Thanks @folkfreak. It's how I plan on using the Blue duplex (in the future), which makes your findings especially helpful.
Synergistic Research HFT's
I acquired a ten-pack of SR's HFT room treatments and installed them according to directions just prior to last night's listening session. Easy to install using the blue-tack type of material that was included in the package.
http://highend-electronics.com/products/sr-hft-high-frequency-transformer
The listening room already sported two pairs of Shataki Holograms ... one pair in the front corners of the room and a second pair in the rear corners of the room. In addition to the Holograms, there are tube traps along the rear of the listening position. I thought I had my room problems solved with the existing treatments and I was satisfied with those results.
Enter the SR HFT's ...
I had my friend Robert over last night to help evaluate the changes, if any. I was looking forward to maybe a small improvement at best. I mean, what can one expect from little metal devises that stick to your walls ... little devises so small that one wouldn't even notice them unless they were called attention to?
Long story short ... we were hit over the head with astounding disbelief at the ... I don't want to use the word "improvement," because that would be an understatement. I'll use the word trans-formative instead. Because, that's exactly what this tweak has done; its transformed my listening environment, and consequently my entire system, into an unbelievable music machine.
The first CD I played was a private recording of Rachmaninoff's third piano concerto, with the L.A. Philharmonic orchestra during a Rachmaninoff piano competition. The disc features the winner of the contest on piano. This has always been one of the favorite recordings in my collection. It transports the listener into the venue in a very natural way. This CD was burned right from the master tape with no artificial reverb or compression. A good test for any changes to the system.
Uhhh .... what I thought was a great recording transported us into the live event. Astounding to say the least. How can such a simple tweak as ten little dots spread around the room have such a huge effect? My theory is ... the sound energy coming from the speakers causes certain resonances at certain frequencies, and those resonances excite certain areas of the room and smears the sound. The HFT's take those resonances out of the equation. That's my theory, anyway.
Here's the noted improvements:
1. A much more solid presentation at higher volume levels. Everything just seems to hang together better.
2. Bass control: The best bass from my system yet. Very defined. The lower registers of the piano are a delight.
3. Size of the presentation: What I thought was a big sound stage before has been expanded in a very focused way.
4. Transparency: I can "see" much further into the presentation now. The audience noises,coughs & sneezes, the orchestra tuning up, the members turning the pages of the music, the conductor walking on the platform ... all there where a lot of it wasn't before.
5. Musicality: The correct tones of the instruments, which I've paid particular attention to in the system, were much improved. Strings, timpani's and the presence of the piano were all dead-nutz on. Amazing.
6. 3-D: A much more holographic presentation. Good Lord, how much better can this get? So much more "air" around the performers. It really adds to the suspension of disbelief in a big way.
I could go on and on with our positive impressions last night, but I will echo what Robert said: "This is your greatest tweak ever!" "It sounds like you've improved your entire system."
After playing a number of CD's featuring piano, we switched to the analog rig and played a whole variety of music ... from straight ahead jazz to Hawaiian music. The expansion of the sound space, and the realism from analog and tubes with the new room treatment? Unbelievable.
The ten pack of HFT's gets you to "level two" ... one more pack of five would get it to "level three." Based upon last nights results, there is another five pack in my near future.
Are any of you other A'goners using SR HFT's in your room? If so, please post your results here. I'd like to know if your experiences with these devises are similar to mine.
Happy listening, guys.
http://highend-electronics.com/products/sr-hft-high-frequency-transformer
The listening room already sported two pairs of Shataki Holograms ... one pair in the front corners of the room and a second pair in the rear corners of the room. In addition to the Holograms, there are tube traps along the rear of the listening position. I thought I had my room problems solved with the existing treatments and I was satisfied with those results.
Enter the SR HFT's ...
I had my friend Robert over last night to help evaluate the changes, if any. I was looking forward to maybe a small improvement at best. I mean, what can one expect from little metal devises that stick to your walls ... little devises so small that one wouldn't even notice them unless they were called attention to?
Long story short ... we were hit over the head with astounding disbelief at the ... I don't want to use the word "improvement," because that would be an understatement. I'll use the word trans-formative instead. Because, that's exactly what this tweak has done; its transformed my listening environment, and consequently my entire system, into an unbelievable music machine.
The first CD I played was a private recording of Rachmaninoff's third piano concerto, with the L.A. Philharmonic orchestra during a Rachmaninoff piano competition. The disc features the winner of the contest on piano. This has always been one of the favorite recordings in my collection. It transports the listener into the venue in a very natural way. This CD was burned right from the master tape with no artificial reverb or compression. A good test for any changes to the system.
Uhhh .... what I thought was a great recording transported us into the live event. Astounding to say the least. How can such a simple tweak as ten little dots spread around the room have such a huge effect? My theory is ... the sound energy coming from the speakers causes certain resonances at certain frequencies, and those resonances excite certain areas of the room and smears the sound. The HFT's take those resonances out of the equation. That's my theory, anyway.
