Best Isolation Platform with Audio Aero Prestige

I would love to see and hear Audio Aero making a comeback.

lol

For my Audio Aero Equipment, I find that the best location or platform to keep this equipment is directly on top of the UPS box, so it is that much easier to ship it back for innevitable repairs ;-)

Critical mass is very good! I heard it in recent show. Quite amazing what good stands can do.

The purpose of this post is to add clarification on behalf of Critical Mass Systems.

Will Wright and I exchanged emails recently and he has allowed me to reproduce pertinent parts of our exchange. Below, is exact text of a communication sent in February 2007; approximately 5 months after the comments Mr. Lavigne recalled. GM is an abbreviation for Grand Master.

“As to my Halcyonics review; I didn't dislike the GM under my preamp, I was just surprised at the effect the Micro 40 had in that position. Alternatively, I think I prefer the GM under my turntable as opposed to the Micro 40.”

All the Best,

Joseph
Critical Mass Systems

Tom, there is a simple solution. Place your entire system, including isolation racks into a refrigeration unit. . . and chill down to absolute 0 . . . any audiophile grade chillers out there. . . regardless, I want my chiller modded.

Remember there is no state of isolation. Something is always in motion even down to the atomic level. Isolate something from the influences of its own self generation, and your trying? You have wasted both time and energy! Tom

Essentialaudio wrote :
"This thread isn't about me. Please answer the question"

What question is that?

Was I seriously suppose to answer " where's the beef " or you referring to Metrallas question? I answered that 5 responses ago .

You made this about you when you accused either Critical Mass or Neuance of "marketing mumbo jumbo".

On another note , I identified myself as a dealer for isolation platforms do you not see ethical issues with your not doing so as well ??

I am very happy using the Silent Running Audio atop the Grand Prix Audio Monaco rack but more importantly using stellar footers instead of the stock BDR cones. I am using the Black Ravioli footers imported from Globe Audio Marketing with 3 HRS damping plates atop the unit. The footers are made in Germany and produce a much blacker background and decay within the soundstage...a true must if you own this player. If anyone has tired them all then give us a review.

Brainwater wrote:

Rhetoric aside , have you tried the Critical Mass Grand Master black label platforms in your own system ? I would then welcome your opinions positive or negative.

This thread isn't about me. Please answer the question.

Mike ,

As far as I am concerned , I know of no one with more credibility than you and your words have much weight and respect with me .

I indeed see your point and I appreciate your efforts to help me understand and appreciate this issue with semantics that is the source of misunderstanding .

Brent,

first; i was not in any way suggesting that you intended to mislead; i know you are not that way. your credibility with me is beyond reproach.

i was simply pointing out that Will never says specifically that the Critical Mass bettered the Halcyonics on the tt. his only written comment was related to whole system performance with what was at hand.

also; what he may have said verbally to you or Critical Mass may have been in conflict with what he said to me.....i have no way of knowing about that.

best regards,

Metralla,

I did direct comparisons with the Vibraplane , Black Diamond , Sistrum , Symposium Ultra , and SRA . I chose to represent Critical Mass for my company based on its performance alone .

Mike,

I do not know Will , nor do I know his thoughts. We looked very carefullly at his wording in the review and came to this conclusion based on these lines :

"......I decided it was time to try out the Grand Master I had purchased to go under my turntable in its intended application. At first I had planned to move the Micro 40 back under my universal player, but after pulling it out from under the turntable to install the Grand Master I got lazy and decided "what the heck, I'll put it under my preamp instead," just temporarily.

Much to my surprise, I ended up preferring this configuration. Although this is most probably not where I would have ended up without the Grand Master platforms to go under my source components, this configuration provided the best overall performance for the whole system.

If we are not understanding his meaning then it is an honest mistake.

Brent, i know that the Critical Mass website claims that Will Wright preferred the Critical Mass platform under his tt.....but that is not what Will said in his review.

he said;

***************

"......I decided it was time to try out the Grand Master I had purchased to go under my turntable in its intended application. At first I had planned to move the Micro 40 back under my universal player, but after pulling it out from under the turntable to install the Grand Master I got lazy and decided "what the heck, I'll put it under my preamp instead," just temporarily.

Much to my surprise, I ended up preferring this configuration. Although this is most probably not where I would have ended up without the Grand Master platforms to go under my source components, this configuration provided the best overall performance for the whole system. Whether spinning records or optical discs, the results were sublime. My preamp absolutely loved the Micro 40 and as a result, so did I. This was unexpected. In fact, I would have expected my previous configuration of Micro 40 under turntable and Grand Master under preamp to be superior."

