That's a higher-end spinner, so I have to believe Hegel put some thought into the feet. That being said, they're probably also assuming it's going to go into a real audio rack, which would at least help with vibration dampening. I've used Iso-pod rubber feet before when the location of a player isn't ideal (example: placed on a wooden chest next to my audio rack). They're cheap and seem to work, just buy the model that matches the weight of your player.
vibration control - cd player
Hi all-
I've got a new Hegel Viking cd player here which is quite nice. At the moment, it's sitting inside an Ikea cabinet. The feet have a sort of small isonodes rubber piece. Is that sufficient? Do I eventually want to invest in something like a Harmonic Resolutions platform? Or the little EVP squares? Or something else? (A real audio stand is not an option in my very small room.)
Thanks for any advice.
Margot
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First of all, I would give you and the player 2 months to break in so you really know what it sounds like. Otherwise you’re just tweaking to what it sounds like now and it might change, which is a waste of effort IMO. After that, I might start with a Vibrapod under each foot. This made a big difference on my Oppo 205 and it’s cheap. It could make it worse. I wouldn’t knee jerk to the assumption that any platform will make it sound better to your ears. Or, if you don’t want to wait, just buy the HRS and relax knowing you have a first-class product. A lot of this stuff is in our heads and if you’re going to sit there constantly thinking how much better it would sound with a high end platform, buy it and be done. I happen to like the Symposium svelt shelf myself. Thin and elegant and works well. |
Try these. If they don’t help just send them back. https://www.amazon.com/Nobsound-Aluminum-Speakers-Isolation-Amplifiers/dp/B07K9ZYP84 If you wanna get really serious about it look into Townshend Seismic spring products — they’re pricey but get universal praise for their performance. Best of luck. |
I ended up using stock OEM footers and Greater Ranges Neuance platforms (no longer available) for my CD/TT decks. The Neuance shelves are not unlike the construction of the Ikea Lack tables in that they are light and rigid with an internal foam-core and/or honeycomb like construction. I've also experimented with the Lack tables as instructed by the designer of the Greater Ranges shelves with positive results. Tried gobs of footers/shelves with good/bad/meh results, but eventually decided to work with the stock OEM footers as they were what the units were originally designed and voiced with (much easier path if the product is good to start with and you like the sound). As mentioned use it for 2-3 months and pick out what you would like to alter sound wise and then start from there.
DeKay
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I also have equipment hidden in a Drexel Heritage wall unit achieve a low WAF. Together with suspended floors it is not optimal with regard to vibration. However, while expensive, I have had much success and improved SQ with judicious attention to vibration control. Tried some low cost products like Vibrapods with some improvement. Noticeable improvement was realized with Symposium Shelves in combination with Roller Block Jrs. Improvement was signing on front end digital equipment and less so as you go down the path to the amplifier. Expensive but worth it in my opinion. If you cannot spring for the shelves, then you can just add the blocks, but together they work best. The usual improvements will be realized - quieter/blacker background resulting in a more relaxed presentation, better detail retrieval, better imaging and staging, and more natural timbre. |
Yes, it is very likely your player can benefit significantly from vibration control. How much will depend on the rest of your system. So it would be helpful to know what the rest of your system is. There is a place under your ID to post photos and ID components. That is really helpful for us to help. It is a light weight player, so it is unlikely to have benefited maximizing internal vibration control. Even players at twice the weight or more benefit from vibration control. Springs perform really well on massive players because of their inertia. It is likely platforms will work really well… although most are expensive. Pucks, vibrapods, cones, etc. must generally be tried to find out what works best. Is your stand on a concrete floor, or suspended? This is likely to influence what works best as well. A purpose built audio stand will also help. It will be ridged and solid. This need not cost a fortune… but a solidly built stand is the best foundation. |
