Eminent Technology LFT8B’s reversing woofer polarity

Amplifiers

In  the past 1 1/2 year three tube amps and three pre-amp / phono stage has passed through the ET’s. I  believe with @bdp24 that tubes in the signal chain mitigate brightness. I started with an all tube combo, vintage MFA Luminescence pre + 100 w push pull triode. Needless to say there was no brightness. However, the Luminescence was giving other problems. The preamp chain then  went solid state with Lightspeed Passive Attenuator and a current mode phono stage, creating a more revealing and transparent sound. No brightness, again. I played with a vintage International Projector Corp am 1026 amp for two months. With only 22 w I have come to realize all the talk about how difficult the ET’s are to drive, minimum 100w..etc. is BS. Right now my main amp is from Japan,  Mactone mh-300 b, with output again in the 20’s. Four 300b’s in push pull class A configuration are playing very well with the ET’s. No brightness to report.

Room Placement

My room is 3.3 x 9 M. The ET’s sit 2.8 m from back wall, almost 1/3 into the room, with 40 cm from side wall and quite a bit of toe in.
I am getting the holographic, image specific, and wide soundstage that I was told only box speakers excel in. I didn’t expect it from the ET’s, but thoroughly enjoyable.


Cartridge

Through a recent change in cartridge I did get a glimpse of ET’s brightness with the Audio Tekne MC 6310. Framer described it as more Lyra- like, i.e. analytical, than Koetsu. Well that is a pretty apt. However, adding a damping pad from Origin Live helped greatly.

@ bdp24 Thanks for the Townsend pod information. My only question is whether removing The the sound anchor stand and simply placing the speaker directly on a Townshend speaker base might not be a even better solution?

Interesting question, @ledoux1238. If I didn't already have the Sound Anchor stands and like them as much as I do, the Townshend Podium option would be worth considering. I'm sure the lead shot-filled Sound Anchors stands are at least as non-resonant as is the plate of the Podium, and of far higher mass. My thinking is that the higher mass may provide a more stable platform for the high vertical center-of-mass of the ET panels. Another thought is that the SA stand bolts directly onto the bass bin of the LFT-8, with the Townshend Podium the latter just sits on the plate. Either choice will do nicely!

@bdp24 
Leaving the SA stands is probably the way to go with a bit more mass, as you say, at the bottom. How is the height of the Townshend pods affecting listening on the vertical axis? Do you need to change your chair / sofa height?  I find the ET’s particularly sensitive on the vertical axis. I sit low on a reclining chair while listening. And I find that tilting the ET’s 1.5 cm forward gives me the best soundstage and imaging. Adding the pods will raise the speakers quite a bit. 

Placement and the amplifier driving the 8 and 16 model ET speakers is key.  I've heard both speakers about ten times with some great amplifiers at a local dealer who's sold them longer than any other shop in the USA  ETs can sound incredible, deep bass, midrange, detail and smooth in the right setup. Can be really fun speakers to listen to.  

@ledoux1238: The Townshend Pods raise the height of the LFT-8 about 1.5" above that of the SA stands’ stock spikes. One reason I prefer planars is because of the higher image they create relative to most "box" speakers. I like looking up at the "stage", not down on it (as if from the balcony in a theater).

I sit in a low-back stuffed chair, my ears around 38" off the floor. The panel of the LFT-8 contains a pair of vertically-aligned---one above the other---m-p drivers, almost filling the entire 12" X 48" panel. The single ribbon tweeter which runs alongside those drivers is centered above the middle of the panel and the midrange/bass drivers, and is of course very limited in vertical dispersion. If your ears are below the tweeters radiation pattern, the rear of each speaker can be raised above that of the front, to aim the tweeters output a little downward. A couple of MDF or Baltic Birch blocks will do for testing, a set of BDR discs used permanently if you like (their 2-3/4" diameter is perfect for supporting the bottom of each pod. I use them between the Pods and my carpeted floor).