VTA & Arm Height Calculator
Arm height and stylus rake angle are two ends of the same adjustment. Enter how far you plan to raise or lower the arm pillar and this gives the angle change at the stylus, or start from the angle you want and get the height. It works for the Clear Wave or any arm whose effective length you know.
Reference · 323.5 mm effective length
| At the pillar | At the stylus | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 0.5 mm | 0.09° | |
| 1 mm | 0.18° | |
| 2 mm | 0.35° | |
| 4 mm | 0.71° |
These are small numbers. One 0.5 mm graduation on the Clear Wave's VTA scale tilts the stylus by an eighth of a degree. A 180 g pressing sits about 0.6 mm taller than a thin one, so just changing records moves the angle by more than a graduation. An adjustment this fine is only worth making if the setting holds afterwards, which is why the Clear Wave's VTA adjuster locks with a clamp. Once the height is set, it can't drift.
Check the arm and cartridge match too with the resonance calculator →
Who makes these
Bool Audio is a father and son making hi-fi components in a small UK workshop. We build the Clear Wave unipivot tonearm and the Clear Wave 2.0 tonearm cable, both for the Linn LP12. These calculators began as our own bench arithmetic. They are free to use, there is nothing to install, and they take no view on which cartridge you should own.