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.
jetter The basic assumption that makes this tweak viable is that there is not adequate electricity/signal reaching the equipment due to a loss from micro arching. Stated another way, that the designers of our equipment did not ensure that the full amount of power/signal was being delivered to our gear to ensure proper operation, that our power cords, fuses, rca and xlrs, and speaker cables and their connectors are so complicated and under designed to perform their intended function 100%?
>>>>>>Huh? What? That’s NOT the basic assumption at all! That is actually a perfect example of a Strawman argument - ranting about a false assumption, or a made up assumption. Nobody ever said micro arcing results in a loss of power. Nor does it. What micro arcing does result in is noise and distortion. That’s why all electrical connections in the house - including non audio connections - should be cleaned, at a minimum, to reduce noise and distortion. So, technically, it’s the Signal to Noise plus Distortion ratio that is affected. The power delivered to the gear is adequate even when the SNR Is relatively low. But micro arcing is not the whole story as higher conductivity of the connection is important as well, no? which is why Silver, Gold and Graphene are used in the first place.
There’s no substitute for high SNR. - old audiophile saw
It is common knowledge that the RCA is not an especially well designed connector, but it is the standard that designers are stuck with, if they want to be compatible with other equipment.
The basic assumption that makes this tweak viable is that there is not adequate electricity/signal reaching the equipment due to a loss from micro arching. Stated another way, that the designers of our equipment did not ensure that the full amount of power/signal was being delivered to our gear to ensure proper operation, that our power cords, fuses, rca and xlrs, and speaker cables and their connectors are so complicated and under designed to perform their intended function 100%?
[" The researchers say that coating the copper with one-layer graphene sheets increased heat conducting properties up to 24%. They say that this method could be used to built better hybrid copper – graphene interconnects for electronic chips. The researchers explain that the improvement is the result of changes in copper’s nano- and microstructure, not from graphene’s action as an additional heat conducting channel."
So, when WE apply it to our connections, are we in effect eliminating the copper in the connections and replacing it with graphene?"]
My take on it is that if properly formulated and applied then the Graphene will form a highly stable, hydrophobic, highly conductive interface between the copper (or whatever the conductive interfaces are).
Gents, I am not familiar with the Total Contact product as you know and the comments I made above are in response to those who have scoffed at Graphene as a viable technology and asked me to back up my comments about the research being done into Graphene. I have no idea about the composition of the Total Contact product so I can’t offer any opinion either way about how it might function. I am also not well versed on micro-arc(h)ing in relation to low-voltage applications though I believe it can exist at some measurable level - I have no idea whether it’s elimination would be "audible" in a HIFI chain. I simply wanted to interject with some facts. i note that when people of a certain disposition make scoffing remarks in these sorts of discussions, when one presents them with facts they either scurry off to another thread or introduce some new argument to deflect what they are being presented with. Let's wait and see.
" The researchers say that coating the copper with one-layer graphene sheets increased heat conducting properties up to 24%. They say that this method could be used to built better hybrid copper – graphene interconnects for electronic chips. The researchers explain that the improvement is the result of changes in copper’s nano- and microstructure, not from graphene’s action as an additional heat conducting channel."
So, when WE apply it to our connections, are we in effect eliminating the copper in the connections and replacing it with graphene?
^^ "During this phenomenon, the electrons of graphene exhibit the properties of massless particles and are not bounced or reflected because of the presence of the barrier"
^^
Because the electrons in graphene can move like particles of zero mass, the electrons propagate at a rate faster than any known conductor at room temperature. The electrons in graphene do not scattering ..."
^^
electrons are free to move in the plane; therefore, graphene has a good conductivity, thus, at room temperature, it exhibits semi-integer quantum Hall effect, bipolar electric field effect, superconductivity,"
^^ Is this why micro arcing is reduced or eliminated?
And then this:
" As an anti-corrosion agent - Graphene is hydrophobic and can offer very high levels of anti-corrosive protection"
^^ So, no need to clean Constant Contact off and reapply periodically.
And finally:
"
Conductivity of correct mixtures of Graphene paste increases over time and offers a high gauge factor:"
^^ This could explain the 4 week and 8 week breakthroughs. Maybe Tim would chime in here.
And might I say, if anyone can’t concede that there might be a possible link between the above properties in Graphene (anti-corrosive, high conductivity interface) and how it might conceivably improve performance of connections in HIFI then they are being disingenuous to the extreme. As forthe comment about just joining in (and I guess in a sideways manner asking me to butt out). I joined Audiogon about 3 months ago (I think). I had to chime in to this discussion to due to the nature of the comments being made.
