Meter Basics

Tone Arm Sensitivity Knob

Needle (white Dial)   (Delta Meter)

In this chapter we will cover three basic features of the CT Meter and how to read and use them. The three features are: 1)  the Tone Arm, 2)  the Sensitivity Knob, and 3)  the Needle.
At the end of the chapter there is a definition sheet of Meter terms that you can refer to during the Meter Drills.

It is important to have a quality Meter from a reputable manufacturer. There are a number of manufacturers in the USA, United Kingdom, Germany, Austria, Australia and Russia of reliable Meters. Meters come under different brand names as different manufactures of this device have their own name for their model. They are all called 'Meters', like CB Meter, Clarity Meter, Mind Walker, Freedom Meter, E Meter, etc. Since they all in principle work the same, we call the device as such 'CT Meter'. So 'CT Meter' is not a brand name, but the technical term we use for the device. We usually refer to it simply as the 'Meter'.

A student auditor must become very good at using and reading a CT Meter before he can be considered an expert.

To be able to use a Meter expertly is necessary in order to reach the state of Clear.

It takes a lot of drilling and practical use to become fully familiar with the Meter and become an expert. Meter skills is one important basic skill that sets apart a passable auditor and a real Professional.

You have to handle an actual Meter and get familiar with it. That is what the Expert Metering drills (EM drills) are all about.

You handle the Meter, you touch it and let go. You work all the different knobs on it and you put your twin and a number of other students and bystanders on it in order to do the drills and gain the skills.

Once you have learned to use it, you will find it is a precision instrument.

The Meter tells you what the pc's mind is doing when he is made to think of something.

The Meter will read before the pc is consciously aware of something. You could say it is a pre-conscious Meter.

You send a tiny current through the pc's body. The current that travels is only about 2 Volts.

The current will be influenced by mental masses, mental pictures and mental 'circuits' and 'machinery'. When a non Clear pc thinks of something, these mental items will change intensity and density and this will register on the Meter.

The Tone Arm
Some pc's are in denser masses than others. This can be seen on the position of the Tone Arm (TA). The denser masses the pc is in, the higher the Tone Arm position will be.

Actually a low-toned pc (low on the tone scale) may not be able to influence the Meter at all.

On a dead body, there will be one set reading (no mental mass present). On a male body, that read is 3.0; on a female body it is 2.0 on the TA dial.

A low-toned pc may read at the position for pc's sex ( male 3.0, female 2.0) but will have an agitated needle ('Dirty Needle', DN).

A middle toned pc will read actively on the Meter; both his needle and the Tone Arm will move around.

A very high toned pc will be seen to have a so-called Free Needle or Floating Needle (F/N or FN). His/her Tone Arm will be at the 2.0 or 3.0 mark depending on sex.

The main difference in Meter characteristics between a low toned and a higher toned pc is seen on the needle. The low toned pc will have a tight or sticky needle (moves little or has an irregular pattern). A high toned pc will have a Free or Floating Needle (same phenomenon - two names).

A low toned person can not answer questions about 'Help' or 'Control' intelligently.

What is considered optimum range on the Meter is between 2.0 and 3.0. This is independent of sex. When the TA is between 2.0 and up to 3.5 things are considered to go well - as far as the Meter is concerned.

If the TA position is above 3.5 (high TA) or below 2.0 (low TA) it is a concern.

A TA position below 2.0 indicates 'Overwhelm' and dense masses.

As the TA, due to the Meter's construction, can't go all the way round, you may see the following change over considerable amount of auditing time:

The Tone Arm may go from 3.0 to 2.0 and later to 1.5, then 1.0 and then make the 'jump around' to 6.0; Onto 5.0, 4.0 and finally to 3.0 (for males) and 2.0 (for females).

For a low toned case, the drop to the below 2.0 TA position would mark a case advance.

The pattern above would take many, many hours of auditing to go through.

The Tone Arm registers density of masses, pictures, etc. in the pc's mind.

We are talking about actual physical mass, it has weight, resistance and can thus be measured.

The Tone Arm therefore gives an indicator of case state of the pc.

