Eminent Technology ET-2 Tonearm Owners

John, to remove leads I use a tiny fine slot screwdriver. I insert into the tiny opening between the lead and cartridge prong and rotate slowly.
Lead will come loose. To close leads that have opened I insert a round wood toothpick at the opening I want squeeze gently with pliers.
After learning how Frogman removes dimples from dome tweeters, I would be very interested to know how he does cart lead fix. 8^0

PS to my above post: It seems that the spindle on the ET-2 is anodized aluminum.
I held a magnet to it and found NO attraction. Duh! So, how does mounting a cabinet magnet under the spindle provide any appreciable damping?
Enquiring minds want to know.

that’s a question for Pegasus and I believe Dover also who used a fridge magnet. A picture is worth a thousand words !

using the best AudioGon Draw here is how I set it up.

x...0....x

x’s represent magnets - same poles facing one another
0 is the exiting spindle.

I need to go do some boat cleaning. can post a pic later of how I experimented with the magnetic damping, before it was abandoned. but I warn ahead time .....this is heading into that Audiophile dark area.....for reasons posted previously.

*****

Also Harry - I’d like to discuss the bass further, and I am very curious about Johns speaker setup.

fwiw - the Vandy sub was crossed off my list because it requires you go through their crossover first and then to your mains. Was not going to happen in my room..

So just a question.
Bass waves are slower than all the others. So why do people put subs X feet behind their mid and tweeter drivers ? Just asking.

If I was you Harry I would be very tempted just "temporarily", to set up in near field for one hour - just to hear what was possible with one sub. Then negotiate with the wife later. 8^0 hah hah

Cheers Chris

a) regarding wiring: I have to try again to photograph - the lighting makes pictures difficult... patience :-)
b) Fridge magnets & damping: Drop a circular magnet into a vertical copper tube. An enlightening sight - the magnet centers itself and *creeps* down very slowly instead of passing quickly!
Magnetic attraction is needed for static force only or for DC so to say.
With movement or "AC" the magnet induces a current into a close conductor (for which alu is moderately good), which creates a counter field, ie. a damping action. OK :-)

Hey Pegasus,
I'd really like to see a picture as well. I don't understand the placement of or type of magnets you describe, but would really like to try this tweak.
To everyone: I solved the loose cartridge connector problem, A pair of hemostats is a useful thing to have. -Just the right amount of squeeze tightens the connectors on the pins.

Harry/John
here is one of the attempts at magnetic damping must be at least a couple of years now.

"Attempt at Magnetic Damping"

that is a 2.5 spindle. You can tell its a 2.5 because the end cap does not overlap but sits on an insert that makes it flush with the spindle. Bruce also tried this experiment with the strongest neodymium magnets.

Pegasus feel free to email your pic to me if you like.

bcpguy (at) bell (dot) net

and I can post for you.

Chris

So just a question.
Bass waves are slower than all the others. So why do people put subs X feet behind their mid and tweeter drivers ? Just asking.

If I was you Harry I would be very tempted just "temporarily", to set up in near field for one hour - just to hear what was possible with one sub.

I’m not exactly shure what this would mean? More upfront placement = faster bass?
Placement is a question of "allowable" phase angles between drivers caused by offset drivers (specially in distance to the listener). As long as this offset phase angle is not far off, there is no "real" problem.
Bass waves travel at the same speed as any acoustic wave in air, but have longer wavelengths, so offset distances in the low bass can be considerable without being audible. Usually it’s said to be desirable to be below 90 degree - I’d keep it lower, to be on the safe side in the cutoff region where the subwoofer is still emitting considerable upper bass levels.
At 40 Hertz xo this would still be 67cm for a quite tight max. 30 degree difference. This results in an allowable 120 degree two octaves above, at 160Hz, at eg. -24dB (for 12 dB/oct.)
But I agree, that close-field placement is the preferable "error", because a) the excursion / level of the subwoofer can be considerably lower, b) the decrease of room reverberation level relative to the direct sound level should reduce audible room resonances & bass colorations = c) the modification of the subs frequency response by room resonances drops an order of magnitude.
But... it works only if there is no spurious midrange energy exiting reflex tubes or coming from the driver. Still - the lower sub levels reduce distortion and "box talk" & "cone cry", both help.