Just to illustrate how much folks can strongly disagree on things I find carbon fiber to hurt the sound quite noticeably. Especially those BDR cones, both types. When BDR cones are compared to harder cones like steel or ceramic there is no contest, sonically. From my experience in isolation and coupling, more than the average bear, I think I can draw the following conclusions, no offense to anyone or any company.
The harder the material the better the sound. Hardness can be established from the Moh hardness scale where 10 is diamond which, by the way, makes great coupling device. That is why Shun Mook uses a Diamond tip on their Diamond Resonators. The Golden Sound DH (Diamond Hardness) Cones are NASA grade ceramic, next hardest material to Diamond. I’m not a big fan of brass cones, either, which by no coincidence fall rather low on the Moh scale of hardness, along with Carbon Fiber. I’m not saying the BDR cones don’t look good and have a nice sleek space age profile. 😀 By contrast, tempered steel is high on the Moh scale, so would make an excellent cone. The DH Cones are the best, by a considerable margin. Which reminds me, shape of the cone is important, too. For example the Jumbo DH Cone is an excellent sounding cone. The Super DH Cone, which is essentially the same weight and size, has a more ballistic shape, and sounds better than the Jumbo.
I recommend using very hard Cones with isolation stands, coupling the component to the top plate and coupling the iso device to the floor or rack. Do not (rpt not) place iso devices directly on carpets or use cones with rounded tips as the carpets act like springs and interfere with operation of the device. Some cones can penetrate the carpet. Use those.
The harder the material the better the sound. Hardness can be established from the Moh hardness scale where 10 is diamond which, by the way, makes great coupling device. That is why Shun Mook uses a Diamond tip on their Diamond Resonators. The Golden Sound DH (Diamond Hardness) Cones are NASA grade ceramic, next hardest material to Diamond. I’m not a big fan of brass cones, either, which by no coincidence fall rather low on the Moh scale of hardness, along with Carbon Fiber. I’m not saying the BDR cones don’t look good and have a nice sleek space age profile. 😀 By contrast, tempered steel is high on the Moh scale, so would make an excellent cone. The DH Cones are the best, by a considerable margin. Which reminds me, shape of the cone is important, too. For example the Jumbo DH Cone is an excellent sounding cone. The Super DH Cone, which is essentially the same weight and size, has a more ballistic shape, and sounds better than the Jumbo.
I recommend using very hard Cones with isolation stands, coupling the component to the top plate and coupling the iso device to the floor or rack. Do not (rpt not) place iso devices directly on carpets or use cones with rounded tips as the carpets act like springs and interfere with operation of the device. Some cones can penetrate the carpet. Use those.