Note: There is a phenomenon known as 'False TA'. As the Meter basically measures electrical resistance the TA position will be influenced by how good a contact there is between the cans and pc's hands. Dry and callused hands will therefore cause 'False High TA'. Wet and sweaty hands can cause 'False Low TA'. A number of other factors can as well.  This can however easily be handled. This subject is covered in full in a later chapter under 'False TA'.

TA Action tells the    auditor how effective   the process is.

TA Action
One important thing the TA tells the auditor is whether a case is progressing or not. A case that has an unmoving TA is not making progress. A case that has a moving TA is making progress, whether the pc recognizes it or not.

If a process, Grade or Rundown shows TA motion you should simply continue the action until the EP of that action is reached.

If an auditing action shows no TA motion or the TAA (Tone Arm Action) has ceased, you can change the process/action and should.

To change the process while it shows good TAA is counter-productive as TA means case gains. It will also result in unrun 'bypassed' charge on the pc's case and is against the Auditors Code.

When determining when to finish off an auditing action (like a Grade) you should include TA action as an important factor. If the pc had good TAA earlier and it now is down to a fraction it shows he is near the end or complete.

If you got as much or more than 4.0 divisions downward motion in 20 minutes it would be terrific TAA. The pc is doing very well on the process or auditing action.

If you only got 0.7 division of TAA in 20 minutes you should be alert. The TAA may be about to completely stop.

But the TAA could pick up again; if it does you can happily continue.

The two figures (for 20 min TAA) are two extremes given; you will of course find plenty of examples in between.

TA Assessment
You use your TA for two important things in session

A) You assess to find an action that will produce TAA.

B) You run that action until it is flat: Until there is no more TAA to be gotten from the action.

If the TA does not move during processing your Assessment may have been in error. It means there is no change in the masses and pictures in the pc's mind.

When a pc is near Clear (or the end of an action), an Assessment plus a few commands will 'blow' the connected masses and flatten the process quickly.

It may even happen at a late stage, that the Assessment alone can make the pc blow the masses.

What is happening is the pc is gaining more and more control over his Bank (or a part thereof) and it takes him less and less time to flatten the process.

The Sensitivity Knob
The sensitivity knob increases the sensitivity or swing of the needle.

If you set the sensitivity too low you won't be able to clearly see reads.

If it is set too high it reads too easily and becomes unreliable.

The sensitivity is usually adjusted in the very start of the session or at the beginning of a process where reads are of critical importance, like a metered Assessment.

To set the sensitivity is easy. You make sure the pc's hands are relaxed. He may have to shake them to obtain that. Let the pc hold the two cans with a loose natural grip and full contact with palms and thumb. Now let him squeeze the cans gently. This will cause the needle to drop. You set the sensitivity until the drop you get is 1/3 of a dial (see EM-5 for more data).

You don't want to change the sensitivity during session, unless it is critical.

The reason for this is, that you want to be able to compare reads. Especially if you do a Meter Assessment you shouldn't change the sensitivity during the action. You are usually looking for 'longest read' and a comparison requires that the sensitivity is constant.

Sometimes, when you know there is 'something there' but you can't easily find it, you may have to set the sensitivity higher. This is especially true, when looking for Withholds.

The Needle
The needle and its movements and patterns are important subjects when we talk metering.

It's position on the dial is adjusted by the Tone Arm. You want the needle to be near the middle of the scale (there is a mark called 'Set'). The sizes of reads are monitored by the sensitivity setting as discussed above.  A can squeeze giving a 1/3 of a dial drop usually ensures the needle is easy to read.

There are ten main needle patterns or reactions:

1. Stuck needle
2. No reaction (null)
3. Fall (different sizes)
4. Change of characteristics
5. Rise
6. Theta bop
7. Rock slam
8. Free needle or Floating needle
9. Body reaction
10. Stage Four needle

A totally stuck needle (1) means the needle looks stiff and unmoving. The needle wouldn't even react on the pc being pinched.

A null needle (2) means the question does not change the needle's behavior or pattern.

In case the pc has an ARC break with the auditor you may not be able to get any reaction on the needle at all. It is therefore important before you do an Assessment, that you make sure there isn't any ARC Break influencing the session or repair it if there is.

