Entreq Tellus grounding

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
Well here goes, initiating a new thread. I feel this one deserves it's own discussion, in close association with the one re Troy grounding.
Some months ago during endless noodling on the web re all things audio, I came across references to Tripoint Troy and then Entreq. After discussion both with Miguel of Troy and Fraser, the main man at the UK distributor for Entreq, I decided to go with a Silver Tellus audition, esp. since next to impossible to get hold of a Troy in the UK, and I didn't get on with a particular claim of superiority made to me by Miguel.
This one I was REALLY skeptical of, thought it might be up there with the other black boxes/resonators etc promising vast improvements based on "interesting" science (Lessloss Blackbody, Steinmusic Harmonizers etc), that as a rational person I rail against.
Anyhow, there Fraser was in my apartment with a wooden box, the Silver Tellus, about the size and weight of a small power amp. Apparently it contains a grounding plate, and metre upon metre of silver interspersed with inert material. Totally passive ie not plugged into the mains. At this point, Fraser only linked my preamp into it via an Apollo earth terminal from a spare rca. And that was it for the install.
So we listened to one song. Hmm, nothing really. The second song, something fascinating happened - the whole soundstage expanded, and even more importantly, stabilised, ie became extremely still, almost fixed in space. Fraser said after that it takes some time to bed in, initial changes within 5mins, but the biggest after 24-48hrs. Since this demo, as I've got to know the change, my analogy is that before, music existed in a shimmering heathaze, since the upgrade, the sound field is like a still, crisp morning.
From this expanded/stabilised soundstage emerges air and ambience around instruments/voices, without the negative of the sound floating listlessly, but space anchored, ie grounded with excellent dynamics.
Since then I've added extra Apollo ground leads to my Straingauge cart energiser and my Emm Labs CDSA, getting a further evolution to this improvement. Now I've added a 4th and 5th to my Audion Black Shadow SET monoblocks, which actually have dedicated ground terminals. Wow! Something really fantastic is happening. A really amazing bloom is adding to the other advantages bestowed, so much so that a certain cd I thought I knew backwards I'm getting totally reacquainted with.
In some ways the best thing you can say about all this is that the basic nature of the system is unchanged, so if you like your components, it complements them totally. But it goes on to enhance their potential to the max.
Next step is considering the Atlantis add on box which adds mega amounts of grounding potential to the mix, possibly Apollos to distribution blocks if they have grounding posts. And the fascinating prospect of grounding my Symposium rack itself in a Faraday cage effect.
I'll give my take on how I think this is all working, and how it may differ from the way Troy works, on a future post.
For now, I'm happy to answer qs based on my experience using Silver Tellus. Entreq.jpg
 
Last edited by a moderator:

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
I hate to be the only one to answer my own thread, but I'd like to keep it's awareness alive. Going to a fascinating place with Entreq Silver Tellus installed. There's no doubt that the 4th and 5th Apollo grounding leads (to incorporate my SETs in the grounding) has transformed my system. My nearest point of reference is that I'm approaching the effortless transparency I was aware of when auditioning electrostatics a few months ago (real stage depth, unrestricted decay of notes) with none of the disdavantages I also noticed at the time (slight headphone-like effect to soundfield, lack of "groundedness"), hence maintaining all that make my Zu Definitions 4 spkrs irreplaceable to me (real density of tone, lack of crossover artifacts) with added goodness.
Aiming to audition add-on Entreq Atlantis box. This is just to be connected to the Silver Tellus by a single Apollo or Atlantis grounding lead, and will substantially increase the amount of grounding material available to the system to hopefully max these effects already established.
 

Jazzhead

VIP/Donor
Aug 26, 2012
1,466
108
985
Spirit ... good to hear the success you have had , all the add ons and extra cabling is pushing retail into Troy territory , something to think about surely .
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
Jazz, price still not in Troy territory. Standard Silver Tellus and Atlantis c£4000/$8000, 5 Apollo leads/1 Atlantis lead c£1500/$2500. Standard Troy $12500/£11000 or New Troy $15000/£13000 incls 4 cables, but a fifth adds $3000/£2500. So total running cost for my system Entreq £5500/$10500 v Troy £13500-$16000/New Troy £15500-$18000. So in the UK, I'm paying not more than 40% of the total Troy cost for Entreq Silver Tellus/Atlantis.
Because of import taxes US to UK and vice versa, the price differential wouldn't be so advantageous importing Entreq to the US via home grown Troy.
Another reason not to go down Troy route is that there is no ability to trial it over here. So in the UK anyhow, Entreq is a slam dunk for quality grounding.
 