Here's the noted improvements:
1. A much more solid presentation at higher volume levels. Everything just seems to hang together better.
2. Bass control: The best bass from my system yet. Very defined. The lower registers of the piano are a delight.
3. Size of the presentation: What I thought was a big sound stage before has been expanded in a very focused way.
4. Transparency: I can "see" much further into the presentation now. The audience noises,coughs & sneezes, the orchestra tuning up, the members turning the pages of the music, the conductor walking on the platform ... all there where a lot of it wasn't before.
5. Musicality: The correct tones of the instruments, which I've paid particular attention to in the system, were much improved. Strings, timpani's and the presence of the piano were all dead-nutz on. Amazing.
6. 3-D: A much more holographic presentation. Good Lord, how much better can this get? So much more "air" around the performers. It really adds to the suspension of disbelief in a big way.
I could go on and on with our positive impressions last night, but I will echo what Robert said: "This is your greatest tweak ever!" "It sounds like you've improved your entire system."
After playing a number of CD's featuring piano, we switched to the analog rig and played a whole variety of music ... from straight ahead jazz to Hawaiian music. The expansion of the sound space, and the realism from analog and tubes with the new room treatment? Unbelievable.
The ten pack of HFT's gets you to "level two" ... one more pack of five would get it to "level three." Based upon last nights results, there is another five pack in my near future.
Are any of you other A'goners using SR HFT's in your room? If so, please post your results here. I'd like to know if your experiences with these devises are similar to mine.
Happy listening, guys.
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- 119 posts total
OK, so one more skeptic converted. The acoustics in my living room was so bad we couldn't understand each other half the time. TV/video was a never ending exercise in hitting the back button several times and lip reading. Not infrequently, we just gave up on segments of dialogue. Forget about any critical music listening. SR had a June special, order a Black Box and get 2 10 packs of HFTs for free. Since there is a 30 day return policy, I took a shot and placed an order with the Cable Company. Peter handled my order and offered some of the best customer service I have ever had. I sent him photos and a floor plan of my living room, and he guided me on placement. Oh my, the Black Box made a huge and immediate difference. The black box alone was enough to render dialogue intelligible. I waited for 3 weeks to place the HFTs. Even my wife, who is totally skeptical about such things, volunteered that the Black Box had very significantly improved the acoustics. Yesterday, I did a video conference with Peter and he helped me place 10 of the HFTs. Again, the room acoustics took a big step forward. I was absolutely sure these HFTs were nothing but snake oil, but the difference was really amazing. I've still got 10 of these left, and I am going to do some playing around with these in my two channel room to see what they will do. Both the Black box and the HFTs are so unobtrusive that WAF considerations are irrelevant. I wish I had run this experiment a long time ago. |
You might consider the new Wide Angle HFTs. These can be the foundation of improving the sound... use them first? The HFTs you have can be used to "fine tune" the room, and you may not want to use all of them. Over time, I have removed many HFTs from my room. It was as if they were competing and diminishing the FOCUS of the sound. For example, I went from four on the ceiling to a single piece, over the "sweet spot" chair. Yes, I believe you will hear a big difference with the Wide Angle versions. (Remember the 30 day return policy.) |
The Synergistic Research HFT system is fabulous and solved my significant room acoustic problems. Previously I had tried the old school approach of absorbtion and diffraction with much less sonic success and visually the room was then unappealing. I give the SR approach the highest satisfaction rating one can give. Synergistic Research now has a family of HFT's as Sgordon1 alluded to. The original HFT, HFT 2.0 (more warmth and texture to sound), HFT-X( more air and space), and two wide angle versions. A combination of these products allows one to really dial in a room sonically. These small resonators are easily placed and can be repositioned quickly. If you sell your house or change apartments you take your acoustic treatments with you. For 99.9% of us audiophiles, we will never have a custom built perfect dimentioned dedicated listening room.For real rooms with real acoustic challenges, the Synergistic Research HFT system does a great job of improving listening pleasure. Peter Hansen at the Cable Company is an expert on installing the HFT's as is Scott Walker and his staff at Scott Walker Audio. Brownsfan's approach of sending videos of his room for HFT installation advice is a great approach .Another great use of the smart phone. You can watch Peter Hansen placing HFT's in a room by going to YouTube and searching for Synergistic Research videos. The HFT's do come with a good suggested approach diagram on where to place them in a room. And best of all if you do not like them you send them back and get your money refunded. 30 days to try them. And if you return them or change their placement - no nail holes in the wall. A great product that has improved my listening pleasure. David Pritchard |
Although I appreciate @oregonpapa 's passion, I'd tone down the positive effects somewhat.Unfortunately, the gentlemen is overexciting about Synergistic products everywhere on internet.The magnitude of improvements of tweaks is.. rather subtle. Transformation, jaw dropping is abuse, is exaggeration. I read his description of red fuses... superior etc, then blacks were so much superior, now blue even more superior. I don't know where he ended up with his superiors. He must be affiliated...
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- 119 posts total