Hi all- Thanks for all the good ideas and I'm happy to provide more details on my system. The cd player (Hegel Viking) is 16 pounds. It sits on a shelf in a built in wood cabinet (not audio equipment). The room is small -9 by 11- and there is no possibility of putting a real audio rack in it. The Viking is connect to a Brinkmann Vollverstärker amplifier, and that powers Trenner and Fried Suns (sitting on Sound Anchor stands). Cables, interconnects, and power cords are Triode Wire Cables. Many thanks! Margot |
As you are not looking to support a great weight, a Wall Shelf could be considered, with Springs/Suspension Pads used between frame and wall, obviously with Top Fastenings used, by tightening / loosening to attain Level once the weight is on the shelve. Additional Isolation can then be used under the CDP. |
Many years ago I had sorbothane. Moved up to vibrapods. No noticeable improvement with either (but that most probably was my system at the time). Ended up with Black Ravioli Pads. What a change. Even more so with the Black Ravioli Big Pads. They are based in Scotland. Also recommend the Stack Audio Auva EQ. Bought a set of those last year. |
OK Guys. Don't laugh. I had a BooS Blocks large cutting board laying around here for years, unused. Not cheap. Some kind of hardwood. Then, someone here mentioned using one. I figured what the heck. Set it up with a few old anti vibe pucks also laying around for years. Placed my transport on top. Well Damm!! Improved everything, especially low frequency details. And, it cost nothing. |
I am imagining that being a high end player it is probably somewhat heavy and has some vibration protection built in. I wouldn't worry unless you hear obvious disc skipping issues. A word about audiophilia, Margot: there are solutions usually well meaning people who can sell you all kinds of solutions for potential problems, and you can really go down a rabbit hole chasing all of these. In this case at least it would be best to decide if you even have the problem before attempting a fix |
Actually in the 1980’s there were relatively inexpensive vibration platforms that used small inner tubes inside cheap wood boxes… looking life a shelf. While they worked OK (no better as the cheap chipped wood box didn’t help). But you had to blow them up with a bicycle pump every week. A real pain with little value. |
I heard a demonstration where different levels of vibration damping platforms and couplers manufactured by Symposium were employed under a cd player. The first two levels brought improvement to the sound, but, the highest level of damping made the sound too lean and analytical. This was the unanimous opinion of the people hearing the demonstration (including the representative from Symposium). |
Here is a link to the (old) discussion of using Ikea Lack tables as support for hifi gear (pay special attention to the posts by caterham1700 - who owned Greater Ranges/Neuance). If the construction notes/guidelines are followed you can expect excellent results (better than that of many of the commercial footers/platforms I’ve tried in the past) https://forum.audiogon.com/discussions/here-s-how-i-make-my-equipment-racks
DeKay
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No matter what you put your gear on rack-wise or any footers you will hear a change in the reproduction like cables you have to try them and see if what you hear is what you like. I've used many racks over the years and footers, the footers all gone, and my gear sits on the feet the product was designed for. BUT my rack and amp stand that I settled on after many years of experience has stayed now for 10 years. Nothing between my speakers but the amp stand rack on the other side of the room. Adona Corporation Zero GXT 3 reference ser... For Sale | Audiogon |
While I tried Stillpoints to rubber footers (half a dozen footers) under the Shanling ET3 Transport, it’s own solid rubberized footers worked best. The Topping D70s DAC sounded superior with very small half round rubber footers. I put nothing under my EAR 912 pre-amp either. The EAR 890 amp receives the Synergistic Research MiG Sx footers, one up in front and two down in back, where there is solid metal (I adjusted the bottom plate so that the perforated sections were mostly in the middle). I put nothing under my COS Engineering D1v DAC. The VPI TNT VI+ requires a Townshend Seismic SInk or something to eliminate vibrations from it’s poorly designed hard delrin feet. Yuck! |
It depends on the weight of your CD player. If the Townshend seismic platform will work with the weight (they have like 4-5 different tensions for the podiums), I feel that is the best vibration control product out there, but you have to make sure you are isolated from footfalls, which it does not help, so if you have a suspended wood floor, you could experience them, although I suspect not nearly as bad as with a turntable. So as long as you are not walking near it, you should be OK. Symposium rollerblocks or a platform would be 2nd choice. If you call Peter, he will guide you. I don't have a cd player, but he told me the improvement with his products on a cd player is even greater than a turntable. |