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Mapleshade Silclear

Category: Accessories

I'm not a big proponent of the "WOW" factor, meaning very few tweaks have caused me to go "WOW". The wow ones include rebuilding my McCormack DNA .5 amp to near Rev A, changing the caps in my speakers from Axon's to Sonicaps, and few others. Now that doesn't mean I don't hear differences and improvements with other tweaks, it's just that I don't believe in overemphasizing these differences into religous revalations and such.

So, Silclear doesn't fall into the "WOW" category with me, but it did make an improvement in my rig. The simplest explanation of these changes I can make goes like this. Have you ever cleaned the contacts on your interconnects, speaker cables and power cords after a year or more of ignoring them? Did you hear the improvements in transparency and quieter backgrounds? Well I just cleaned everything over the New Year's holidays with cotton balls and alcohol with an application of SST (to signal wires) and Pro-Gold (to electrical connections) afterwards. Now, in February I applied Silclear to everything in my system that has a plug, jack or socket. This means interconnects, speaker cables, fuses, all electrical jacks inside my amp & CD player and DAC, electrical cords, tube pins, phono cartridge pins, etc. The difference was as if I left all these connections to tarnish for a year or more and then cleaned them all again.

Now, given that I just did the cleaning I can conclude that Silclear took this one step farther than alcohol and SST. Things were more transparent and noticeably punchier. The bass was louder (dammit - I had to turn down the sub's volume and rebalance the bottom end again). Soundstaging and imaging seemed to be a slight/tiny bit more forward than before, maybe because things seemed a bit louder at the same volume settings. Tonally everything was still balanced, just more there in terms of detail and nuance and definition. But I also found that there was a sense of more "realness" to instruments, especially cymbals (hearing more brass with the zing), and voice (more in the room presence), and piano (more body and weight). The system sounded quieter too - i.e. blacker backgrounds (but this can also vary by time of day as the power grid changes).

Is this a "wow" review in disguise? Perhaps for many it is, but I already have a whole lot of transparency and realness in my system (see "Isn't Anything Stock?" for my system details). I now have more of that than before.

I really can't report that there were any bad aftereffects of the Silclear either. There's no way to undo the application easily (it's a grease), so there's no A-B testing available. So many tweaks improve on thing at the expense of another - not here. It's a good thing (thank you Martha Stewart, now go directly to jail and don't pass "GO").

Enjoy,
Bob
ptmconsulting

Showing 6 responses by ckorody

ckorody
643 posts
 
Like SGR I have found that DeOxit effectively removes the Silclear. I have also diluted the Silclear with Caig Gold which makes it possible to get a very thin layer - I use a foam swab to apply.

One thing I have seen mentioned in other posts is guys who have fried their tube gear after applying the Silclear to the tube pins.

BTW I have also seen several posts confirming that both Walker and Silclear are vegetable oil based - do not try this at home but if memory serves Walker recommended diluting his product with vegetable oil (canola not olive) if it dries up. My tub of Silclear has certainly become denser and gummier since purchased and I do manage to remember to put the lid on...

Like a lot of you I have come to think that the cleaning is what matters...
ckorody
643 posts
 
Knownothing knows more then he lets on -)

The posts that I've read all suggest that it is a bad idea to put any of these products on tube pins. I got away with it but quit after the reports started coming in.

I just got done taking down my old HT system - I've got to say that the Silclear was gooey and required some effort to remove. Am confident that I got it off the plug blades but doubtful about everthing else. Also it leaves silver stains on connector housings.

Ultra thin application is the key but for me at least, its easier said then done.

I gave up using the stuff and haven't looked back. I do use the Caig products for cleaning as well as Kontak. Excellent thing to do when you get a used piece of gear before putting it in the system. I use the Cardas conditioner when twisting bare wire ends to insert in connectors or terminals.
ckorody
643 posts
 
Knownothing -

Just to be clear, and hopefully helpful, the stain is on the receptacles and plugs - not on the metal. What was on the metal was sticky gooey residue that took something like acetone or alcohol to remove. I have no idea how conductive said residue is, nor whether or not the level of conductivity changed between application and removal.

I have read but cannot substantiate (nor have the science to test) that these products are based on various kinds of vegetable oil. Some need refrigeration (why would that be) and others need to be mixed because they don't hold the metal in suspension - which makes even distribution unlikely.

Grease is in and of itself not uncommon in the electronics space - they are called electrical contact grease or similar.

Here is a really thought provoking quote on the value of things like Silclear:

Many contact greases have copper, zinc or other metals blended into a grease to increase conductivity. In a study for an aerospace company in 1985 it was concluded that putting a metal into grease DOES NOT HELP CONDUCTIVITY (caps mine). IN MANY CASES IT REDUCES CONNECTIVITY.

NO-OX-ID is an example (no affiliation, no experience)

Googling also reveals a company called Cool-Amp Conducto Lube which makes silver conductive grease for high amperage connections and is DOD approved.

There is also some stuff called Lubrimatic Electrical Contact Grease... (And a million more)

If you have been around boats (especially in saltwater), heavy equipment, aircraft or big trucks you know the kinds of environments they operate in. These greases are preventative or extend maintenance cycles. I am happy to smear them on my battery posts and 1/0 terminal rings. They work - not by improving or increasing the amperage but by maintaining the current flow at a constant level over time with less effort on my part.

IMHO gear in a rack is not subject to much but dust bunnies.

I do agree with your thinking on where this stuff would be most beneficial; though I would encourage you to jettison anything brass from your system before you start worrying about things like this...

Also, I would encourage you to read up on tinned wire which is supposed to do a lot to "smooth"out the imperfections leading to various undesirable behavior by the electrons not just at the terminals but over the entire length of the cable.
ckorody
643 posts
 
hey the good news is there is proof positive right here that you can remove it LOL

just use half as much as you imagine being the bare minimum and all will be fine - how big can those microflaws be???
ckorody
643 posts
 
Sorry but I am missing the logic here - Silclear on the tube pins either creates/adds noise or it does not.

Assuming the tubes are for the left and right channel you can test that by swapping the tubes and seeing if the "weakness" is now on the other channel.

If the "weakness" follows then you the tube is the probably culprit and most likely needs replacing. You can do the same with the source input cables and the XLR output cables.

The prevailing wisdom I have lived by for 35 years is when in doubt, suspect the cables first.

Finally if you have taken the time to read the whole thread you will know that putting Silclear on anything - especially tube pins is a bad idea.

It becomes sticky and gummy, loses conductivity and is a PITA to remove. More specifically there have been some reports of Silclear on the tube pins shorting out the tube socket.
ckorody
643 posts
 
I am not a qualified tech - but it seems unlikely that Silclear would cause something so specific. Especially if when you swap tubes the voltage drop didn't follow.

If the problem remains constant and in place, then it is stationary. To me this would suggest a potential problem in the tube socket and/or the soldering to it... or a problem with the XLR job and/or the soldering to it. Or it could be the wire itself.
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