Jazzhead

VIP/Donor
Aug 26, 2012
1,466
108
985
Silver Tellus was 3000 USD last I remember , gone up has it . When do you expect your Atlantis add-on , be interested to know how much of a leap it is . So far there has been no meaningful comparisons between the S.T and the Troy S.E . Are these the only two grounding units out there ? At least as far as I know they are .
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
Sorry Jazz, in the Uk I was just making some simple currency conversions, a bit off, obv! If Silver Tellus in the US is $3k, the Atlantis add on will be in $3.5k-$4k territory, so $6.5k-$7k the two. Still more affordable by far than Troy. Nope no shootouts yet. I think Lloyd LL21 is awaiting the chance to hear both a-b. Me? Life's too short, the price is right, the effects impressive, and my exposure to Troy will be non existent. So I'm settling on Silver Tellus/maybe Atlantis. Will post Atlantis impressions when I trial it, hopefully in Oct.
 
  • Like
Reactions: Hmart

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
Need to get past price considerations, or this thread will disappear into insignificance. Aiming to get Atlantis add-on to trial in next couple of days. Will talk SQ, not cost, next post.
 

Barry2013

VIP/Donor
Oct 12, 2013
2,305
487
418
Essex UK
Having become an Entreq fan thanks to Fraser I just wanted to reassure you that there are others out there who have also been very impressed and pleased with the improvements wrought to their systems with firstly Konstantin speaker cables and subsequently i/cs and more recently 2x Silver Tellus and so far two Apollo earth leads. It started with an audition of Tellurium Ultra Black cables and the insertion of a Tellus. We were playing the Patricia Barber SACD Modern Cool using the track 11- Post Modern Blues. The piano cuts in about 90 seconds into this track and the insertion of the Tellus dramatically improved the reproduction of the piano. It was instantly apparent and I was hooked. I went on to add the Entreq cables and subsequently 2 Silver Tellus and Silver Minimus. More recently I added two Apollo earths to the Vitus SIA 025 and Puccini player again with instantly apparent improvements. The system has stepped up a gear with every Stillpoint and Entreq upgrade without any downsides at all. Like you I am looking forward to sampling an Atlantis when available. In my experience the Tellus etc will improve any decent system and I would thoroughly recommend people to try it. I have not heard the Troy Tripoint but the I am very happy with the Entreq Tellus and it is certainly more affordable than the Troys.
You are not alone!
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
Thank you Barry, I'd hate to feel I was adrift alone in the audio sea. First with balanced power, then the move to SETs, and now full Entreq grounding, the improvements in my system have been beyond subtle. I'm now running a Silver Tellus with 5 Apollo ground leads and my ongoing conclusion is that it introduces a total calm and stillness to the soundstage that enables transparency to layer back and detail to emerge unobscured, a nice complement to the lowered noise floor of balanced and the saturated tonality of SETs.
So glad you're getting the audio message loud and clear. And fraser of Kog audio, the UK Entreq dealer is the very epitome of the perfect gentleman in the cynical world of high end audio. Now, can we convince any others to take the plunge?...
 

LL21

Well-Known Member
Dec 26, 2010
14,374
2,496
1,398
Hi Gents,

Just posted my comments on the Atlantis + Atlantis cables with the Silver Tellus on the Tripoint Troy thread...in a few words, I really enjoyed the addition of the Atlantis 'system'...a lot. Between the Atlantis cable or the big new box which attaches to the original Silver Tellus via an Atlantis grounding cable...I would go for the Atlantis cable with just the Silver Tellus before I went with Silver Tellus and Atlantis box (but without any Atlantis cables other than the one which connects the two boxes). the new Atlantis cable made that much difference.

Enjoy the Entreq! It is truly great stuff, as far as I have read based in real science in terms of good grounding, impedance 'leveling'? across the components, and generally well executed.
 

Jazzhead

VIP/Donor
Aug 26, 2012
1,466
108
985
LL21 .. am I correct in interpreting what you say as ' if one were to go with the Silver Tellus and the Atlantis , then the Atlantis cables are not a must ' , did I get that correct ?
 

