They re-open since 2018 and did some re-designed to improve performance even better nowSo... back in business? Rumours of a few years ago told that the brand have closed the doors.
The Carbon fibre platform and Shelf are option that customer can pay for Extra performanceI believe the carbon fibre shelf is an optional upgrade.
The Carbon fibre platform and Shelf are option that customer can pay for Extra performanceBeautiful looking racks. Why is only one shelf carbon fibre, and what difference does it make over the wooden shelf?
Thank you.They re-open since 2018 and did some re-designed to improve performance even better now
I bet you are! The Mk1 offers absolutely outstanding performance and the MkII is a substantial further refinement using concepts known to work exceedingly well. Its one of the very few upgrades that I would make without even bothering to audition first thanks to the absolutely solid engineering underpinning the improvements.I bought last year the new Master Reference MK II and i am very happy
Very nice looking and great performance !!!I bought last year the new Master Reference MK II and i am very happy
i will. thanks.Hi Mike,
Buy yourself a stethoscope. Its super useful in finding any spike mis-adjustment.
perfect; that's exactly the type of insight i was hoping for. thank you. i figured there would be a learning curve to it.When it comes to components on the shelves. Take a very thin piece of paper like a till receipt, place it under one foot, then gently ‘lift’ the unit just enough to transfer any gap to the diagonally opposite foot while trying to slide the paper out. If there is any maladjustment the paper will slide out without resistance. If that’s the case, simply shim the back foot with paper until lifting (tilting) the unit has no effect.. In a four footed component, you need to test both front feet then make any adjustment on the diagonally opposite back foot. Having all 4 feet with the same contract pressure ensures optimium transfer of vibration from component to shelf, where it can be converted to work and heat. You’ll be surprised how much difference this makes sonically.
Regarding the rack itself…..I’ve owned 2 racks for close on 20 years and neither has required adjustment in spite of 2 international shipping events
Hi Mike, Great questions. But first a word of caution……when you put the stethoscope into your ears, the other end has now become ‘nitro glycerine ’ so when you put it down on the shelf, do it VERY GENTLY. You will hear the tiniest lack of contact between the shelf spikes and the frame. You need to place the stethoscope head gently onto the shelf then try to rock the shield across the diagonals. One of the 2 back spikes my need adjusting…this is where you use ‘cartridge’ like adjustments….you want NO movement.i will. thanks.
perfect; that's exactly the type of insight i was hoping for. thank you. i figured there would be a learning curve to it.
a question; these 4 MR-70 preamps are meant to be rack mounted so they have no footers built in, and no solid metal chassis case work. and their shape is more narrow than most gear, 17" x 9" with 1" rack mounting wings on the faceplate on each side. their bottom sides are not super solid, the same 'cage' material that is on the top sides. my plan was to only use 3 footers to eliminate the precise height issue, possibly even spikes. any thoughts about it. i am also thinking of using 3 Daiza panzerholtz tiny round hollow footers to give me a solid connection to the Pagode shelf top for energy transfer coupling.
i plan on adding some mass loading on top of each chassis with the cage material as the chassis to calm any resonance; Walker lead filled pucks.
each chassis is fairly heavy for the size; around 20 lbs, so there is some mass.
the 'captured' custom power cables are heavy for each one; and i will be plugging and un-plugging XLR cables as i switch from 1/4" to 1/2" tape. 2 of the pre's are for 1/4" tape playback and 2 for 1/2". will i be upsetting the 'set-up' when i mess with it? is it that sensitive?
the XLR's do plug and unplug without lots of pressure needed to get them seated, unlike RCA's.
thoughts for between the rack surface and the chassis bottom? 3 footers verses 4? spikes? something decoupling?
thank you. that gives me some context and a road map to help me. once the rack arrives and i get them assembled i will get back into all this information.Hi Mike, Great questions. But first a word of caution……when you put the stethoscope into your ears, the other end has now become ‘nitro glycerine ’ so when you put it down on the shelf, do it VERY GENTLY. You will hear the tiniest lack of contact between the shelf spikes and the frame. You need to place the stethoscope head gently onto the shelf then try to rock the shield across the diagonals. One of the 2 back spikes my need adjusting…this is where you use ‘cartridge’ like adjustments….you want NO movement.
With that done you can start placing your components but before you go ahead, bear in mind that the rack is just the middle part of a bigger process, so you need to get the interface right. The rack works in a certain way, so the way you interface to it should be as effective and efficient as possible. I would recommend that you get hold of Herr Fernandes at Finite Elemente. For sure he knows how to make the interface the best possible. I imagine their Ceraball range could probably fit the bill nicely. I used them under some BAT tube gear and they were great. You could also take a look ata set of Cerabases for the rack. If we’re talking preamps in a music chain, you’ll hear clear impacts and benefits from any vibration reduction. When the rack is working optimally, I think you’ll be very impressed with what it delivers.
In terms of how many footers, I‘m guessing that the optimal number will be 3. 4 may ‘ultimately’ sound better, but only if you can 100% guarantee good contact between component and rack and this sounds like that would be impossible so 3, for the stability and security benefits it endows.
The other possibility worth trying is a more ‘organic‘ approach with some Cardas golden ratio maple (I think) wood block footers. They look lovely, don‘t take up much height, don’t need much case area.
The final thing you mention are cable changes. The impact here is that you want the rack shelf to component ’interface’ to have a fairly high frictional resistance to movement so its doesn’t slide around when handled. You intend to weight them so there’s plenty of mass, so I would think something with reasonable surface area and high CoF as an interface, which again sounds like its in Ceraball territory.
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