Shown is:   Small Fall   Fall Long Fall

Fall (3) A Fall means the needle makes a move to the right as you sit and look at the Meter. It may be 4 mm (1/8 inch) on the dial or it may be a lot bigger so you will have to adjust the TA to bring the needle back on the dial and the 'Set' mark. It may be as much 10-15 times the whole needle dial. It just keeps falling. A fall always happens rapidly and to be valid in Assessment it should happen at the exact end of the question asked.

A fall is perhaps the most important read. It is certainly the most observed and used Meter reaction. It denotes a disagreement with life, on which the pc has reality, has been found by the question.

To the auditor it means 'I have found it', I have hit something in the pc's Bank that can be taken up and run. A Fall is the flash light that shows the way.

You compare relative sizes of Fall's. That is why you want to leave the Sensitivity knob alone once set.

If you have two Falls on two different questions, the longer Fall is the one you want to look at first.

On assessing different persons (terminals) 'John' gives 12 mm (1/2") and 'Mary' gives 2.5 cm (1"), you have 'Mary' being the right or hottest answer.

Any fall tells the auditor, that there is something there. Any fall on the rudiments questions mean there is something that should be taken up. It can be a reaction to the room, an ARC break, a Present Time Problem (PTP) or a Withhold (W/H) and it must be taken up and cleared regardless of what the pc says.

A Fall will follow at once when a charged question is being asked. It can happen in two stages. There is an instant reaction to the question and then it can fall further within a second or two after the question is asked.

A Fall is what you want to follow up on in auditing.

When your sensitivity is set per can squeeze drill under 'Sensitivity' above, you know the pc is reading properly on the Meter. The can squeeze tells you the Meter is switched on and working and the pc is reading on it.

So right in the beginning of a session you would check the rudiment questions ('Do you have an ARC break?', 'Do you have a Present Time Problem?', 'Has a Withhold been Missed?'). You ask one question at the time, and if you have a Fall, you know there is something there; you have pc look for it and get it cleared up - each Fall (reading question) to a Floating Needle.

The next important use of Falls is the Assessment. You read a number of questions/statements to the pc; one after the other. On an Assessment you are looking for the longest Fall. The largest instant needle movement to the right. You keep your sensitivity unchanged as pointed our above, so you directly can compare the lengths of Falls. An Assessment helps the auditor find something to run. The question/item with the longest Fall is the 'hottest'.

When you have found something, you get to the running of the process. Now we are not that interested in the needle and Falls. Now we are mainly interested in the Tone Arm.

Of course you adjust the Tone Arm to keep the needle on the dial and near the 'Set' position so you are still keeping an eye on the needle to do that. But what is of importance is, that the process produces Tone Arm Action (TAA).

Change of characteristics (4). Sometimes we can not get the clean fall we are looking for. In that case, there is something else you can be looking for. It is called 'Change of Characteristics' of the needle.

Often the needle will be seen to do small patterns. It could be a pattern of small rises and falls taking place repeatedly. When we ask a question the needle may be seen to be stop moving. We ask another question and it goes back to the pattern described above.

This Change of Characteristics of the needle occurs when we hit something in the pc's Bank. It happens each time we ask that exact question. As the question is what changes the needle, and the same way each time, we can assume that something is there and we can explore it.

When we explore it further it will usually develop into a Fall, and that is what we really want. But we may sometimes have to use 'Change of Characteristics' to get there.

The only needle reactions we are interested in are the ones that occur instantly; at the exact end of a question asked to the pc.

Rise (5). A Rising Needle means 'no confront'.

Of course the needle has to rise at times or the TA would never move. But it means that the pc is in an area of something he is not confronting. You don't take it up in routine auditing. But it helps you understand what is going on.

If you hit upon something in that area that the pc can confront the needle would stop. Exploring a stop it may turn into a Fall.

A rising needle is seen as a slow movement of the needle from right to left on the dial.

A needle returning to its position after a fall is not what we call a rise.

