Eminent Technology ET-2 Tonearm Owners

Philcoffino,

Is it a Delphi? I have an ET-2 on my Delphi, but don't experience that problem. You might want to check to make sure that your platter is perfectly level. If it's not, when the cartridge gets near the end of an LP, the platter will become even slightly more un-level and cause even more acceleration of the arm as it nears the end of the LP.

Also make sure to see if you have the maximum amount of space between the joint and the manifold housing when the cartridge it at the very end of the runout groove. I have heard (no idea how true it is) that if they get too close, the air coming out of the manifold can push against the joint and cause the arm to "bounce" back across the LP. Maybe its just the joint coming in contact with the manifold and bouncing back, I don't know. Either way, you never want the joint to come in contact with the manifold. You want some buffer distance there.

Before your arm rebounds, does the joint contact the manifold? Have you ever watched it?

Ct, glad it worked out; I had a strong suspicion that you would like the result. Maybe not a silver bullet, but a significant way of optimizing cartridge performance and system tuning. Again, issues of ultimate technical performance aside (tracking), in my system with certain cartridges one spring is obviously preferable to the others, otherwise the sound can be either too lean (lower compliance spring), or too full, even bloated and diffuse (higher compliance spring). Having said that, I seldom use the single spring anymore since the improved detail retrieval and refinement that I generally hear with the double and triple springs are difficult to give up; and when the system starts to move in the direction of too lean a sound as a result of the lower compliance, I find that I can make adjustments elsewhere (VTA, slightly higher VTF, a different tube, etc.) and retain the benefits.

Regards.

Philcoffino, a couple of things to check.

- Make sure the ARM is level, not just the platter. I will bet you an I-beam that your arm (spindle/housing) is not level, and is slightly higher in the rear. Even if a bubble level tells you that it is, try raising it slightly at the front.

- Check the dressing of the tonearm wires to make sure they are not pulling on the arm when it reaches the end of the record.

- If you are using a clamp on your tt, check to see that it's diameter is not so wide that cartridge body actually hits it at the end of the record. Had that happen with a certain carbon fiber clamp.

Frogman, I couldn't agree more. I just assumed that his arm was perfectly parallel with his platter's surface!

Philcoffino,
If it's not, make that adjustment first, then level your suspension with the oracle gauge to make sure that your aluminum plinth is parallel to the acrylic plinth. After that's perfect, use the arm as a level and level it by adjusting the spikes under your Oracle.

Again, issues of ultimate technical performance aside (tracking), in my system with certain cartridges one spring is obviously preferable to the others, otherwise the sound can be either too lean (lower compliance spring), or too full, even bloated and diffuse (higher compliance spring). Having said that, I seldom use the single spring anymore since the improved detail retrieval and refinement that I generally hear with the double and triple springs are difficult to give up; and when the system starts to move in the direction of too lean a sound as a result of the lower compliance, I find that I can make adjustments elsewhere (VTA, slightly higher VTF, a different tube, etc.) and retain the benefits.

Frogman – What a profound post. Your experience with this ET2 tonearm, different cartridges and different I Beams just oozing out. Well maybe oozing is not the right word.

As a guideline then and remembering all our systems/rooms are different so we need to experiment and the reason we cannot call it a "silver bullet".

Summarizing this makes it clearer for me.

2 or more leaf springs - heads more toward a leaner sound due to lower compliance – more detail and refinement.

One leaf spring – best tracking - but sound can become too full, even bloated and diffuse due to the higher compliance of just one spring.

What I am hearing going from the single to double spring supports this.

Cheers