Shadorne, can you provide any evidence to back up your claim that micro arcing is not an issue in ordinary electrical contacts? By the way, I am prepared to provide evidence that micro arcing is an issue in ordinary electrical contacts. You go first.
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
2,514 responses Add your response
@geoffkait Good electrical contact in cheap audio connectors is indeed a common problem. Good news is that I agree with you. You can call this “micro-arcing” but that is not the problem - the problem is making good contact on plugs with poor tolerances, bent pins, pulled or stepped on cables etc. For example RCA is a cheap connection. It can easily get damaged and become intermittent. RCA really has no place being in anything called high end audio. It is cheap and convenient crap. Manufacturers use it primarily because it is cheap and convenient and ubiquitous - not because it is any good. |
Stop avoiding my question: Do you have any evidence that micro arcing does not (rpt not) occur in ordinary, I.e., audio connections? If you don’t, you’re just flapping your gums. I sounds like you are conceding the argument, since many connectors are RCA. What about power cord connectors? Are they cheap, too? Tube pins? HDMI cable pins? |
shadorne ... RCA is a cheap connection. It can easily get damaged and become intermittent. RCA really has no place being in anything called high end audio ...That depends on the specific connector. There are certainly very high quality RCA connectors, such as those from WBT. It's unlikely you'd ever have any issue with its RCAs. |
Frank Honestly wasn't trying to diss you or Pss you off, it was more in the spirit of good natured banter.....at least that was my intention......I have a dry sense of humor. Yeah, I actually am a measure ten times, cut once guy...and I still make mistake sometimes. By nature I am a skeptic. That said, I'm always open to learn and the fact that I may be wrong, or at least misinformed........... I don't come to these sites to be confrontational, anything but. I'm a non-confrontational person by nature. I'm here to learn from other people's experiences and to share my own when I think they'll be helpful. Perhaps I will contact Tim and make him the same offer. I doubt that he'd be receptive to it. Few manufacturers are willing to hand out free samples. Let's just leave it be and get on with life. You have your experience, I have mine. Until and unless I actually use your TC I can only speculate as to it's merits and why it may or may not do what you claim. Have a good day. |
@geoffkait I don’t concede anything. Poor contacts are probably responsible for the majority of problems encountered. Yes it can occur in internal connector pins and power cords too. None of this is new. My point was about the pseudoscience of the bogeyman of “micro-arcing” used to market products. Sounds so fancy compared to the reality - a poor contact! |
Geoff no, haven't googled micro arcs yet today.......I actually have other things more pressing to do with my time during the day :)............Perhaps this evening, if only because I'm a curious guy. Shadorne Suspect a bad-loose connection in my TT setup, intermittent drop outs on one channel, probably a bad cable, have to pick up some new ones and give it a try...........Hell, might even be that micro arcing thing!! LOL.........will investigate Frank Not sure how to do the PM thing, never tried it.............45 years in high end electronics, but I'm not very savvy when it comes to social media, etc........never caught my interest...........don't even own a "smart phone"..........guess I'm just an old school guy..........I do email, that's about as close to social media as I get. Glad that we're "OK".not looking to offend anybody, not really my style :) |
shadowcat2016 Geoff no, haven’t googled micro arcs yet today.......I actually have other things more pressing to do with my time during the day :)............Perhaps this evening, if only because I’m a curious guy. >>>>No biggie I expect nothing from anyone. That way I don’t get disappointed. 😛 I am curious yellow. |
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thecarpathian @geoffkait - Evidence??!!! I thought that evidence mumbo jumbo was reserved strictly for the pseudo-skeptics! Do I hear a closet door opening?? >>>Whatever turns you on, needle nose. But demanding proof is not the same as asking for evidence. If you hear a closet door it’s probably yours. |
Evening folks......yes I did indeed give out my email........likely live to regret that.......Haven't been here long enough to understand how everything works as far as person to person stuff......Now I do, thank you Elizabeth :) In a world where damn near everybody puts their whole life "out there" on FB and 14 other social media platforms, I guess I haven't risked too much. Worst case I'll get even MORE spam, and maybe a few crazies with nothing better to do. I can delete, as required........Best case, I might "meet" some interesting people. I live alone now with 5 cats, so conversation is somewhat one sided these days...I talk, they meow and that's about the extent of it. They're not bad company, but they seriously lack conversational skills. Have a nice evening :) |
dynaquest4 Bottom line....contact goop that ts sticky, messy ...That's not how it's been described by other users. Is it possible that you received a defective sample? Did you contact the manufacturer to ask about that? |