Theta bop illustrated by zigzag   line. Is shown    1/2" wide

Theta Bop (6). A Theta Bop is a steady dance of the needle. It can be real small or wide. It is fast. It can be 3 mm (1/8") wide or up to 1.5 cm (1/2") wide. (It also depends on the sensitivity setting). It goes up and down 5-10 times a second. It moves up, sticks, moves down, sticks and always the same distance. Constant distance and constant speed. Somewhat like the vibrations you would see in the tips of a slow tuning fork.

A Theta Bop has a special meaning; it means 'death', 'leaving', 'don't want to be here'. It is actually the pc as a thetan vibrating in and out of his body or between two positions in the body.

Put somebody on the Meter and mention 'death' and make them think about 'death' and you will see a Theta Bop.

In session you will see it when the thetan is being stuck in death (like a past death). You can use it to locate 'death' and 'departures' with.

If the pc suddenly start to Theta Bop in session it can mean he wants to leave session.

If it should turn on while doing an Assessment it can take quite a while before it turns off again. This can obscure any reads for the next couple of questions. You may have to redo those questions to see if there is a fall. Theta Bops usually turns on fast and turns off slow.

We rarely use them directly in auditing; but it is another example of how the Meter can give you an idea about what is going on in your pc's mind.

Rock Slam

Rock Slam (R/S) (7). A Rock Slam is a crazy, irregular, jerky motion of the needle. The jerks are of unequal length. It can be as narrow as 2.5 cm (1") or as wide as 7.5 cm (3"). The jerks happen several times a second. It looks like the needle is suddenly going crazy. It slams back and forth. It is a mad dance of the needle. A little at the right side of the dial; next is at the left side. It means 'hot, hot' area or terminal. It takes precedence over a fall in Assessment and Meter checking. If it turns on during a process you just carry on. You should make a note and circle the statement or area, that caused the Rock Slam. A Rock Slam means a hidden Evil Intention on the subject or question under discussion or auditing. This is something of considerable charge and discomfort to the pc and can be addressed with specific processes later. Thus it is important always to note it down with all the details of what was under discussion.

Running a specific process you just stick to the rule "What turns it on will turn it off" and make sure to carry through until it does turn off. You never end the session in such a case; just get pc through it.

Floating Needle.    'Harmonic Motion' is a term     from physics, describing the     smooth movement of a  pendulum or metronome.

Free Needle/ Floating Needle (8). This is an important Meter phenomenon or needle action. That's why it is has several names. 

It is a harmonic motion over the dial at a slow, even pace of the needle, back and forth, back and forth, without change in the width of the swing except perhaps to widen as the pc gets off the last small bits of charge. It can actually get so wide that you have to shift the Tone Arm back and forth, back and forth, to keep the needle on the dial in which case you have a floating Tone Arm.

It is really free!

The needle just moves freely. A null needle just doesn't respond to a question. It may respond to the next one. A Free Needle does not respond to any question. The building might collapse and it would still be floating and free.

A Free Needle means, the pc is getting close to the End Phenomena of the process. On a metered pc it is one important part of the End Phenomena.

A valid F/N is accompanied by very good indicators in the pc.

Body reactions (9). Deep breathing, a sigh, a yawn or sneeze and a couple of other things can make the needle react.

Try this (it's done in EM-13): Get a person to hold the cans. Turn the sensitivity to a real high setting. Make the person do the following, one at a time: sigh, yawn, breathe deeply, cough, laugh, knock the cans together; lift one finger off the cans, tighten his grip on the cans, scratch his head while holding the cans, scratch his leg, rub a can against his clothes, rub his fingers against each other. Note how the needle is reacting. Have the person do one after the other now, where you tell him which one to do.

Now, set the sensitivity per can squeeze drill so the needle drops 1/3 of a dial. Have the person do the same actions again. You see the agitation of the needle is a lot less. That's why you don't want the sensitivity too high. Your reads would get obscured by body reactions.

Metabolism. The Meter will also read on basic metabolism. It can tell you if the pc is eating properly and is coming in well fed (part of Auditors Code). This is the basis of Meter Drill 5B.

Have the pc hold the cans and make him take a real deep breath, hold his breath for a moment and then let it out. If he has eaten properly it will a moment later fall about 5 cm (2"). On the second or third test it will stop falling, so the first time is the valid one.

