2. cables
  3. 1351148664

Synergistic Research Comes Down to Earth

I just read some of the RMAF reviews. Since I live overseas I don't get to shows and am envious of those who have the opportunity to do so. I noticed a big difference in the Synergistic Research room this year versus last year.

In 2011 Synergistic Research chalked up a grand total of nearly $150,000 for their system with about $40,000 of that dedicated to their own equipment and cables. It must have been a pretty impressive sound. This year their room chalked up only about $25,000 with about $13,000 dedicated to their own equipment and cables.

Synergistic Research has really come down to Earth. I wonder how the 2012 system sounded compared to the 2011 system. One thing that I am pondering is the $1,500 Nola speaker in a $25,000 system. The Nola is supposed to be an impressive speaker but I wonder about the sonic attributes of a $1,500 in a $25,000 system. Can anyone report on the Synergistic Research room and the Nolas?
sabai
sabai OP
2,027 posts
 
Zd542,
You make a good point when you ask, "but are their products worth the money". In many cases, and I have owned a lot of Synergistic Research over the years, my answer is no, they are way overpriced for what they deliver. And what they deliver is often less than spectacular.

In this regard, here is a comment from a recent 6Moons.com review of the Synergistic Research Tranquility Base. The link to this review is ironically on Synergistic Research's own site:

"The Synergistic Research Tranquility Base is a very interesting product. It clearly influences the sound in a good way. It is prohibitively expensive but worthy at least a listen just to be aware of what’s possible."

This is a very tepid endorsement for a product that is "prohibitively expensive".
zd542
5,339 posts
 
Sabai,

Overall, I tend to agree with your comments about SR cables. I tried several different pairs on loan from The Cable Company. For the most part, they were OK but overpriced. Just to be clear, though, their product line is very large and I haven't heard most of it. It wouldn't be fair of me to comment on SR as a whole; I based my opinion only on the models I tried myself. They do look really neat, though.
ted_d
86 posts
 
The review in question was written in Poland where the Tranquility Base retails for $3700 USD, or nearly twice its US retail price of $1,995.

Here is the full 6 Moons review translated from Polish:

Synergistic Research Tranquility Base vs. Acoustic Revive RAF-48. The Synergistic Research is nominally an anti-vibration platform. In fact that’s secondary as its primary role is to minimize RF noise in the device sitting on it. That is achieved by a set of small modules powered by a small wall wart whose output current can be adjusted by plugging in small cylinders with blue LEDs – the platform comes with two of them. I could not hear any difference between them. Under the modules is a screen plate to which you connect a wire fitted with a mains plug on the other end. Obviously ground is coupled with the earth pin. It is fairly easy to understand how it works and even easier to hear. Just remove the power supply and unplug the earth wire.

The change in sound is quite substantial. The Meitner sounded much better on the activated platform. The changes mostly concerned its midrange and treble. The latter was richer, better separated and more vivid when the platform was powered up. So too was the midrange. I really liked it because it gave music more gravitas The sound was clearer and more lucid without any brightening. Hence I was very curious to see how the U.S. platform would fare against my reference, the air-flotation Acoustic Revive RAF-48 anti-vibration platform from Japan. The difference in price between the two is double. If anyone calls the AR is expensive, one now might think twice about that.

The Meitner atop the RAF-48 platform was more austere. It was perfectly audible that the Synergistic created a golden glow which clarified but also saturated the top end. This lacked with the AR. Meanwhile the bass seemed better articulated and differentiated with the Japanese platform. The difference was not significant but repeatable and audible with each record. The Synergistic Research Tranquility Base is a very interesting product. It clearly influences the sound in a good way. It is prohibitively expensive but worthy at least a listen just to be aware of what’s possible. I think it will be very versatile and improve the sound for any type of component sitting atop it.

I auditioned the player with the Synergistic Research platform. This was the first time that some other support’s sonic characteristics exceeded those of my Acoustic Research RAF-48 air-bladder solution. I have not seen anything like it before. By reducing RF in the device placed on it, the platform improves treble quality by adding weight, musicality and improved sustains. It's an outstanding achievement!

You decide.

Yours in music,
Ted Denney III
Lead Designer, Synergistic Research Inc.
sabai OP
2,027 posts
 
Ted_d,
You make a good point about the price being double in Poland. If this is generally true of the pricing outside the US then the Tranquility Base will only be for the very well-heeled in those countries. As for US buyers, if they want to put a Tranquility Base under pre-amp, amp, DAC, transport and turntable they are looking at an expenditure of $10,000. I imagine this would be an eye-opening event for most of those participating on these forums, myself included. Based on the tepid endorsement of the Tranquility Base in the Polish review I don't know how many audiophiles would want to take the plunge, frankly.
fplanner2000
616 posts
 
You don't need to put the T. Base under everything in order to gain the benefit of the technology. That would be overkill, IMO. I have one under my source and there is a noticeable difference for the better. That is enough for me. At $1995 retail, it is more realistically priced than many other SR products, IMO.
More to discover