A few tweaks that have worked for me

[prem]

Hi Malvai

I have never had a turntable. But from what i have read it is very susceptible to vibrations. Glass, granite and marble ring. Sandstone is dead. Also sandstone is more porous. Hence dissipation happens faster. So logically should be superior. I do not know about acrylic.

 

[malvai]

Hi Malvai

I have never had a turntable. But from what i have read it is very susceptible to vibrations. Glass, granite and marble ring. Sandstone is dead. Also sandstone is more porous. Hence dissipation happens faster. So logically should be superior. I do not know about acrylic.

You know, it was a toss up between sandstone and slatedeck for me...
Acrylic was a third option. Aesthetically its is a rockstar. Sonically makes the sound slightly colder.

I used to have a Project 2 Xperience that was all acrylic. Sounded good. Though a bit cold.

 

[prem]

Sandstone is a far better option than slate

 

[malvai]

Sandstone is a far better option than slate

so bro, I was thinking of putting my Thiels on : carpet + marble...

what do you reckon would be better? marble or sandstone?

 

[jai1611]

I'm actually experimenting with a two layer isolation mechanism.

Spikes below the component. Place it on a very thick MDF platform (its supposed to be more inert than granite, dont know how it compares to sandstone, marble etc). Place sorbothane feet between the plank and rack . Tried it with an old 0.5" MDF plank I had lying around for my source and it seemed to improve things a bit (I use a CD player + DAC combo currently). Trials with thicker/better fitted MDF plank and a (en route) better CD player still pending so no conclusions yet.

Also, Audire has some acoustic planks that they make. Never tried them so dont know if they are any good though.

 

[prem]

Hi Malvai

Are your Thiels spiked? If yes and they are on a carpet, use Herbies Audio Lab Spike Decoupling Glider. If they are on the floor, use Herbies stainless steel spike grounding base.

 

[prem]

Hi Jai

I would suggest Sandstone slab over mdf platform in a rack. Be careful when using sorbothane. They are weight dependent. Instead of sorbothane you could use Vibrapods or cork sheet for damping

 

[prem]

Hi Malvai

Just saw a picture of your system on another thread. I cannot see any carpet under the speakers

 

[malvai]

Hi Malvai

Just saw a picture of your system on another thread. I cannot see any carpet under the speakers

Ya, i know. I gotta get that done soon!

 

[malvai]

Hi Malvai

Are your Thiels spiked? If yes and they are on a carpet, use Herbies Audio Lab Spike Decoupling Glider. If they are on the floor, use Herbies stainless steel spike grounding base.

Where do i get this bro?

 

[prem]

Hi Malvai


Instead of a carpet i would suggest a rug between you and the speakers. Will cost less and is more easy to maintain especially in the Mumbai rains. Buy a cotton/linen/woollen rug or a rug of any natural fibre.

You can buy the herbies stuff at Herbie's Audio Lab - Home Page

They will ship to India.

 

[stevieboy]

Hi Stevieboy

I had the Brightstar sandboxes long back. I think you should try the sandstone slab. Take a 3cm thick slab. It should cost you about 300 bucks. Do not have it polished. I would personally prefer the equipment with the Herbies footers directly on the sandstone slab and no wooden platform underneath the slab

hi prem,

indian-sandstone, red sandstone brown pictures exporter

i think we're talking about the same stone. i had the above in mind. i searched for sandstone and i found the link to a stone i've always thought of as slate i think i'll try a sandstone slab. i'll need some wooden low table though to keep dust away. i'll try it anyway and see. for the turntable definitely a table to bring it to a decent height and away from floor. amp i can always try the table and junk it if it sounds worse.

malvai,

the slatedeck plinths are supposed to be top drawer. worth checking out!

