Peter,
Four photos of a temporary setup. This optical table is sourced from www.techmfg.com but I bought it from Coherent in USA, without the granite plate. It was heavy anyway. Check with www.coherentinc.com and look around.
Thomas B
Four photos of a temporary setup. This optical table is sourced from www.techmfg.com but I bought it from Coherent in USA, without the granite plate. It was heavy anyway. Check with www.coherentinc.com and look around.
Thomas B
Attachments
Bob,
Pneumatic isolators driven by air support the granite plate on which the transport is placed. A pneumatic isolation system acts as a low frequency air spring supporting an inertial mass. The cd replay system is in part an optical system. If low level micro vibrations are kept away from the reading laser the cd system gets more information and resolution, hence better sound. It is like holding a camera extremely still when taking a photo -- you get high resolution and a sharp image. So stay sharp, people.
Thomas B
Pneumatic isolators driven by air support the granite plate on which the transport is placed. A pneumatic isolation system acts as a low frequency air spring supporting an inertial mass. The cd replay system is in part an optical system. If low level micro vibrations are kept away from the reading laser the cd system gets more information and resolution, hence better sound. It is like holding a camera extremely still when taking a photo -- you get high resolution and a sharp image. So stay sharp, people.
Thomas B
Bob et al,
For theory visit www.ealingcatalog.com and choose Preview Catalog. Under Opto Mechanics choose Stands & Isolators and download the .pdf-file.
Thomas B
For theory visit www.ealingcatalog.com and choose Preview Catalog. Under Opto Mechanics choose Stands & Isolators and download the .pdf-file.
Thomas B
Sikkek,
Perhaps so. I don't care. The proof of the pudding is the eating. The sound with this table is so much better than without it. Actually there is a somewhat cheaper way to get airborne. A pneumatic table top from Newport. Not in the same league as the Coherent table but cheaper.
Thomas B
Perhaps so. I don't care. The proof of the pudding is the eating. The sound with this table is so much better than without it. Actually there is a somewhat cheaper way to get airborne. A pneumatic table top from Newport. Not in the same league as the Coherent table but cheaper.
Thomas B
Attachments
Peter,
The high pressure compressed air cylinder lasts about six months or more of normal continous use. Less if you keep rearrange the equipment. Now I have rebuilt the table with longer tiebars and a 19 mm glass top plate. If this is too fanatical, you can buy three or four CM-225 pneumatic isolators from www.newport.com and make your own DIY vibration isolation platform.
Thomas B
The high pressure compressed air cylinder lasts about six months or more of normal continous use. Less if you keep rearrange the equipment. Now I have rebuilt the table with longer tiebars and a 19 mm glass top plate. If this is too fanatical, you can buy three or four CM-225 pneumatic isolators from www.newport.com and make your own DIY vibration isolation platform.
Thomas B
Attachments
Free Manna From Heaven O'Philes.....
Ok, in reverse order regarding the last 4 pages....
Thomas, you have quite a lively acoustic environment there with the wooden floors I see in your photo.
I have lived in houses with walls made of tongue and groove wood, brick, block or sandstone, and suspended wooden or wood panels glued to concrete floors so I have some understanding of the sound you are getting - pretty lively I'd say, and mids and upper mids a bit hard likely.
Those floor materials will transmit quite a lot of vibrational mechanical noise back to the source equipment stands, and this will markedly alter your sound as is your experience.
In following your isolation methods, that amp you have ought to be vibrationally isolated too.
Unfortunately, several thousands of dollars (3000 CAD$soloution is plain not a viable soloution for many listeners.
The system that you describe relies on a pressure feed - I reckon that a vacuum operated similar system ought to be even better isolation performance wise - intrinsic negative feedback.
A discarded refrigerator motor/pump unit makes a ZeroPhile (Tm) vacuum pump, that can be used to periodically evacuate a storage vessel - a ZeroPhile (Tm) surplus gas cylinder bottle.
Zero-Phile, Scamo-Phile, Recylo-Phile......Let's vote a good descriptive name.
Adding additional mass (telephone books, bricks etc - I'm serious) to the source components and amplifiers makes a typically strong sonic difference also.
