The Problem with Synergistic Research

Sabai is entitled to change his opinion. I have bought audio products that I thought were good, said nice things about them here or in other audio forums, and then realized later, after some experimentation, that I could get better sound for less money, often much less money. Strange that the high priced but underperforming products employed the same business strategy as SR, while the less expensive but superior products were from companies that have a more "stable" product line (Pass, BPT, Crimson, Clear Day.)

I took the time to look thru Mr. Denney's patent application
for his acoustic resonators. They appear to be well explained
and different enough to be considered for a patent. Just my
opinion and not one based on a legal backround. Good luck
thru the process.

In my most humble opinion on high end audio wire companies and the rapid release of model numbers, the consumer could be most at fault here. It appears that the majority of high-end audio is consistently driven by the “what’s new” demand for products that is always required by the audiophile. I definitely identify with the hobbyists demands for the next newest product or technical achievement as I too am often found guilty of the same.

Adding to the “newest out there phenomena”, the cable end of audio appears to be very heavily oversaturated with manufacturers, brand names, used merchandise with huge quantities of varying technical approaches for these products. Based on the limited size of this industry and competition, business owners must have difficulty just staying open.

Is the rapid release of new products just a method of staying in business based on consumer demands?

Cable manufacturing also presents itself as one of the least expensive ways to open an audio business and before the sparks begin to fly in rebuttal, I deeply relate to the fiery desire for personal achievement and believe every DIY audio person looks to someday invent the next futuristic product and open a company of their own related to their love for music.

Although I often wonder how a cable manufacturer suddenly becomes expert in acoustics, vibration, speakers or electronics bringing additional products to market in what appears to be a very little time spent on the research and development stages for product development. The same is true with a few other companies appearing to be focused in on one category of merchandise then overnight expanding into new fields of audio sciences and with production.

We gained experience in the vibration and acoustics control end of audio and spent over two years sampling products seeking to improve the sound in the recording studio. It seemed that each year five new companies arrived and ten disappeared and most of the existing companies had released a series two or three or four to their existing line up so cable companies are not the only category experiencing this type of industry trend.

Are audio companies in the accessory support end of business running out of market percentage influenced by oversaturation? Man, I thought the food industry was tough!

So in closing, do we blame audiophiles, industry trends, a starving economy for rapid increases of upgraded, similar looking or new products costing more with minimal increased performance values and such?

I would rather put the blame on Music. That’s the darn culprit responsible for all this discussion.

It addicts and compels us towards always listening, to learn more.

Disclaimer: My father works with a commercial company that employs various forms of vibration management so I am biased, have had greater access to knowledge from experience and have applied various techniques, multiple grounding principles working in recording studio settings.

Facten,
The point is to stimulate discussion on a sensitive point. When you live overseas and you want to try out a cable -- or trade up -- the shipping cost can be hundreds of dollars in one direction. Multiply this by a few transactions and you are talking about a large sum of money. The problem is exacerbated by duty.

People in the US can avail themselves of relatively cheap shipping so that trading up -- or trying out cables -- is quite reasonable. If you try to do this overseas the cost can quickly become unreasonable, alas.

Mcondon,
I have found that it takes a lot of buying and selling to come up with a solution that works for my system. This has meant going against "the grain" -- not opting for a loom from one maker. I have found that there are some excellent products from non-SR companies that produce extraordinary synergy in series with some SR products. Because my approach is unconventional and I live overseas it costs a lot more in shipping costs to put this together than if I were living in the lower 48. Making mistakes is very costly. There is loss through buying and reselling products as well as the loss on the cost of shipping them back and forth.

Studiosoundman,
I appreciate your post very much. It examines the interrelationship of various factors that inform our audio choices. As you rightly point out, we are compelled to improve the quality of sound that our systems produce. But I have found that most products, especially in the cable department, provide incremental improvement at maximum cost. This goes for most high end cable companies, IMO. You can burn a lot of cash trying to find out which are gems and which are not worth the price.

For instance, how does one evaluate a product such as the SR Galileo Universal Speaker Cells? I have not read a testimonial anywhere about them. I have had them in my system for over a year. They bring a refinement in the sound that is significant. But, in series with Bybee Golden Goddess SE Speaker Bullets, the effect is much more palpable. Alone, each product offers an significant incremental improvement.

How do I evaluate the cost-effectiveness of each of these products? Well, that's the $64,000 question. Although I would not want to listen to my system without this combo I would say both products are over-priced -- compared with some other cable/tweak products I have in my system.

One nice thing that the Speaker Cells allow me to do is add one more level of speaker cables. With the Cardas Golden Cross sandwiched between ASI Liveline and HiDiamond (top-of-the-line) the sound is incomparable. Bybee Speaker Purifiers are in there too. There are 6 levels of cables/tweaks between amp and speakers. Each level makes a significant improvement to the sound. This is not for everyone.

In my system, in the cable/tweak department, dollar-for dollar by far the biggest bangs for the bucks are the old Bybee Quantum Purifiers -- AC, IC, speaker -- and HiDiamond cables. The Bybee Ultra PC (on the aftermarket) also provides excellent value -- in series with other PCs with Bybee Purifiers sandwiched in the middle the sound is elevated to a much higher level.

The SR Hologram D is a killer PC -- but at a killer price. I have yet to try HiDiamond PCs -- coming soon. I have all my PCs in series and will try the Hologram D in series with HiDiamond after A/B-ing them individually. The quest for the best possible sound -- within a diminishing audio budget -- continues.