LL21

Well-Known Member
Dec 26, 2010
14,374
2,496
1,398
Hi Jazzhead,

Actually, I was trying to say the opposite...sorry if that was not clear. Basically, if you are going to buy the Atlantis box to go with the Silver Tellus, the Atlantis cables are a MUST. IMHO, if you are only going to buy one 'extra'...buy the Atlantis CABLES before buying the Atlantis BOX.
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
I think I concur with Lloyd. Getting great results with Silver Tellus/Apollo ground leads. Addition of Atlantis box produced a change, but a little 50/50 in my system. If Lloyd is correct I'm going to have to return to Atlantis with a full complement of Atlantis ground leads. For me this is going to have to wait until I reconfigure my mains with 8-10kVA balanced power/dedicated Furutech 20A radial mains circuit cabling/dedicated Furutech wall sockets. Then a full loom of either Entreq, Sablon or Zu audio cables/power cords. Perhaps Entreq powerus/Cleanus. And finally full circle to Atlantis grounding box and leads.
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
Lloyd LL21 is doing his best to promote the benefits of Troy SE, and we both believe in the ground (pun intended) breaking effects of grounding. Unlike him, I haven't managed an a-b of Entreq v Troy, but at under half the price of the Troy rig (in the UK at least), and pricey enough as it is, I'm going to continue to fly the banner for the Entreq Silver Tellus. Happy to help with any qs on my experiences. Personally, it remains ground breaking making a serious contribution to boosting relaxation and excitement SIMULTANEOUSLY with the music emanating from my spkrs. This is what I've termed "cognitive ease" or "lack of cognitive dissonance" enabling me to contribute on the message, not the medium, more than ever before.
Just feel that more potential buyers should consider Entreq before diving straight into Troy. The unbelievably friendly and professional service from the UK Entreq rep has really helped this, esp. with my opposite experience dealing with Troy.
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
I just want to say I've had various difficult experiences with designers/distributors in the past which have biased me away from their equipment, and maybe favoured me twds their competition. And maybe that's my loss, I'll never know. My initial experience with Troy was so in my face, that iIstruggled to reconcile this with the great results on their equipment reported. But that's not to say others would come off as badly as me. Dealing with Entreq has been such a positive experience in comparison. Anyhow, more about Silver Tellus...
 

LL21

Well-Known Member
Dec 26, 2010
14,374
2,496
1,398
Entreq makes a great, great product. If not for Tripoint, I would definitely own it. And believe me, its not like if I had gone with Entreq, I would be at a loss. The Entreq does great stuff...and I would likely have gone full monte into Atlantis and Atlantis cables. And I 100% support how great the Distributor is...they also distribute Stillpoints, and as per my other comments about Stillpoints I can confirm those guys are patient, honest and extremely hard working. They have been known to arrive at someone's home after work and finish up at 1:30a in the morning to make sure the owner is happy.
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
Yes, that sounds like the Entreq rep. I'm glad I don't work in sales myself :eek:! As I've gotten older, and run my own business needing to keep clients happy, I'm more and more drawn to companies and individuals who are up front in promoting their positives, with no need to make unbelievable claims. This is why I'm in the Entreq camp rather than the "opposition". Glad to hear Fraser that you still feel it's a close run thing btwn the two and you'd be happy with Entreq otherwise. The most important thing is we've both taken our systems to the next level.
 

LL21

Well-Known Member
Dec 26, 2010
14,374
2,496
1,398
Yes, that sounds like the Entreq rep. ... I'm more and more drawn to companies and individuals who are up front in promoting their positives...Glad to hear ...that you still feel it's a close run thing btwn the two and you'd be happy with Entreq otherwise. The most important thing is we've both taken our systems to the next level.

Agree...
 

spiritofmusic

Well-Known Member
Jun 13, 2013
14,598
5,403
1,278
E. England
+1. The only thing I think we're apart on is pricing. I don't think it's quite right to say prices will work out similarly. If one is going to ground more than 4 components, one's going to need more than the 4 Troy leads supplied. So, if you want to ground say phono, cdp, dac, pre, monoblocks, subs, that's a lot of extra cables. maybe up to 4. A maxxed out S Tellus/Atlantis add on/5 Atlantis leads is £8500. Troy SE plus one extra lead close to $20000, with UK taxes/vat/customs, say £16000. Virtually double. I'm not saying it's not 2x better, just not similar price as you suggest.
Powerus/Cleanus should not be added to the mix price comparison wise, these are in effect multiway blocks, which Troy doesn't supply, and I'd be happy not having to use these if I go straight out of the wall. If we're going to include these, then we need to factor in the price of say a Nordost 6 socket multiway to the Troy cost. So, still 2x price in conclusion.
Don't want to harp on about this, but Entreq need to be considered as the product that gets close to Troy quality, but at a much lower price point.
 

adyc

VIP/Donor
Jan 5, 2013
864
391
973
Is it possible to post some pictures of your setup? We would all like to see how these ground boxes connected!
 
  • Like
Reactions: kerisabe

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