The metabolism test has its uses in auditing.  The test is performed just before the session is started. If it doesn't give a Fall the pc is not going to respond well on the Meter and should be instructed to eat better, including supplements (vitamins, minerals). The other body motion reactions are only in the way as they can obscure reads. You have to know what they look like so you can stay focused on the reads coming from the Bank.

Stage Four Needle (10). A Stage Four needle has a distinct pattern. It also tells the auditor something about the pc's case.

It means the pc is in bad shape as a case. It doesn't seem to respond to what the auditor asks or does. It does not even seem to respond to the pc's thoughts.

It can be a chronic pattern or it can be true for a part of the session where the pc contacts masses in his Bank.

A Stage Four needle goes up 2.5-5 cm (1-2") then sticks for a moment. Dips down in a sweep, then back up and sticks there again. Always the same distance and with great regularity. Nothing you say or the pc says changes that (except body reactions).

As an auditor you know you have your work cut out. When you finally break through this pattern you know you have gotten through the lowest level of the case.

You do that by getting Withholds and unkind thoughts off the case. You can also use the CT Level One processes known as Control, Communication & Havingness processes (CCHs) to break through this band.

But it is a discouraging needle phenomenon to run into, because the needle does not seem to respond to anything.

When you see a Stage Four needle you make sure to include it in your worksheet report. Because this is a thing the case needs to have addressed.

The instant read and the automatic    and instant reaction of the Bank to  a restimulator are closely related.  Here the man gets a pain in his leg  from seeing a dog. It keys in the  dog bite from years ago. The  picture of the vicious dog would  give an instant read the moment  the man sees the Dalmatian dog.

Meter Watching
The Meter reacts instantly on the Reactive Mind. A person above Clear does not react because he is conscious about it. A normal pc reacts on the Meter, because he can't think without stirring up his Reactive Mind.

This mind is composed of mass, energy, space, time and thought and thus responds to tiny electrical impulses.

If your auditing wasn't going for the reactivity on the case the Meter wouldn't read.

That's why you are interested in what reacts on the Meter. It is part of the pc's Reactive Mind and you want to run it.

The Reactive Mind is at the same time marvelous and out of order. It will react instantly on data a billion years ago. The time in the Reactive Mind is out of order; so is matter, energy and space. You should hang a sign on it "Out of Order!" It is short circuited; it makes the wrong associations.

If the pc knows all about a subject it wouldn't react on the Meter. What is wrong with the pc is not known to him. That's why you never run what the pc says. You run what the Meter says.

Why can an auditor go wrong sometimes? Because the auditor was persuaded by the pc - not the Meter. The auditor can take up things the pc says. But only if the Meter agrees. Because only then does he know there is reactivity connected to it.

1. The needle responds instantly; the pc does not have to think it over first.
2. The pc does not have to answer or say anything for the needle to respond.
3. All needle reactions are reactive.
4. The Reactive Mind responds instantly because there is no time in the Reactive Mind.
5. If the pc knew exactly what was wrong with him it would As-is and would long be gone.
6. Only the Meter knows.
7. The auditor has more control over the pc's Reactive Mind than the pc himself. The pc is all messed up by the reactivity while the auditor can see it clearly from the outside.

The Meter responds instantly. You look for the needle reaction at the exact end when you have said it.

The Bank responds instantly  on the Meter to auditor's  question. There is no need  to wait. The auditor asks  a question so it impinges  on the pc and the Bank.  He watches the needle at the same time and notes the reaction down.

There is no need to sit and wait for more. It won't happen until you hit the button again. When assessing you may have to wait a second to let the needle come back from the end of a fall.

You don't even have to formulate it as complete sentences like "Do you..." so and so.

You can say the item or button itself as a question; mark it x (X) if it doesn't respond and go on. If it reads, you mark the read and go quickly down the list. You can do a long list in five minutes.

The pc does not have to say anything during the whole Assessment. You can actually politely ask him not to as it gives body reactions on the needle.

All Assessments are done effectively and in a businesslike manner. You shouldn't be frantic, rushed or slow.

