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FIM 880 AC Outlet-- Best tweak I've ever heard

Summary: Friday morning I installed a FIM 880 AC outlet. This receptacle is made of high purity copper with ceramique insulation. I plugged my amp into it and was treated to the best music I have ever heard in my stereo system-- rich, warm, natural and beautiful.

Story: Last Oct. I got Vandersteen 5 speakers. In preparation for them, I had to go to 15 ft. ICs, short speaker cables, and Syn. Res. Master Couplers for the powered subs in the speakers, and a 14 ft. Master Coupler to reach from amp to a dedicated outlet. I also put in 3 Acme silver plated outlets, two went in non-dedicated circuits for the speaker subs, and the other was put on a dedicated line for my amp. So, I had to break-in or burn-in a lot of different "stuff" at the same time-- not the best way to do it, but to put the amp between speakers, I had to go this route.

I immediately liked the V5 speakers and even though they were very revealing, somewhat bright, and somewhat lean, I expected all the new wires and speakers to mellow as they broke in, and they did smooth out greatly over a 30 day period, and have continue to improve even now. But, even though very smooth and non-fatiging, they were still very revealing and brighter than I prefer.

I considered everything but most suspected the 15 ft. Syn. Res. silver/copper active shielded ICs, but to correct that would be expensive, and I didn't know what to replace them with anyway. I also remembered that the Acme outlets were silver plated, and of course silver has a reputation of being fast, bright, detailed, zippy, clean etc. But recently another A'Gon member, Eagle, recommended the FIM outlet so I bought one-- not cheap at $70. either.

Immediately after exchanging the Acme outlet for the FIM for my amp, I listened to some well known music. To be honest, it was a "jaw dropping" experience (and I seldom "gush"), Alison Krauss' vocals became warm, rich, immediate, live, natural, seductive. Timbral richness is now incredible. I had also just gotten 3 XRCDs and on Thursday night, (with Acme outlet) could only say the XRCDs were very revealing but that's all. But Friday with the FIM outlet, the Jacintha XRCD2 "Autumn Leaves, The Music of Johnny Mercer", music became truly breathtaking. It had ALL the positive characteristics I've noted above, and most of all was beautiful, natural, musical.

The same thing happened with the XRCD Robert Lucas "Luke and the Locomotives"-- a hard driving Blues/Rock CD. With the change of outlets, piano sounded like piano (it was glassy before in the treble range), a Fender Strat at full scream now sounds "right", and soft acoustic guitar was better than I've ever heard. But vocals was where the magic really was-- Jacinth's voice was rich, warm, natural, and "in the room with me".

This review is not meant to critisize Acme outlets, as in a dark sounding system, they may be "just right-- they are fast smooth and detailed once broken in. BUT IN MY SYSTEM-- well, the FIM has transformed it-- I admit to a definite preference for a warm, rich, sweet presentation, and I have FINALLY found it with a simple outlet change. Also, my Vandersteen 5s now sound like Vandersteen speakers.

If my house were burning down, and there was only one of these FIM outlets in existence, I'd save my wife, the cat, and the FIM outlet. The FIM 880s are "Dyno-Supreme", IMO. Sorry for the long-winded gushing, but I wanted to share this 4 month journey and experience with A'Gon brethern, and I also needed an "outlet" for my excitment;>) I've gotta' quit! Any comments/questions are welcome. CHEERS. Craig
garfish
garfish OP
1,840 posts
 
Lak; I'm not "hands on" familiar with the Equi=Tech Q2, but it's my guess that any component will take on the sonic signature of whatever it's plugged into. If you want more warmth, richness, and fullness then the FIM 880 may do that. OTOH, if you want more speed, detail, and a brighter presentation, then the ACME silver plated job may be better.

But in either case, if you have a fairly high resolution system, I'd bet you'd certainly hear a difference in whichever you chose, and it would be up to you to decide which you prefer. Good Luck. Craig
sherod
1,690 posts
 
This message is for Craig(Garfish)A little off the subject it may go to another thread.Anyway, I noticed in your bio and other threads that you have or are using Synergistic Research cables.I read recently that SR is offering effective 3/01/02 an inexpensive upgrade to the new "X" series i.e. active versions. I have a pr. of Signature 2 speaker cables which I was thinking of selling and upgrading to the reference level,but the new SR website says an upgrade to the x-series would make your current model superior to a non x-series reference model.Have you or anyone else with SR cables tried this new upgrade and what are the sound differences.I know they are throwing in a $50.00 power supply and they boast of the neat-looking cool blue lights, but is there a dramatic betterment of the sound.Anyone that's heard these new x-series cables please respond.Thanks Also the website is www.synergisticresearch.com .When you get in click the big blue X. They are currently revising their website so this is all you can get into for now.I think I see why so many dealers are trying to dump all the SR models at 1/2 price in order to make way for this new revolutionary X-series.
badge
16 posts
 
Two questions come to mind. One, the copper alloy will be softer and might not retain the grip desired. And, two, copper tarnishes as do most metals. Copper tarnish is a very poor conductor. Silver tarnishes, but the tarnish is an excellent conductor. Nickel plate does not tarnish. How do you handle the copper tarnish?
garfish OP
1,840 posts
 
Sherod; I am using SR X series ICs and they were a significant upgrade over the standard ICs-- especially noticeable in sound staging. I have not tried or heard the new X series speaker cables (or PCs), but that's something I will be considering as a future (potential) upgrade.

Badge; I agree that the copper tarnish is a potential problem, and I have no solution. My approach is philosophical I suppose. The outlets will tarnish very slowly and it may be that music quality will degrade slowly too-- but so slow it may be imperceptible. And as of now, I'd much rather enjoy the benefits of the sound quality of these outlets than listen with those that sound too bright to me.

When I had a dedicated AC system installed, I noted in the main breaker box that the heavy copper wire feeding the sub-main was a bit tarnished so I pulled it out cleaned it with a pocket knife and on re-clamping it, new copper was also exposed, and afterward I thought music sounded cleaner and clearer-- that big wire had been in place for about 25 years.

Finally, I also think that just unplugging and re-plugging will have the affect of exposing a cleaner contact surface-- others have noted this too-- and it wouldn't have to be done often. Finally, while these FIM outlets are exceptional sounding, even inexpensive copper based outlets, such as P&S hospital grade (about $10.), and audio-grade Hubbells @ two for $25. also sound good in my system too. I use Hubbells on my other components (until I get more FIMs;>).

I think, in my system at least, just removing the silver plated outlet may have been responsible for much of the improvement in music quality that I experienced. But really, I think it was both removal of the silver outlet, and addition of the copper based FIM that created the significant improvement in music quality.

As I've already noted in this thread, I think in some systems, silver plated outlets could perform beautifully. I have a "lousy" local power supply too (dirty and fluctuating) that may be greatly responsible for excess brightness, and the fast, pure silver just made it worse??? :( Cheers. Craig
jacks0395
70 posts
 
What wire is used for your source wire from the transformer to the panel, Badge? How about prior to there? Is it silver coated?
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