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Synergistic Research ECT

Many years ago, I'm going to say about 20, a fellow named Michael Greene came out with a rack that purported to improve performance by clamping components between the shelves. Preposterous, I thought, and wrote a letter to the editor telling him so and asking to please not waste my valuable time with such nonsense. A letter I soon came to deeply regret. Because within a year I had heard for myself what vibration control can do. Today the value of vibration control is (or should be) clear to all audiophiles.

So that's Preface Part One: Don't knock it if you haven't tried it.

Preface Part Two: Don't be so sure its not there just because you can't hear it. Learning to recognize and describe what you are hearing ain't necessarily easy. I used to drag my wife along to audition CD players, because I wasn't entirely sure myself if what I was hearing was there or in my head. When time after time she said, "yeah it sounds better, I can't say how or why but this one definitely sounds better" I knew it was for real. Now I'm able to hear in a flash what I used to agonize interminably over. But it did take time. And effort.

And so with that out of the way and everyone understanding this review is for those who either have the listening skills or at least would like to develop them, my recent experience with the Synergistic Research ECT.

Now according to Synergistic, and a ton of reviews, these things work pretty much everywhere. Well, to a guy like me, them's fightin' words! Nobody ever said anything about using them on a turntable motor. So that's right where the first one went. Right onto the top of my Teres Audio rim drive Verus motor. Just stuck the thing on there. Its not gonna work. No way it can work. On a motor? No way. Waste of time. Sat back down and... what the.... dang... seriously? Its on the bleedin' motor! How's that work?? BS! Witchcraft! Got up and removed it. Uh, no, bad idea. Put it back. Ahh. Much better.

With the ECT stuck on the motor everything in the soundstage took on a more palpable reality. There was a greater sense of depth, and air or space around each source. Not wider or higher, nothing moved around from where it had been. When I say greater depth, its not like anything moved closer or further away. The feeling of depth is hard to describe. A lot of it comes from a greater sense of being more immersed in the recording space. Bigger recording space, bigger room, greater depth. Something like that. Removed, the presentation went flat and grainy. Funny, never seemed there was any grain or etch before. One New York minute with ECT and remove them though, yeah, there's grain. Stick that thing back on there. Inner detail. Sense of ease. All better now.

That's just one. On the one place nobody said they would work. What about where they ARE supposed to work? I stuck one close to the base in front of the D101 power supply tube on my Melody Integrated. OMG, here we go again! Same thing. Here I also noticed improved dynamics and a lower noise floor. Heard this with the one on the motor too, and its hard to say which location had the greatest effect on which. I guess, to be really systematic about it, you could move one around trying a dozen different spots, looking for the biggest effect. Actually did that a long time ago with a Shakti Stone. Overpriced waste of money, that. Not so these. When something works this good, you just want more.

But first, I did of course try removing it. Just to be sure. Still hard to believe. Putting it back, this time I placed it behind the tube. Same result. What about transformers? The power transformer on the Melody is big and heavy, and encased in some sort of shiny black stuff, plastic or whatever I don't know. For sure there is no way a tiny little dot of aluminum (for the record, I have no clue what its made of) gonna have any effect on something that big and massive. Only, it did. Same. Exact. Results.

Crazy.

For those keeping score at home that's 3 ECT's deployed. They come 5 to a box. Only used about half, already happy. Which gets us to, what's it worth? My longstanding Gold Standard for tweaks is Black Diamond Racing Cones. At $20 each and needing 3 per component they coincidentally come in at the same $60 per ECT. Comparing apples to oranges I would say one ECT comes very close to three Cones. Not quite there. But close. Considering nothing I've ever heard comes close to BDR for the money that's pretty high praise indeed.
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millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon OP
12,531 posts
 
My understanding is these work by vibration control. They are shaped just like tiny little bass traps. Take the dimensions, work out the math, they are damping ultrasonic vibrations, frequencies on the order of 40kHz and above.

Exactly how this works is not nearly as obvious to me. But there’s a clue I think in something Keith Herron said about timing and the Fourier Transform. Being mathlexic I will for sure screw this up, but it was something like he has done measurements and listening tests that demonstrate people are exquisitely sensitive to timing, and that frequency is (where the Fourier Transform comes into it) a function of timing. Specifically, he found he could manipulate a listeners preference by changing frequency response as little as .03 dB. Three hundredths of a decibel! That is why his components are hand-assembled using individually tested parts. Three hundredths of one dB!

Clearly these tiny little things (PHT, ECT, HFT) are at best capable of doing next to nothing. Equally clearly, at least according to this finding, they only need to do next to nothing! Three hundredths of a dB!

