Garrard Zero Tonearm

 The Zero Tracking Error Tonearm

This Garrard invention expanded state-of-the-art.. It eliminates tracking error, one of the major causes of distortion. How tracking error was eliminated in a tonearm is one of the most meaningful chapters in the history of audio engineering. The idea is simple and straightforward. The offset head of a conventional tonearm cannot remain tangent to the record groove at all points on the record, … so why not hinge the head and make its offset angle variable?

 The execution of the idea required the creation of a hinged trapezoid (a kind of double arm). The brilliance of the engineering that went into this complex design is emphasized by the fact that both mass and friction have been kept as low as in the finest conventional arms, while completely eliminating tracking error.  That the project was worth the effort is apparent from the reviews which descended upon Garrard. Typical was the one from the prestigious Hirsch-Houck labs, as described in Julian D. Hirsch's "Product Test Reports" in Popular Electronics.

 ''… tracking error was unmeasurably low (under 0,5 degree) over the entir record surface. The stylus force indications were very accurate, with less than .05 gram error at 1 and 2 gram settings and only 0,1 at 3 grams.  This tes, incidentally, established that the Zero 100SB arm, in spite of its multiple pivots, had negligible friction. As we see it, any cartridge made today can be operated in this arm at the lowest tracking force consistent with the design of the cartridge, without encountering difficulties of excessive arm friction.

The anti-skating calibration was correct for equal playback distortion in both channels (a very unusual occurrence among the many arms we have tested)

 It boasts high performance in its basic characteristics at a price that matches or betters other record players of comparable quality. For example, only a few of the most expensive direct-drive turntables we have tested have shown lower rumble than the Zero 100SB.

… we found the Garrard Zero 100SB to be one of the smoothest, easiest-to-use record players we have seen. All its basic operating controls and their functions be haved exactly as intended, with none of the "bugs" that so often afflict mechanical systems. For example, when the cartridge is installed and the arm balanced accordingto instructions, the unit is actually set up correctly, without additional adjustments with a stylus gauge and tracking error protractor to achieve optimum performance capablity."

Tonearm

Type:  Variable offset (zero tracking)

Balance:  Adjustable counterweight

Pivots:  precision-loaded ball bearings

Stylus Force Adjustment:  Sliding weight

Anti-skating Adjustment:  Magnetic, with spherical/ellipticaal calibration

Cue Control:  Viscous-damped for both lowering and lifting