Isolation vs. Absorbtion

Hi Dan: I used soft footers (Vibrapods) between the MDF (shelf) and the Maple platform and then brass cones between the Maple and the CD player. So, from bottom to top it was: MDF/Pods/Maple/cones/player. Red Kiwi has been having good results with the EAR soft footers which I would also like to try out under the Maple. Since that setup I killed my MDF shelf and have the player resting on my cabinet itself which is constructed out of Persimmon wood. Both setups sound pretty much the same to me so I guess that the soft footers are doing their job well. Different soft footers will sound, well, different. The Vibrapods are $24.00 for a set of four and the E.A.R's are $3.25 each from what I can discern from the Parts Connection catalog on line. If you happen to have a Maple cutting board handy (even if it is only 3/4") you can get started for not a lot of money. I am using the least expensive Mapleshade brass cones which are $38.00 for a set of three and their most expensive set of cones is $110.00 per set. I will eventually try the $110.00 set (which another member is having good results with) on my player. I am using the cones on my DAC right now as well. Even if you only start out with soft footers and a platform on which your player rests on it's stock feet you will still here a nice improvement in the sound much like as if you have upgraded your player, which you have just done in a way. The first time I placed my player on a Vibrapod/MDF platform, I was hooked and the subsituted Maple platform sounded even better prior to adding cones to the equation.

PS: Many people would aslo just place the Pods or the EAR's directly between the shelf and the player for starters if they do not want to use cones. If the stock feet have a higher profile than the soft footers then they will need to be removed, if not, then just leave them on and place the footers next to the stock feet though not touching them. The stock feet of my CAL were higher than the Pods so I just rested the CAL on a sheet of MDF (with the Pods underneath) and left the stock feet on the player. Lot's of ways to do it if you are not going to use cones as well at the start and it's kind of fun to listen as the sandwich grows.

Great advice Dakay. Thanks a bunch. - Dan

Dan: You are welcome. Please let everyone know how it works out (whatever extreme you go to). Many still do not beleive in the benefits of isolation components and the word from someone not on the "fringe" (not yet anyway) may carry a lot of weight.

It has taken a lot longer than I would like and I have taken some wrong paths for sure, but I am almost certain I have the measure of the E-A-R feet and the Neuance shelf. I did take some wrong paths because of the way the Neuance changes sound in its early days. After it has settled once, it does not seem to take very long at all next time and the changes are less - probably because you are usually compressing similar points on the shelf as the previous time it was used. Anyway, the Neuance is light, rigid and damped. Its ideal use is on a welded steel rack, firmly spiked to the floor and then spikes supporting the Neuance shelf. At times I have resorted to using small, thin, hard rubber pads between shelf and rack, and to sand-filling the rack, usually to try and tame an upper-midrange resonance (which occurs while the shelf is settling in, but which disappears later). But these are not a good idea when the Neuance has settled. You should absolutely definitely not sand-fill the stand or use pads when supporting the Neuance - the sound becomes analytical, lifeless and unmusical. As to the E-A-R feet, their main advantage is that they provide excellent damping, are neutral (in a way that the Vibrapods are not), and retain excellent detail. But there can be problems with them. In a setup where your rack or shelf already provides significant damping (ie. a MDF shelf) then adding the E-A-R's will kill the sound by over-damping it. Therefore, I doubt that putting a Neuance shelf on top of MDF will get the best out of it. I have tried it and used various cones (and Vibrapods) between Neuance and MDF to try and emulate a light steel rack, but the best result occurred when I used a small sub-table (a Mana Soundframe - expensive) between the MDF and Neuance. The result with cones was not bad, but it did not get the most out of the Neuance. I don't think the Neuance is designed to go on anything other than spikes and a light, rigid steel rack. With MDF shelves I find cones are the best way to go - something like the BDR Mark 4 does a good job at a reasonable price. The BDR Mark 3 appears to me to roll-off at both the top and bottom and add a persistant artificial warmth to the mid-range. I have done my best to try the Neuance extensively in three different systems and have found that in a more lively system/room the E-A-R feet are excellent between Neuance and component, but I did find in a less lively system/room that too many E-A-R feet closed the sound down, and it was better to just let some components sit on their stock hard rubber feet. I do not recommend either cones or Vibrapods between Neuance and component. When the Neuance is working well, not only are the cones and Vibrapods redundant, but their individual sound is very intrusive. You have got to hear percussive piano with the Neuance! The lack of noise and resonance compared to any other support I have tried is quite stunning. But don't expect the Neuance to blow you away. Using it just seems to subtract a lot of noise from the music. It does not add romantic qualities (as many vibration control devices do) that you develop brief infatuations for. In some ways I am nervous that I may be guilty of over-hyping the Neuance through my fullsome descriptions of it. I am sure that some might be utterly underwhelmed because it adds nothing to the music. Others may find it dead sounding because they cannot put a light steel rack underneath it. But for me, who has grown frustrated by the colorations that supports add to music, and that different supports usually just mean different colorations, the absence of sound of the Neuance (when used right) is a blessing.