^^^
"Putain de non de dieu de bordel de merde"
You're dang tootin' its that good. *lol*
Frank
"Putain de non de dieu de bordel de merde"
You're dang tootin' its that good. *lol*
Frank
New Tweak --- Its Fantastic
THE NEW TWEAK
Over the good part of this past year I’ve been beta testing a new tweak, the name of which is "Total Contact." Its a hi-bred graphene contact enhancer that is different from all other contact enhancers that have come and gone for one reason or another. I’m not new to these contact enhancers, having had quite a bit of experience with a product developed by the late Brian Kyle and his "Quick Silver" contact enhancer. The "Total Contact" is different ... a LOT different.
"Total Contact" is graphene based and is not a vibration control. It eliminates micro-arching between two contacts. Micro-arching, much like Micro-vibration smears the sound in our stereo systems. Its the type of distortion that we don’t know is there .... until we eliminate it. There is no break-in as we know it. The sound is improved right off the bat, but what you hear is only a smidgen of what’s to come.
I tested three generations of "TC," each of which was an improvement over the previous incarnation. The final mix was cryogenitically treated and made for a more effective, much smoother application. It comes in a large hypodermic needle type plunger containing 1.5 ml of product and includes a instructional DVD and an application brush.
The application should be applied with a very thin coat to all of your electrical connections .... from your cartridge pins to your power cords. I did my entire system, including the ends of my fuses.
Upon initial application, you will notice an improvement in clarity, correctness of tonal balance and a more overall organic sound. But ... that is just scratching the surface of what this magic paste does. As it cures, the improvements become more apparent. Much more!
There are two real break-through events that happen almost to the day with "Total Contact," one at four weeks and another at eight weeks . At four weeks, you’ll get a real jump in clarity and overall improvement. That’s only a taste though of what’s to come at eight weeks. At eight weeks your system’s focus will make a jump in SQ that is so real - its surreal.
After 40 years in the hobby, and a total tweak nut, I have never heard anything that does what this graphene paste does. The see-through clarity at eight weeks becomes simply amazing. The "paste" eventually cures into a kind of polymer plastic and it seems that the sound improves with each listening session. So, its important that you leave your contacts alone for the duration. If you’re the type of person that continually switches wires in and out, you’ll have to re paste until enough time has elapsed to get "the cure."
The only problem I had was with the first batch and that had to do with shorting out a tube pin in the line stage. Use the "TC" very sparingly on tube pins, if at all. I only had problems with the line stage tube pins. The Amp, CD Player and Phono Stage has had no tube pin problems at all.
Tim Mrock, one of our fellow A’goners, is the developer of the product. Its taken Tim 15 years and several patents to get it right. Tim has "pasted" every electrical contact he can find in his audio system, all of the switches in his circuit breaker box, every contact in his car ... and has used it in commercial applications such as hospital circuit breakers, surgical lights ... and other places where efficiency and long life of electrical components are deemed important.
This product is highly recommended to anyone who truly wants to get the most out of his/her audio systems. There’s enough product in each tube to do at least two audio systems as it just takes a very thin coat on each application to be effective. The last tube was enough to do my system twice and then a friend’s system this past weekend.
Frank
PS: There were a couple of other A’goner beta testers of this product as well. Hopefully, they will chime in here with their experiences for comparison. I "pasted" both of Steve Fleschler’s systems a few days ago, perhaps he will comment on his results too. We forgot to paste Steve’s power cords though, so there’s a lot more to be had from Steve’s two fantastic systems.
Frank
Over the good part of this past year I’ve been beta testing a new tweak, the name of which is "Total Contact." Its a hi-bred graphene contact enhancer that is different from all other contact enhancers that have come and gone for one reason or another. I’m not new to these contact enhancers, having had quite a bit of experience with a product developed by the late Brian Kyle and his "Quick Silver" contact enhancer. The "Total Contact" is different ... a LOT different.
"Total Contact" is graphene based and is not a vibration control. It eliminates micro-arching between two contacts. Micro-arching, much like Micro-vibration smears the sound in our stereo systems. Its the type of distortion that we don’t know is there .... until we eliminate it. There is no break-in as we know it. The sound is improved right off the bat, but what you hear is only a smidgen of what’s to come.
