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68.0.154.81
IMHO I have discoveerd what I believe to be the ultimate tweak for revealing the sonics of CD's. It consists of using the well known emerald green permanent marking pen as well as a permanent black marking pen, along with Optrix Spray ($16.95) and Micro Smooth $16.95), both available from Mapleshade (888/236-2733). The process, in ideal order of steps is to first smooth the data side of the CD with Micro Smooth using heavy pressure for at least one minute in each area of the disc (I usually divide the disc into 4 areas). After smoothing of the disc remove the residue of the Micro Smooth by using a wet soft sponge with a few drops of dishwashing detergent and rinsing the disc well with water. Shake the disc vigorously to remove the rinse water and dry the disc with a very soft towel. Next apply the Optrix Spray per the directions on the label. The optrix removes the silicone mold release that coats the disc and leaves a residual layer which is said to reduce laser scatter. The next step is to apply the emerald marker to the edge of the disc, followed by the black marker after the emerald coating has dried. Next use the emerald and black markers on the edges of the center hole in the disc. The final step(s)is to apply the emerald and black markers to the entire area of the bottom (data) side of the disc from the outer edge of the center hole out to the area where the data begins. This requires a very careful and steady hand. It's a good idea to have some Q-tips and fingernail polish remover and kleenix handy, In case you run into the data area you can remove both the emerald and black marker by using a slightly wet Q-tip and Kleenix to remove it, even after it has dried.Try this with a familiar CD and I believe you will be amazed at the aditional detail you hear that wasn't there before as well as increased dynamics and transients. Optrix & Micro Smooth are sold with a 30 day satisfaction guarantee). I am also a fan of Mapleshade's Ionoclast ($38.50, also sold with a 30-day satisfaction guarantee) which de-staticizes the playing surface of the CD, the effect of which totaly surprised me.
Happy Listening !
Follow Ups:
a
Xtreme Av's Liquid Resolution is better still!
I agree with your assessment of the Liquid Rez. It's the only treatment I consider in the same league as my Jena Labs 3D-X. I use it on certain SACDs where the Jena causes discoloration (not sure why--must be some weird interaction). Great stuff.
The Walker Ultra Vivid removes it.
a
if not sold yet, I'd like to buy it....GK
There's really no comparison between UV and Optrix. Have you tried the new formulation of UV? Seems like Lloyd is changing it every two months.
I found this to be very annoying about the plain ol' Vivid.
This product has none of the wax smell or cloudy look until you wiped it off. This does need to be wiped off, however. Two treatments are clearly needed and number two has nearly as much impact as does treatment number one.
...this was taken from their website:The Issue of Separation
Ultra Vivid will separate. Shake vigorously to remix. Over time, Ultra Vivid loses its ability to remix. To prolong its effectiveness, close the bottle immediately after use, keep it out of direct sunlight and do not allow it to freeze. Best if used within nine months of opening.
I stll have half-full bottles of the earlier version, which got really nasty. :-)Never could figure out whether it did enough to keep using it (before it went bad).
As I said, I threw my original Vivid away even though I thought it had benefit.
........this is THE best tweak for CD playback I have ever heard and I have tried them all.Spendy, yes but U will know it when U hear it :-)
Cheers,
~kenster
Grubbing through the illogical muddle that constitutes the Walker website, I can only find a reference to an analogue turntable speed controller. Can you supply a link to your beastie!Despite the mess, they DO have Keith Jarrett recommending their Ultra Vivid, which impressed the heck out of me!
"I can only find a reference to an analogue turntable speed controller."That's the beast.
Yes it was designed for TT motors but can just as well be used on any device that does not draw more than 25 watts. It is an AC power regenerator with input and output isolation transformers thus making it ideal for electrically isolating your CD transport from the rest of your system.
I've provided a link.
Cheers,
~kenster
a
U can hear it "lock in" so to speak, when switched to 45RPM/80.10HZ but then a small teak up to 80.14hz is the cat's meow!I am a vinyl diehard and I don't see myself reverting back to the black licorice any time soon :-)
Cheers,
~kenster
a
..........The WAPMC is an AC power regenerator with input and output isolation trannies and as such, there is damn near complete electrical isolation of the componant plugged into it and all the other components in ones system.Cheers,
~kenster
I guess it is basically doing what other electric isolation filters are doing.
