Eminent Technology ET-2 Tonearm Owners
Are the oak leaves still (!?) falling? Indeed Frogman, this unprecedented cold snap, seemed to have caused many of the remaining brown oak leaves to finally lose their grip, and float down on top of the fresh white snow. Looking almost plague like. Any talk of global warming will fall on deaf ears here. |
Hi Chris, I was thinking about my posts yesterday.... I believe earlier when I (mistakenly) used the word "futile", may have been the beginning of what I view now as a misunderstanding. At that point, I was concentrating on azimuth and how in order to get it correct, it really has to be done lp by lp. I then remarked on using a (best reference lp) and leave it at that. (This is what was in my mind at the time). I know that to adjust azimuth (only) with the ET, it requires patience to get it right by twisting the arm on it’s very tight connector... which I believe is the only way to accomplish azimuth adjustment without altering other factors..and this is only if one is careful not to push/pull the armwand while twisting.) This is was also key in my mind/post a couple of weeks ago. One has to be lucky to get it right using just this singular method. This is why I've found the Foz to be of help with the ET. |
Nandric - With all those compressors, tubes and other devices your ET-2 remind me of a patient on intensive care. The difference is that Dear Nandric (Nikola) I have to tell you that I find it very ironic that my wife and yourself are sending me similar messages about health and reference to patients/intensive care. She likes to joke to me about the hazards to my health, as I pound my bones on the treadmill every day. She sees my knees bandaged up prior to starting, and of course hears me complaining of pain all day, especially in colder weather. You of course are referring to the health of the components required to keep my ET 2.5 running. So it got me thinking and it became even more ironic to me, (you know Canadians and Irony....go hand in hand ) that my messages back to both of you happen to be identical, as to why I partake in these activities. Because within 10 minutes of commencing each activity - everything becomes crystal clear. And when the activities stop - it's all downhill from there. Now Nikola .... tell you a secret - the biggest, real threat to the longevity and health of my ET 2.5/Platine vinyl setup can be seen in this picture. Do you see the problem ? |
@pegasus "a continuous crime..." I understand the intent. But, not really. I lived with the ET through my upgrades for over 20+ years. I realize that the platform it was on was the main culprit. In the meantime I decided to go other routes in which I’ve learned quite a lot from. The ET is and will always be a part of me and is always in my mind going forward. In fact these recent exchanges just brought all of it back to me like I never left the fold. Happy Listening! |
@slaw ...The freedom of will is a crime these days, which is a joke in the context of our discussion... ;-) (But is actually not really a joke) While the ET2 sounded very good on the Merrill Heirloom turntable, The modded Technics unleashed a new level of solidity and added transparency, which is due to the absence of sprung subchassis and rotational movements of the subchassis. This is in short what I learned. |
What is obvious to me is the fact that all owners of the ET-2 have such unbelievable memory. They can remember all the improvements they made during all those years of trying. Dear frogman, I assume that you learned in China the cryptic way to express yourself. I needed to read your post 3 times in order to grasp that you addressed Chris ''distante compatriot''. Dear ''distante compatriot'' , I somewhere estimated that we are 1/4 compatriots. Who would believe that you count me as your family member next to your wife in this context? Your LP's collection is impressive but how do you know which one to chose next among them? I separated my collection in two parts in order not to rely on my memory. No wonder that I don't own the ET-2 . Which improvement to try would be an impossible question to answer (grin). |
Nandric Nikola I have four rooms that contain records and I think they will become a burden when I am not around anymore. I have started talks with my son about how to deal with them. What is important.is the records I play. The records I play I call my "ready play" records, and are stored next to me, at arm reach in my main room 1, on the floor in four rows, against the wall. They are organized, updated - these four rows - based on my current state. The first row music and or lyrics make me want to smile and sing. The second row goes one further and may provoke me to want to get up and dance. Maybe wave my arms around. Room 2 is better for arm waving. If you want to score points with the spouse, let her see you dancing by yourself, especially to Classical. She will get confused and you will gain leverage. The third row - brings me to tears. Mostly women opera singers, or the violin. The fourth row - just out of arms reach. You know I need to be careful with the fourth row. Too much playing of music from this fourth will plant seeds in your head for revolting against your government (or the wife - same thing) One can get into big trouble with too much music and lyrics from the fourth row. |