I tested three generations of "TC," each of which was an improvement over the previous incarnation. The final mix was cryogenitically treated and made for a more effective, much smoother application. It comes in a large hypodermic needle type plunger containing 1.5 ml of product and includes a instructional DVD and an application brush.
The application should be applied with a very thin coat to all of your electrical connections .... from your cartridge pins to your power cords. I did my entire system, including the ends of my fuses.
Upon initial application, you will notice an improvement in clarity, correctness of tonal balance and a more overall organic sound. But ... that is just scratching the surface of what this magic paste does. As it cures, the improvements become more apparent. Much more!
There are two real break-through events that happen almost to the day with "Total Contact," one at four weeks and another at eight weeks . At four weeks, you’ll get a real jump in clarity and overall improvement. That’s only a taste though of what’s to come at eight weeks. At eight weeks your system’s focus will make a jump in SQ that is so real - its surreal.
After 40 years in the hobby, and a total tweak nut, I have never heard anything that does what this graphene paste does. The see-through clarity at eight weeks becomes simply amazing. The "paste" eventually cures into a kind of polymer plastic and it seems that the sound improves with each listening session. So, its important that you leave your contacts alone for the duration. If you’re the type of person that continually switches wires in and out, you’ll have to re paste until enough time has elapsed to get "the cure."
The only problem I had was with the first batch and that had to do with shorting out a tube pin in the line stage. Use the "TC" very sparingly on tube pins, if at all. I only had problems with the line stage tube pins. The Amp, CD Player and Phono Stage has had no tube pin problems at all.
Tim Mrock, one of our fellow A’goners, is the developer of the product. Its taken Tim 15 years and several patents to get it right. Tim has "pasted" every electrical contact he can find in his audio system, all of the switches in his circuit breaker box, every contact in his car ... and has used it in commercial applications such as hospital circuit breakers, surgical lights ... and other places where efficiency and long life of electrical components are deemed important.
This product is highly recommended to anyone who truly wants to get the most out of his/her audio systems. There’s enough product in each tube to do at least two audio systems as it just takes a very thin coat on each application to be effective. The last tube was enough to do my system twice and then a friend’s system this past weekend.
Frank
PS: There were a couple of other A’goner beta testers of this product as well. Hopefully, they will chime in here with their experiences for comparison. I "pasted" both of Steve Fleschler’s systems a few days ago, perhaps he will comment on his results too. We forgot to paste Steve’s power cords though, so there’s a lot more to be had from Steve’s two fantastic systems.
Frank
Showing 50 responses by oregonpapa
rc I understand your dealer’s skepticism, as I had the same reservations when Tim approached me to be a beta tester for the TC. I almost turned him down ... so glad I didn’t. I went through a bunch of contact enhancers in earlier years too. All denigrated over time. Tim assured me that all is well with his product. Some of my contacts have had the TC treatment for a year now using the original version, which was grainy and lumpy compared with what you have. So far, I’ve detected no degradation at all. In fact, it just seems to continue improving. I’m in the process of removing the original version from all of my contacts and applying the latest version (which you have) to all of my connections now, a little at a time. For example, I just did the grounds on my IC’s today, which were not done at all (nice improvement), but the speaker cable terminals have been pasted with the original version for a year now, as have my cartridge pins. I honestly believe that Tim has nailed it this time. You’re absolutely correct. For 300 bucks, considering the improvements gained in SQ, TC is a bargain. Frank |