You are looking for reads.

A reads are Small Fall ('SF'). a Fall ('F'), a Long Fall ('LF') or a Long Fall Blowdown ('LFBD'). A LFBD is where the needle moves way to the right and you have to move the TA to a lower position to get it back on the dial.

A 'Stop' is not a valid read. A 'Tick' is too small to be a Small Fall. It is noted but not taken up. It may develop into a valid read and may have to be explored (buttons 'suppress' and invalidate' put in) if you have nothing else to go on.

If you run unreading items you get TA troubles. High TA, meaning an over-restimulated or dispersed case or Low TA, meaning the pc is overwhelmed.

You usually have your Meter behind a shield outside of pc's view. You do not want to attract too much attention to it. You never tell him what the Meter does except indicating F/N's, which would be an acknowledgment that finishes an action.

You can use the Meter to 'steer the pc', which means to find one specific thing that keeps giving a read. You would simply say "that...that...that" each time you see the same read.

Keep in mind the definition of 'in-session' as 'pc interested in his own case and willing to talk to the auditor'. If you say "That reads", "That didn't read" etc. it is against that and against Auditors Code (distracting pc). It puts the pc's attention on the Meter and makes him very unwilling to talk to the auditor.

Goofy practices like that  are called Gross Auditing Errors (GAE's). You will sooner or later get a solid understanding of that lack of results on pc's aren't caused by case differences, but by the auditor doing bad metering and having bad TRs and committing other GAE's.

When a case supervisor gets asked about 'extraordinary solutions' he should become very suspicious and find out how the auditor's metering, and TRs, are.

In modern processing any case failure of pc's is resolved by looking for and finding what GAE's the auditor is committing.

Here are some of the Gross Auditing Errors in metering we have observed:

1. The auditor believed the Meter couldn't be read if the needle was moving at all. He would sit and wait for the needle to stop moving before asking a question.
2. One auditor believed the needle had to be exactly on 'Set' on the dial before it could be read.
3. Another auditor did not know that a rising needle could be read by seeing the rise coming to a halt or by seeing the needle twitch on a question.
4. Yet another auditor had not done the body reactions drills and mistook body reactions for valid reads.
5. One auditor thought the Meter couldn't be relied upon at all as it showed breathing etc.
6. One auditor would look at the pc for a few seconds after a question, then at the Meter. Result: he never saw the valid reads, that are instant.
7. An auditor would sit and stare on the Meter for 20 seconds after the read had occurred.
8. One auditor thought the Meter was so easy to fool so he decided it was more reliable to make up his own mind on what to run. He had his own hobby horse about finding pc's 'area of guilt'.
9. One auditor would take a rise on a rudiment question as a read.

It pays off many times to learn one's metering well early on. It accounts for happy, winning pc's instead of agitated or dispersed ones. It also accounts for happy auditors that audit with competence and pride.

Meter Drills and Different Meters
You are just about ready to do the actual drills with the CT Meter. They are referred to throughout the manual as EM Drill's (Expert Metering Drills - EM and number. Like: EM 24 is the drill for Instant Reads). EM stands originally for Electro-psycho Meter. Different manufactures of this device have however different names for it. They are all called 'Meters', like CB Meter, Clarity Meter, E Meter, C Meter, Freedom Meter, GSR Meter, etc. Since they all in principle work the same, we call the device as such 'CT Meter'. So 'CT Meter' is not a brand name, but the technical term we use for the device. We usually refer to it simply as the 'Meter'. When drilling on a specific manufacturer's Meter you will of course have to refer to his user's manual for technical specifications and special features. The basic skills you will have to learn are independent of the brand of Meter you use. The Expert Metering Drills can be done on all of them.

Note: As you can see, good TRs and ARC are very important in the EM Drills and you need to keep a close eye on that as a student and coach. The instructor, that can look at both sides of the Meter, may have to help you with the above.

Now you are ready do the EM Drills as stated on your check sheet.

  Basic Definitions, Metering

Tone Arm Sensitivity Knob

Needle (white Dial)   (Delta Meter)

Print-out of Meter Terms

Clearbird's support site on Meters including Links to Meter suppliers.