However well-focused your spiked speakers sound, I'm fairly certain you will hear an improvement with these IsoAcoustics footers that you won't want to give up—and this is on a concrete floor! On suspended wooden floors, the isolating effects and the improvement in soundstage width and center image focus should be even more profound.
The Gaia-Titan Cronos includes thread adaptors for sizes ½"-13, M10-1.5, and M14-2.0. If that's not what your speakers use, the company can supply what's needed.
Total coincidence: When I went to the Marten Audio website to get some information for the Oscar Duo review, I noticed that Marten has contracted with IsoAcoustics to supply Marten-cobranded footers.
The Most Elegant Record Brush Ever?
I didn't think anything could top the Levin Design wood-and-aluminum–handled goat hair record cleaning brush (see en.levindesign.de/products), but the ramar brush (footnote 2), which is hand-made in Berlin, is by far the most aesthetically pleasing yet. It is also uniquely constructed, starting with eight double rows of brushes that include both carbon fiber and goat hair.
The ramar brush, which is handmade to order, is available in three wood finishes: "Tina," "Red," and "Joni." Tina features a matte-brown– to-black finish, Red has an appropriately reddish-warm color (Rodney? Callender? Nichols? Skelton? Buttons? Auerbach?), and Joni is, you guessed it, light-grained and blond-ish; as the website says, it's "stardust."
These handmade brushes make you want to brush even the cleanest of records. The brush handle magnetically locks into the base, which inside also magnetically holds a stiff-bristled stylus cleaning brush of satiny-brushed stainless steel in which a razor-thin wooden insert is embedded.
For the man or woman who has spent tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars on an analog front end, what's another $330 or so dollars for the most luxurious, esthetically pleasing, silky-to-the-touch record brush that, by the way, also removes dust effectively.
A more plebian (though still attractive) double–seven-row brush, this one manufactured in China and distributed by Ursa Major (footnote 3)—also a German company—is all carbon fiber. It's available fitted with a variety of wooden inserts—six in all—for $52, all of which were out of stock when I last checked the website.
Another useful, versatile, and most cost-effective brush is from Stasis Corporation (footnote 4). This no-nonsense brush is manufactured in Malaysia and distributed in America by Musical Surroundings. The Stasis brush is ivory, the Record Doctor "Clean Sweep" brush is ebony; otherwise, the two brushes appear to be identical, including the thickness (50 micron) and number (260,000) of chemically inert nylon bristles. Either can be used for dry cleaning or to apply liquid, but I would buy two instead of using the same one both ways. The Stasis brush is available at Audio Advisor for $24.95—as is the Clean Sweep brush, for $5 less.
And then there's my "daily driver" record brush, the AudioQuest Conductive LP Cleaning Brush, still widely available for $29.95.
I'm sure you've noticed that vinyl records are not pressed in clean rooms. Straight out of the jacket, most are dusty and should never be played without at least a good dry brush wipe. Better yet, wet clean on a vacuum or ultrasonic-cavitation machine.
The photos above show two new, just-out-of-the-sleeve albums before and after quick-dry brushings—one with the Stasis brush, the other with the ramar brush. Both albums were well-pressed at Pallas in Diepholz, Germany. The first, which I swept using the Stasis brush, is Dion's excellent new blues album, Blues With Friends (KTBA Records 61081). The second, brushed by the ramar brush, is Norah Jones's audacious Pick Me Up Off the Floor (Blue Note B003179801).
The Stasis did a decent job, as you can see, but the ramar easily won this dust-off.
The Tonar Tacky Cleaner
The "In the Groove" tacky roller, which I recommended for platter cleaning (though it was intended mainly for cleaning records), is no longer available, but a very similar device—the Tonar "Tacky Cleaner"—is imported and sold on the StylusTimer website (footnote 5). It's a handheld, washable roller designed to be rolled straight across a record surface to pick up dust on the surface of and within the grooves. I can easily recommend it for hard-platter surface cleaning (obviously not for use on felt or cork mats since you don't want to lose chunks), especially if your platter has vacuum hold-down.