According to the quantum mechanics, regardless of whether the particle energy is higher than the barrier, there is a certain probability through the barrier, while the particles also have a certain probability pass barrier. However, the electrons in graphene are tunneled through the barrier at a probability of 100%. During this phenomenon, the electrons of graphene exhibit the properties of massless particles and are not bounced or reflected because of the presence of the barrier"
"
1.3.2. Ballistic transport
The electrons in graphene hardly encounter scattering during transport. Because the electrons in graphene can move like particles of zero mass, the electrons propagate at a rate faster than any known conductor at room temperature. The electrons in graphene do not scattering, due to lattice defects or extraneous electrons when moving in orbit; therefore, the average free path of electrons in graphene can reach 1 μm, and the average free path of electrons in the general material is in the nanometer range [32,33]. Fig. 5 shows the ballistic transport of graphene."
"
1.3. Electronic property of graphene
There are three σ bonds in each lattice of graphene. The p orbitals of all carbon atoms are perpendicular to the hybridization plane of sp2 and form a delocalized π bond in a shoulder-by-side fashion, which runs through the whole graphene [11–14]. π electrons are free to move in the plane; therefore, graphene has a good conductivity, thus, at room temperature, it exhibits semi-integer quantum Hall effect, bipolar electric field effect, superconductivity,"
Those patents look good and comprehensive for the product. Just another justification plus the industrial experience of its use (medical equipment/power sources).
Scroll through the pages in this thread. Almarg researched the patents and came up with two. No website either, and that’s been covered in an earlier post. So ... nothing smells. Release date in a few days and it will be sold though Audiogon.
Here’s Almarg’s findings with a link: "The only patents I could find in a search of both granted patents and patent applications at uspto.gov, using "Mrock" as the search term, were these two. "
@randy-11 Wish I understood why you are so bothered by this thread. If there are folks who want to buy what Frank is endorsing, what's it to you? They will make a decision whether to part with the $ for the HC contact enhancer or they won't.
Personally, I've had some really good tweak experiences that were remarkably cost effective and some rather costly tweaks that were last than satisfying. In the end I had only myself to congratulate or blame.
Well done Frank! You can't respond any better than that. Just continue to write about anything that will benefit to your target audience. I believe you are fully recovered now by your activities in this thread:) Take care.
it is true "that industry giants are investing billions in developing and investigating graphene worldwide..." but such R&D has NOTHING to do with audio contacts
I had two posts deleted recently too. I thought they were rather benign, similar to yours. mapman is correct about the "report" button. It could have been used by someone who feels he has lost the argument, and as a result, has fallen out of favor here.
Human nature, while very interesting, can be totally weird sometimes. Envy and jealousy are terrible emotions to have. When denied, some become vindictive and turn to destruction. I think THAT is the intent of a few who post here.
Thanks for the well wishes. The launch date for the new product is very soon, so that will be exciting.
Rest assured Carp, I don't think you're a "jerk" at all. In fact, you're one of the good guys. Plus, you can write well and express your thoughts well. I appreciate that.
I wish you would stick around to observe the results as the Total Contact starts getting out into the general public. Once it does, the positive reports will far outweigh any attempt the arsonists make in their effort to burn Tim's business down to the ground. Its THAT good.
When a post is deleted, it is likely because someone reported it using the "report this" link on each post and then the moderators determined the chosen reason applied and then actually deleted it.
So a deleted post means someone objected for a valid reason but not necessarily the moderators.
One can also delete their own posts within 30 minutes after posting.
I can’t Geoff, it got deleted! Although I am a skeptic, I wish Tim well with his graphene product. @oregonpapa, Frank, good luck in all your audio endeavors, and life in general. I allowed myself to get carried away with my sniping and other such foolishness. You seem like a good guy. And I promise I’m not near as big a jerk as I sometimes sounded. I am out....
thecarpathian
@clearthink, actually one more thing before I forever ignore your existence...surely you wouldn’t mind purchasing it for me, and I will send you $4.
I would rather contribute to your college fund, if you have one. Are your grades good? Have your parents setup a fund for you please feel free to have them PM me through the site.
Deeperthought: although late, welcome to the conversation. Jumping in and immediately, on your first post, calling me a troll is a bit presumptive.
You said: "The fact that industry giants are investing billions in developing and investigating graphene worldwide..." OK, hotshot, can you back up that factoid with a genuine reference?
