Talk:Turntable anti-skating

Theory
I am not totally sure that my theory is true but I believe so. Please correct the article if I am wrong. Best regards/Knoppson (talk) 15:02, 10 April 2010 (UTC)


 * I'm not sure what you mean by theory, but the anti-skating device is real and is patented #3948529. I moved your page to include the hyphen since that is on the actual patent form. Also, I don't think you can cite yourself as a reference, so I'll replace that. –  Ker αun oςc op ia◁ galaxies  20:36, 12 April 2010 (UTC)
 * Unfortunately I think your are mistaken in your "The angle which the tonearm rests on the record is also different, being small at the beginning of the record but increasing by the end. This increase tends to". I'll try to rephrase it better. Cheers. --MarmotteiNoZ 06:54, 15 October 2010 (UTC) —Preceding unsigned comment added by MarmotteNZ (talk • contribs)


 * The offset which produces the skating force is not between the centerline of the cartridge and the pivot, but between the tangent line of the record groove and the pivot. They are similar, but differ by the tracking error of the tonearm geometry for a particular radial position of the stylus.  This offset is the "moment arm" that when multiplied by the frictional force exerted by the groove on the stylus produces the skating torque at the tonearm pivot.  — Preceding unsigned comment added by Wmjohn6217 (talk • contribs) 19:01, 10 December 2018 (UTC)

I searched for some history on this. Found this: G. Alexandrovich, "A Stereo Groove Problem," J. Audio Eng. Soc., vol. 9, no. 2, pp. 166,168, (1961 April.) https://www.aes.org/e-lib/browse.cfm?elib=469 — Preceding unsigned comment added by 82.25.52.78 (talk) 14:03, 7 May 2021 (UTC)

Skating as result of centripetal force
Skating is the result of the rotating groove exerting a centripetal force on the stylus causing it to want to "skate" inward over the disk surface. This results in a higher force of the stylus on the inner wall of the groove, distorting the left channel of a stereo recording and being less responsive to the right channel. The anti-skating mechanism is intended to balance the centripetal force keeping the stylus in the groove with equal pressure on both walls. Over compensating with the anti-skating mechanism results in distortion in the opposite direction.

(This is an amateur understanding, someone in the recording industry could improve it. The link #3948529 in the section above gives some of the technicalities)


 * At least this article acknowledges that skating draws the stylus inward, toward the spindle. Many modern sources, including the set-up instructions that came with an Audio-Technica turntable I bought a few years ago, say exactly the opposite, contrary to more ancient sources and my own past observations. But attribution of it to the angle of the cartridge relative to the tonearm (would attaching a straight bar of theoretical weightless metal directly from the top of the cartridge to the arm above the latter's pivot point change the forces being exerted on either the stylus or the bearings? I don't see how), or to either centripetal or centrifugal force (the cartridge is not in motion, and it is securely fastened, not sitting loose on the surface of the record and liable to fly off when the record starts spinning), are equally perplexing to me. My understanding is that the phenomenon is due to unequal friction. The outside wall of the groove rubs against the stylus harder than the inside wall, because it is moving very slightly faster relative to the stylus, and the stylus, naturally seeking the path of least resistance, is therefore slightly but relentlessly dragged inward. So, am I crazy, or is this one of those rare occasions when it really is the rest of the world that is hallucinating? 66.81.104.15 (talk) 11:00, 22 May 2017 (UTC)