I'm less sanguine about applying anything sticky to a record's surface, although the manufacturer insists it leaves no residue. I feel the same about Pro-Ject's "Vinyl Clean," a Gatorade-green, malleable ball of goo you roll and press into a record surface; it, too, is claimed to not leave a residue, but it's not washable and has an 8-month use cycle.
StylusTimer sells the Tacky Cleaner for $37.95 and offers it bundled with the $19.95 StylusTimer for $54.95, with two StylusTimers for $72.95, or with a five-pack of StylusTimers for $114.95.
Stillpoints Component Stand SS
These adjustable, space-saving stands (footnote 6) can be spread out or narrowed as needed and locked securely in that position, to accommodate the bottoms or footers of amplifiers of various sizes. The stand itself, which I am told is available in various sizes and configurations, ranging in price from $1999 to $2799, sits on wide, flat aluminum feet that will stabilize the load resting on the cross bars. Even the heaviest amplifiers can be accommodated.
Getting heat-producing amplifiers off carpeting is a good idea if only for safety's sake—never mind reducing the sonic effects of both airborne and structure-borne vibrations and vibrations generated by the amplifier itself. Some people don't believe that microvibrations affect component values on circuit boards; they do, say people I trust. If the gear uses vacuum tubes, there's no question about the sonic effects of damping, draining, or isolating vibrational energy.
The advantage of an adjustable-width amp stand that takes up less floor space than the amp itself is obvious, especially if space is tight. The stands I used cost $2495 each—so not for the budget-minded. A worthwhile option is to add Stillpoints footers, which dissipate vibrational energy by turning it into heat, and placing the amps on the footers, which, once locked into the stand's grooves, can slide as needed to accommodate the amplifier's feet or its bottom surface. Stillpoints recommends the new, $349 Ultra 2s, which would total $7782 for two of these stands. My samples, though, were equipped with Ultra 6 footers, which cost $899 each.
When, last year, I swapped out the wooden Finite Elemente amp stands under my reference darTZeel NHB-468 monoblocks, whose cross-braced frame is fitted with strategically placed cylinders that purposely vibrate like tuning forks, in favor of the Stillpoints stands, I can't say the darTZeel amps sounded noticeably different, but I've heard from friends using them under tube amps who say they definitely work.
Audible difference or not, in my space-limited room, the Stillpoints amplifier stands made my reviewing life much more convenient. I still have the VAC 452 iQ amps I reviewed, stuck here (poor me) because of COVID-19. Those big, heavy amps are sitting on the Finite Elemente stands, so that real-time "A/B" listening test is not going to happen!
The New Wallyskater 2.1 Antiskating Gauge
I've covered this product at Analog Planet already, but in order for a product to be eligible for Recommended Components inclusion, it must be covered in Stereophile, so here goes.
The new WallySkater is a much-improved version of the original, which was designed by my late friend and mentor Wally Malewicz. Wally told me that one cause of skating was the tonearm's offset angle. Groove friction produces a drag force directly behind the cantilever, but because of the offset angle, the pivot is not directly in line with the drag, so the energy goes elsewhere and that produces the "skating" action, forcing the stylus inward toward the label.
Only that's not really true, as you'll see if you watch the videos on AnalogPlanet under the click-bait headline, "Everything You Know About Skating Is Wrong!".
Some readers were offended that I would sully my late friend Wally's reputation, but Wally's son Andrzej and J.R. Boisclair did the research. Mr. Boisclair thinks Wally probably knew what he was claiming was incorrect, but it made skating simpler and easier to grasp. In any case, the new WallySkater is a far more sophisticated and finished product than the original. In place of the original's "Sharpie" markings, the horizontal bar on the new one is embossed—or however plastic rulers get those raised markings. The new, thicker, embossed base plate features holes for the vertical tower calibrated for 9", 10.5", and 12" effective-length arms, and there are now two sets of holes, one for the outer groove area and one for close-to-the-spindle calibration.