Dear Nikola, it was, in fact, you who I addressed in that post. Perhaps your confusion is simply a smoke screen and you are an even better cryptologist than I. Beware the “threat”: https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Q3flw200lX8 |
Frogman You know I have always been a dog kind of guy.... . But this Bengal kitty stole my heart. Alas, finding Dutch Amperex Bugle Boy tubes on the carpet floor in the main room was a warning sign. My turntable is on a low table, beside the wall, the bottom covered so one can not see under. Who wants to look at sand. A reminder of what is coming. There I was listening, and a took a glance over at that marvel of engineering 4 feet away - only to see a tail wagging behind the spinning record. Like a conductor with his wand? This one Bengal colored. Heart stopped, I pulled two muscles jumping up from the recliner. I bent over to look under the table and repeated over and over - "here kitty, kitty. come here my good little kitty kitty" The TT thread is easily replaced. But that cantilever and exposed naked tonearm wiring? Now when she visits the door stays closed. But not sure what to do about the exposed electrostats in the adjacent room ? That room is open. |
Great story, Chris. I too am a dog person and Artie my beagle is thankfully very well trained and knows that he is not allowed in my studio. Years ago when my dear wife and I were “getting serious” we found ourselves in an untenable situation. Her Siamese and my Chihuahua simply could not, or would not, get along. Whenever they were together the fur literally flew. Around this time most of my lps were in storage waiting for my personal life to settle down and I was keeping only my most cherished four hundred or so lps with me at my temporary digs. When my future wife and I decided to move in together, I brought those lp treasures to our new place and I put them in a row on the floor temporarily while we settled in and they waited for their vacationing two thousand or so familiy members to rejoin them. The fur continued to fly. I also noticed that Max, now sharing living space with his arch nemesis the Siamese, grew increasingly hyper; if it’s possible for a Chihuahua to be even more hyper. I came home one night that my wife was away on business to find that Max had chewed, in perfect sequence, ALL the spines of my lp jackets as if to say: Get that fu@&ing cat out of here!!! Luckily, no damage to the vinyl. Yes, my favorite lps’ jackets all have chewed bottom corners. I wanted to kill the little bastard. Not entirely clear how the ensuing negotiations were resolved, but the Siamese ended up in Cleveland, Ohio with sister-in-law. I’m sure I paid dearly for that one...I suspect I still am ☺️ |
Frogman - There is no way that I could deal with a 100% Mexican Chihuahua. let me explain before people get their shorts in a knot. As it is "Lucky" , named as such by my daughter and her BF, rescued him; So he is 50% Chihuahua and 50% Jack Russell. This means 50% of the time he is in a Chihuahua barking fit, and the other 50% of the time he is on the other side of the couch staring at me, probably thinking God only knows what thoughts. He is probably thinking why doesn’t this guy give me more treats for being his RCA Victor dog front man. 8^0 Lucky, of course can be found on the first picture of my Audiogon Virtual System. Ok maybe I will give him more treats for pulling that RCA Victor dog duty. Audiophiles can shoot me if they like, but I find it vastly more interesting looking at pictures of dog and cats, et al ...... in the audio room setting then the gear itself. So boring. Especially Digital Gear. But then I am a career IT guy. My laptop is stuck to my sleeve. |
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A couple owners have reached out to me privately on proper torquing of the VTA block. So I thought it would be good to rehash the procedure here now. See the picture 35 on my virtual system for reference. lt is done with the VTA block - NOT - mounted. Hold in your hand and use the feeler gauge. The Gap value is arbitrary based on personal preference. Ensure you do not over torque. Bruce' instructions follow *************************************************** . Chris, |
^^^^ 1) Someone over torques the VTA block bolts. 2) they continue to use VTA, even though something does not feel right. 3) this strips the rack of teeth, creating bald spots, rendering the VTA block useless. 4) Now there is a need to replace the VTA block. Please share with the readers here what Bruce' response is. |
Well, curiosity killed the cat as they say. I have confirmed that if you send Bruce your original manifold he will replace your damaged VTA Block including the VTA Arc Block. The VTA blocks are on either side of the VTA arc block, the VTA arc |
