Eminent Technology ET-2 Tonearm Owners

Hi Guys

I have used longer leveling spikes in the past which is why I recommended them. The word spikes imo is misleading. Spikes to me, mean something like this.

Spikes

Long Pointing Spikes would not be recommended. They remind me of the point on my old VPI unipivot tonearm. Pegasus some time ago did a good explanation on what happens with the point and chatter.

The leveling feet in the ET2 mounting base are actually grub screws. If you see this link

Pointed Grub Screws

you can see why longer ones would not be an issue. They are strong. the ones in the pic are not the ones Harry is getting. Just a sample for the link.

Harry, when you said Aluminum Base earlier I misunderstood and thought you meant Bruce’ new Aluminum base, not the Aluminum protector as I call it. The other thing I do and this comes from all the experimentation I did, is to drop some oil in all vertical holes that connect say the tonearm to the armboard. I drop some oil into the ET2 base hole - the one the actual bolt that holds down the tonearm goes into, if the bolt is going into metal - aluminum, brass, etc...

Did you find out why John’s gooseneck only has two holes ? :^)

Cheers Chris

Chris,
Your suggestion about resetting height for thickest and thinnest records won't work for me because I already have the manifold up as high as it will go.  No room left for up adjustment of manifold height.

You are correct, Bruce is sending me longer grub screws.  But I was, indeed, referring to Bruce's aluminum protector base for wood arm boards.  It is, however, probably not thick enough to give me the height I need.  I'm not sure I know what Bruce's "new Aluminum Base" is?

Frogman,
I am also intrigued by your washers between the acrylic arm board and the the metal board beneath.  This solution would allow one to raise height without messing with the tone arm mounting setup.  Just unscrew the acrylic arm board (with tone arm attached) from the metal one beneath it, place the washers and screw them back together.  Correct?  Of course one would first want to place the guard on the cartridge and remove the wand so as not to shear off one's cantilever (been there, done that).  Would you recommend Delrin or plastic washers as opposed to metal washers?

Studying the arm tonight the thought occurred that a taller joint (gooseneck) with a couple of extra holes would address this issue. As long as the junction with the wand was firm, I don't see a downside.  Probably not cost effective for Bruce, however.

I love this hobby but am anxious to return to listening to music instead of listening to my system.  That is if any of us ever gets there.
Cheers,
Harry

I’m not sure I know what Bruce’s "new Aluminum Base" is?

Harry
The part the longer grub screws he is sending you go into. The actual tonearm base. Bruce came out with a solid Aluminum one - very substantial difference in weight - I own one. So Bruce now offers an Aluminum Joint (Gooseneck) and Aluminum Base. I also think he is going to be doing a run on the longer I Beams too.

Just a note recalling here over coffee - past Et2 owners have put some divots into the original Carbon Fiber tonearm base from improper tonearm level adjustments. Some have even put a crack in it.

Very important when leveling the tonearm to back out the vertical bolts first then re-balance with them. It can be habit to just do the side that you think needs an adjustment. This is wrong and over time stresses the parts, and that critical base that holds all the goods. So back out the vertical bolts first, visually look to see they are not touching the base; then just re-balance them. I balance using gravity. Make the teeter totter float with a little blue tac on the weights, same weight as the cart. leave it next to table for future reference. Its been years since I have had to level adjust. That’s one of the things a better table brings.

I can recall the HW19 mk4 being frustrating in how it could go out of level fairly easy if not careful with those springs. You can go with pucks Harry - but then you will need to replace the plinth feet with springs, pneumatic feet, or some other type of isolation. 

I hope you can get back to the music soon too.

Cheers Chris

Well, I guess my wife is right; I really am a pack-rat. All this talk about arm boards for the HW19 got me thinking and looking in my "equipment graveyard" cabinet where I keep all sorts of stuff not needed nor used for many years in some cases. In one of the drawers I found not one, but two HW19 black acrylic arm boards drilled for the ET2. Harry, as another option for you and as an opportunity to scratch your tweaking itch, if you want one of them you are welcome to it, gratis. You could sandwich it with your existing one for approximately the same height as the "thicker arm board"; you would of course need longer bolts which I know are available at Lowes (or VPI?). You could also experiment by putting a thin layer of some sort of damping sheet between them; sure to change the sound a bit (resonance!). Don’t know why, but one of the boards is 7/16" thick and the other 8/16" thick; the thinner one is in better cosmetic shape and both came from VPI. Neither is bad cosmetically but you can always put yours on top. If you are interested pm me your address and I will send it to you. Re washers: delrin would be good, but I would experiment with metal as well just for fun, and I suspect that simply the act of "suspending" the armboard a bit away from the metal subchassis would have more of an effect as it would surely change its resonance somewhat and more than whether the washers are metal or not. Always fun to experiment.

^^^^
They should come out with a new show on the History channel - American Audiophile Pickers.

very nice gesture Frogman.