Tweaks That Don't Work


This may be the subject of some discord, but a great community service would be to help others not waste money on snake oil.

Please let us know what you've tried that had no impact - or negative impact, even - on your system. Also, if there are tweaks or products that are only useful on some systems for whatever reason, please let us know what kinds of systems do and don't benefit from the particular products.

Some of you out there have tremendous experience trying to squeeze every last ounce of performance out of your equipment and probably have a laundry list for us - let's hear it!
aggielaw
One thing I tried that seemed to have no effect whatsoever, was the "Magic Foil" by Peter Belt Systems.

They offered a free trial, and even though I was severely skeptical, I tried it out.

The claim was that it "calmed the inherent stresses that result from having electronic equipment in the room, which excited our prehistoric fears".

Needless to say, this was "over the top", but after reading some things where people said it worked, I tried it for free.

I can say that after applying the product as directed, I noticed absolutely no change in the sound whatsoever.

Perhaps my skepticism stopped me from receiving the true benefits of the product, I don't know for sure.

YMMV.
A few tweaks that did not do anything in my system: CD mats, Walker Audio Vivid CD enhancer, PS Audio Ultimate Outlet, and Cardas RCA covers.
Peter Belt's Rainbow Electet Foil works in my system. I would say that that is his most effective tweak. Just stick two short lengths on a CD. Audible. That said, some of his other tweaks offer no immediate significant audible difference. His position is use the tweaks for a period and then remove them. You should hear a degradation in sound.

I have use the PS Audio Ultimate Outlet on my DVD player and TV set. The colors are much richer and opaque. Perhaps Nzera should try his on his video setup and see if there's a difference.
I didn't try the foil on a CD, because I only use LP records.
Maybe that was the problem.

I did cut the recommended sizes and shape, and put them on each item in my system.

I left them there for a year. After removing, no difference noticable.

Oh well.
TWL: You may need to reapply the foil, being sure to ignore any protests from your components. Most commonly reported? A barely audible murmuring that sounds something like "Curses! Foiled again!!"