lighter. I was not aware of this weight until recently - i have been rather ingorant on the subject of setting my decks up correctly in the past. The screw in extra weight is present on my 1200 mk2's. With the weight attached, i am able to reach approximately 2.5 grams stylus weight, after that the bore it is on tightens and no more weight is available. After taking the extra weight off there is more weight available, or so it would appear by looking at the rotating scale. My question is this: Once you have reached weightlessness for the stylus and set the scale to zero without the extra weight attached to the end of the tonearm: is the scale still accuratley representing grams that you are applying to the stylus? The obvious answer would perhaps be yes but i have never removed nor knew about the weight before.

[@djonpoint1]

Thank you very very much. super helpful

[@davepastern]

good video *thumbs up*. Just some notes - cheap cartridges usually have a conical profile, and that's not good for vinyl - it'll destroy the grooves and have poor read ability too at frequency extremes. Better cartridges will profile themselves to the groove better and perform better. Also, VTA is very important too, just as important as tracking weight imho. Incorrect VTA means unequal channel response, and uneven groove wear.

[@Pauls_Archive]

I like this - the idea of listening with no volume on is new to me, there is another more Accurate way of checking tracking force, a digital scale!, you can pick them up at a good price these days, and the one I have is pocket handy 👍🏻, Just wanted to ask, I’ve just got a Concorde pro s (black) and the enclosed details say 4gram recommendation tracking, but I’ve also head they track very nice at 3 - would you say this about right?, I’d like to go with the lower end if possible