While my remarks might seem to you to be inflammatory, they are likely that only because they question/disagree which the theme of this forum and the general populous here. If you want a forum where everybody agrees with you, perhaps you joined the wrong one last night.
Dynaquest4 - until you have some evidence that this product doesn't work (by testing it yourself or through others testing it scientifically) then you cannot characterise it as a scam or useless. And I think the term "troll" can be applied to a lot of the posts on here: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Internet_troll As tommylion puts it, you are simply here to stir up trouble. It seems you have no genuine interest in this product and have already decided that it is a scam yet you pepper the conversation with inflammatory remarks. If it smells like a Troll and acts like a Troll..............
randy-11 - Graphene is attracting a lot of attention due to it’s inherent strength, its ability to provide lubrication whilst providing a highly conductive interface and its very high conductivity. I think it shows a real lack of intellectual honesty to write-off graphene as a technology just because you disagree with the merit on one audio-tweak product that at this stage you have no experience with. The fact that industry giants are investing billions in developing and investigating graphene worldwide makes your comments look like a cheap shot and on top of that makes them look lame as they deliberately ignore the facts.
This thread (I’ve read all 9 pages) has been a shambolic and quite horrible waste of time for all concerned. Yes, there has been a lot of trolling but the way that it has been responded to has been quite disappointing also. There has been, in the middle of all this cr*p, some genuine requests for information and answers have not been forthcoming for whatever reason. That doesn’t really help the cause of the product regardless of its merit. The best thing for the vendor to do and for the genuine enquirer might be to stop the endless to and thro and wait until the 15th (or whatever date transpires) to put a full suite of information up on the interwebs for all to see. P.S. I own a tube of Mad Scientist Graphene solution. Yes it is messy as hell, but that is simply a bi-product of the fact that it is in an oil solution and you simply work around that in the same way that you use common sense when painting or soldering or other potentially messy activities. It has been on parts of my system for the better part of a year with no degradation (To answer that concern). The most significant use I put it to was on the end ends of some Dueland tinned copper speaker cable that I then clamped solid copper spades on to (compression fixing with grub screws). The results were, on a purely subjective level, very positive. I noted that when I set up the cables with bare ends, after about 2 days the sound went from very detailed to very muffled. Presumably this was due to oxidisation of the tin - I live in a semi tropical climate which is about 15kms from the sea. I applied the graphene and it was initially a little bit bright sounding (subjective). After about 2 days this settled down and over the last 4 months I now have a lovely sound from the cables (again subjective). No DBT or other measurements of this I’m afraid. I am thinking about getting a multimeter that can read very low resistances and doing some before and after tests just to inform myself about whether there is any measurable difference after the treatment. It would be nice to find some change as I think I can hear a change - and I hope it can backed up in some way with measurements. I do trust my ears and those of my friends but I always like to have some datum to have on hand so that I don’t get whacked over the head by objectivists.
Funny again, tommylion. I have no experience with a lot of scams and useless, ineffective tweaks. That I have no experience likely says more about my smarts than your gullibility and risk taking.
Trolls run down and ridicule things they have zero experience with, and no real interest in trying, in order to stir up controversy for their own amusement. That's exactly what you’re doing here, and have a history of doing elsewhere.
Tweek was great 37 years ago..compared to what..I don' t remember. I never had Tweek gunk up..but I think there was a reformulation that sounded less in quality than the first episode.Quicksilver sounded good to me but did gunk up and dry out. You may have had a different experience with different products. My responses are based on my first hand experience and my accrued audio memory. Honest .Tom
Is it ever going to occur to you that you're way over matched here and becoming quite stale. Plus, you're outnumbered at this point. Its time to end the banter and start treating people around here with respect and decency. In other words, you're becoming a boring troll. No offense dude ... but its the truth. If you can't turn yourself around, then take the high road like "PS" did ... or perhaps just hit the road.
Do you have any music to recommend other than Rap and Metal? Come on ... surely you listen to music, right? Inquiring minds want to know.
I also use Herbies tube dampeners. It’s another tweak one can hear immediately. I also use a Herbie anti vibration donut (like a miniature cd mat) around the spindle area of my modded VPI TNT VI. However. I tried his older CD mat but it no effect with my EAR Acute CD player, I also use a Walker Talisman demagnetizer on all CDs and LPs before I play them. It’s $200 for a pair of magnets but it is uber convenient and works. It is more subtle than my other tweaks but certainly improves the sound every play
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