Note: The picture linked in the previous post is the result of a ..Type B Personality.....Madman. This is my personal opinion. It is an extreme case of abuse, and does not represent normal wear and tear. ************************* I need to make this clear because I got emails asking such. The real story here, IMO, is that even this kind of setup abuse can be resolved / fixed by Bruce due to the design of the ET2. Cheers |
Auction for a rare 2.5. from the ebay ad. It features the large diameter spindle which is designed to operate at air pressures up to 19psi, The larger diameter spindle was designed for MC carts. Both the 2.0 and 2.5 can be set up by Bruce for 19 psi. Note: It only comes with the aluminum armtubes which work better with the 2.0, and MM carts; but you do get two, so one can be sent to Bruce to convert to carbon fiber for MC Carts. One way you can tell it is a 2.5; the end cap I Beam side is flush with the spindle and not overlapping it. Not associated with the auction - good luck to those watching. |
It only took me 20 years to get it setup right. Better to be late for the party..... *^) than not to show up....... 8^( Since this thread started I have been contacted by numerous people wanting to join this party, but they are too intimidated. Now the funny thing (I find), is that I tell them the same thing I used to tell companies I used to consult for. To become and stay leading edge, you need to spend some time on the bleeding edge. And IMO, the very nature of public chat forum talk, is that there is mostly posts about bleeding; lets face it, these posts are more entertaining; and people asking for advice and sharing info to help and stop the bleeding. But it can be intimidating to those not familiar with what we are discussing. |
Since this thread started I have been contacted by numerous people wanting to join this party, but they are too intimidated.This is the reflex thought that I heard often, but IMO the ET arm is not only very transparent sonically but also in its technical design. It’s quite easy to adjust and very logical so. Regarding what I have seen in radial tonearm adjustments, I’d say there is *much* less probability that something is going really wrong. To do it really optimal it’s the usual old song... :-) And not different than any other analog setup. (Typing this while listening to my Raspi3 Hifiberry Digi+ streamer...) |
John the ebay ad wording this is an upgraded** Eminent Technology ET2.5 Air Bearing Tonearm implies to me that it is an original ET 2.0, whose manifold and spindle were sent to Bruce. An ET 2.5 Manifold and Spindle returned to the previous owner. This can also explain why there are two aluminum arm wands. All other parts I Beam, Arm Plate Mount / VTA Block, Joint (Gooseneck) are shared between the two versions. It is rare to find a 2.5 manfiold/spindle for sale in auctions. If I were building from used purchases a 2.5, or for that matter even the 2.0; I would still be ordering from Bruce the upgraded aluminum gooseneck (joint), mounting plate ......and the long beam :^) ** the Ebay ad wording of "upgraded" is also misleading. If one plays MM cartridges the 2.0 is the better choice. All depends on which the listener prefers. If I recall buried in this thread somewhere, there are close to 3000 ET tonearms out there. How many would there have been if the ET 2.0 tonearm was not introduced the same year as the perfect sound (cd). 8^0 |
A dozen bidders already. The 2.0 in good shape sell for $800 - $1000 without the pump system. This one is at $660 already. That is $814 in Cdn dollars. ********* Pegasus When people come over if interested in the turntable. I let them feel the tonearm - without air. They see how much movement there is (nothing without force). I tell them wait a second and go turn on the air. Try it again. I say. They move the spindle in and out again with the air on. It actually "freaks" a few of them out. "Holy crap" "Holy shite" common language heard. |
I wanted that manifold, damn it! If one considers how a airplane takes off, goes up, and stays in the air, as a kind of magic.... then there is real magic happening inside this ET 2 manifold. Unlike "hybrid" air bearing tonearms, which use an air bearing in one plane, but need a mechanical (other) bearing in the other plane to work properly, this ET 2 is a full 360 air bearing. One of the Holy Craps in my previous post came from an Ontario Kuzma Airline owner, when he commented on the smoothness of the bearing. A Rockport tonearm owner on this forum, called the ET2 bearing "slippery" in comparison. Just saying. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ ***************** $1805 US dollars = $2222 Canadian dollars :^( |
I discovered a limitation of the long I Beam with really light cartridges. I’ve made an earnest attempt to get through some of my collection of unplayed records the last couple of weeks. Decided a couple of days ago to start using Room 2, to trial records and mark the ones for play in Room 1. I still have the Acutex 420 str mounted on an ET 2.0 HP with aluminum armtube in room 2 on an SP10 MKII. With just the base ET2 weight on there that fits into the groove of the clamp, I can’t get past the midpoint on the new long I Beam. Physics. The cartridge is just too light. So I contacted Bruce and he told me this is something new, and the good thing is he is going to have a lighter version of the base weight made to accommodate the longer I Beam. For those of you running at say 3/4 on the I beam - this may get to the end of the plank. I think I recall Harry modding his base weight to get to the end of the I Beam - but not sure. . Good record playing weather. Cheers |
