Record player skipping? Set up the tonearm.

A record player that skips, distorts or wears records is very often a tonearm set up wrong. Balancing the arm, setting the tracking force and matching the anti-skate takes about fifteen minutes.

By Morgan Reid, author of DIY Vintage Turntable Repair

First, note when it skips

• At the same groove every time: points to stylus or cartridge alignment, or a worn record.
• Randomly: often dirt, a stretched belt, or rough platter rotation.
• Distortion toward the label, or one channel quieter near the center: that's skating, the inward pull toward the center of the record.

Before you adjust anything, clean the record, check the deck is level, and look at the stylus under a loupe for damage or a packed ball of dust.

Balance the arm to zero

1. Set anti-skate to zero and unlock the arm rest. Work on a flat, level surface.
2. Turn the counterweight until the arm floats perfectly level, neither rising nor dropping at the front. Keep your fingers off the headshell, which adds weight.
3. Set the dial to zero by rotating only the tracking-force ring to the reference mark, without moving the weight itself.

Set the tracking force

1. Turn the counterweight to the cartridge maker's recommended force in grams. Many moving-magnet cartridges sit between 1.5 and 2.5 g; check the leaflet or the maker's website for yours.
2. Verify with a stylus force gauge. Many counterweight dials are cosmetic, so don't trust the dial alone. Place the gauge on the platter, lower the stylus onto it, and take a few readings.
3. Check across the record. Readings at the outer, middle and inner grooves should be within about 0.1 to 0.2 g. A swing of 0.5 g or more points to a warped platter, an uneven deck or a bent arm.

Tracking force set too light lets the stylus skate and skip. Too much wears records: flat, shiny bands on the vinyl mean the force or anti-skate is off, so stop playing that record until it's fixed.

Match the anti-skate

Start with the anti-skate set to the same number as your tracking force: for 2.0 g of force, about 2.0 on the dial. Then fine-tune by ear or with a test record. If one channel sounds louder or distorted, nudge it in small steps of 0.1 to 0.2 and test on both the outer and inner grooves. Don't guess high: too much anti-skate creates its own distortion.

If your arm has no calibrated anti-skate, or the control is sticky, a tiny weight hung on fine monofilament at the headshell edge works as a temporary stand-in.

If it still skips

• Check the arm moves freely. Move it slowly by hand: it should glide smoothly with no sticky spots, clicks, or side-to-side wobble. Sticky bearings need cleaning and a sparing drop of light oil; tighten loose bearing screws a quarter turn at a time, and never overtighten.
• Check the speed. Wow and flutter can masquerade as tracking problems.
• Check the cartridge. Look at it from the front: the stylus should be perpendicular to the record. From the side, the cartridge body should sit parallel to the record.
• Swap the cartridge. Try a known-good cartridge. If the problem follows the cartridge, it's the cartridge; if it stays with the arm, it's the tonearm.

Change one thing at a time and keep notes, so you know which adjustment fixed it.

DIY Vintage Turntable Repair

The full guide: belts, idlers, bearings, speed, cartridge alignment, tonearm setup, auto-return mechanisms, wiring and hum, chapter by chapter.

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Why does my record player skip?

Most often the tracking force is too light, the anti-skate is off, or the deck isn't level. A dirty or damaged stylus and dirty records also cause skips.

What should anti-skate be set to?

Start at the same number as your tracking force, for example 2.0 for 2.0 grams, then fine-tune in small steps by ear or with a test record.