Interesting experiment today with the AV system. For several months my Oppo 203 Blue Ray player had been connected to the Sony 4K-TV with a PS Audio HDMI cable whose outer ground surface was treated with Total Contact. Today I installed a Wire World Platinum HDMI cable (all silver wires instead of copper with a more complex wire strand geometry). Compared to the much less expensive PS Audio cable , the Wire World cable produced a brighter and more detailed picture. But the real fun happened when latter today I also then treated the Wire World cable with Total Contact. The picture kept it's brightness and detail but the color saturation and 3D quality improved as it did when the PS Audio cable was treated with Total Contact. So I am more impressed with the way Total Contact improves a HDMI cable than when upgrading from a PS Audio HDMI cable to a very expensive Wire World Platinum HDMI cable. David Pritchard |
I have a couple more things I want to treat with tc. First I recall Frank saying that if you paint the interconnect barrels with tc it will bring an improvement. I am assuming that the barrel is the outside part that the interconnect? Also would like to apply tc to my 6922 tubes. I think I read that I should just apply to the very end of the pins? Thanks |
kedoades ... 1. Yes, I pasted the outside of the barrels on the IC's and also the binding posts on my speakers. 2. Conservative use would be to paste the tube pins about 1/4 of the way up the pins to avoid any shorts across the bottom of the glass affecting the other pins. A non-conservative way would be to paste the entire outside of the signal tubes (not the power tubes). I know someone who has done the signal tubes and claimed a significant improvement there ... but I haven't tried it. Frank |
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@ketoades I pasted the 2 6922's in the preamp section of my integrated amp. I pasted the pins probably about 70% of the way. I bought a modded version of an amp that I already had and after listening for a few days I wasn't impressed. I remembered that the former stock unit had the tube pins pasted with X-treme AV Quicksilver Gold. So I put the TC contact enhancer on the 6922 tube pins and only broke in overnight. The next day the amps performance was greatly improved and definitely surpassed the stock unit. Really made a BIG diffetence. Put as thin a coat on as you can for I think I always put too much on and it takes longer to breakin that way. |
Oops I hit the wrong key. @ shadorne. Why do you post on topics that you clearly know very little about. If you were not sure about something and you visited the forum to respectfully gain knowledge or information, that would be fine, but you assert yourself in an obnoxious way that offends. You posted on Whitecamaross' thread and used a speaker plot to put down someone and something. That plot with the slightly drooping high freq. is often done intentionally by the designer. Its well known that a perfectly flat freq. response can sound lean and fatiguing. You claim it is compression??? Why do you bother to spew such unadulterated rubbish? When you state 'facts' as you do you really need to have at least a modicum of knowledge. Its amusing in a pathetic way. |
I post very infrequently but I feel I should here. I just applied TC to Interconnects, speaker cables and power plugs only 3 hours ago. The first album I played was Ghost In The Machine by the Police. I’ve owned this album since I was 15. I’m almost 51. I know it like my glorious naked body ok. The first song I heard no difference whatsoever. Nothing positive nor deleterious. However, the second song “every little thing she does is magic” I did hear a difference. The steel drums in the background were clearer. I’ve always been able to hear them but this time I could hear the attack. I’ve never heard that before, the next album was Armed Forces by Elvis Costello. I’ve owned it since I was a teen. Organ and background vocals were a little clearer. At the moment I’m playing Moon Shaped Pool by Radiohead. Tons of micro detail there and the same result. I am hearing a slight clarity that is audibly detectable. Call me a sucker or a liar to your hearts content but I maintain I hear it all the same. At this point (3 hours in) I like what I am hearing. |
Saturday morning I applied Total Contact to all of the parts in my speaker crossovers. After getting everything back together I sat down for a little listening. Nice improvement in clarity for sure. One little problem though. My friend Robert came over last night for a listening session. We both noted a very significant improvement in clarity. Lots of grain reduction. What? I thought I had removed all of the grain already. While there was an overall improvement in everything we audiophiles like, there was a persistent "darkness" to the sound. Both Robert and I heard it. I've had the same experience with TC on a few other components so I wasn't worried about it. Sure enough, this morning while enjoying my coffee and listening to the system, the darkness was gone. What was left was the purest, most realistic instrumental and vocal music I've yet experienced from the system. Zowie ... how much better is this magic music machine going to get? Total Contact and the Omega E Mats ... a dynamite combination. Highly recommended. Frank |
dave_b I applied a little TC to my eyeballs and it made your last post appear even more inane than ever before. Incredible stuff, that TC. :-) Pasting the speaker crossovers with TC was a revelation. I highly recommend it if you have easy access to the crossovers. Pasting the crossovers was at least as large of an improvement in SQ as pasting the power conditioner. Frank |