...........and after hearing the dramatic improvements it bestowed on my Digital rig, an inquiry to Lloyd was initiated to which he said the WAPMC could be used to power any component as long as said component does not draw more than 25 watts.Cheers
Has anyone done a before-tweak/after-tweak comparison of WAV files created using a good ripper such as Exact Audio Copy? Not to determine if the tweaks make an improvement, but whether they make any difference at all. My suspicion is that the tweaks provide audible benefits when the CD is played in real-time, but provides no benefit whatsoever to ripping when good ripping software is used.
..actually most of the tweaks make a difference..so you end up doing all kinds of things..After a while it become really crazy..Now my CDs are ripped to harddrive and a modded Squeezebox plays it.
I'd like to understand whether any of the above CD treatments would positively impact the rippng process?
No..Just clean the CD so that the ripping software does not have to do too many retries. You get exactly what is on the CD by ripping using EAC or some other software like that (unless the CD is badly scratched).
thanks
Not that you asked, nor to spoil your fun. Just a public service announcement.Disclaimer: I am NOT a shill for Machina Dynamica.
tried it for a couple weeks and realized that whereas at first the music sounded somewhat more "focused" and, in a sense, coherent, too much of the life and vitality was drained from it, the highs somewhat diminished and the air pretty much ...evaporated. I left this tweak in for a good two weeks, played many familiar (and some new) CDs to make sure it wasn't my imagination, and when I removed it things resorted to a previous level of satisfaction: the life had returned!Didn't add or subtract anything else or otherwise tweak or alter my system during the two weeks the Turquoise was in.
Tried it, didn't like it. I was rather surprised by this, as I think the concept is pretty solid and I really expected diferent results. Such is life...
This, of course won't prevent me from trying different tweaks in future.
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
Did you try experimenting with using a little less of this product? Perhaps it is a matter of fine-tuning your system with this tweak. I'd be curious what maybe half of the amount applied would do. Like dampening a room, one can actually over-dampen a room's acoustics to make for a dull sound.
That's a mighty fine point there! I may try that with the Turquoise tweak...A few years back, when I dampend the inside of my Jolida, I initially over did it and and it sucked the life out of the music/machine. Took a while to de-dampen to the proper amount...
Good idea, thanks!
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
You're welcome. Please keep us posted on your results if you do further experimenting. I look forward to hearing from you as I also am considering this tweak for my McCormack UDP-1 Universal player. Sometimes a little goes a long way.
several years ago when it first came out. Outstanding player. And would you believe McCormack is located just a mile down the road?
...it's always something, isn't it?Did you experience a gain in resolution? I occasionally find that some resolution gains result in a too distant perspective for my tastes. I usually, but not always, leave those tweaks in place and find that a tweak here or there ends up alleviating that condition.
For more "casual" listening, or filling our small apartment with wonderful music, the Turquoise tweak seemed to present a noticible improvement.For more "critical" listening, or seated in the sweetest spot, I actually heard less resolution and presentation of more subtle aspects of sound delivery, such as the artist's breathing (Starker, Jordi Savall) on solo cello or viola de gamba recordings, less of the resiny tinge of the bow, less of the lip smack from Buddy Guy on his Blues Singer recording, less of the ambience of the chirping crickets on Santana's "Eternal Caravan of Reincarnation"...
These are subtle things and possibly I should be more concerned with the music than of extraneous... recorded sounds...that make up the overall presentation of the recording, but these things added up to my missing them when noticing they had essentially disappeared. Seems the recording studio brought into my room lost a little of its liveliness and detail. I just wasn't enjoying listening to music quite as much.
It IS always something, and it's those little things (and sounds) in life that make a difference. I'm glad I tried the tweak, was very pleased to deal with Geof at MD (he runs a very professional operation) and happy you're enjoying this tweak.
It just didn't do it for my system or ears...
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
In my system it simply provided more of just about everything. I don't recall a single drawback. In fact, it was in the top half dozen system upgrades I've ever experienced. Not quite in the class of my recent Zu subwoofer experience, but relatively close.
they have served me well in the many years I played bass in bands (and for fun!), took music lessons, edited tapes for a former radio program I co-produced, use to play-grade records, use when walking a busy city street or identifying the birds in the yard, at the Symphony the other day, etc.The ears that, in fact, I chose my system to please!