Gonna get some PHT to try, and some more ECT. Let you know how it goes.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
millercarbon
My understanding is these work by vibration control. They are shaped just like tiny little bass traps. Take the dimensions, work out the math, they are damping ultrasonic vibrations, frequencies on the order of 40kHz and above.

>>>>They also work with electromagnetic waves of that particular wavelength. These things are 1/3” diameter? I should point out one of the Sonic benefits of the uquiquitous one inch tiny little acoustic resonator bowls from Franck Tchang and others is better bass performance. Franck Tchang measured effects beyond 2 GHz. Which doesn’t make sense going with the strict definition of acoustic vibration control.

millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon OP
12,531 posts
 
A few points the idea of these working on the electromagnetic spectrum will need to contend with. In no particular order:

The radio frequency at a wavelength on the order of 10mm is around 30GHz. While harmonics at a few multiples of 20kHz exist, and a good case can be made for their influence on lower (audible) (in air) frequencies, thirty billion seems a bit of a stretch.

Then too we have the problem of knowing they work equally as well both directly on electronics as well as on the outside case of components. They also work on a tone arm- and not on the cartridge which would be electrical but on the tone arm rest far from any electromagnetic field.

A lot of this is conjecture. But one thing we know for certain, electromagnetic fields attenuate according to the inverse square law. Another thing we can know for certain, we can't have it both ways. Either its electromagnetic, therefore attenuates with distance, or its not. It does not attenuate with distance. Therefore its not electromagnetic.

 Also if its electromagnetic then why would it be so necessary that they be securely fastened that SR includes both white tack and adhesive? Electromagnetic radiation goes right through clothing. They would work even in your pocket. (Or in the box!) Also in order to work electromagnetically they would need to be, you know, magnetic. Ferrous. At least a little. But they're not. Because then the last place you would ever want to use one is stuck right next to the delicate electromagnetic field of the phono cartridge. Which is exactly where they tell you to stick them! 

One way to figure things out, rule out everything it cannot be, it must be what you're left with. Electromagnetic dog don't hunt.


geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
millercarbon OP20 posts12-17-2018 7:16pmA few points the idea of these working on the electromagnetic spectrum will need to contend with. In no particular order:

The radio frequency at a wavelength on the order of 10mm is around 30GHz. While harmonics at a few multiples of 20kHz exist, and a good case can be made for their influence on lower (audible) (in air) frequencies, thirty billion seems a bit of a stretch.

>>>>>To be fair I said effects were measured for the one inch tiny bowls. That’s why I asked what diameter the SR bowls are.

Then too we have the problem of knowing they work equally as well both directly on electronics as well as on the outside case of components. They also work on a tone arm- and not on the cartridge which would be electrical but on the tone arm rest far from any electromagnetic field.

>>>>>The acoustic waves and the *electromagnetic waves* are everywhere. Since I have not had the pleasure of using the SR products I can’t say yeah or nay.

A lot of this is conjecture. But one thing we know for certain, electromagnetic fields attenuate according to the inverse square law. Another thing we can know for certain, we can’t have it both ways. Either its electromagnetic, therefore attenuates with distance, or its not. It does not attenuate with distance. Therefore its not electromagnetic.

>>>>>But we’re not discussing *electromagnetic fields*. We’re discussing *electromagnetic waves* - I.e., radio frequency waves. So forget about the inverse square law. Electromagnetic waves travel at speed of light.

Also if its electromagnetic then why would it be so necessary that they be securely fastened that SR includes both white tack and adhesive?

>>>>I don’t say it was strictly electromagnetic in nature or even that SR claims it is. I was making an observation based on the similar products from other manufacturers. Like Franck Tchang.

Electromagnetic radiation goes right through clothing. They would work even in your pocket. (Or in the box!) Also in order to work electromagnetically they would need to be, you know, magnetic. Ferrous.

>>>>That’s actually incorrect. They don’t have to be magnetic. Franck Tchang are silver or gold or platinum. Not ferrous. As I already noted effects were measured up over 2 GHz. If electromagnetic waves were magnetic you would be able to bend light with magnets. Which you can’t.

At least a little. But they’re not. Because then the last place you would ever want to use one is stuck right next to the delicate electromagnetic field of the phono cartridge. Which is exactly where they tell you to stick them!

>>>It’s not an electromagnetic field, it’s a magnetic field, around the cartridge produced by a moving inductor. Or, if it’s a moving magnet an electric field.

One way to figure things out, rule out everything it cannot be, it must be what you’re left with. Electromagnetic dog don’t hunt.

>>>>Nice try. Better luck next time.
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon OP
12,531 posts
 
Same to you.
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