Dreamer
Classified Forum Moderator
(I just want to reassure y'all that other than buying these cones form this guy, I have no affiliation with his business, and am offering this review for the information and edification of the members of this forum.)
I bought these cones off EBAY a few weeks ago, (actually I bought 8 sets). They are made in Austrailia, and are high-fired ceramic cones, about 1.5" high, and almost 2" wide at the top. They are not solid, and the walls are about 1/4" thick, which makes them VERY light. They have a glossy white finish on the outside, with a logo fired into them that looks like a signature (I can't really read it, but it looks like it says RA design labs). I got them for a price of $14.95 each set of 3 (plus shipping). Compared to other ceramic isolation cones, I figured if they do ANYTHING at all positive, they were a bargain. His shipping was VERY quick, and they come in pretty spiffy litte boxes.
These cones were under my Oppo for about 2 weeks before I really got a chance to listen for any improvements. Today I had some time to just sit and listen critically, soI listen to Patricia Barber's "Mythologies", Frank Zappa's "Apostrophe", an Diana Krall's SACD "Girl In The Other Room".
I'm not a big fan of Patricia Barber. Although "Mythologies" is a fantastic recording from a technical standpoint, and Barber has a unique and sonically beautiful voice, her songs give me the impression that she's sort of a Suburban princess who's always wanted to be cool, and so she writes songs that sound like a Yale Sorority woman trying to do Zappa. I bought this CD on the recommendatio of several members of this forum, and after listening to it 2 or 3 times, I put in the back of my shelf. It may be a good reference, but I just don't dig Barber. Or so I thought...
All that said, this listen was much more engaging and interesting. I don't know what it is, but there is something DIFFERENT this time around. Perhap the bass is a little tighter. Perhaps the mids are a tiny bit more lush and airy. Perhaps the highs are just a little more clear and open. I can't really put my finger on it, but there is just a whole level of annoyance that is not there anymore for me.
I still don't dig Barber, and I still think she's a little pretentious, but aat least it's not as annoying to me now, and I can get past that and just enjoy the music...
Zappa's "Apostrophe" is one of my favorite Zappa discs of all time. The reason why I put it in next is because as I said aboce, Barber reminds me of Zappa, done badly. WOW. Now here I can see (er, uh, hear?) what it is. These cones are letting the Oppo really open up. There is a purity in the mids that was sort of veiled before, and a slight increase in the authority of the bass. nothing dramatic, mind you. This is one of those incremental improvements that is sort of hard to nail down, but you KNOW that is sounds somehow better. The acoustic space is clearer and very open. I'm not getting that pinpoint soundstaging that some audiophiles get with their Wilsons or Sonus Fabers, but as an ML owner, I don't really like that sound. What I'm hearing is a slight increase in the sharpness of instrument and voice locality, with better definitions on their "edges". It's hard to describe, but my ears know there is a difference. And the bass is tighter, just a tiny bit.
Diana Krall, "Girl In The Other Room". Well, I think it is safe to say that this disc is quickly becoming a "reference disc" for many ML owners, and perhaps for many other audiophiles in general. It's a fantastic technical recording, a luscious performance, and Krall has such emotion and pace that it's hard NOT to be completely engaged in the songs. I'll admit that in my system, this is one of the few discs where I have to adjust the "tone" controls on the pre, because the bass is sometimes a little too BIG, so I started off with the tones backed off one click as usual. About 30 seconds, I realised that this didn't sound right, and put them back to their "neutral" position, and...sweeeet. Now that is was an upright bass sounds like! Finaly, this disc sound just perfectly balanced. And the breath in Kralls vocals has a sensual, almost erotic sound that is just a little too real, if that is possible. The cymbal work is light and airy, and the piano has a little more dimension to it too. "Temptation", which has become my numero uno reference track has a slightly more defined, slightly tighter, and slightly more open sound. The soundstage isn't really any bigger, but is it sharper and perhaps a little deeper. "Narrow Daylight" has a simple sweetness with a tinge of sadness, and is another of my favorite tracks on this disc. There seems to be just a little more of that "special something" in this track now. Not a big change, mind you, just a tiny bit more emotion and tension and calculated restraint that just pulls you in.
So my conclusion is that perhaps these little cones are a GREAT bargain. You're probably not going to hear a mind-blowing difference in your system. But in my system, I do hear $14 worth of improvement (perhaps even more!) so I think they are a good deal. I know they make more difference than the small DH Cones I had under the Oppo, at about 1/2 the cost. Perhaps they are not as versatile as the big Isopods I have under my amps and pre because they might not support heavier components, but the Isopods are no longer available, and were $90 for a set of 3...
And because of the way they are made (hollow and thin ceramic) you might not want to put these cones under a Plinius or Krell or Pass amp, or ANY ML speakers, as they might not be able to handle the weight. But for CD/DVD players, preamps, processors, and the like, I would recommend these to all you budget-minded tweakers without reservation. And for you deep-pocketed tweakers out there, I'd suggest grabbing a few sets too, because you can use them to **** off your other cost-is-no-object buddies when you tell them they were 1/10th the cost of a set of large DH cones, or 1/20th the cost of the Goldmund Reference cones.
Anyway, Pic #1 is a close-up of one of the cones, held in my hand for scale. You can see into the top of the cone, to see how they are made.
Pic #2 is a set of 3 cones, with their packing box, and a Zippo lighter for scale.
