Vertical Tracking Angle (VTA) Shim Calculator
Note / AI Disclosure: This page is unrelated to my law practice, and I'm not affiliated with or endorsed by any manufacturer, brand, or retailer. I used AI tools to help build this page and to aggregate specs from public sources (e.g., manufacturer websites/datasheets, manuals, forums, etc.). I do my best to review things, but some details may be wrong, incomplete, inconsistent, or change over time, so please confirm anything important with the manufacturer or original source. Use this as hobby reference material at your own risk. One extra caution: if you ask an AI to "verify" these specs, it may cite my site as the source, so make sure you're verifying the original source, not my aggregation.
Audiophiles obsess over VTA (Vertical Tracking Angle)—how the stylus sits in the groove. One practical headache: cartridge heights vary. Swap a tall cartridge for a short one, and your tonearm angle changes unless you adjust arm height or add a spacer/shim.
Quick idea: treat the “cartridge height” as stylus tip → mounting surface. If your current setup is level and you swap to a cartridge that’s Δ mm taller, you generally need to raise the tonearm pivot by Δ mm (or use an equivalent base spacer). If the new cartridge is Δ mm shorter, you generally need to lower the pivot by Δ mm or add a headshell/cart shim of Δ mm.
Calculator
Select two cartridges (or enter heights) and the result will update automatically.
Add a custom cartridge
Cartridge height reference
This is the built-in cartridge list used by the dropdowns. Filter to find a model and see the default height used for calculations.
| Manufacturer | Model | Height (mm) | Source |
|---|
Notes & reality checks
This tool is intentionally practical (not mystical): it’s mainly about keeping the arm roughly level after a cartridge swap.
- Heights aren’t universal. “Cartridge height” is usually measured from stylus tip to top mounting surface, but sources vary. If in doubt, measure with calipers.
- Shims vs arm height. Some arms have a VTA tower; others use base spacers under the arm; others are effectively fixed. Use the suggestion that matches your hardware.
- Other changes matter. Changing platter mats, record thickness, headshells, and even fasteners can shift things. Consider this a starting point.
- Fine tuning. After you get level, listen and/or confirm with a known test record. Stylus shapes (microline/shibata/etc.) can be more VTA-sensitive.
Data sources & notes
Starter heights/ranges are pulled from manufacturer/spec pages where available. If a value is missing, enter it manually and you can save it locally.