rc ... When I heard the initial improvements in SQ I was quite taken aback. Tim kept assuring me that I hadn’t heard anything yet. He told me about the 4 and 8 week breakthroughs, but I was still a bit skeptical. Well, the 4 weeks came, and to the day, there was a significant jump in SQ. Tim assured me again that there was something special coming at 8 weeks. Well, as fate would have it, I had to go in for open heart surgery, so the hospital stays, both in the regular hospital and the rehab hospital, took me to 9 weeks before I could hear the system again. When I got home after nine weeks and turned the system on, I was gob-smacked by what I heard. A total wall of transparent sound, completely defined and three dimensional with the musicians in the room. The tonality was amazing. The speakers completely disappeared. It sounded better than the best planer speakers I’ve owned in the past, except now besides the transparency, I had better highs and better bass. In fact, the bass is so accurate that I could swear that there is a bass player in the room playing a stand-up bass. Quite enjoyable, I must say. My friend Robert, who just happens to hear like a friggin’ bat, was flabbergasted at what he heard. The two of us have been to many audio shows in the past, and we both concurred that very few systems at the various shows could compete with what we were hearing. The tonality is on par with the Harbeth 40.2’s, except I have better bass than the Harbeth’s ever thought of having. This is coming from speakers that I paid $2100. for the pair used. Honestly rc, I can hardly wait for you guys to hit the 8 week point. Its going to be fun seeing your reviews. Frank |
strongarm ... Yes, past the outside of grounds on the female barrels at their locations. resolution1 .. We had a power outage last night and it took out the fuse on my CD player. At the moment, I don't have a replacement. So, this morning I started listening to LP's again. I got out a few of my reference recordings, one of which is "But Beautiful" by the Norman Luboff Choir. I haven't played this record in probably a year or so. It sounded its best this morning ... inner detail galore. Voices were crystal clear. There's a tenor saxophone in the right channel that used to be really obscured beneath the rest of the music. As the system has progressed over time, that sax has become more prominent. This morning, there was a sax player standing behind, and just to the left of the right speaker in full three dimensional relief. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Norman-Luboff-Choir-The-But-Beautiful-1959-Pop-Ballad-LP-Vinyl-Album/221376... TC is an amazing product. Frank |
^^^ Same thing here, tommylion .. There was a real breakthrough in my system over the last couple of days. I think some of the latest connections that were pasted like speaker wire and the grounds on all female RCA jacks are maturing and may have made the difference. The "sound picture" I'm getting now is uncanny. Robert came over last night for a listening session ... it was the best yet. Frank |
For those TC'ers who are experiencing a new level of natural sounding acoustic bass, I'd like to recommend this 4 CD set: https://www.ebay.com/itm/JIM-HALL-TRIO-JIMMY-GIUFFRE-COMPLETE-STUDIO-RECORDINGS-NEW-CD/381296734192?... The bass line on cut #1 on disc #4 is worth the entire set. Frank |
Tim ... Robert is coming over again tonight. The poor guy is hooked on the system. He keeps telling me its his fantastic recordings making the system sound so good. I keep asking him how come all of my records sound so great now as well? His response is that its his presence that makes for such great sound. I always end up asking him to leave because everything just seems to improve from there. *lol* I’ve been trying to get into ancient music played on original instruments. As a result, I’ve been playing a lot of Harmonia Mundi recordings. There’s a lot more going on in that ancient music than what is heard at first glance. With the advent of Total Contact, one is allowed to peer through the sound wall and pick up on all of the minute details and overtones of the music. The added detail just adds to the enjoyment of the music. If I could describe this music in one word, it would be "precision." For those who are getting into TC, I’d recommend that you try a few Harmonia Mundi recordings. Like opera and jazz ... it has to grow on you. Frank |
grannyring ... As tommylion said, give it some time. Every system is different. My experience was not like your’s at all. I experienced an overall improvement right off the bat. It just kept getting better until I hit the four week point when things really cleared up. Then again at eight weeks when things became totally life-like. The transparency that I’m experiencing now is truly amazing at this point with everything broken in and singing away. I took a look at your system a few minutes ago. If I were you, I’d paste all of the internal wiring connections in your electronics. That should give you a nice improvement. Also, did you paste the grounds of your female RCA jacks? That was big for me. How about the connections to your subs? Frank |
