Herzan/Table Stable "Active" Isolation table.

rockitman

Member Sponsor
Sep 20, 2011
7,097
412
1,210
Northern NY
First, thank you to Christian for having started a great thread of importance. And thanks to Mike too for his invaluable contributions.
...And to everyone else who are participating and contributing by confirming the results observed by Christian and Mike, from this fascinating and scientific subject that goes beyond the musical exploration of turntable's vibrations elimination with extreme prejudice to the highest degree. ...As it started for very precise microscope instrumentation in the field of chemistry and medicine.

And thank you Reid for your writings, your links, and those pictures I asked for.

That is What's Best should always be about, among other great things of top interest.

When people like Christian and Mike are talking, I am listening. And when Reid joined in, I was already hooked.
I am a total believer, and money is now not so relevant anymore in a world of perfectionism in the goal of improving our lives and our musical involvement to serve our enjoyment.

* Michael Fremer should be here too with us.

I'm glad you are getting some value from this thread. Look at it this way, there are interconnects (1 pair) that are available in the market place that cost twice as much as a TS-140. In the grand scheme of things, this is the best $12K I have ever spent on my system. Now I want them under my amps and perhaps preamps....
 

NorthStar

Member
Feb 8, 2011
24,305
1,323
435
Vancouver Island, B.C. Canada
I wouldn't be surprised too to see them under high-end CD/SACD players.

I fully believe in isolating and eliminating all type of internal and external vibrations when it comes to "our sound".
...Be it analog, or digital. ...And like in this case here; turntables are the perfect alibi.
 

rockitman

Member Sponsor
Sep 20, 2011
7,097
412
1,210
Northern NY
I wouldn't be surprised too to see them under high-end CD/SACD players.

I fully believe in isolating and eliminating all type of internal and external vibrations when it comes to "our sound".
...Be it analog, or digital. ...And like in this case here; turntables are the perfect alibi.

another good application for one. Much of this credit for use of this device should go to Mike. He is the one who inspired me to look into this method of isolation.
 

NorthStar

Member
Feb 8, 2011
24,305
1,323
435
Vancouver Island, B.C. Canada
View attachment 10210

had anyone looked at Synergistic Research Tranquilty Base as an option?

According to this pricelist, the XL (20" x 23.25") retails for only $ 2,995.

I checked the link, it doesn't have a specific list of its composition with technical description. Is there more to it to learn more concretely?
What I see is a nice looking platform, with a cool name, and few words here, and few more there from people having experienced it.
I also looked for reviews but found none. Perhaps I didn't search hard enough?
 

cjfrbw

Well-Known Member
Apr 20, 2010
3,325
1,315
1,730
Pleasanton, CA
I checked the link, it doesn't have a specific list of its composition with technical description. Is there more to it to learn more concretely?
What I see is a nice looking platform, with a cool name, and few words here, and few more there from people having experienced it.
I also looked for reviews but found none. Perhaps I didn't search hard enough?

"This led to several new patents pending, and one of the most amazing new products to come to audio in over a decade: the worlds first Active isolation platform capable of conditioning signal while still in your stereo’s components!"

"Enigma Tuning Bullets change the sound of your system from rich and warm to open and airy"

I think it at least demonstrates that the field of stands and platforms has a lot of room left for PT Barnum mining of audiophiles and their quest for epiphanies. At least, the active isolators actually do something, albeit "leading with expectations more than results" expense euphoria surrounding them.
 

JackD201

WBF Founding Member
Apr 20, 2010
12,308
1,425
1,820
Manila, Philippines
Here is a couple iphone pics of the setup tonight...

