Neuance & Zoethecus,EMC-1UP & First Sound Preamp?

Mphnkns, how much do your monoblocks weigh? From what I remember Ken said something about the platforms not being able to support anything over 60lbs. Does he have a new design to accommodate heavier components? Correct me if I'm wrong. Thanks!

The amps weight 65 pounds. I remember hims saying to my partner that the platforms' ultimate weight had a little leeway. We definitely, when placing the order, indicated the amps were 65 pounds, so I assume, if he had a problem with it, we'd know by now.

The maximum load capacity for Neuance now exceeds 85 pounds.Beginning approx 2 years ago,the entire Neuance line has been quietly & systematically revised through the employment of newly developed materials which have expanded the product's versatility, improving performance and extending the load capacity range of each model in the line-up.

Best,
Ken Lyon
GreaterRanges/Neuance

I received my Neuance platforms here in Connecticut. The Hurricane mono amps were previously on a Zoethecus table wide enough for both amps (although they WERE pretty close to each other). When the Neuance arrived today, I placed the amps on them and put them directly on the carpet.
Can you say "jaw on floor"? The presentation was so much more obviously "there" as to make me think I'd been imbibing. My partner's eyes, when he heard it, went sideways.
Clinical observations: the Zoethecus had, indeed, been damping the dynamics, both macro and micro. Perhaps it was placing both the amps on the one table, but still.... The separation of instrumental sections is quite a jump - not "huge" (hyperbole only undermines a product)- but quite, quite obvious and, the airiness of the soundstage, seemingly a byproduct of the increase in transparency and the lowering of the noise floor, is like going from two dimensions to three dimensions. Not to mention the increase in transient attacks, dynamic nuance (ha, ha) and bass clarity is great. In fact, the bass instruments are much less hidden by the "muck" they are usually hidden in (on a so-so cd player, anyway). Oh, and the harmonics actually decay in a more complex manner. Quite a jump in "presence" for only $350.00. QUITE a jump.
We hadn't even thought the Zoethecus was affecting the noise floor (and maybe, again, it's having had two 65 pound amps on one Z-slab, but they said it was okay when we wrote them...), but I HAD noticed that it seemed higher than before. We had chalked that up to previously having the system in the basement on a concrete floor. We just assumed that the wood floor, being less flexible, would have a higher noise floor. The Neuance proved me wrong. It was vibration, pure and simple. How annoying not to have realized it before now. Oh well. This is one time I'm GLAD I was wrong. The partner feels the same. The most interesting thing is that the compositions now sound like music. Before it sounded a bit stilted, even in the basement. We actually forgot to analyze what was happening,and just LISTENED to the music. No more worrying about if the tube traps were aligned correctly, or the speaker was positioned to the nano-inch. I almost forgot what that was like...
Thanks, Ken. This is excellent, excellent work, and - dare I say it? -- a bargain. Can't possibly go wrong here.

I'm curious, have you tried placing the hurricanes directly on the carpet? I ask because I wonder how much of what you are hearing is the benefit of the Neuance and how much is the detriment of the Zoethecus. (I'm a Neuance enthusiast, by the way, but I like controlled experiments.)