slaw ... If you were to go back and read all of the correspondence between you and me, you would find that my responses to you, were exactly that ... RESPONSES to your personal attacks. YOU are the one with the "attitude," my friend. And by the way slaw, you won’t be able to recapture your negative posts (I’ve tried) because they have all been deleted by the Mods. You continue to point out "the way the product was rolled out." What about it, slaw? I’ve asked you a few times to point out where you’ve found the "roll out" to be so offensive, and you are yet to answer the question. Go back to the "roll out" post (that would be the first one), then come back and point out the negatives as you see them. Did I refer to you as "unimportant?" Yep. Why? ... Because you, along with a couple of others here, did your best to drive Tim, the Mfg. of TC out of business with your negative diatribes. Without even seeing the product, and of course, never using the product, you took a negative tact right from the beginning in an effort to dissuade others from buying the product. What did you expect the reaction to be, slaw? Should I have welcomed your efforts to destroy TC, my efforts, and Tim Mrock’s business along with it, with open arms? Not me, friend. I don’t play the bully game. As I have said many times before slaw, my reactions to you are based upon your personal attacks upon me and the fine product that TC has turned out to be. I have answered every question you’ve had in a gentlemanly manner, slaw ... UNTIL such time when you started throwing bricks my way. If you’re offended by the bricks becoming airborne and flying back at you ... well, so be it. You’re trying to play the victim game here, slaw. That’s a no go with me. You are a victim of your own making. What’s happened here between you and me, slaw, is that you’ve met someone who clearly sees what you are all about ... and I’ve called you out on it. Then you say this:
When will that be, slaw? Are you ready to open your wallet and experience one of the best tweaks to come down the audiophile pike, or did you have more questions that need to be answered before you place your order? If so, what would those additional questions be? Frank |
^^^ Thank you, ronrags. Your support is very much appreciated. Conveying my enthusiasm is exactly what I did. Yes, for the most part, these are the same guys who tried to crap all over the original Red fuse thread, then the Black fuse thread ... and then the Blue fuse thread. They seemed to have missed my positive reviews of the ARC Ref 75-SE, the Hebie’s tube dampeners and the Audio Technica ART-9 cartridges. Actually, as i think about it, they attacked Audio Research, the company, over and over in the REF-75-SE review. Same Negative Nellies, give or take a few. Frank |
ultimatezap ... Thank you for the excellent review. When I received my REF-75-SE, replacing an older REF-75, I really was enthusiastic. After changing out the KT-120's on the REF-75 for a set of KT-150's, I stated that I had never heard such a grain-less amp ... until I took delivery of the SE version. I was so enthusiastic that the A'gon naysayers were calling me a "shill" for Audio Research. Then, I was "a shill" for Synergistic Research. Then I became "a shill" for Total Contact. All I can say is that there are a lot of shill detectors who visit this site. :-) willgolf ... I pasted the contacts on my 73" Mitsubishi rear projection TV as well, including the male plugs on the "lamp." I experienced improvements that included blacker blacks, a brighter picture and better colors. In order to get these improvements, I had to go into "settings" and re calibrate most of the settings. Don't know if you've done that or not, but its worth a try. ultimatezap, willgolf ... and others who have invested in TC: On the 4 week breakthrough ... I'm smiling because I know what comes at eight weeks and I can hardly wait for your reactions to that. Frank |
fazee. tommylion ... & Steve ... Steve is being modest about his systems. Yes, that’s plural. He has two really fine audio systems plus his TV system. I haven’t watched his TV, but both sound systems sound fantastic to my ears. Its Steve’s music collection that I covet. Its fantastic too. The very last person who should be called a "shill" or a "fanboy" would be Steve. I always enjoy my visits at Steve’s home. And by the way, if anyone is considering swapping equipment, I’d give Grover Huffmann a call. His amps, line stages, cables and CD players are "killers." He has mods for the Dynaco ST-70 that are to die for if you have efficient enough speakers that like 35 wpc. I’ve heard Steve’s ST-70 in his living room system a number of times and can vouch for the fact that Grover has turned it into magic. Its ideal for the Legacy Signature III’s (94db) which Steve has in his living room system. I use the same speakers for my main system. They play WAY beyond their price point, with the tonality of the Harbeth 40.2’s, except the Legacy’s get deeper bass. I had Grover build me a CD player. He uses a Pioneer Elite DVD player as the basic unit, then upgrades the caps and beefs up the power supply. How good is it? It is replacing my ARC CD-7se that has to go in for repairs. How good is Grover’s player vs the ARC? Well the ARC retailed for $10,000. Grover’s CD player is actually more enjoyable to listen to because it has better bass and highs. The mids are right there too. The only drawback between the Pioneer and the ARC is that the ARC is a tube unit, so with the Pioneer, you'd be lacking the last vestige of the 3-D artifacts that tubes provide. The trick is to find a good working, reliable Pioneer Elite DVD player. You’d be looking for a Pioneer DV-05 like this one: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Pioneer-ELITE-DVD-Player-LucasFilm-THX-Ultra-Hi-bit-Link-DAC-Dolby-DV-05/20... Frank |