I may try the tweak again with Sherod's suggestion of using less material. We'll see, or hear, I guess...
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
Something didn't turn out right for you in yours. It will be interesting to see what, if anything, Sherod's suggestion nets you.
nt
N/T
"I always play jazz records backwards, they sound better that way"
-Thomas Edison
The ultimate tweak is that polished coffee table. Now get to work!
It's Vagonfool. The "fool" part is the clue.
...I should be OK. I like to believe he's in custody somewhere. ;-)
Trolls like this guy tend to stay in hiding due to fear of truth.
nt
One has to be fair, but firm, with Trolls.
nt
...to sneak a post in.
Wellfed,
The only other post I can find where your coffee table was mentioned was from a certain Troll named Porziob. Do you think that... no, it couldn't be the same Troll, could it? Those crazy Trolls do come in different disguises, though.
Who'd have thunk it?
;-)
Yeah, I guess it is true. Well, at least he knows we're onto him. And what kind of username is Vagon-fool ?
I'm still trying to figure out why though. And don't forget muffdiver and mellowmel to name a few of his other sockpuppets.
I'm not a psycho-analyst, but he probably does like us talking about him, even in a negative way. It must go back to a bad childhood for him. I just scrolled through all the threads about him and I couldn't find a single instance where he contributed anything positive to the thread. Nope, not one. Amazing.
I've seen some useful commentary from him there, although he also takes time out of his busy schedule to talk about my coffee table as well.
...but on Audiogon, I think he knows they'll "tar and feather him and run him out of Dodge" if he gets out of line. If you do a search on all his threads, you'll see that his contributions pale in comparison to his trolling.
By the way,I can see why there is this fixation on your coffee table. It is a very nice table. How much do you want for it? Does that include shipping? I'll send you a Western Union for five times what you are asking for it and you send me the difference in cash and we'll call it a day, okay?
Incase someone does'nt already know this, the data on the disk is written from the inside out, What you've probably done is to eliminate the reflections from the laser ray hitting the transparent surface around the disc's hole which is a good idea as well around the edges.
I remember the "Pledge effect" (spraying J&Js furniture polisher or 'Mr.Sheen' on the data side then wiping it off with dry soft cloth) that came out with good results, maybe due to the anti-static properties, when I inquired this procedure at polycarbonate manufacturers they advised me against.
You hit the X-Ring in the bulls eye!The LED that reads the laser beam reflected from the CD is sensitive to red light, well into the infrared spectrum. As the CD revolves it also "flutters", up and down, causing the laser beam to generate reflections internally and externally in the CD (the angle of incidence of a light beam equals the angle of its' reflection) which causes "confusion" (for lack of a better term) in reading the data by the LED. The 'greening' of the CD's edges kills these reflections from the edge of the CD (green is the complimentary color of red so that red mixed with green results in black i.e. no reflections from the CD edge) Blackening the edge insures no reflections from the edge. Actually, the greening may not be necessary if the edge is blackened. Pierre Spree of Mapleshade avows that the surface of CD's "is rough, with hills and valleys bending the laserbeam reading the music data. When the beam is bent, each data bit is read too early or too late. That's Jitter. Jitter causes harsh, muddy sound". Micro Smooth is said to flatten the roughness of the surface of the CD. My ears agree with him. The micro Smooth goes for $16.95 for a bottle, with polishing pad and is said to treat 275 CD's or DVD's and is sold, as most of their products are, with a 30-day satisfaction or your money back guarentee. Mapleshade has quite a lot of "sound improving" products. You can obtain a catalog by calling them @ 888/236-2753. Way recommended
Happy Tweaking ! !
Unfortunately, things are not so simple. Take a Mercury Living Presence CD and mark the outer edge with green - the CD will now actually sound worse than before. Next, remove the green ink with alcohol and re-mark the edge with the color red. The CD will now sound noticeably better. See what I mean?~ Cheers
Hey, It's good to know I do make sense once In a while : )
'Roksan' as I recall put a green led right next to the transport in order to cancel any straying/reflecting red rays.
Thanks for the links.RamW.
I just ripped mine to a hard drive and playback that way. No need to treat the disks once you rip them...