For reasons explained in the videos, the design of the antiskating system should lower the antiskating force as the arm gets closer to the record label. This new WallySkater lets you both set antiskating more accurately and also check the efficacy of the antiskating system your arm uses.
The WallySkater costs $260 and is available direct from the WAM Engineering website (footnote 7). While not every audiophile needs to invest $260 in such a device, I believe that every audio club and society should get one and loan it out to members. For reviewing, it's an essential tool.
In addition to the new WallySkater and new WallyTractor, WAM Engineering plans to soon introduce new setup tools and produce new informative videos.
Footnote 2: ramar record brush, Berlin, Germany. Web: ramar.berlin. Footnote 3: Ursa Major. Web: ursa-major.eu/shop-us. Footnote 4: Stasis Corporation. Web: stasisonline.com. US distributor: Musical Surroundings, 5662 Shattuck Ave. Oakland, CA 94609. Web: musicalsurroundings.com. Footnote 5: Tonar Tacky Cleaner. StylusTimer. Web: stylustimer.com/tacky-cleaner. Footnote 6: Stillpoints, 573 County Rd. A, Suite 103 Hudson, WI 54016. Web: stillpoints.us. Footnote 7: WAM Engineering, LLC. Tel: (707) 210 6345 Web: wallyanalog.com/product-catalog.
I didn't think anything could top the Levin Design wood-and-aluminum–handled goat hair record cleaning brush (see en.levindesign.de/products), but the ramar brush (footnote 2), which is hand-made in Berlin, is by far the most aesthetically pleasing yet. It is also uniquely constructed, starting with eight double rows of brushes that include both carbon fiber and goat hair.
The ramar brush, which is handmade to order, is available in three wood finishes: "Tina," "Red," and "Joni." Tina features a matte-brown– to-black finish, Red has an appropriately reddish-warm color (Rodney? Callender? Nichols? Skelton? Buttons? Auerbach?), and Joni is, you guessed it, light-grained and blond-ish; as the website says, it's "stardust."
These handmade brushes make you want to brush even the cleanest of records. The brush handle magnetically locks into the base, which inside also magnetically holds a stiff-bristled stylus cleaning brush of satiny-brushed stainless steel in which a razor-thin wooden insert is embedded.
For the man or woman who has spent tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of dollars on an analog front end, what's another $330 or so dollars for the most luxurious, esthetically pleasing, silky-to-the-touch record brush that, by the way, also removes dust effectively.
A more plebian (though still attractive) double–seven-row brush, this one manufactured in China and distributed by Ursa Major (footnote 3)—also a German company—is all carbon fiber. It's available fitted with a variety of wooden inserts—six in all—for $52, all of which were out of stock when I last checked the website.
Another useful, versatile, and most cost-effective brush is from Stasis Corporation (footnote 4). This no-nonsense brush is manufactured in Malaysia and distributed in America by Musical Surroundings. The Stasis brush is ivory, the Record Doctor "Clean Sweep" brush is ebony; otherwise, the two brushes appear to be identical, including the thickness (50 micron) and number (260,000) of chemically inert nylon bristles. Either can be used for dry cleaning or to apply liquid, but I would buy two instead of using the same one both ways. The Stasis brush is available at Audio Advisor for $24.95—as is the Clean Sweep brush, for $5 less.
The photos above show two new, just-out-of-the-sleeve albums before and after quick-dry brushings—one with the Stasis brush, the other with the ramar brush. Both albums were well-pressed at Pallas in Diepholz, Germany. The first, which I swept using the Stasis brush, is Dion's excellent new blues album, Blues With Friends (KTBA Records 61081). The second, brushed by the ramar brush, is Norah Jones's audacious Pick Me Up Off the Floor (Blue Note B003179801).