^^^ Once again Bob, you are more than welcome. I'd like you to come back for another listen. "Things" are breaking in nicely here. As a result the transparency is better than what you heard last. I mistakenly had the line stage set on "mono" the whole time you were here. I discovered it after you left ... Once switched off and turned on to the stereo mode, things really opened up. Sound stage galore! Also, thanks for the Scotch. Delicious! :-) Frank |
^^^ rotaryphone ... I pasted my tube pins a couple of times during the beta testing. I had a problem with the first tube of TC because it was prior to the cryogenic treatment that allowed for a smoother product. The first tube of TC had little specks of graphene in it, and evidently one those specks caused a short across the tube. No damage to the equipment though. After pasting the tube pins with the last version of TC (the same as you have), I’ve had no problems at all with the tubes. I’d recommend that you paste the tube pins only about half way up, then let your installation push the TC further up the tube pins. This is an amazing product that has transformed my audio system. Tonight, I'm going to paste a few things in the analog system. I got to thinking (always a dangerous endeavor) what would happen if I pasted my tonearm wiring and a little bit of the phono cartridge. Hmmm ... stay tuned. :-) Frank |
^^^ I used to listen to CD’s mostly for convenience. My preference was the LP for serious listening. Then, along came SR’s fuse upgrades beginning with their RED fuse and progressing through the BLUE fuse. It was at that point where I started taking digital seriously. I couldn’t believe that CD’s could sound that good. Then along comes Tim Mrock’s TC. Well, that product opened an entirely new experience from the CD system. Holy Cow! .... As you said Tommylion, all of the music is there. The accurate tonality is still there. The digital artifacts seem to be gone ... and it is VERY analog like and totally addicting. I’ve been getting into early music through the Harmonia Mundi recordings in the collection. They sounded good before all of these tweaks began, but now that I can hear into the music, they have become very interesting. The precision of the musicians is superb. The vocalists are amazing. The tweaks, especially the TC, has gotten me so much closer to the music. Totally delightful. I’m loving my magic music machine. Frank |
^^^ Thank you for that excellent review. Your experience mirrors mine exactly ... except the 4 week jump was definitely there from my system. Its amazing how much information lays in those grooves and digits when we get rid of the noise. Funny that we don't know the noise is there until its gone. Frank |
^^^ Same here Tuffy. Even after all this time, the system continues to improve. I felt compelled to call Tim tonight to tell him that I thought I had another breakthrough during last night's listening session. My friend Robert was over and he was amazed. The music was so relaxed in a beautiful sort of way ... a lot like live. Please continue to report your results ... especially interested in your 4 and 8 week experiences. Thanks .... Frank |
I tried beating a dead horse once. My arm became so tired I finally gave up. I acquired an SR Blue fuse for my "new" Grover Huffman CD player. I pasted the ends of the fuse caps with TC before installing. Two days later, and I think fully broken in, I can say that the combo of the fuse and TC is a real game changer. With the improvement in the SQ of the system, I've been exploring different types of music, including early music played on ancient instruments. Once one acquires a taste for it, it can be quite exciting and fulfilling. Here's a recent acquisition that's really some amazing coral and instrumental music. Highly recommeded: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Missa-Mexicana-Harp-Consort-BRAND-NEW-FACTORY-SEALED-CD-2002-Harmonia-Mundi... Frank |
rotaryphone ... Nice review. It gets even better at the 8 week point. I'm finding myself seeking out the "bass" recordings in my collection like never before. Cellos and acoustic basses are fantastic. Percussion instruments like kettle drums, snaps and rim shots on snares, and bass drums are phenomenal. Human voices are so articulate now that I'm seeking out all of my choral recordings on Harmonia Mundi. The ancient chants and instruments are delineated and spread out wall to wall. There are no longer any speakers in my room. They have disappeared. :-) Hopefully, you've saved any TC you have left over. See Tim's post above. Some super surprises are about to be revealed. No joke. Frank |
