Testing and embracing Stacore

[PeterA]

We challenge this statement with our solutions



Yes, but it must be a "quality mass" which won't as little as possible on its own. Hence all our advanced damping techniques.

Cheers,

Fair enough Jarek. Are you saying that each of the three different Stacore platforms is interchangeable between the components of that rack, or that each model is most appropriate for the component on which it is placed? It seems to me that the designs are slightly different depend on the load involved and on the particular function of the component.

Regarding "quality mass", I do notice that each of the heavy metal components in my SME turntable has its own dampening material on the underside. And my next project with my Vibraplanes is to experiment with a dampening layer between the ballast plate and the top plate of the unit itself.

 

[Stacore]

Peter, I'm saying that our platforms are surprisingly universal, presenting the same "Stacore effect" from component to component and from system to system. Bigger or smaller, depending on the individual conditions, but with certainty always there (Marc's power transformer is prob the biggest surprise).

Cheers,

 

[dcc]

It is time to report back on the sonic benefits of the Stacore rack.

Over the last days, I tried to isolate the influence of the Stacore combo on each key component: amplification, digital (DAC/CD/SACD player) and the turntable with the phono stage.

For assessing the impacts on the amplifiers, I used my tape deck, the faithful Studer A80 which, for obvious reasons associated to its sheer size, is not sitting on a Stacore platform.

I suspected that the amplification section would highly benefit of the Stacore solution. It is indeed the case: the floor noise has reduced, the bass are tighter and faster, the soundstage is more precise with more depth and width.

For evaluating the influence of the Stacore combo on my sources, I switched from the Krell power amps to the Tenor Audio stereo power amp that currently does not sit on a Stacore platform but on a Symposium platform located beneath the Studer. Though these amps have very different personalities, they are both excellent and I would not dare stating that one is better than the other. I just love the sound of both amps and I switch from the full solid state to the hybrid design depending on my mood or the type of music I am listening to. I tend to favor the Tenor on solo, chamber and small ensemble music but for Who’s Next, it will be definitely the Krell.

I am mainly an analog guy but digital is important to me as there is a lot of music that I love which is simply not available either on LP or tapes. I performed the tests with CDs, SACDs and high-resolution files under PCM format. Note that my heavily modified Aurender music server (3 box solution) does not sit on the Stacore combo but on a separate console bolted to the front brick wall and hidden behind the rack. In all three cases, the sound was substantially better.

I started with plain Red Book CDs playing some of my favorite pieces of classical music. The sonic improvements were less than subtle and in the same vein as the ones associated with the power amps. The digital experience is improved in all registers. On a CD that I have known for years (Jean Barrière’s Cello Sonatas by Bruno Cocset and Les Basses Réunies - Alpha), I discovered some details I never heard before. I got the same experience when spinning SACDs. The benefits of the Stacore combo were equally convincing when switching to the music server and using the TAD as a sole DAC. The TAD D600 is built like a tank with a thick copper plate on its bottom but still, as a player and also as a standalone DAC, it benefits from sitting on a pneumatic platform and the heavy mass rack.

The analog frontend i.e. the turntable and the phono stage had to be tested altogether. I already spotted that since the Allnic H3000V phono preamp had been sitting on the Advance platform, some minor microphonics I had in the past had disappeared. To me, the most dramatic positive impact is with the turntable. It is like a veil that has been removed - more of everything : a reduced noise floor, a pinpoint sound image, a better-layered soundstage, more micro details and as always tighter bass.

The combined benefit for the full system sitting on the Stacore combo is quite compelling. Coming from lightweight audio racks, I am now absolutely convinced that high mass damped designs are the way to go.

 

[spiritofmusic]

DCC, to say I'm impressed is an understatement.

Unfortunately I don't think I could have risked my loft floor w the c800kg aggregate weight, but I know you're getting the Stacore goodness writ large on multiple components.

I have some idea what you're experiencing, and FWIW my tt is running at a level unheard of before now it's safely on a Stacore Advanced.

 

[Tango]

I have been keeping my mouth shut not talking about the performance of my Stacore rack because doing a/b of super heavy objects is a no no for me. I don’t even know if my back will last by the time I am 60. I have been saluting what I hear from my AS2000 rig and did not mention enough Stacore because I can’t seperate what is what. Anyway this past week I listened to mainly my EMT rig which involves Ayon phono both sitting on CMS rack. I would say that if I just listen to the EMT rig alone I would have just been wow and go to sleep very happy. But once comparing the same music to the AS2000 rig which has EMT phono on Advance platform and Stacore rack, I know I will have to do more work on the EMT rig to get the kind of clarity and resolution available from the As2000 rig. Maybe the Stacore rack and platform didn’t get the credit they deserves.

Kind regards,
Tang

 

[flyer]

Well, I would also like to add my 'grain of salt', albeit a huge chunk as as a matter of fact.

After installing the rack at dcc's place, Jarek and Bogdan came to install a similar one in my room. As you see on the pictures, it does not have the same heights nor the same platform configuration as dcc's but it is part of the beauty! Even the finish is different. Whereas dcc's is semi-brilliant, mine is matt black thus matching very nicely the matt black sides of the Aries Cerat equipment.

Mind you, the configuration and placement of the equipment inside the rack is far from final, I am missing some platforms for the moment, can't live without anymore





I will come back with my listening impressions in a next post as for one reason or another the WBF message editor is really slow now...

 

[Audiophile Bill]

Guys - what is the price of the big Stacore rack in Euros?

 

[dcc]

DCC, to say I'm impressed is an understatement.

Unfortunately I don't think I could have risked my loft floor w the c800kg aggregate weight, but I know you're getting the Stacore goodness writ large on multiple components.