Some well regarded mass produced hi-fi stuff has improvements like 3-4 mm bottom panels to add an appreciable additional (1-3 Kg+) mass to an otherwise reasonably standard mass produced product. (cd players and amps).
"The sound is unbelievably coherent." You mean very nicely coherent, of course.
sikkek Yes, you make a very good point, but one point only in the complete picture.
One trick is to correctly damp or control internally induced vibrations, and another trick is to control externally induced vibrations/feedbacks.
Pete, that sandwich thing you've cooked up looks nice, but to my eye gives a little bit bass shy/bass slow/bass heavy sound, but not too bad overall.
Please understand that field effects will affect/effect your sound - different slabs of stone will impart different sonic signatures.
High quartz content is sonically good - physiollogically deleterious contained physical elements are not.
Your aluminium cdp cabinets will give you Alzheimers on overly extended listening.
It seems that everybody is advocating cones as a mounting medium.
I am consistently finding that springs give nice isolation.
I have found that ZeroPhile (Tm) surplus/wrecked automotive cylinder head valve springs proivide a very fine zero cost isolation medium.
I have suggested this soloution previously - has anybody tried these yet ?.
eric.
Ok, in reverse order regarding the last 4 pages....
Thomas, you have quite a lively acoustic environment there with the wooden floors I see in your photo.
I have lived in houses with walls made of tongue and groove wood, brick, block or sandstone, and suspended wooden or wood panels glued to concrete floors so I have some understanding of the sound you are getting - pretty lively I'd say, and mids and upper mids a bit hard likely.
Those floor materials will transmit quite a lot of vibrational mechanical noise back to the source equipment stands, and this will markedly alter your sound as is your experience.
In following your isolation methods, that amp you have ought to be vibrationally isolated too.
Unfortunately, several thousands of dollars (3000 CAD$soloution is plain not a viable soloution for many listeners.
The system that you describe relies on a pressure feed - I reckon that a vacuum operated similar system ought to be even better isolation performance wise - intrinsic negative feedback.
A discarded refrigerator motor/pump unit makes a ZeroPhile (Tm) vacuum pump, that can be used to periodically evacuate a storage vessel - a ZeroPhile (Tm) surplus gas cylinder bottle.
Zero-Phile, Scamo-Phile, Recylo-Phile......Let's vote a good descriptive name.
Adding additional mass (telephone books, bricks etc - I'm serious) to the source components and amplifiers makes a typically strong sonic difference also.
Some well regarded mass produced hi-fi stuff has improvements like 3-4 mm bottom panels to add an appreciable additional (1-3 Kg+) mass to an otherwise reasonably standard mass produced product. (cd players and amps).
"The sound is unbelievably coherent." You mean very nicely coherent, of course.
sikkek Yes, you make a very good point, but one point only in the complete picture.
One trick is to correctly damp or control internally induced vibrations, and another trick is to control externally induced vibrations/feedbacks.
Pete, that sandwich thing you've cooked up looks nice, but to my eye gives a little bit bass shy/bass slow/bass heavy sound, but not too bad overall.
Please understand that field effects will affect/effect your sound - different slabs of stone will impart different sonic signatures.
High quartz content is sonically good - physiollogically deleterious contained physical elements are not.
Your aluminium cdp cabinets will give you Alzheimers on overly extended listening.
It seems that everybody is advocating cones as a mounting medium.
I am consistently finding that springs give nice isolation.
I have found that ZeroPhile (Tm) surplus/wrecked automotive cylinder head valve springs proivide a very fine zero cost isolation medium.
I have suggested this soloution previously - has anybody tried these yet ?.
eric.
I never understood how mechanical damping can improve the sound of an amplifier. It is perfectly valid with turntables, speakers and other electromechanical devices, but amplifiers and preamplifiers? How can a mechanical vibration affect the work of resistors, capacitors, op-amps, etc.? Is there a valid technical explanation for this, or is this just another audio black magic?
Affect the work of resistors ? Don't know. Op-amp have very small transistors. Due to vibrations in the silicon, parasitical capacitances of the transistors could change. So the vibrations modulate the sound. In capacitors I presume that the dielectricum moves slightly, or the plates towards/from each other.
Fedde
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