Herbie's Audio Lab - Home Page the gliders and spike bases guy. super affordable stuff that many people seem to like. have shortlisted a bunch of his stuff, been emailing him he's clarified some things. you can write to him with your requirements and he's suggest if you've made the wrong choice. eg i had shortlisted isocups for the phonostage but he said tenderfeet would do as well. saves me money too cos the isocups are more expensive! :licklips:

regards

 

[prem]

Hi Stevieboy and Malvai


When you go to a shop the guy calls everything sandstone. Stevieboy, for example in your link, Dholpur is not sandstone. In Mumbai you can buy sandstone at Bhartiya Marble which is near the Santacruz airport

 

[stevieboy]

prem,

is that cos the surface is smooth and not 'layered'? the chocolate one and the something green look like proper sandstone no? if so i know what to get then. have also checked out slate just now, it seems to look harder than sandstone.

regards

 

[prem]

Hi Stevieboy

Check with a reliable stone supplier in Bangalore. Slate is a metamorphic rock and not very advisable for audio platforms. Sandstone is a sedimentary rock and its composition is very different from slate. Buy a 3cm thick sandstone slab.

 

[jai1611]

Thanks Prem. Will try sandstone (if the better half allows).

I got sorbothane feet in two sizes with specific weight ratings and will be measuring the gear and slabs before mounting.

Hi Jai

I would suggest Sandstone slab over mdf platform in a rack. Be careful when using sorbothane. They are weight dependent. Instead of sorbothane you could use Vibrapods or cork sheet for damping

 

[Rajiv]

Hi,

Prem and Arjun visited my home yesterday. I had a great time listening to music and interacting with both of them.

Both, Arjun and Prem have a wealth of experience about HiFi/Audio. I learnt a lot in the few hours I spent with them.

The wine glass tweak Prem has suggested works. At least in my system and to my ears .Arjun also noticed an improvement/difference.

Prem also suggested another tweak which we tried. It is very simple .

Take some teflon insulation tape and put it over the IEC plug.A couple of rounds over the plug(the part that goes into the IEC female socket).Insert the plug back into the socket.

There is a noticable cleaning up of the sound. The only reason I can think of is that the plug now sits more firmly in the socket and the contact is tighter.

Another suggestion Prem made was to use the insulation tape on the metal prongs of the mains plugs.

Some time ago hifisoundguy advocated using teflon tape around the blades of ac plugs. - Norm - Tweakers' Asylum

The infamous Teflon tape tweak- Believe it! One of the best, for a very small investment, especially if you have an ARC - Audiolover718 - Tweakers' Asylum

I have tried this last night and there is an improvement. There is a definite clearing up of the background grunge,the sound becomes clearer.

I can't explain why it works but work it does.

Regards
Rajiv

 

[arj]

actually the tweaks were by prem..i just had to look and act intelligent and perceptive

I have been blown away by rajiv the person as well as rajiv the audiophile. Truly a great wealth of information and knowledge on audio components. couple that with prem's experience, knowledge and "ears" ..it was really something i am still thinking about

the wine glass tweak was really very interesting. Rajiv was experimenting with a supertweeter setup and we all felt there was some high energy..more than needed there. prem asked for that to be disconnected and the sound grew relaxed but rolled off which is what Rajiv was trying to correct in the first place.
What was placed was a brandy glass (slightly thicker) upside down near Rajivs LP12. all of us could immediately sense the high frequency energy increasing. In fact i did remove this a couple of time in between and at once the energy level went down and you did not have to be at the sweetspot to feel it.
i guess the physics is simple..what the wine glass is doing is producing the overtones that the speaker is not doing by acting as a small diagphram. The thickness of the glass would decide the frequencies as well as the overtones..which usually are in the 1KHz+ range
Frequence of resonating wine glass

the insulation tape tweak is something i still cant believe, but it was very perceptible to all three of us. am going to do that tonight to my powerchords. there was a cleaning up of sound whether is it Magic (undiscovered science) or explainable science is something i would try to find out. Prems feeling that it is also mechanical damping of electrical conductors makes most sense .

 

[captrajesh]

Interesting. Could you kindly elaborate the tweaks Arj

 

[gobble]

Today I had the wiring in the main circuit breaker of the house refreshed. Actually they swapped/reversed the phase/neutral so that the live wire went into the switch. Earlier it was neutral which I believe is unsafe.

Now I hear more snap in the sound and a cleaner sound with punch.

So folks with old wiring in the house, a simple reconnection/refresh of the contacts at the main MCB might help clean up things.

--G0bble