What are you trying to tweak improve?

I got all sorts of tweaks going, but have been recently confused by the isolation tweak. I have my preamp and cd player on isolation points, then had shot on the top to help keep it stable, however I was recently told not to weigh down my components that are on isolation spikes, yet I have seen products sold for just such a purpose. Who is right? Or is this yet another thing in the audiophile world that doesn't have a concrete answer?

Mdomnick ... I'm far from the most technically-able guy here ... but it seems to me that dampening a component's chasis through mass is a time-honored method of increasing its stability and resistance to movement through vibration. This is half of the "trick" of the VPI Magic Brick (the other half being RF absorption). I would think that, provided the combined weight of the component and the added mass are within the weight limits prescribed by the cones' or spikes' manufacturer, that the added mass should help. But your suspicion is correct -- there are very few concrete answers here, and the ultimate judges of the effectiveness of the tweak must be you and your ears.

Regards,
Paul

Sol
I never used to care too much for cones but recently tried the new Mapleshade brass cones and heavyhats and like them very much. There seems to be something to the theory that brass works best, since when using both cones and heavyhats
I get increased resolution with very little tonal shifting which I found was the problem with most cones previously.

I normally use the two down, one up pattern for cones where the one up carries very little weight and basically balances other two cones. This is discussed at DH Golden cone site and seems to work good for me.

The Mapleshade triple point brass cones work even better, reducing contact area to a minimum but cost is much higher
but still pretty reasonable.

Interesting these Virtual Dynamics AC cords everyone is talking about actually attempt to control mechanical vibrations of component by special design features of the
AC cord connected to it.

I might add that the brass Mapleshade heavyhats do not add too much weight, I usually use 2-3lbs on each component, and edges have been radiused to reduce change of scratching gear.