The "In the Groove" tacky roller, which I recommended for platter cleaning (though it was intended mainly for cleaning records), is no longer available, but a very similar device—the Tonar "Tacky Cleaner"—is imported and sold on the StylusTimer website (footnote 5). It's a handheld, washable roller designed to be rolled straight across a record surface to pick up dust on the surface of and within the grooves. I can easily recommend it for hard-platter surface cleaning (obviously not for use on felt or cork mats since you don't want to lose chunks), especially if your platter has vacuum hold-down.
I'm less sanguine about applying anything sticky to a record's surface, although the manufacturer insists it leaves no residue. I feel the same about Pro-Ject's "Vinyl Clean," a Gatorade-green, malleable ball of goo you roll and press into a record surface; it, too, is claimed to not leave a residue, but it's not washable and has an 8-month use cycle.
These adjustable, space-saving stands (footnote 6) can be spread out or narrowed as needed and locked securely in that position, to accommodate the bottoms or footers of amplifiers of various sizes. The stand itself, which I am told is available in various sizes and configurations, ranging in price from $1999 to $2799, sits on wide, flat aluminum feet that will stabilize the load resting on the cross bars. Even the heaviest amplifiers can be accommodated.
Getting heat-producing amplifiers off carpeting is a good idea if only for safety's sake—never mind reducing the sonic effects of both airborne and structure-borne vibrations and vibrations generated by the amplifier itself. Some people don't believe that microvibrations affect component values on circuit boards; they do, say people I trust. If the gear uses vacuum tubes, there's no question about the sonic effects of damping, draining, or isolating vibrational energy.
I've covered this product at Analog Planet already, but in order for a product to be eligible for Recommended Components inclusion, it must be covered in Stereophile, so here goes.
The new WallySkater is a much-improved version of the original, which was designed by my late friend and mentor Wally Malewicz. Wally told me that one cause of skating was the tonearm's offset angle. Groove friction produces a drag force directly behind the cantilever, but because of the offset angle, the pivot is not directly in line with the drag, so the energy goes elsewhere and that produces the "skating" action, forcing the stylus inward toward the label.
Only that's not really true, as you'll see if you watch the videos on AnalogPlanet under the click-bait headline, "Everything You Know About Skating Is Wrong!".
Some readers were offended that I would sully my late friend Wally's reputation, but Wally's son Andrzej and J.R. Boisclair did the research. Mr. Boisclair thinks Wally probably knew what he was claiming was incorrect, but it made skating simpler and easier to grasp. In any case, the new WallySkater is a far more sophisticated and finished product than the original. In place of the original's "Sharpie" markings, the horizontal bar on the new one is embossed—or however plastic rulers get those raised markings. The new, thicker, embossed base plate features holes for the vertical tower calibrated for 9", 10.5", and 12" effective-length arms, and there are now two sets of holes, one for the outer groove area and one for close-to-the-spindle calibration.
For reasons explained in the videos, the design of the antiskating system should lower the antiskating force as the arm gets closer to the record label. This new WallySkater lets you both set antiskating more accurately and also check the efficacy of the antiskating system your arm uses.
The WallySkater costs $260 and is available direct from the WAM Engineering website (footnote 7). While not every audiophile needs to invest $260 in such a device, I believe that every audio club and society should get one and loan it out to members. For reviewing, it's an essential tool.
Footnote 2: ramar record brush, Berlin, Germany. Web: ramar.berlin. Footnote 3: Ursa Major. Web: ursa-major.eu/shop-us. Footnote 4: Stasis Corporation. Web: stasisonline.com. US distributor: Musical Surroundings, 5662 Shattuck Ave. Oakland, CA 94609. Web: musicalsurroundings.com. Footnote 5: Tonar Tacky Cleaner. StylusTimer. Web: stylustimer.com/tacky-cleaner. Footnote 6: Stillpoints, 573 County Rd. A, Suite 103 Hudson, WI 54016. Web: stillpoints.us. Footnote 7: WAM Engineering, LLC. Tel: (707) 210 6345 Web: wallyanalog.com/product-catalog.
