And now for an update...
The Townshend platform is impressive, but I thought the dynamics just to be squelched, and the soundstage just a little compressed... And then I looked one shelf lower at my Evans microgroove Plus phono stage. Given all the discussion about positioning, I noticed that the Evans was not centered on the middle of the Bright Star platform that it was sitting on. Thinking that I would get minor improvements but still happy with that, and moved the microgroove so that it was more centrally located on the Bright Star. Whoa!
The Athena label Symphonic Dances - which I had been playing in the last 2 days - suddenly demonstrated a solidity and a dynamic increase that was far beyond what I expected. I mean, the system - still NAD-equipped- did not sound like an "NAD." It sounded quite "powerful." And Bernstein's "Mass", which I'd found lifeless and had left me bored in previous listenings, ROARED. The upper midrange, in particular, showed a dynamic "kick" just missing before
So the Townshend is showing itself to be well worth its cost. But it also demonstrates the utter importance of placement (The Microgroove, which I just put on the Bright Star, with NO thought of positioning, surprised me. I moved it several more times - again, fractions of an inch, and could immediately discern whether or not the movement improved or detracted.
This is exciting.
The Townshend platform is impressive, but I thought the dynamics just to be squelched, and the soundstage just a little compressed... And then I looked one shelf lower at my Evans microgroove Plus phono stage. Given all the discussion about positioning, I noticed that the Evans was not centered on the middle of the Bright Star platform that it was sitting on. Thinking that I would get minor improvements but still happy with that, and moved the microgroove so that it was more centrally located on the Bright Star. Whoa!
The Athena label Symphonic Dances - which I had been playing in the last 2 days - suddenly demonstrated a solidity and a dynamic increase that was far beyond what I expected. I mean, the system - still NAD-equipped- did not sound like an "NAD." It sounded quite "powerful." And Bernstein's "Mass", which I'd found lifeless and had left me bored in previous listenings, ROARED. The upper midrange, in particular, showed a dynamic "kick" just missing before
So the Townshend is showing itself to be well worth its cost. But it also demonstrates the utter importance of placement (The Microgroove, which I just put on the Bright Star, with NO thought of positioning, surprised me. I moved it several more times - again, fractions of an inch, and could immediately discern whether or not the movement improved or detracted.
This is exciting.