Man, it's a good thing you're the height of an NBA power forward. I could probably check SRA on your rig standing straight. :D
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,606
5,415
1,278
E. England
I've got the possibility of a demo of a Halcyonics i4. Until recently, isolation never made as much a difference in my setup as power. However with my Symposium Isis rack, things have definitely taken a step fwd. The problem on this demo is that it's going to be counterproductive placing an i4 on an already floating Isis shelf, and any wall shelf will only get installed IF i go for the i4. I have my old fixed rack moved over to house my av components. For the purpose of the i4 demo, should I move it back next to my Isis, resite the tt as before, and then proceed with the demo? I guess if the old rack + i4 + tt outperforms the Isis + tt, I can be assured that this will extend to use of wall shelf. So the decision to go ahead will be based on whether this difference is really significant to justify c$9k. It will have to, since the Isis is SO good at vibration control - with my old rack, moderate footfall caused my air bearing linear tracking arm to skip, with the Isis in place, I can literally jump up and down in front of the tt (what my girlfriend calls my dancing!), and the arm doesn't skip a beat. The only difficult issue here is that my tt/arm/cart has taken such a long time to dial in, that i fear change of environment will introduce a negative set up variable that may negatively bias the outcome of this a-b.
Could I not just plonk the i4 on my current Isis, and even though this wouldn't be perfect in the long run, still get a flavour of performance improvements?
 

Frank750

VIP/Donor
Jul 8, 2011
821
1
928
I have a HRS MXR stand. Any idea what kind of results I would get if a Herzan was placed on it? I assume this would not be ideal?
 

XV-1

Well-Known Member
May 24, 2010
3,591
2,576
1,860
Sydney
For those on the fence, look at it this way, it costs you only shipping to try out the unit. If it doesn't work for your particular table/stand combo, you return it for a full refund minus shipping....roughly $90.00.

Hi Reid

Same deal for those who live in Australia? Freight will be a bit more :)
 

PeterA

Well-Known Member
Dec 6, 2011
12,522
10,688
3,515
USA
I've got the possibility of a demo of a Halcyonics i4. Until recently, isolation never made as much a difference in my setup as power. However with my Symposium Isis rack, things have definitely taken a step fwd. The problem on this demo is that it's going to be counterproductive placing an i4 on an already floating Isis shelf, and any wall shelf will only get installed IF i go for the i4. I have my old fixed rack moved over to house my av components. For the purpose of the i4 demo, should I move it back next to my Isis, resite the tt as before, and then proceed with the demo? I guess if the old rack + i4 + tt outperforms the Isis + tt, I can be assured that this will extend to use of wall shelf. So the decision to go ahead will be based on whether this difference is really significant to justify c$9k. It will have to, since the Isis is SO good at vibration control - with my old rack, moderate footfall caused my air bearing linear tracking arm to skip, with the Isis in place, I can literally jump up and down in front of the tt (what my girlfriend calls my dancing!), and the arm doesn't skip a beat. The only difficult issue here is that my tt/arm/cart has taken such a long time to dial in, that i fear change of environment will introduce a negative set up variable that may negatively bias the outcome of this a-b.
Could I not just plonk the i4 on my current Isis, and even though this wouldn't be perfect in the long run, still get a flavour of performance improvements?

Spirit, why don't you simply try it both ways, ie on both racks. Also, consider doing an A-B-A comparison on each rack, not just A-B.
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,606
5,415
1,278
E. England
Peter, just spoken to the European distributor for Accurion. The i4/Micro 40/Silencer will NOT work in conjunction with a passive isolation device, only on a fixed, stable platform spiked to the floor. So on my Isis is out. Mike's Adona rack would be perfect. Luckily in the UK there is Northwest Analogue who make reasonably priced slate based racks with spikes that should provide the required inertness for the i4 to sit on. Personally if this works for my tt, I'll seriously consider ONE extra unit for my Emm labs CDSA. The amps/psu's/balanced transformer/earthing box, can remain on my isis rack that's already doing a remarkable job. Sources must surely take precedence. At c$9k a shelf, that's about as much as I could afford.
 

