My list of tweaks and the verdict


As metro NY has been pretty much shut down for the past 11 months and counting, I get so bored sometimes that I find experimenting by buying tweaky audio products to be a helpful reprieve and keeps me from spiraling into the abyss.
So this is what I have purchased in the past 6 months and my quick verdict on sonic impact — what I hear or perceive to hear using my brain and ears in my 2 channel all analog all tube setup:

Not in any particular order and using baseball terms:

1. Walker Audio Talisman. Strikeout. A big swing and miss. The silliest purchase for sure.

2. Copper ankle socks. Home run. No more shocks when I touch my tonearm. Just wow. Least expensive tweak to date that works.

3. Symposium Segue amp shelves. Strikeout. Heard no difference in noise floor, bass, etc. But looks really nice.

4. Symposium Segue ISO Stealth turntable shelf with Rollerblocks Series 2. Home run. Out of the park. Really hear and SEE a significant improvement in everything - clarity, bass, soundstage. Took the performance of 2 very different turntables up a lot. “See” because my needle would jump sometimes and now you can actually see the rollerblocks doing their job swaying back and forth with no impact on the music like a building a Japan. Disclaimer: Room suffers from significant footfall.

5. Townshend Seismic Isolation Platform under my Harbeth 40.2 Ton Trager stands. Home Run. Further improvement due probably to serious footfall in my room. My most expensive tweak but worth it to me.

6. Stein Music Carbon Edition Perfect Interface. Another big swing and miss. Strikeout. Zero diff perceived vs no mat or stock mat. Most expensive swing and miss.

7. Yellow bird Hexmat. A solid double. First time I’ve heard a mat make a noticeable improvement. Probably cause this mat is a record isolator/decoupler and again reduces impact from vibrations.

8. Stillpoint Ultra LPI ver2. A solid double. This one is so easy to A/B and hear a noticeable improvement on some songs vs using no record weight or even the stock record weight. Basically things got quieter enabling me to turn up the volume which increased the perceived dynamics. Plus it looks really cool.

9. Symposium rollerblock jr. Under my phonostage or preamp. Strikeout. I don’t hear any impact on the noise floor but theoretically it’s there.

10. Isoacoustics Gaia tried under preamp, phonostage, amp. Strikeout. Didn’t hear anything noticeably different but again theoretically it’s doing something.

11. Assorted tube rolling. NOS, new new etc. Not sure if this is a tweak but I didn’t really hear any discernible difference to my memory. But it was fun to learn and do it.

Well there you have it! Anyone have similar experiences?


aj523
mahgister.....send a link
About what? i speak about many things....

I have a thread about all my devices....Feel free to read....

If you have a question i will try to answewr if i can....

My best to you....
2.  Copper ankle socks. I can not for the life of me believe that another human acknowledged the power of this. Uncanny!
You forgot the tinfoil hat, cuts down on both RFI and EMF...i don’t always listen to my stereo, but when I do, I wear my tinfoil hat. I saved money and made it myself. Don’t knock it unless you’ve tried it! 😉

Oh, almost forgot, my wife had some extra yarn lying around, so I used it to raise my speaker cables off the floor. You see, I tied one end to speaker cables and attached other end to thumb tacks in the ceiling! I actually think it looks nice, except you need to be mindful they are there, or you will inadvertently strangle yourself in a dimly lit room!

Wait, one last one...I place a large pitcher of water on coffee table in front of my listening position. I swear by this, as I do believe it is somehow absorbing the standing waves in that area of My room.
1) Iso Acoustics Orea insulators under my receiver seemed to help the sound considerably. 
2) Iso Acoustic Gaia III under my speakers didn't seem to change the sound from the previous spikes.
3) Audioquest Type 5 speaker cables didn't seem to do much.
4) Voodoo power cord didn't seem to do much. 
 ***Although, all tweaks together did give me better sound overall and I'm still in the break-in period on the cables and power cord.