Audio Tweaks - Tweak Ref. 385

Description		Disclaimer
Amazing speaker tweak

Reference #	Submitted by	Submitter rating	Cost
385	Mac	The Best	$5.00

Source		Brand
Totem Acoustics		Any large cone normally used as feet

Construction
U know those cones,about 1.5 inches high...many use them under CD players and other components,including speakers,well..try this.Truely amazing.

Setup
Put them on top of your speakers,starting with one on each,on the outside front corner...no adhesive,just plop them down.Listen to that,then move them back a bit,say a half inch at a time.What you will notice is that you can pretty well change many aspects of the speakers delivery.That is,you cannot of course change it's response,but you can alter depth and width considerably. I had been trying to get my speakers to disappear,and due mainly to room effects,was only having limited success.With this little tweak,and a bit of experimentation with placement,have come dang close.I use 2 cones on each speaker(Triangles)..and settled on a position(think of the top of your speaker as a clock face) at 10 and 12 o'clock,close to the edges).Widens and deepens soundstage a whole lot.

Use
The theory is,stolen from Totem Acoustics,that there are bunches of high frequencies hanging around the top of a speaker cabinet which mess up timing.The cones(called "Beaks" by Totem and selling for $80 a pair)break up the mess of highs,resulting in a less confused image.

Performance
I know...I thought it was too wierd too. But if U have some of these cones around and an hour to kill,try it.I noticed that while experimenting with positions,I could even focus the stereo image with the speakers toed OUT!There were some placements where everything sounded pretty muddy too,so play around with them (tho I must say,they do work best for me exactly where Totem says they would).

Other
I think this tweak may be useful for folks who really should have their speakers a little further out into their rooms,but can't due to kids,pets,size of room etc.

Comments

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Mac	Hey Boris... I just sent U a tweak...the cones on the speakers thing. You have got to try it.The most effective tweak of any I have ever tried.The folks trying to sell me $8000 Totems told me about their version,and i thought they were nuts. ....and went straight home to check it out! Cheers mac

Boris	Thanks for the tip Mac, and for taking the time to write about it in greater detail. I heard Totem Acoustics demo their "Beaks" at the Montreal show last couple of years, and their demo was convincing even in hotel conditions. Click her for a picture. I've got pannels at home so I really haven't tried such devices on top of my speakers. Nevertheless I'll give it a try with some BDR cones and report back. Thanks. Boris

John	The Eichmann Topper are also very good. You must experiment with placement because their suggestion of placing 3 close to the front baffle did not work best for me, i place them diagonally: 1 front left corner, 1 centered and 1 rear right corner.

Mac	Hi John Interesting that you say this...I just tried 3 diagonally on each the other night.Found it seems to focus vocals(mainly) and bring them forward a bit.I have noticed some of the effects are quite subtle,and other placements fairly significant,and not always to the better.I have these on some fairly high-end stand mounted bookshelves,and have heard from friends that placements on their floorstanders are often with the reverse results to mine.Hmmmm.I think there is definitly something going on here,what exactly I don't know...If I were more the analytical type I would figger out what.....sure is fun experimenting.

Morgan	have you tried the Mapleshade Heavyhats (either the .25 lb or the 1.5 lb) or the Heavyhats with the pointed base ? These are made of brass. Mr. Sprey seems to feel that brass gives the best sound of all the materials he has tried... aluminum, ceramic, titanium... the price for these looks very fair, the small one without points is only $9, the heavy one is $13, the same with the gripper points are $18 and $22 respectively. I have tested the super hard ceramic cones by Golden Sound. I love their golden sound mat and the squares made out of the same material. It is rather waxy, like a polypropylene mixed with graphite. To my ears, the most neutral sounding stuff in the industry, but not absorbing major vibration, only the micro stuff. They suggest putting their cones on the plastic squares but this produces a too bright sound for me. Since I had the cones and nothing to do with them I tried them on top of the speaker but it was not what I wanted. Then I tried them on top of my baby Cello amps. These are still among the best amplifiers ever manufactured within their power limits of about 60 watts. I set one cone in the middle of the amp towards the front and one towards the rear. This made a noticable improvement in clarity without over sharpening the sound. So it looks like you have to match the resonance of the cone material to the thing you want to improve.

Tony	Mac, Thanks for your suggestion! Am currently using the "plumb bob" as cones already but only one per speaker. Have placed them on the front outermost right corner of my left speaker and the other on the front left corner of my right speaker. Just to clarify, if i were to use two cones and locate them as you advised, would the 12 o clock mean the center outermost rear of both speakers while the 10 o clock placement should be on both speakers or will the other one be at 2 o clock for the other speaker? Appreciating your advise, thanks! rgds, Tony

Mac	For the left speaker,centre rear,front left(outside). For the right speaker,centre rear,and front right(outside). I have also had really good results with 3 on each in a diagonal line...for left speaker,rear inside corner,middle in the middle of the speaker,then outside front corner...mirror for the right side. This did narrow the soundstage,but brought lots of focus and more depth....Found this config great for small ensemble/vocal jazz,but a tad constraining for orchestra. I have just put up some bass tubes in the corners of my room,so read that one too.....I was very suspect of the results others have claimed,but not any more!