Except that you've also ripped all the distortions resulting from the reflections etc. on the CD you've ripped from.Happy Ripping !
its the only way. Treating them after a rip would be like wiping your butt before you poop. a silly proposition indeed.
The best reproduction I have achieved is with the following combination. I bevel the edge with a Audio deck. I submit the data side to a two minute DIY pulsed light source as the disc rotates. I then apply Jena Labs Esoteric 3D-X to the data side only. Playback includes Herbie's newest black disc stabilizer.
I also really like Mikrosmooth. Check out this technique:Buy a roll of Viva paper towels and ONLY use these, they are awesome and have grip and absorbancy like no other.
ALWAYS wet the yellow pads from MS, NEVER use them dry...
Run a bit of water over the yellow pad & remove built-up MS. Next take the yellow pad by a corner and flick excess water into your sink.
Set the yellow pad on a clean surface, don't let the clean face touch anything.Grab a CD and run the optical face under cold tap water. Grab a Viva paper towel and wipe the CD dry with the wagon-wheel technique...from the center spindle out toward the edge...go around & around.
Cleaning the CD prior to applying MS is key, keeping the yellow piece wet is more key.Apply the MS as normal. I cut a 6" rounc circle of spongy shelf paper and set in on top of a new roll of tape. This way I have a cd shaped stand to apply the MS.
After application, run cold water over the CD again and use Viva paper towel in wagon -wheel to remove excess MS & dry the CD.
voila! You have NO scratches on the CD due to keeping the yellow pad wet, and the cleaning/drying process leaves no scratches since you wagon-wheel & used Viva towels.
I use the Ionoclast every side of LP play and before burning blank cd's. I do NOT use Optrix anymore...it imparts weird stuff to the sound. I do, however, use it on the label side of back-up copies of DVD's. Optrix seems ill-suited for audio, but works GREAT to reduce static.
I rinse off the yellow pad after every 2 cd's have been 'smooooothed.
YMMV. but do try wetting the yellow pad and a $1 roll of Viva paper towels. your music collection will thank you.
matt
THANKS for the tips !! I'll certainly try them.I too bought an Ionoclast, you can't lose with that guarentee. And it's built like an Abrahms tank. I use the Ionoclast on both top & bottom of the disc before each play. Its' effect is far from being subtle. De-staticising before playing. Who'da thunk it ?
Happy Micro-Smoothing !
P.S.
Their SilClear contact enhancer is GREAT. I can't tell it's effect from Xtreme Audio's glop, and its'less than half Xtreme's cost, but Xtreme has a much better applicator.
nt
I’ve tried the exact method you describe, and it DOES work. But there are a number of other approaches that work just as well—and, in some, cases, better (IMHO). I’m not going to rehash them all here. Just search the archives, and you’ll find a treasure trove of approaches and opinions. For me, there’s one major problem to your method, and that involves marking the data side of CDs. I don’t mind marking the edges—that can be removed pretty easily and inconspiculously—but when you start putting ink on the read side of discs, that’s where I draw the line. I have a lot of rare and valuable discs, and that’s just too much to risk for me.
You didn't read the initial post closely enough. I specificly said "have a bottle of fingernail polish remover along with Q-tips and kleenex handy. You can remove both inks with a slightly moistened Q-tip and wipe the disc dry with Kleenex.Happy Tweaking !
I read it. I just said that ***I*** would not be comfortable doing it. I never said that it was unremovable. In fact, I've tried the same exact tweak and removed the marker with nail polish remover myself. I found it a little unnerving, though, and haven't done it since.
IMO, that's a lot different than marking the read side of a disc. Trying to remove marker stripes from the data side can do some serious scratch damge if you're not ULTRA careful. That's why I don't do it. Removing marker from the edges is comparatively simple and harmless. That's why I do that.
Au contraire ! (Pardon the profanity) I DID advocate the marking of the data side of the CD : specifically that clear area of the data side from the outside of the center hole to the area where the data begins. This requires a steady hand and nerves. However, if you err, as I have numerous times, the ink can be immediately removed using a Q-tip lightly moistened with fingernail polish remover. Even after the ink has dried.Happy Tweaking !
I never said you DIDN'T advocate marking the data side. I just said that *I* personally wouldn't do it. As I said in an earlier post, I have lots of rare discs, and I just wouldn't have the nerve to do it. But that's me. The risk may well be worth it for others!
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