Gentleman,
I agree with above cables whether they are IC's or speakers cannot be classified as a tweak. My experience is that a good cable like wine, cheese,cigars, or even cars is going to perform better. However power cords and conditioners may not improve your system(many engineers don't think so). I have first hand experience with vibration control and can attest to the merit of reducing / eliminating if possible vibration. I think we can all learn from the manufactors, many furnish spikes/cones like B&W and Wadia which I own with there equipment. Most companies make there power cords removable which tells me they expect real or imagined that the customer will want/need to upgrade. The fact that spikes, cones, and power cords have survived in a competitive environment indicates that the majority of audiophiles recognizes there usefulness. To me a real tweak is the cd marker(which I've tried), cd edge treatment, or cd mats these seem to help on low end equipment but will not show much improvement on high end gear. Like everyone else (I hope) I rely on third or independant opions on all tweaks that I have tried. My amp and pre have fixed cords so I couldn't upgrade, out of desperation I tried the AC power wraps which is to be used when you can't swap to a real PC and in my opion and the wifes it gave our system a sonic improvement. It appeared to make the system quieter or darker as some say.
To wrap this up I would say that all components of a system are subjective, that's why Audigon is THE place to audition equipment, and some tweaks just mask poorly designed or built equipment. If your system needs a lot of tweaks your listening taste has matured and you may want to move up to higher end gear because you realize that you are not hearing all the music. Once you experience how good recorded music can sound in your own home it's hard to comprimise. Unless of course you are happy with the sound of an alarm clock radio, then this thread wil be irrelavant.
Happy Listening: to tweak or not to tweak the freedom all audiophiles enjoy.
Woodman
I agree with above cables whether they are IC's or speakers cannot be classified as a tweak. My experience is that a good cable like wine, cheese,cigars, or even cars is going to perform better. However power cords and conditioners may not improve your system(many engineers don't think so). I have first hand experience with vibration control and can attest to the merit of reducing / eliminating if possible vibration. I think we can all learn from the manufactors, many furnish spikes/cones like B&W and Wadia which I own with there equipment. Most companies make there power cords removable which tells me they expect real or imagined that the customer will want/need to upgrade. The fact that spikes, cones, and power cords have survived in a competitive environment indicates that the majority of audiophiles recognizes there usefulness. To me a real tweak is the cd marker(which I've tried), cd edge treatment, or cd mats these seem to help on low end equipment but will not show much improvement on high end gear. Like everyone else (I hope) I rely on third or independant opions on all tweaks that I have tried. My amp and pre have fixed cords so I couldn't upgrade, out of desperation I tried the AC power wraps which is to be used when you can't swap to a real PC and in my opion and the wifes it gave our system a sonic improvement. It appeared to make the system quieter or darker as some say.
To wrap this up I would say that all components of a system are subjective, that's why Audigon is THE place to audition equipment, and some tweaks just mask poorly designed or built equipment. If your system needs a lot of tweaks your listening taste has matured and you may want to move up to higher end gear because you realize that you are not hearing all the music. Once you experience how good recorded music can sound in your own home it's hard to comprimise. Unless of course you are happy with the sound of an alarm clock radio, then this thread wil be irrelavant.
Happy Listening: to tweak or not to tweak the freedom all audiophiles enjoy.
Woodman