Dear JV, is it true that we should bypass ARC's rubber feet

TOGA -- Wed, 06/30/2010 - 10:16

Hi,
        I've read from somewhere that ARC gear's rubber feet should be bypassed by
using metal feet of some kinds. Do you find this true with your ARC gears ?
I just curious if this is true, why does ARC still keep using these kind of rubber feet.

                                                      Thank you
                                                       TOGA

Jonathan Valin -- Wed, 06/30/2010 - 12:27

TOGA,

In general, I've found that the lower the level of the signal a piece of gear is processing, the more important it may become to isolate it from vibration. Thus, phonostages and linestages may benefit a bit more markedly from tiptoes or other after-market support systems than, oh, amplifiers. (This doesn't mean, BTW, that amplifiers don't need "support," just that replacing their feet or trying to balance them on tiptoes isn't as beneficial--or as practical--as putting them on an amp stand that is itself equipped with tiptoes or spikes.)

HOWEVER, I also think you have to judge the results of after-market feet or stands by ear. When a component is "voiced," it is sitting on its own feet. In other word, those feet are part of the design. The sound the design team hears and approves for the marketplace is the sound of that unit and the support mechanism designed for it. That component (sitting on its feet) has, if I can revive a phrase that I used to use back in the Fi days, its own "resonant signature" and that signature is part and parcel of its presentation. Changing that resonant signature via after-market feet and stands (and after-market power cords, for that matter) means that you are, perforce, changing the way the product was designed to sound--you are changing its tonal balance and its dynamic response (where in the frequency range it stores and the speed with which it releases the most energy). With some gear this can be beneficial; with other gear it may be a mixed bag; and with some it may be an almost literal dead loss (killing a component's resonant signature can mean killing its dynamic liveliness--I've heard this very effect with more than one component on certain feet and stands). You have to listen for yourself and decide whether what you gain brings you closer to the sound of the real thing (or whatever sound that you are looking to get) or takes you further away from it.

With ARC gear in particular, I've generally found that adding tiptoes or spikes or roller-bearings to preamps makes their sound somewhat lighter in tonal balance and weight, slightly more limber in dynamic, and a bit brighter and more "detailed" (this, I think, because tiptoes tend to thin down the midbass and power range, making the upper mids and treble--where all those transients live--more prominent in the mix). I've sometimes preferred the sound with tiptoes, and sometimes not. For instance, I currently like the sound of the Reference 2 Phono on tiptoes, but I'm not as crazy about the sound of the Reference 5 on tiptoes, preferring it on its own feet.

I hate to be so non-committal, but as with everything else in audio, the benefit of after-market feet and stands is something you have to decide for yourself by listening.

Jon

JLeeMD -- Wed, 06/30/2010 - 15:24

I agree...every isolation device I've tried adds a sound of its own (Black Diamond cones, Golden Sound cones, Symposium Rollerblock Jr, others...). The Stillpoints Cones / Component Stand combo is the best that I've tried thus far but still exacts some tradeoff. This sort of tradeoff is similar to the dilemna I use to have with powercords (until I discovered Shunyata's).

TOGA -- Thu, 07/01/2010 - 13:43

Thanks a lot to both of you for very clear answers.
I don't have any toptoe at hands, just a few of Finite Elemente Cerabase.
TOGA

cod188@juno.com -- Thu, 07/01/2010 - 23:23

TOGA
As JV & JLee state, all these "tweaks" should be judged in the context of your system & ears.
But I will add arc spends a lot of time listening to their gear with the "stock rubber feet" (note they have a number of different styles and sizes based upon which ones sound best with a particular unit) and aftermarket isolation devices and with the exception of one preamp/line stage years ago (where they preferred some Black Diamond cones under it) they consistently feel their stock feet are the most "musically balanced" feet for their units. They do strongly recommend good stands for their equipment and agree all these things make a "difference" (though not always for the "better")
Also, arc finds, with exception of a few of the most ridiculously expensive power cords, the stock power cords are the most musically balanced they have heard. (I have played with some of the best from TaraLabs & Shunyata and find myself returning to the stock cords). They do recommend using Richard Gray Power Company “conditioners” in parallel (plugged into adjacent outlets instead of units plugged into the RGPC units).
My Ref CD8 and DSi200 both sit on stock feet and have stock power cords and have, to my ears, the “musical balance” of live music more so then when using isolation devices and aftermarket power cords. I have yet to play with RGPC units in my current system – other responsibilities & toys (more music software) to spend my hard earned cash on these days… But coming…
Happy listening Chris