mikepowellaudio ... Thanks for posting ... Brian, unfortunately, died from brain cancer. Brian was a nice guy and an innovator. I applied his silver paste to my own system and enjoyed it until it went south. Brian and I also used his product on a system on a high end system belonging to a manufacture when Brian and I met up at the CES in Vegas. I knew the manufacturer and Brian had the goods. :-) Take it from me ... Total Contact is nothing like Brian's product. Total contact is much more than just another contact enhancer. Frank |
^^^ And it seems to just get better as time goes by. The listening session tonight was incredible. The SR Blue fuse (end caps pasted with TC) is breaking in nicely in my Grover Huffman CD player, and boy the combination is amazing. We were listening to the Ramsey Lewis Trio and the realism was uncanny. The drums were most noticeable in their rightness and the bass was right there. Ramsey Lewis' piano was out of tune in all of its glory. Zowie! Frank |
Jim ... I couldn't agree more. One of my favorite albums is a live performance by John Williams (guitarist) and Julian Bream. Prior to the Blue fuses, TC and Herbie's tube dampeners, the two performers seemed to be on top of each other. Now, they are two separate humans sitting on chairs on the stage with each voice and instrument in their own distinct places. Check it out: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Julian-Bream-and-John-Williams-Live-2-Beautiful-E-LPs/292490280735?hash=ite... Just wait until you have the entire system pasted and reach the 8 week point. Zowie! Frank |
Dorkwad (Bob) ...
I did the same at Tim’s suggestion. The improvement was huge! I’d say that of all the applications of TC that I’ve tried, it was the most positive improvement yet. I've gotta say ... Tim Mrock is really on to something special here. Amazing product and well worth the asking price. Frank |
sonti ... You can order it through Audiogon. Here's the link: https://www.audiogon.com/listings/lis8hhdd-perfect-path-technologies-total-contact-electrical-contac... As you can see via the reviews here, its an amazing product that just keeps on giving. :>) Frank |
Geeze, first you complain that the thread is an encyclopedia of texts, then you ask if I'm on commission. Why the complaint about the length of the text when you haven't read it? Obviously you haven't read it because the snarky question about commissions and employment has already been covered here. You're a bit late to the game pal.
Again, read the thread in it's entirety. You'll find that some of those who have tried TC are saying that we've understated how good the product is. Not available to friends in Australia? Did you order the product? And so far, our "friends" in Australia haven't really been that "friendly." Something in the water down under?
You can give yourself a break. Is anyone twisting your arm to participate here? Frank |
I had just a little bit of TC left, so I pasted all of the connections that I could find in my little computer system with TC yesterday. Its just a PC desktop using Audioengine 2A+ speakers. For the Grado headphones, I use the Audioengine DAC. The improvement was significant, especially in the area of imaging and instrument tone. This was the first program I played ... just a simple competition featuring children around ten years old that play like they are thirty. What a gift! Check it out: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LbzK5KVOmS4 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDJdh13gHrE&list=RDLbzK5KVOmS4&index=9 Frank |
Most of us started out in this hobby with a modest system. Mine was a Nikko receiver, a Yamaha turntable, and a pair of small Sonab speakers. I didn't know about different wires at the time. In fact, I can't remember anyone talking about it ... so, it was just stock Radio Shack wire for me. A few years later I moved on to a Yamaha integrated amp, a Yamaha tuner and a Tandberg 310 Cassette player. And then it happened ... I discovered tubes. I bought a pair of Dynaco MKIII amps and a Pas-3 preamp and was hooked on tubes. I eventually had the Pas-3 modified and switched to a Dyna 120 modified by Frank Van Alstine. That was a killer solid state amp that I wish I had never sold. After a few years of messing with the Dynaco stuff, I finally went all out and bought an ARC SP-14 and an ARC Classic 60. Its been history ever since. Through all of time spent with various components, the music always came first. Tweaking my system hasn't always been successful. I've found over the years that one can take certain tweaks too far ... Mu metal comes to mind. For someone to be demeaning to the point of describing a fine product as "acoustic spit," is in my mind over the top, and to put another member down for not having the ultimate in expensive equipment, and dictating how that other member's money should be spend in such a demeaning way is just plain rude. He needed to be called out. Frank |