******************

what Will said was that "this configuration provided the best overall performance for the whole system.".......not that he preferred the Critical Mass to the Halcyonics under his tt. he felt that in his system the Halcyonics made the most difference on his preamp. when Will visited my room with the Halcyonics he told me that he specfically preferred the Halcyonics to the Critical Mass on every component but that the Critical Mass was fairly close in some areas. it would make sense that since his tt started out with some passive isolation beyond the starting point of the preamp; there was more room for improvment with the pre.

there are a few excellent passive systems out there including the Critical Mass and others like my Grand Prix Audio.......but active isolation is on another level.

Brainwater writes:

Rhetoric aside, have you tried the Critical Mass Grand Master black label platforms in your own system ? I would then welcome your opinions positive or negative.

That's a bit of an easy out.

Instead of quoting from someone elses work, tell us what you have compared the "Grand Master" to and what you heard.

Regards,

Brainwater, yes it is publicly available. My quote is from his conclusion. This review is somewhat curiously contradictory. As I said, initially I dismissed his suggestion that you could use two components on a single Halcyonics as contrary to my initial experience. More recently I agree with regards to the Accustic Arts dac and drive one.

Until Clement Perry of StereoTimes strongly encouraged me to try an Halcyonic under my amp, I had only used my two under source components. Since I first put one of my two under my amp, it has stayed there and my turntable returned to the Acapella base.

Brian ,

Rhetoric aside , have you tried the Critical Mass Grand Master black label platforms in your own system ? I would then welcome your opinions positive or negative.



Blind shootouts are welcome but there are as many who disapprove as see the benefits of such an exercise . I for one welcome the challenge.

..............

Tbg , the article is open to public view. In my statement I was simply extrapolating from 2 paragraphs in the review which indicate he preferred the Critical Mass under his source component :
{ " Back at home, after spending quite some time in the latest configuration with the Micro 40 under my turntable and the Critical Mass Systems Grand Master platforms under the universal player and preamp, I decided it was time to try out the Grand Master I had purchased to go under my turntable in its intended application. At first I had planned to move the Micro 40 back under my universal player, but after pulling it out from under the turntable to install the Grand Master I got lazy and decided "what the heck, I'll put it under my preamp instead," just temporarily.

Much to my surprise, I ended up preferring this configuration. Although this is most probably not where I would have ended up without the Grand Master platforms to go under my source components, this configuration provided the best overall performance for the whole system. Whether spinning records or optical discs, the results were sublime. My preamp absolutely loved the Micro 40 and as a result, so did I. This was unexpected. In fact, I would have expected my previous configuration of Micro 40 under turntable and Grand Master under preamp to be superior " } .

What about simple solid maple/steel devices such as the MapleShades?

try Silent Running Audio for the ultimate in isolation

Brainwater, all I can say about your characterization about Will Wright's review of the Halcyonics is that I think you mischaracterize it. He concludes, "Passive isolation platforms (like the CMS and Minus K) may get you 90 percent of the way there at a quarter the price, but if you want the full enchilada you'll just have to pony up."

I have heard neither of the passive units, but own Neuance and Acapella shelves and have extensively compared them with the Halcyonics. If you are really looking for the best buy, the Neuance is what you want. The Acapella is clearly superior to the Neuance. But the Halcyonics stands alone IMHO.

Brainwater: As Clara Peller used to say on the Wendy's commercials, "Where's the beef?"

Disclaimer ; I am a dealer for Critical Mass Systems .



In Positive Feedback online this month Critical Mass Systems were mentioned in a review of the $7500 Halcyonics Micro 40. The reviewer thought that CMS performed better under his source components.



Critical Mass Systems are 3 to 5 times less expensive than the Halcyonics Micro 40. Critical Mass Systems are a patented hybrid system designed specificaly for high end audio applications.



If you are considering an isolation system , I recommend the CMS Reference isolation system. It is the least expensive platform in the CMS line. This system is 5 times less expensive than Halcyonics and less expensive than the Acapella.

Yesy i just saw your post in amp forum. Excellent stuff you sent me thank you sir. It seems it will be a tough choice between acapella and sra.

See my response to your post over in Amps Preamps. The first link in it is particularly substantial because not only does it discuss vibration in scientific and mathematical terms but also presents performance graphs, which are far more meaningful than marketing mumbo jumbo.

I use the Neuance platform under my Marantz SA14 SACD player.

Richard

Contact Critical Mass Systems

They let me evaluate one of their isolation platforms for a week. It simlply brings everything to life. As simple as that.

Regards,
Alex