Once more am I in need of the knowledge of this community I have decided to change turntable. My trusted TD125 is going into retirement and a Micro Seiki RX/RY/RS/RW 1500 is going to take over the job. This is raising some issues. I'm now in need of some sort of drawing for a armboard to mounts the ET2.5 on. I have access to knowledge and equipment to making the board board. (CDC -)) I even have it options to make it from whatever material that is optimal I guess titanium is a bit overkill. LOL I've seen this done before on pictures I'm not sure which armboard that's been used. I have an option to use both one or two posts. I'm suspecting to post board will be the best My plan is to mounts and acrylic shield on the backside. I don't have access to special mounting tool (the Jigg) So if anybody have control over the geometric positioning that will be of great help Also Interesting in hearing what kind of mounting, what kind of material that will be the best. I'm planning to put two more arms on so this is going to be a tree arm rigged Rx-1500 ;-))))))))))))))))) Styrk |
Styrk is there a reason that you are not using an existing post with armboard on the RX 1500? The ET 2.5 mounting plate spikes form a triangle that is larger than the hole in the armboard. So the armboard can be used. All that is needed is a longer mounting bolt, thick Fender washer and locking nylon bolt. All Stainless Steel, from the bolts store. I have only ever used the straight line jig anywhere on the platter, to mount the ET tonearm. Pivoting armboards make this very easy. For a full plinth TT put the assembled tonearm on the plinth without spikes. One person holds and adjusts the positioning of ET tonearm, while the other person positions the straight line jig which is hooked on the spindle. Once the cart lines up - use painters tape around the mounting plate - on three sides You’re done. As long as your Cartridge "Walks the Line". ***************** As far as dimensions for reference. If you download the ET 2 Manual Pt. 2 from Bruce’ website - at the end are some mounting dimensions for Sota,Oracle and VPI. Chris |
In the end it's only a question of the correct mounting distance of the central mounting screw. Everything else can be adjusted by rotating the base around the central mounting screw, although it might look "non straight"... ;-) Moderate arm length adjustments can still be made on the arm itself if necessary. Eg. to place the three base spikes more in the center of the arm board, not too close to the armboard edges. The distance is 210.96mm if you have digital drill-fingers :-) |
Well Chris with cant fine any armboard that is even close be able to get the distant right AX-3 is the closest but I think I either with touch the plate or get too great distant from the spindle. I know I can angle but then I lose option to mount all three arms. The problem is not to "walk the line" the problem is walk the line without interfering with the other arm's This mean that the onboard has long and curve around the plate. Then the mounting area has been big enough to support the base so all the spikes "hit something" The second part of the manual on Bruce' websites will be a great help I'd hoped that somebody had a design ready for this so I don't have to redesign the whole thing from scratch. The problem with them RX1500 is that the mounting posts is so close to the plate |
The problem is not to "walk the line" the problem is walk the line without interfering with the other arm's Styrk - Sounds like you are setting up for a tonearm "party" :^0 You know - Years ago I tried different TT's with multiple tonearms on them. On three occasions. These were two full plinths and one setup using armpods. The party/experiments for me failed because I would only end up playing the ET2 after some comparisons. To those interested, I could only get the other tonearms to sound like the ET2 on two parts of the record; you know what I mean ..... when the presentation is really in focus, on those two points when a pivot arm alignment hits the sweet spot on a record. Hearing this phenomena using familiar LP's with these other tonearms, was interesting, in an audiophile way, but also the end of the road for them. Just saying. ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ In my record collection I do have many mono records - have found over 100 so far and counting , so the plan would be to put my second ET2 on the La Platine in a custom install someday, to listen to these records with a mono cart. ************** For anyone reading here that doesn't understand what we mean when we say "Walking the line". See here. It's a straight, but lonely road. Walk the Line |
