Massif Audio Design racks incoming, and......

[T Boost]

Mine, all north-American walnut.View attachment 119867
View attachment 119868

Yours was gorgeous Jeffrey

 

[analogsa]

Have to admit I am a little baffled by this thread. Ok, gorgeous wood perhaps, but how do these racks counter the overbearing sonic signature of wood? From the pics its impossible to tell. Magic footers do all the work?

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Have to admit I am a little baffled by this thread. Ok, gorgeous wood perhaps, but how do these racks counter the overbearing sonic signature of wood? From the pics its impossible to tell. Magic footers do all the work?

my current system has a wood layer for every single piece of gear support. every Adona rack surface is a granite/cherry wood sandwich. my 5 Tana platforms have a 10mm panzerholtz layer plus a panzerholtz Daiza. and 15 other Daiza's under my gear. my whole room including the ceiling is hardwood paneling and hardwood flooring over concrete. my speakers are 2000 compressed layers of Baltic Birch.

there is wood every damn ware. which i have managed to synergize. i don't see the Massif as any more extreme in approach than the Adona.

will i need to tune things differently with the Massif? if i do then fine. footers are just.....footers. i'll also have the stock Massif footers to try if need be.

how is an all metal rack not also a problem? or layers of inch thick steel or copper? the answer is always 'it depends' on the details and execution. all my gear sits on a Granite surface; is that suppose to be ok?

i see your point, hope you see mine.

a relatively soft sounding wood rack on a suspended floor and left naked? that would be an issue.

 

[the sound of Tao]

Everything has some kind of resonant profile or characteristic… ultimately it’s just whether it’s beneficial or not and that always comes down to individual context.

 

[MRJAZZ]

The Massif racks are beautiful — enjoy them! It is nice to see wood racks receive some love and respect in this thread. I went in a similar but different direction with SRA which does not offer the same unique wood selections and artistry as Massif but I liked the simplicity of the aesthetic. When I needed a second, smaller rack, I looked for a more modest price point and was able to match the appearance very closely from Timbernation. I don’t know if it matches the functional results of SRA (or Massif) but it works for me.

View attachment 119819

What's the black material sitting on each of the shelves on both of your racks?

 

[Nathanu]

What's the black material sitting on each of the shelves on both of your racks?

Please feel free to contact me directly. I don't want to hijack this thread to make it about SRA or Timbernation. I was just trying to show my appreciation for wood racks generally.

 

[Elliot G.]

when you have as much gear as i have it's daunting to consider (the $$$'s for) beautiful high end audio racks. for over a decade i've been very satisfied with my cost effective and solid performing Adona Zero GXT racks; i have 4 of them. and this past year i added a used Finite Element Pagoda rack for my Ampex MR-70 tape preamps.

i'm excited to say i've found a rack builder in Canada who has completed and should ship to me in about a week, a set of three racks for me to replace all my current racks. while not exactly cheap, it's not too crazy after i sell my still current model Adona Zero GXT racks. i'm getting one four shelf single (22" x 19") rack for my MR-70 tape pre's, and twin three shelf double (42" x 19") racks for the rest of my source gear. these racks are solid hardwood and absolutely beautiful. i think in my all-hardwood maple paneled listening room the look should be stunning.

the racks are from Massif Audio Design in Ontario, Canada. i'm also auditioning one of their record weights, this one is solid Lignum. i've been using it now for over a month and love it everywhere i try it. more on that later.

the solid hardwood shelves are about 1.75 inches thick maple, and the 3" thick legs are solid Bubinga. all clear stained. footers will be Nordost Sort Fut w/Sort locks. 3 sets of 4 of these gems (not cheap...ouch!!!). with the (1) high mass and (2) solid build, along with (3) the Nordost footer system, i expect my rack performance to improve, and the aesthetics to be much more enjoyable to live with.

so far i only have pictures of the single rack assembled.......i choose the clear maple stain to allow my gear which is mostly dark or black to stand out on the shelves. right now with my black granite shelving the gear blends in and you hardly see some of it.

View attachment 119438View attachment 119439View attachment 119440View attachment 119441

i have racks that look like that but are made in the USA/ Probably not as good and certainly less expensive but I like the look of furniture rather than the high tech audio stuff.

 

[Rumpole]

It would be interesting to see test results on wood audio racks, if that has been done. Colt Capperrune did a nice comparison of cinder blocks vs Sound Anchor stands vs Sound Anchors with ISOAcoustics Pucks.

 

[timztunz]

Very happy for you Mike. I'm a big fan of Trevor and Massif. I had a custom built rack from him exported from Canada to our house in Brazil. The export/import process turned out to be more than I bargained for, but the result is stunning. Trevor has always gone out of his way to make sure everything was perfect.

 

[T Boost]

Very happy for you Mike. I'm a big fan of Trevor and Massif. I had a custom built rack from him exported from Canada to our house in Brazil. The export/import process turned out to be more than I bargained for, but the result is stunning. Trevor has always gone out of his way to make sure everything was perfect.

I’m “borrowing” those pics!

 

[timztunz]

I’m “borrowing” those pics!

You're more than welcome to them!

 

[spiritofmusic]

Best part about Massif…Trevor is a mensch and a true music fan. Seems to have an encyclopedic knowledge of metal. Not many manufacturers can discuss the relative merits of Cannibal Corpse and Opeth

Ask him what wood choice suits Neil Peart's drums the best.

 

[Mike Lavigne]

Very happy for you Mike. I'm a big fan of Trevor and Massif. I had a custom built rack from him exported from Canada to our house in Brazil. The export/import process turned out to be more than I bargained for, but the result is stunning. Trevor has always gone out of his way to make sure everything was perfect.

Thanks Tim, love the pictures, rack looks great. My racks ship today I’m told. Delivery next week sometime.

 

[timztunz]

Thanks Tim, love the pictures, rack looks great. My racks ship today I’m told. Delivery next week sometime.

I’m anxious to see them integrated into your amazing space. I love wood and think they’re going to look great. I hope they perform equally well for you. One thing is for sure, you have the ears and gear to know. Hope my envy is not TOO obvious.

 

[howiebrou]

The Massif racks look really good. I will be following with interest on how they sound in your room Mike. I went the SRA route more than a decade ago.

 

[bazelio]

The Massif racks look really good. I will be following with interest on how they sound in your room Mike. I went the SRA route more than a decade ago.View attachment 120621

What is the material used for the shelving itself on the SRA? Is that granite?

 

[KeithR]

I’m a bit puzzled on the design - are the legs just slotted for the racks? I wish it was a smoother, connected look ala Box or SRA.

 

[howiebrou]

What is the material used for the shelving itself on the SRA? Is that granite?

I don't really know. It feels like some sort of man made stone with a dash of snake oil.

 

[Nathanu]

I don't really know. It feels like some sort of man made stone with a dash of snake oil.

Your description is consistent with the vague language on the SRA website; however, the owner (Kevin Tellekamp) has a serious physics and engineering background. According to Tone Audio Magazine: ‘His “day job” involves solving vibration-related issues for NASA and the US Military”.

 

[howiebrou]

Your description is consistent with the vague language on the SRA website; however, the owner (Kevin Tellekamp) has a serious physics and engineering background. According to Tone Audio Magazine: ‘His “day job” involves solving vibration-related issues for NASA and the US Military”.

I think most rack descriptions are pretty vague. It was more a tongue in cheek remark. Whilst I have never actually compared the SRA to other brands, it works for me.