Mike Lavigne

Member Sponsor & WBF Founding Member
Apr 25, 2010
12,471
11,368
4,410
I checked the link, it doesn't have a specific list of its composition with technical description. Is there more to it to learn more concretely?
What I see is a nice looking platform, with a cool name, and few words here, and few more there from people having experienced it.
I also looked for reviews but found none. Perhaps I didn't search hard enough?

I heard the demo of this product at the Newport Show 10 days ago. it was used in a $500k+ system with Magico Q7's and VAC electronics. it was a 30 minute demo and I was sitting in the sweet spot. the room was square, 30' x 30', and the sound had it's attributes but also many problems. they only played digital. when they demonstrated these Synergistic Tranquility Bases you did hear an improvement but not anything earthshaking. nothing on the scale I hear with the Herzan in my system. and they were using 7 or 8 of these bases under all the electronics.

these Tranquility Bases operate more in terms of cleaning up electronic corruption, they are not really specifically designed to deal with resonance issues.....maybe they do some of that too.

if you used 7 or 8 Herzan TS units under a big-boy system you would likely levitate and become immortal.....or it would at least seem that way.;)
 
Last edited:

Mike Lavigne

Member Sponsor & WBF Founding Member
Apr 25, 2010
12,471
11,368
4,410
I have a HRS MXR stand. Any idea what kind of results I would get if a Herzan was placed on it? I assume this would not be ideal?


Peter, just spoken to the European distributor for Accurion. The i4/Micro 40/Silencer will NOT work in conjunction with a passive isolation device, only on a fixed, stable platform spiked to the floor. So on my Isis is out. Mike's Adona rack would be perfect. Luckily in the UK there is Northwest Analogue who make reasonably priced slate based racks with spikes that should provide the required inertness for the i4 to sit on. Personally if this works for my tt, I'll seriously consider ONE extra unit for my Emm labs CDSA. The amps/psu's/balanced transformer/earthing box, can remain on my isis rack that's already doing a remarkable job. Sources must surely take precedence. At c$9k a shelf, that's about as much as I could afford.

Frank and Marc,

back in 2005 when I first tried the Halcyonics Micro 40 in my system, I used it on top of my 'passive' decoupling rack, the Grand Prix Audio Monaco. it worked great. no doubt it would have worked better on a solid grounded rack like the Adona I use now.

when Halcyonics says "it will NOT work in conjunction with passive isolation" they mean it will not be 100% optimized. but it still will do most of it's thing. when I sold my GPA Monaco racks and switched to the Adona I put around $9k in my pocket for the difference between what I sold the GPA gear for and what the Adona cost. which now equals almost the cost of my Herzan. to be fair, I did also buy some of the Wave Kinetics A10 U8 footers when I made the switch which I use under some of my gear and which also like a solid rack to be optimized.

if you have a high quality isolation/decoupling rack just sell it, and get one of the solid racks like the Adona. but you can still use the active isolation in the meantime. it will still work very well.
 

Steve Williams

Site Founder, Site Owner, Administrator
Man, it's a good thing you're the height of an NBA power forward. I could probably check SRA on your rig standing straight. :D

My thoughts exactly. Good thing you're so tall Christian
 

About us

  • What’s Best Forum is THE forum for high end audio, product reviews, advice and sharing experiences on the best of everything else. This is THE place where audiophiles and audio companies discuss vintage, contemporary and new audio products, music servers, music streamers, computer audio, digital-to-analog converters, turntables, phono stages, cartridges, reel-to-reel tape machines, speakers, headphones and tube and solid-state amplification. Founded in 2010 What’s Best Forum invites intelligent and courteous people of all interests and backgrounds to describe and discuss the best of everything. From beginners to life-long hobbyists to industry professionals, we enjoy learning about new things and meeting new people, and participating in spirited debates.

Quick Navigation

User Menu

Steve Williams
Site Founder | Site Owner | Administrator
Ron Resnick
Site Co-Owner | Administrator
Julian (The Fixer)
Website Build | Marketing Managersing