Feed me, Seymour!
A black hole went into my Marantz SA-10!
I always use a Herbies black hole II CD disc damper. It somehow got lost inside the transport. The tray is shallow as is, so it didn't take much for it to get knocked, and in it went! So I freaked out. I looked inside behind the tray with a bright LED flashlight. I didn't see it. Everything works. Tray goes in and out without any snagging. No skipping. I'm not not very mechanical and have no idea which screws to loosen and don't want to mess with it. It happened about 30 hours of listening ago. I use the Herbies black hole CD disc damper for 6 years. When I had my Sony 5400 ES it did make a difference and was repeatable. My GF agreed. I never did the AB comparison on the Marantz. Maybe the transport on it is not tweakable since they built it themselves. I know Steve Nugent here is a big believer in some kind of damping. Anyway its playing.
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If you SA-10 is anything like my SA-15S2b, then look at the rear of the unit. Running along the top should be some screws that secure the top lip to the unit’s back frame. After undoing those screws, there should be (if Marantz form follows function ) two relief areas that raise out from the lip of the top trim. Using some thick cardboard or something similar placed flat against the back of the unit with it abutting the top trim, place a flat head screwdriver up into the relief and gently turn it. Then do it to the other one. It may take a couple of tries but notice the top lid will not move much as it take just a little movement to free the top from where it securely mounts to the top front of the unit. (The cardboard is used to prevent any damage or nicks to the back of the unit). Now just pull backwards and slightly upwards on the top after it frees itself from the front of the unit and it should come right off. There may be some top frame guides that run along both top sides that help secure the top lid. They just act as guides and help to keep the lid on tight. You should have no trouble locating your Herbie’s disc damper. All the best, Nonoise |
Great advice from “Nonoise”, while you are in there you may want to add some auto sound deadening film to the top and sides. Tap around with your fingers and you will hear where the vibrations are the strongest. I did this several years ago with my Sony ES and it was a noticeable improvement. https://www.soundproofcow.com/product/vibra-block-sound-deadening-material-pad/?gdffi=d462e8110af047... https://www.crutchfield.com/p_15411101/Dynamat-Dynaliner-1-8-thick.html Compressed air is good for removing any dust bunnies you may find inside as well. Good luck!👍 |
Zipost. 25 years ago I tried the Mod Squad compact disc damper with those pesky little white rings. Errrr don't get me started. That glue is a devil to get off. I remember it made a small difference or worse. 15 years ago I Tried Herbies Grunge Buster rubber/vinyl mat. I don't remember the exact material. It was an improvement but not as much as the Black Hole. With it there was a noticeable difference in the Sony 5400ES. I hope that helps. Hey did anyone piggy back 2 CDs back in the day. I read about that in Laura Dearborns book Goid Sound. I was leary about trying that. |
Optimally the transport mechanism itself should be damped as well as the tray. In addition, the transformer, if there is one, should be isolated from the rest of the electronics. And the entire CD player should be isolated from very low frequency vibration. I am a big fan of Marigo VTS dots for CD tray and chassis, etc., small but effective. Cork works well in many cases. I’m not a big fan of that blue EAR stuff in any form. As Acoustic Revive cautions, refrain from over-dumping. |
The EAR Isodamp SD is a different product for a different application than the "blue stuff" that company makes. For details, see the Michael Percy Audio website. To quote Percy, the SD125 (1/8" thick) is "The best material available for free air damping of metal parts, circuit boards, and chassis covers and enclosures. |
I did more than believe him Geoff, I ordered some SD for my EAR-Yoshino line stage and Herron phono amp. It completely eliminated the nasty, metallic ringing of both piece's top covers. My Esoteric digital player doesn't need it, as that unit's enclosure is very well damped. The transformer cover of my Music Reference power amp could also benefit, but I have a VPI brick on top of it, so no need. |
Well, that’s an interesting comment about the “nasty ringing of the top cover” since it may or may not be audible when playing music. Everything vibrates. From within and without. It helps to not tap the top cover with a metallic object whilst music is playing. 🤗 As for the VPI brick it’s not really a vibration damper. In fact, it might very well be a vibration over damper. |
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Yeah blueranger, it is not for enclosure damping that I use the VPI Brick, but rather for absorbing stray fields from the amp's transformers. But the mass of the Brick makes damping products unnecessary. Another product for dealing with those fields but without the mass of the Brick is the Shakti Stone. Geoff's questioning of the audibility of electronic enclosure vibrations and resonances is valid. But they can't help! In a perfect world, hi-fi electronic enclosures would contain no vibrations, whether from transformers, acoustic waves from loudspeakers, or seismic activity from the Earth's crust etc. Tubes especially benefit from isolation from vibration regardless of their origination, especially the small signal tubes in phono amps and line stages, but also the input and driver tubes in power amps. Also digital devices, especially CD/SACD spinners, mechanical "reading" instruments. |
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Damping externally for the top is probably an ok idea. I would never consider placing damping material, which is a great thermal insulator, over a transformer which can get hot. Insulating the case too much may prevent heat disapation required by the designers, and heat is the destroyer of electronic components like capacitors. |
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