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I Just Don't Hear It - I wish I did

I am frustrated because I am an audiophile who cannot discern details from so many of the methods praised by other audiophiles. I joke about not having golden ears. That said, I can easily discern and appreciate good soundstage, image, balance, tone, timbre, transparency and even the synergy of a system. I am however unable to hear the improvements that result from, say a piece of Teflon tape or a $5.00 item from the plumbing aisle at Home Depot. Furthermore, I think it is grossly unfair that I must pay in multiples of one hundred, or even one thousand just to gain relatively slight improvements in transparency, detail, timbre soundstage, etc., when other audiophiles can gain the same level of details from a ten dollar tweak. In an effort to sooth my frustration, I tell myself that my fellow audiophiles are experiencing a placebo effect of some sort. Does anyone else struggle to hear….no wait; does anyone else struggle to comprehend how someone else can hear the perceived benefits gained by the inclusion of any number of highly touted tweaks/gimmicks (brass screws, copper couplers, Teflon tape, maple hardwood, racquet balls, etc.) I mean, the claims are that these methods actually result in improved soundstage, image, detail (“blacker backgrounds”), clarity, bass definition, etc.
Am I alone in my frustration here?
2chnlben

Showing 4 responses by dopogue

dopogue
1,773 posts
 
Thanks, Mumbles. I gotta say I really wasn't expecting the result we got. And we tried everything under my friend's speaker to get the most out of it, including my old (Stein Audio) stands and a cobbled-up maple/cones approach using the stock bases. Yeah, there was a little buyer's remorse, going into the comparison. What I don't understand was how dramatic the improvement was, as revealed by the comparison. I know that Anthony Gallo and Pierre Sprey (Mapleshade) have been friends for a long time -- Pierre has built special stands for the new Gallo 5LS towers that, according to the dealer I bought the Ref 3s from, are pretty much essential in Anthony's view. But that may just be dealer talk. Dave
dopogue
1,773 posts
 
If the height thing doesn't make sense, i should probably note that you have to remove the existing Gallo bases from the speakers before attaching the Mapleshade stands, so you first lose two inches, then gain six. If anyone cares
:-)
dopogue
1,773 posts
 
Guys, after putting the Gallos on the Mapleshade stands they were LOWER than before. I had them on 6" stands from Stein Audio. They are now about 2" lower than they were then. And, frankly, their esthetics were better with the Stein stands. Any other theories?
dopogue
1,773 posts
 
I just had an experience with an expensive ($775) tweak that I wouldn't even have considered except for facing a milestone birthday and (with my wife's blessing) wanting to do something to take my mind off it. Sealing the deal was the 30-day, no-questions-asked moneyback.

I've had Gallo Reference 3 speakers for almost 4 years and love them. For a while now, the Mapleshade catalog has been featuring stands made specifically for these speakers that replace the original speaker bases with new ones constructed of 4" maple platforms with well-named brass "Megafeet" under them and brass decouplers that put about 1/16" of space between the bottom of the speakers and the top of the bases. Sounds counterintuitive, right? The speakers are held onto the bases with 6" brass screw/bolts.

After putting all this together and discovering a little too late in the process that it was really a two-man job, I started listening. Okay it's nice, even very nice, but $775-nice?

Fortunately I have a friend who has the same speakers. He offered to bring one of them over and compare against one of mine with the new bases, which he did. My Aesthetix Calypso linestage enabled us to listen to them balanced, right only, left only, and any combination, via the remote control.

When the two speakers were balanced (same volume from each speaker) you could hardly tell the stock speaker was playing! We were both amazed. The Mapleshade bases provided far more full-bodied richness, dynamics, better bass, and all the other good stuff. There were no downsides, and there still aren't, unless you count the $775.

My friend ordered a pair of the bases the next day. They're due to arrive this week. The least I can do is help him install them. No kidding. Dave
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