Synergistic Research & Scott Walker Audio

T.H.E. Show Newport 2012

Synergistic Research & Scott Walker Audio

By John Atkinson • Posted: Jun 9, 2012

"Let me turn off the Tranquility Bases and you'll hear what I am talking about," said Synergistic Research's Ted Denney.

I sighed inside. Ted had been subjecting me to the improvement on room acoustics wrought by his ART Acoustic bowls for the past few years and despite my skepticism, I kept hearing that improvement. Now he was talking about his series of Tranquility Bases. Ranging in price from $995 to $2995, these powered platforms have a ground plane and generate beneficial electromagnetic fields that are said to condition the signals passing through the components sitting on them and drain away the bad fields to ground. Yeah, right!

The system in this air-walled ballroom, with inherently unfriendly acoustics, included YG Anat III Signature speakers driven by Esoteric amplification, with source a Mac mini feeding USB data to Synergistic's D/A converter. All the active components sat on Tranquility Bases.

Ted turned off the Bases. Both on a Bach Cello Suite and Bela Fleck's "Flight of the Cosmic Hippo," the sound became muddled and the relationship between the direct sounds of instruments and the surrounding ambience became less clear. To be honest, this was what I was expecting from these terrific speakers set-up in this poor room.

Ted turned the Bases back on. The sub-optimal room acoustics seemed to recede, the soundstage acquired better focus, the music flowed more easily.

At my request, Ted repeated the comparison. With the same effect every time. I have no explanation for what I was hearing. I left this room shaking my head.

Comments

As Usual You Are Clueless

Submitted by JohnnyR on July 11, 2012 - 2:18pm.

Hey buddy rememeber me? Of course you do.

Funny how short your memory is when it comes to dealing with Ted Denney. As I recall and I'm sure others do also that read the forums, you and Ted were going to prove to the world how grand his magic bowls were and after 2 years of endless excuses and debate in the forums ......(Anyone can search for Ted Denney and the magic bowls and find exactly what I am refering to)........you "gave up" and never even gave testing them a shot. Your excuse? That Ted never sent you any bowls to be tested and that the "special engineer" you had in mind to test them backed out because of ONE lone person on the forums questioning the whole thing. Also Ted Denny NEVER bothered to show us any proof other than that sad sad sad error filled REW chart that ended up being shown to be either a deliberate attempt at fraud or Ted is so dumb that he doesn't know how to use a simple acoustic test software package.

Also readers can search for Eric Arjes on your forums and see what a con job he did on you with his "review" of the magic bowls. Funny how it seems his sole reason to join the forum was to praise Ted's bowls over and over THEN surprise surprise his "review" showed up on Ted's website.Soon after, "Eric" never posted anything again. A plant from Ted to get some free advertising through your forum courtesy of "Eric"? I'll let the readers decide that themselves.

Fast forwad now to this year and you have the audacity to even go to a show where Ted is showing his "products" then once more you sing the praises of his snakeoil products? I'm guessing and I'd put down $1000 at the Los Vegas bookies, that you don't have ANY plans on testing these products either. Prove me wrong and do some detailed tests for once Mr Atkinson instead os writing these drivel filled "reviews" for Ted's benifit.

Ted turning on and off a switch that he has wired up himself, proves NOTHING. That switch could be turning on and off any number of devices that alter the frequency response or phase of the system.....and once more, you Mr Atkinson fell for his sleight of hand. For shame,

Call Me Crazy, But

Submitted by burnspbesq on July 28, 2012 - 1:20pm.

It occurs to me that you might want to actually go check the things out before you start gratuitously ripping on Mr. Atkinson. Trust your ears. They will tell you everything you need to know.

You ARE Crazy or Ted or Both

Submitted by JohnnyR on August 5, 2012 - 4:15am.

PLEASE, how about YOU doing some research in the Sterophile forums like I suggested and READ for yourself what went on the past 3 years concerning Ted's foolish magic bowls. I'm betting you are really employed by Ted Denney or you are Ted himself trying to do damage control. Your fearless leader Mr Atkinson has failed year after year to do any real testing on those fraudulent magic bowls. he won't and never will do any testing on them because he KNOWS they are crap, yet he will write nonsense like the above "review" and give Ted another chance to fleece the gullible. What a sad world this is where money rules and facts come last or not at all.

More Crapola

Submitted by JohnnyR on August 10, 2012 - 5:35pm.

http://www.stereophile.com/rmaf2010/synergistics_black_art/index.html

Notice how Atkinson gives Ted free reign to reel in the gullible. Even after numerous comments below the article about the bowls being pure fraud, Atkinson will allow even more fraud products to be "reviewd" like the Tranquility Bases. You know what the best proof is of Ted making pure BS?........just go to his website and see what he "makes". It's laughable.