A new operation mode of the lens system in electron energy loss spectrometers is proposed which brings the cardinal plane of the lenses closer to the sample. Experiments as well as electron optical calculations show an intensity gain by a factor of 3–4. The required voltages on the lens elements are calculated as function of the impact energy at the sample. Furthermore, the lens system is characterized with respect to the solid angle probed by the spectrometer and the transmission which enables the evaluation of spectral intensities in terms of the absolute scattering probability for elastic and inelastic scattering. The results apply to most existing electron energy loss spectrometers as they stem from the same design and use identical lens systems.