I know that the ET 2.5 is going to be the king. No problem admitting to that. The thing is that I love to have a setup where have the option for some variation and to "Just play some something" when not really" listening" with out using hours on the High end pickup. Cleaning house on high end time is vast of hours LOL Second ET 2 sounds like a crazy good idea Styrk |
Styrk - came across this picture of a ET 2.0 on an RX 1500. It has an XV1 on it, and a custom armboard. RX-1500, ET 2.0, Dyna XV1 The discussion for the picture, including some armboard details can be found here. They discuss 2.5 but that is a 2.0 in the picture as can be seen by how the end cap overlaps the spindle. Hope this helps. Chris |
Styrk I reached out to Bruce about your setup yesterday. Today he sent me the drawings/dimensions for your table. Send me a pm with your email and I will send them to you or contact Bruce direct, remind him of our AudioGon discussion here and he can send the drawing to you direct. His email (brucet@eminent-tech.com) Chris |
Hi Chris, Regarding my mod to get weight to the end of the plank for lighter cartridges, see the last picture on my virtual system page. I'll try to describe here. Go to your local auto tire store and get some stick-on wheel weights used on magnesium or aluminum wheels. Take the base weight off of the ET weight clamp. A portion of the wheel weight can be fashioned to exactly fit in the groove in the ET weight clamp. Once this is done it is simply trial and error to trim the remaining portion of the wheel weight to the correct weight for your plank and cartridge. The stick-on weights come in a single bar that is perforated so one, two or three can be broken off according to how much weight you need. I started with two and shaped one to fit the groove, then trimmed what remained to get the correct weight. Hope this is intelligible. PS: Lead weights are easier to work with but harder to find here in the lower colonies since the government has decided that just touching lead will make us all brain damaged. Cheers, Harry |
Harry - Lead is banned north of the 49th parallel too, but two smaller weights still made it to my mailbox from Florida. 8^0 Both are smaller than the original grooved weight. The larger one brought things to the end of the plank for my MC Freedom Fighter cart. The smallest weight Bruce sent allowed for positioning a couple inches from the end with the 420 str. Still a ways to go. That tells you how light this Cracker Jack box cart really is. Will trim it down some, I mean the lead weight.....(using gloves). Bruce told me the lead is cut on a band saw and then they are milled to the shape. *********** Always fascinated by the amount of heft in the armtube/cart with the little weight removed off the I Beam. Add that tiny weight and it all balances out. The long beam eliminates the need for the multiple thin flat weights and the long bolt that they slid onto. I believe the one original grooved weight will balance the heavyweight XV1 . The smallest detail (I Beam) that no pro reviewer ever understood enough to discuss, has the most dramatic effect on this tonearm. As one ages, Physics becomes more and more a stark reality. I work on projects outside which involve moving weight. With my knees fragile from running, and no one around to help you. (I thought this was the reason to have kids - :^( .....) We look for ways to manipulate the weight using Physics. |
@ct0517 Chris, Thought you and others might be interested in these two exchanges I had with Bruce about a lighter base weight. Perhaps, if the folks here on this forum make enough noise with Bruce he will make us some light base weights. Harry On 2/15/2018 4:37 PM, Harry wrote: > Hello Bruce, > Rumor has it over on the Audiogon forum you are working on a lighter base weight to accommodate the long I-Beam with lighter weight cartridges. This to get weight near the end of the I-Beam. Any idea when they will be available and price? I’d like to purchase one. Harry, We are not working on a lighter base weight, the existing base weight should be ideal for most applications, Chris had a very light cartridge and I sent him a smaller weight to test. Are people finding that the base weight is too much? Thanks -brucet This in response to the picture I sent him of the weight I made. Harry, That looks nice, if there is enough demand we can make a few weights, there has been good demand for the long I-beam. If the weight is heavier than the wand plus cartridge, it should be positioned on the inside of the I beam, if it is lighter, it should be positioned on the outside of the I beam away from the manifold as shown in your photo. You might add that information to you description. This is to balance the torque load on the air bearing. Thanks |
@slaw Well..........I had never thought about that coincidence. But now that you mention it, it is kind of ironic. I promise I am not Harry W in disguise. I have enjoyed my VPI HW 19 (now MK IV) for over 20 years so VPI seemed an appropriate moniker especially since the HW 19 is so well suited to the ET II. Harry |
