What is anti-skating, and how should it be set?

Anti-skating is an adjustment designed to counteract the force generated as the stylus is drawn towards the spindle.  For DJ use, anti-skating should be set to ‘0’, due to the necessity of backcueing.  Setting anti-skating at ‘0’ allows the stylus to follow the groove adequately, regardless of what direction the record is moving.  For playback and/or transcription use (as with the Ortofon Arkiv cartridge), the anti-skating value should approximately match the tracking weight applied to the cartridge.

Note: Some DJs, despite doing backcueing and/or scratching, prefer to set the anti-skating at ½ the value of the tracking weight.  This is a personal preference, and should be experimented to your particular liking.