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  3. 178511-156209

Have you ever solved a high end audio issue using non-audio technology? Or, visa versa?

Sometimes we just have to be creative to fix a problem.  Our "bag of tricks" may go well beyond the usual "audiophile grade" tools of the trade to produce a positive result.

Here's one:

Years ago, I acquired a little British sports car.  This, itself is an unusual story.  I'm a performance car enthusiast with a 835HP vehicle is parked in my garage.  

At any rate, the little 4-cylinder "tractor motor" had solid lifters that sounded like a Singer sewing machinegoing down the road above 3,000 RPM.  It distracted from the driving experience.  I was thinking how nice it would be to quiet them down a little.

Then I remembered the can of Acoustical Magic material I had in the basement.  For those unfamilar with this material, it's used to dampen the vibration/resonance of turntable platters.  I pulled the aluminum valve cover, cleaned and degreased it thoroughly, then applied a generous portion of Acoustical Magic.  After a little curing in the oven and allowing it to set for 24 hours, the valve cover was reattached.

If I had it do over again, I would have measured before/after with a spectrum analyzer. But, my best guesstimate is that there was a 6-9db drop in the tapping sound, and I could hear the sounds around me while cruising.  The driving experience improved exponentially.  Thanks to Acoustical Magic for a cheap, effective solution to my "acoustical" problem.

I have to admit that a year later the true "hot rodder" in me required that I add a turbo to the little engine.  The sound of the off-throttle blow off valve is music to my ears.  And, driving something resembling a real sports car, as opposed to a British commuter car was a plus.

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singingg
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AUDIOPHILE RIDDLE

What's better than a hockey puck?

(drum roll please - cymbal crash)

Two hockey pucks!!

 

I discovered this by accident after installing two new amps. I was moving a speaker switch to a new location on my rack. It was previously under one of the amps which I had elevated with double HP to create the requisite space. The other amp had my standard one HP for mechanical isolation. For some perverse reason I installed extra HP under the amp with only one. I went into the other room to listen and make sure I had wired everything correctly. I was greeted with a sound that I did not believe these speakers capable of delivering (brand and model shall not be revealed, too embarrassing!). 

Off to the sporting goods store to buy a few extra bags of HP. Six HP in stacks of 2 under a component's chasse, not under the footers, but please experiment. Six under the preamp, amps, universal player, tuner, turntable isolation platform. Eight under my subwoofer spikes, I use two on top of my fiber optic converters, and five on top of the woofer cabinet of a speaker  to quell some resonances. I have a single one under each leg of my steel equipment racks. I put 5 1/2 HP between the platter and tonearm of my Pro-ject RPM 10 and quelled some subtle resonances that I am sure they addressed in their subsequent redesigns.

While I am at it I have found folded doormats without backing are ideal for light weight pieces like linear power supplies and Furman power conditioners.

I have 90 HP and four folded rugs at work. Visually inconspicuous, effective, and dirt cheap. My kind of tweak!

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