Pic #3 is the cones under my Oppo.
--Richard
I bought these cones off EBAY a few weeks ago, (actually I bought 8 sets). They are made in Austrailia, and are high-fired ceramic cones, about 1.5" high, and almost 2" wide at the top. They are not solid, and the walls are about 1/4" thick, which makes them VERY light. They have a glossy white finish on the outside, with a logo fired into them that looks like a signature (I can't really read it, but it looks like it says RA design labs). I got them for a price of $14.95 each set of 3 (plus shipping). Compared to other ceramic isolation cones, I figured if they do ANYTHING at all positive, they were a bargain. His shipping was VERY quick, and they come in pretty spiffy litte boxes.
These cones were under my Oppo for about 2 weeks before I really got a chance to listen for any improvements. Today I had some time to just sit and listen critically, soI listen to Patricia Barber's "Mythologies", Frank Zappa's "Apostrophe", an Diana Krall's SACD "Girl In The Other Room".
I'm not a big fan of Patricia Barber. Although "Mythologies" is a fantastic recording from a technical standpoint, and Barber has a unique and sonically beautiful voice, her songs give me the impression that she's sort of a Suburban princess who's always wanted to be cool, and so she writes songs that sound like a Yale Sorority woman trying to do Zappa. I bought this CD on the recommendatio of several members of this forum, and after listening to it 2 or 3 times, I put in the back of my shelf. It may be a good reference, but I just don't dig Barber. Or so I thought...
All that said, this listen was much more engaging and interesting. I don't know what it is, but there is something DIFFERENT this time around. Perhap the bass is a little tighter. Perhaps the mids are a tiny bit more lush and airy. Perhaps the highs are just a little more clear and open. I can't really put my finger on it, but there is just a whole level of annoyance that is not there anymore for me.
I still don't dig Barber, and I still think she's a little pretentious, but aat least it's not as annoying to me now, and I can get past that and just enjoy the music...
Zappa's "Apostrophe" is one of my favorite Zappa discs of all time. The reason why I put it in next is because as I said aboce, Barber reminds me of Zappa, done badly. WOW. Now here I can see (er, uh, hear?) what it is. These cones are letting the Oppo really open up. There is a purity in the mids that was sort of veiled before, and a slight increase in the authority of the bass. nothing dramatic, mind you. This is one of those incremental improvements that is sort of hard to nail down, but you KNOW that is sounds somehow better. The acoustic space is clearer and very open. I'm not getting that pinpoint soundstaging that some audiophiles get with their Wilsons or Sonus Fabers, but as an ML owner, I don't really like that sound. What I'm hearing is a slight increase in the sharpness of instrument and voice locality, with better definitions on their "edges". It's hard to describe, but my ears know there is a difference. And the bass is tighter, just a tiny bit.
Diana Krall, "Girl In The Other Room". Well, I think it is safe to say that this disc is quickly becoming a "reference disc" for many ML owners, and perhaps for many other audiophiles in general. It's a fantastic technical recording, a luscious performance, and Krall has such emotion and pace that it's hard NOT to be completely engaged in the songs. I'll admit that in my system, this is one of the few discs where I have to adjust the "tone" controls on the pre, because the bass is sometimes a little too BIG, so I started off with the tones backed off one click as usual. About 30 seconds, I realised that this didn't sound right, and put them back to their "neutral" position, and...sweeeet. Now that is was an upright bass sounds like! Finaly, this disc sound just perfectly balanced. And the breath in Kralls vocals has a sensual, almost erotic sound that is just a little too real, if that is possible. The cymbal work is light and airy, and the piano has a little more dimension to it too. "Temptation", which has become my numero uno reference track has a slightly more defined, slightly tighter, and slightly more open sound. The soundstage isn't really any bigger, but is it sharper and perhaps a little deeper. "Narrow Daylight" has a simple sweetness with a tinge of sadness, and is another of my favorite tracks on this disc. There seems to be just a little more of that "special something" in this track now. Not a big change, mind you, just a tiny bit more emotion and tension and calculated restraint that just pulls you in.
So my conclusion is that perhaps these little cones are a GREAT bargain. You're probably not going to hear a mind-blowing difference in your system. But in my system, I do hear $14 worth of improvement (perhaps even more!) so I think they are a good deal. I know they make more difference than the small DH Cones I had under the Oppo, at about 1/2 the cost. Perhaps they are not as versatile as the big Isopods I have under my amps and pre because they might not support heavier components, but the Isopods are no longer available, and were $90 for a set of 3...
And because of the way they are made (hollow and thin ceramic) you might not want to put these cones under a Plinius or Krell or Pass amp, or ANY ML speakers, as they might not be able to handle the weight. But for CD/DVD players, preamps, processors, and the like, I would recommend these to all you budget-minded tweakers without reservation. And for you deep-pocketed tweakers out there, I'd suggest grabbing a few sets too, because you can use them to **** off your other cost-is-no-object buddies when you tell them they were 1/10th the cost of a set of large DH cones, or 1/20th the cost of the Goldmund Reference cones.
Anyway, Pic #1 is a close-up of one of the cones, held in my hand for scale. You can see into the top of the cone, to see how they are made.
Pic #2 is a set of 3 cones, with their packing box, and a Zippo lighter for scale.
Pic #3 is the cones under my Oppo.
--Richard
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