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Equipment isolation and vibration damping.


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So, this is all great reading, and I just happen to be playing with my old sets of Daruma 3 mkII roller bearing isolators on a pair of Omega Super Alnico monitors.

 

Sounds like I should attempt to remove one of the brass pieces and just use the ball with the brass cupped piece. This will be on my "must try soon" list!

 

And finally the question has to be asked.... What is the "best" ball material?? Brass? Titanium? Maple - other hardwood?? I do have a couple of sizes of maple balls coming this week to play with; either will fit into the cupped brass end of the Daruma... Cheap experiment!

 

Keep the great commentary coming!!

Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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Thanks Barry.... good to know about the Tungsten Carbide and Chrome Steel. I will have to check Grainger or similar if they have them in 3/8", 7/16", or 1/2" diameters. Any other known sources?

 

As for the maple, it cost me $6, after shipping, for 12 balls of two sizes, so mehhhh, we'll see what happens!

 

Cheers,

Mark

 

 

Hi 1markr,

 

In my view, the best ball will be the hardest and the smoothest.

The best I've heard are Tungsten Carbide but the price resulted in my deciding I was quite happy with Chrome Steel.

 

I would not deem wood an optimal material for such. Not hard enough and not smooth enough.

 

Best regards,

Barry

Soundkeeper Recordings

www.soundkeeperrecordings.wordpress.com

Barry Diament Audio

Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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Perfect! Thx Daudio...

 

 

Mark,

 

I got 3/4", 1/2", and 3/8" SS G25* balls off of Amazon. At the time they were very reasonable. I agree with Barry that the Tungsten Carbide balls are 'a bridge too far' :)

 

 

* (G25 - concentricity accurate to 25 millionths of an inch) (good enough for me)

Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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The top section is spherically cupped, and the bottom section is a straight edged cup, about a 1/4" deep.

 

I will experiment with just the spherical cupped end on the bottom, with the chrome steel ball on top, and the speaker siting on top of the ball. Only problem there is that the speaker has a slightly textured finish, which is not ideal for isolation based on everything mentioned in this thread. Won't hurt to try.

 

 

Checked them out at this Soundstage review. They look cool and not too expensive. Are the tops curved as well?

 

[ATTACH=CONFIG]19228[/ATTACH]

Review Summary

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[TD=width: 20%]Sound[/TD]

[TD=width: 80%]"The clarity of the music improved, the soundstage became more specific, and the bass seemed to tighten and become more authoritative."[/TD]

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[TD=width: 20%]Features[/TD]

[TD=width: 80%]Three pieces -- top, bottom and ball bearing -- that "float" components under which they are used, isolating them laterally.[/TD]

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[TD=width: 20%]Use[/TD]

[TD=width: 80%]Doug found them to work best under CD players; under solid-state electronics, "the changes range from, 'uh, maybe,' to 'yeah, perhaps.'"[/TD]

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[TD=width: 20%]Value[/TD]

[TD=width: 80%]"Is there any competition for Daruma 3-IIs in their price bracket?" "Their $99-per-set price is quite reasonable."[/TD]

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[/TD]

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[/TD]

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Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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That sounds reasonable Barry, and worth a try. I would think a smaller but thicker piece of marble would not ring like one with a larger area. Something like a 2"x 2" piece over each steel ball?

 

 

Hi Mark,

 

Try using a dead marble tile, smooth side down, under the speaker and atop the rollers.

The key is to find a very smooth tile that doesn't "ring."

 

Hold the tile at the corner using your thumb and forefinger. Hold it up near your ear and rap on its center with a knuckle on the other hand. A dull "thunk" is preferred over a distinct ringing pitch. (Warning: Folks at the tile store might look at you strangely. ;-})

 

Best regards,

Barry

Soundkeeper Recordings

http://www.soundkeeperrecordings.wordpress.com

Barry Diament Audio

Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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The Final Daruma 3-II s are pictured above, about 9 posts up or so, in YashN's post. Are you looking for something else? If you are, I'd be happy to post more pics...

 

I would keep the original 3 parts together, as the flat section is presumably smooth, where the bottom of your speakers are not, and the edges will keep the ball nicely contained.

 

I don't think it matters much whether the curved cup is on the top, or bottom. You can experiment, of course.

 

Could you post a picture or two of this device, when you get a chance ?

Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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  • 2 weeks later...

I would be interested in a 7075 set!

 

I've been emailing Mike at Ingress Engineered Products and discussed modifying his current design to have a 1" wide, shallow bowl. Assuming we can get enough people together for a group buy, he could do either $75 for a set of 6 in 6061 or $150 for a set of 6 in 7075 at 10 sets or $130/set at 20 sets. Interest? I'm interested in the 7075 and would go for 6 sets, I have a friend that would go for a bunch also.

 

Barry, if you have something better, let us know now!

AnotherSpin?

Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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So, having the situation where my speakers are textured and not smooth, I plan to use a 3/8" piece of marble as the hard surface. What would be the best way to couple the marble to the bottom of the speaker? Very thin double sided tape? I would prefer it to be temporary of course, and don't want to mar or damage the speaker surface. Any thoughts?

 

Absolutely.

 

If your equipment doesn't have a smooth bottom surface, then you would need an intermediate layer which isn't susceptible to ringing, and additionally, you will want your equipment to be coupled with that layer.

Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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Thx Barry!

 

Hi 1markr,

 

I found nice 1/2" tiles to use under my speakers and subs. I use a 1" maple ply platform between the tile and the speaker (maple because I like the appearance - the substance is plywood).

 

What I have found to work very well is the following:

 

1. Once you have the speakers optimally positioned and toed-in, temporarily put some tape on the floor to outline their footprint. Then move the speakers aside for a while.

 

2. