Yes Sir! I must confess to the "green-edge". There are lots
of tweeks from there, but most of the positive effects can
be summarized to the Dual Beam Bedini unit. Overall though,
the right combination of tweeks is, in my view, indespensable. |
i prefer my discs "straight up, no chaser." |
Don't you mean "straight, no chaser" |
jla: yeah , you're right about the name of the song. but i'm a fan of manhattans rather than shooters. thus, if you'd order a manhattan "straight," you might get just the bourbon or, shudder, nothing but sweet vermouth. a "straight up" drink, in contrast, gets you a chilled cocktail in a "martini glass" served sans ice. and, oh yeah, two of them maraschino cherries, please. BTW, i've yet to try a green marker on any of my riedel glassware. -kelly |
I use the "green edge" for my CD'S and this stuff really
works!!!! |
When I first open a cd it gets the Mapleshade Microsmooth (ultrafine polish to smooth cd surface), I blacken the outside/inside edges and any clear plastic area in center top and bottom, then they get the Optrix cd cleaner treatment. Prior to listening, the Bendini Clarifier gets used and once a month I spray the top surface with Nordost antistatic stuff. I have also heard storage in the freezer works well but I'm afriad I might eat my cd as a midnight snack. |
The best CD treatment system is Auric Illuminator which does seem to consistently make a slight overall improvement.
This includes a black edge marker and polishing gel combination. Edge marking alone does not offer a noticeable
improvement to me. Before you become obsessed with tweaking Cds you must get duplicate CDs to compare treated vs untreated version to really see if any improvement is occuring, otherwise it is easy to convince yourself that you hear an improvement when usually there is none.
And of course NEVER apply any tweak to your CDs which cannot be completely removed, or you will reget the day
your valuable CD collection was altered. |
Whenever one of my CDs crosses over to "reference CD" land, it gets the ceremonial green stripe. And before I do any serious listening, it takes a whirl in my Bedini. Of course it sounds better, it is science. Not like that whacko dime on your speakers for imaging. |
I use a green marker ("uniposca" - a cheapie, not 'audiophile'). I've done side-by-side with the same disc, untreated. It definitely smooths out the harshness. |
what type of black marker do you use mikeg (anyone). do you do black marker then green?
plus what company makes the uniposca? plus it's cost? |
One more caution about edge marking, even though the black
marker used in the Auric Illuminator kit can be removed with
isopropyl alcohol, some CDs have elaborate artwork covering the entire surface of label side. These can have delicate
matte/gloss surface coatings which will be damaged by any alcohol contact no matter how careful you are! Usually when you mark the CD edge, a small amount of marker will be deposited on the label surface edge.
I am not sure if green marker is removeable, but this is a consideration if you ever plan to resell CD in the future,
if you need to return CD to like new condition. |
Unless you have a player/transport with a full-sized disc clamper or add-on like Simplyphysics, everyone should use a disc over the CD to be played.
The disc guarantees better coupling and blocks out the stray laser light.
bob charlanza
reading, pa |
The green edge fools are fools. Just look at the current issue of The Audio Critic. They debunk the cable and green edge and golded ear(if u cant hear the improvement them something is wrong with u, B.S.) along with a lot of others. So, now u have a choice. U can either be a person of reason(why the hell should a little green ink on the edge of a CD improve the sound?) or a green edge fool like the posts above and below. |
Jazzcatlewis. You need to use your own ears to decide if and how to treat your CDs, not someone else's.
I have been using Finyl and find hugh differences on some cd's and marginal on others. If a disk sounds bright at all the it gets a coat. When it "works " well I hear the difference most in the sound stage ans smoothness.cheers steve |
Delux, the black marker I use is from the Auric Ill. kit but any indulable ink black marker will work. I agree with megasam, mark only the cds you plan to keep. I have seen the damage alcohol can do to the top surface.
I also sand the outside edges with 300 grit sand paper (3 revolutions) before black marking. This helps to further reduce reflections (Ric from EVS recommended this). The Marigo Mat is used on top of the cd - makes a big differenc as Bob Charlanza says. |
Other than cleaning LPs, I haven't tweaked software. But I did use some screen polish for my handheld PDA on a duplicate copy of Joni Mitchell's Blue this morning. First, I could see my reflection in the CD better, like a thin veil had been lifted from my face. Second, it did help the resolution of the music. I could hear the steel of Joni's guitar strings better, and there was more interior delicacy, more air to her voice. The latter is a significant Good Thing, in my book. I really don't want to sit around polishing CDs... but I guess it wouldn't be so bad. Hey, MikeG, I sure hope you also have a tweaky turntable and a collection of old vinyl to take advantage of that industriousness of yours. Cheers. |
A friend told me that applying green-edge is not recommended because when this dries up, bits of ink flakes can end up in the lens. Instead he recommende installing green light inside the player which will serve the same purpose as the green-edge. Anyone has done this? |
Good thread. I have used two CD tweaks in my system: one with great results and one with minimal (no) result. The great result was with Optrix; the no result was with the Audioiprism green pen.
The Optrix spray brought a remarkable improvement in low level resolution, especially in my older CD's that I thought were poorly recorded. Because they were "poorly recorded" I hadn't listened to in years. With a good cleaning, wow! This makes sense as they were the oldest and probably the dirtiest CD's I have. Subsequently, they were the most improved by the cleaning.
Unfortunately, the green ink didn't fare as well. I put it on several of my reference discs and fired up the old transport (Muse 5 with a I2S connect to a model 2 plus DAC for reference). No difference. I was bummed, mostly due to the glowing promises from the audio store guys. I certainly had high expectations, but no result. I know others who have had good results with the green pen. I'm not sure why my system did not benefit.
An interesting side note is that the green pen contains a proprietary ink from some Japanese company- I heard all this from a Danish 'phile. Anyway, you can get it in ink pens at a store in Denmark called Koch & Tutein. (Needless to say it's not 16 bucks a pen there). I didn't buy any as it didn't work for me in the Audioprism pen. If anyone has the inkling (no pun intended), try it out.
Happy listening.
Todd |
Yes, i use the green marker and the improvements are audible to anyone who can hear. I wouldn't bother if it didn't work. I asume that cleaning the edge of a cd would help as well. By cleaning i mean shaving. i have seen an expensive device that uses a blade to shave a thin layer off of the outside edge. Have you ever looked closely at the edge of a cd. When you do this remember that a cd works by reflecting a beam of light. Hey, this isn't rocket science. But, one important thing, don't spend $20 on an edge treatment, you can buy the same thing at any art store for $3. It is a Lumacolor pen, I forget the manufacturer but the guy or gal at the counter will know what you are asking for. Best thing is that this approach is permanent and one marker will treat thousands of cds. Try it but, only if you have an open mind. A biase on the front end never produces a desirable result. My determinations are based on a blind listening test that i preformed. I had two copies of the same cd , one of Sam Mclains, you know which one, I treated one and left the other alone. Then I did what sooooooo many people dont do, I listened, not knowing which i was listening to. I am now and was then a believer.
If you are going to form an opinion of something form it based on experience if possible. And, for three dollars no one has any excuses in this case.
Oh, one other thing, the result is directly proportional to the quality of your equipment. This is a subtle result but deffinitely noticable. |
I have found (using the 'Uniposa' green) that burnishing the newly dried edge with a finger (rub the just dried edge several times around and around 'til it has a sheen) stops the later flaking of the paint. |
Ohhhh, Lizzie, burnish some more there, yeah, right there, ohhhhh! |
Rodney Gold ( moderator of the Digital Asylum ) did some testing with various discs using his all digital system (Meridian) and his computer. According to all of the tests, "read time" on a disc was slower with far more errors and more corrections necessary on discs that were "markered". Discs that had been true'd, beveled or had the rough edges smoothed (but used no markered edges) read FASTER than "untreated" discs and did so with less errors.
Seeing that i own an Audio Desk Systeme Disk Cutter, i don't follow their directions completly. They say to "trim" the disc and then apply marker to the inside ring and outer edge. Since i have never experienced any benefit to "markering" and Rodney's testing shows poorer performance by doing so, i'll stick with cleaning the disc via warm soapy water, a thorough rinse and then careful drying, "cutting" the disc with the Audio Systeme unit and then Bedini'ing before playing. This has given me the best results. Of course, once it is cut, you never have to do it again.
I also have some Optrix and Auric Illuminator, but really haven't played with those enough to pass judgment on them. Either way, ALL of this is "hooey". Don't we all know that "CD's offer perfect sound. Forever" ???? Sean
> |
I use the audioprism cd stoplight and also their cd blacklight disk which is a bore because you have to recharge it for 30 sec. before each disc play, but wouldnt be caught without it. |
And a second vote for Microsmooth from Mapleshade (ultrafine polish to smooth cd surface). The better your system the more you'll notice the improvement. |