I have some idea what you're experiencing, and FWIW my tt is running at a level unheard of before now it's safely on a Stacore Advanced.

Not fogetting about 250 Kg of eletronics that have been added to the naked rack but the sonic improvement is commensurate to its sheer weight. I’ve been listening to high rez files since early this afternoon and there as well I am astonished by the sonic improvements brought to the DAC.

 

[Ron Resnick]

. . .
The Nothing . . . [has] isolated sections but our solutions to ground up isolation are different while serving the same purpose.

. . .

This is an interesting point.

If I understand it correctly the Stacor "leg-in-a-leg" design isolates the platforms supporting the components, and thus the components themselves, from the floor.

 

[ddk]

This is an interesting point.

If I understand it correctly the Stacor "leg-in-a-leg" design isolates the platforms supporting the components, and thus the components themselves, from the floor.

From what I understand the leg in leg dampens the structure but Jarek should explain it as he’s more familiar with the design. The air platforms perform the isolation duty.

david

 

[Stacore]

Ron, leg-in-a-leg first of all dampens the legs themselves (and by creating a highly damped high mass sections also the whole structure).
Plus there is some degree of decoupling from the floor too, although the main job here is done by the platforms.

Cheers,

 

[Ron Resnick]

Thank you, David and Jarek.

 

[dcc]

Pierre, the tech who is taking care of my Studer A80 came over to my place this afternoon. He knows my system pretty well and having worked both as a studio tech and recording engineer, he has a critical ear. He is not shy telling right in your face his thinking either positive or negative. Not only was he impressed by the build quality of the rack but equally he told me that the improvements he heard were substantial. Somehow it is reassuring that other people who know my system have a concurring opinion on the benefits gained with the new audio rack.

 

[spiritofmusic]

DCC, can you clear something up for me? The lowest two Stacores seem to be sitting on the floor, is that correct?
Or are they on the rack, but the rack at lowest tier level is not visible?
If I'm right and they're on the floor, why would you want that? Surely at the premium you're paying for the rack you'd want all six Stacores benefiting.

 

[dcc]

DCC, can you clear something up for me? The lowest two Stacores seem to be sitting on the floor, is that correct?
Or are they on the rack, but the rack at lowest tier level is not visible?
If I'm right and they're on the floor, why would you want that? Surely at the premium you're paying for the rack you'd want all six Stacores benefiting.

My floor is a very thick slab of concrete covered with ceramic tiles. According to Jarek, this is the best floor for vibration control. Stacore confirmed me that putting the lowest platforms on the floor or having them in a rack with an additional supporting frame would yield the same result. There is however a big difference. I am gaining 12 centimeters / 4.7 inches in height as the rack's feet and the supporting frame are respectively 8 and 4 centimeters high.

The total height is 112 centimeters / 44 inches which is perfect with the turntable sitting on the top. Being 5.8 foot tall, I didn't see myself needing a ladder for flipping LPs on the turntable.

With a suspended floor, I can understand that the lowest platforms would sit on a frame within the rack. This is the big advantage of the Stacore Custom approach. You get what you exactly need taking into account the idiosyncrasies of your listening room. I will spare you all the different iterations of design we went through before agreeing on a final one.

 

[spiritofmusic]

DCC, I don't expect you to fully reveal pricing. But had you ordered this rack w additional support for the lowest two Stacores, would it have added much to the price of the rack you ended up ordering?
Ie horizontal strutting to support those base Stacores off the floor.

I ask because in my suspended timber floor, I'd have needed the rack to cover all six Stacores.

 

[Stacore]

Marc, let me answer this as we did not touch the subject with dcc. There would be no price change - its a 3 tier rack. The reason is that in fact there is a bracing in dcc and Flyer racks at the very bottom, adding stability and rigidity to the whole structure. Its E shaped to open the space for the platforms so may not be visible on pics but its there

Cheers,
Jarek

Edit: dcc has a prototype frame which consumes a horrendous amount of time to make. Adding one more frame in that technology would add substantially to the price. We have evolved the design to make it more maneagable and price efficient where either E brace or a full one is the same effort so the price stays the same.

 

[flyer]

Well, I would also like to add my 'grain of salt', albeit a huge chunk as as a matter of fact.

After installing the rack at dcc's place, Jarek and Bogdan came to install a similar one in my room. As you see on the pictures, it does not have the same heights nor the same platform configuration as dcc's but it is part of the beauty! Even the finish is different. Whereas dcc's is semi-brilliant, mine is matt black thus matching very nicely the matt black sides of the Aries Cerat equipment.

Mind you, the configuration and placement of the equipment inside the rack is far from final, I am missing some platforms for the moment, can't live without anymore

View attachment 43684

View attachment 43685

I will come back with my listening impressions in a next post as for one reason or another the WBF message editor is really slow now...

As you can see on my original pictures above, the Stacore rack had three levels. But in my smallish room I found that acoustically such rack, due to its position, was influencing my acoustics too much.
So, I took off the top level, ordered an extra pair of feet and voilà, here is the end result. I do not only love the build quality of these racks as well as its very positive effect on sonics but now also its modularity!

 

[dcc]

As you can see on my original pictures above, the Stacore rack had three levels. But in my smallish room I found that acoustically such rack, due to its position, was influencing my acoustics too much.
So, I took off the top level, ordered an extra pair of feet and voilà, here is the end result. I do not only love the build quality of these racks as well as its very positive effect on sonics but now also its modularity!

Hi Michel,

This is really looking good! I guess that you are settled for now

Kind regards,

Denis

 

[adyc]

I’m not surprised. I never accept a three tier rack placed between speakers.