Crazy Tweak

drumminman

I frequent Audio Asylum mainly looking at the tweaks and cables categories. There's a guy who posts quite a bit in the former named Uncle Stu, and he thinks outside the box. Way outside.

I've tried some of the things he describes, usually with good results, and here's the latest.

Charcoal. You can read the thread here: http://db.audioasylum.com/mhtml/m.html?forum=tweaks&n=185942&highlight=charcoal+tweak&search_url=/cgi/search.mpl?forum=tweaks&searchtext=charcoal+tweak

What he did was take charcoal briquettes (think Kingsford), put them in a plastic bag and place on top of his floor standers. The results he described were intriguing, so I thought what the heck. It's cheap, reversible, no downside really.

So I bought a bag and used some zip lock bags I already had. Total cost $8. I filled a large ~ 10' x 10" bag with briquettes and used a hammer to break them into smaller pieces. Initial placement was on top of my 2.3TL's, and the results were: couldn't hear any difference.

Next I tried placing the bag on top of a bag of treated crystals from Alan Maher that had been placed over the transformers of my PA. Didn't like what I heard. The sound character changed from being open to somewhat pinched, not markedly so but enough to remove the charcoal.

Then I removed 2/3 of the charcoal from the bag leaving around 6 oz or so and put it back in the same place. Slight change for the better. Inner details of instruments were a little more resolving, slightly more realistic tone, vocals maybe a little more fleshed out.

Then I took a several more bags and placed one each on the two larger balanced isolation transformers that my power amp and linestage are plugged into, as well as one on top of a filtering choke at the IEC connection for my Oppo, which is used as the source. Improvement was more of the same. It does seem like the improvement in sound quality has continued as the charcoal has remained in place.

Listening this weekend has been almost a revelation. Before this tweak I would characterize the sound of my system as very clean, well balanced throughout the audio spectrum, extremely easy to listen to at high volume. The charcoal has potentiated the best attributes.

Sounds crazy I know, but it's so easy - and cheap - to try. Love to hear of others experience with this.

Please do not reply to this post with negative comments if you haven't tried this or have no intention of doing so.

Cheers and happy listening.

westmassguy

Sounds interesting, but I would caution against something like Match Light

drumminman

Good point. I would also be cautious of placing bags on components that get hot.

audiocr381ve

ptrooper

I have cut and installed 28mm grannit to the top and also made a grannit base for my spiked enclosures of my sda's to sit on and this has tightened up the whole soundstage and gave more microdynamics.

skrol

I wonder how many of us will be asking for coal for Christmas?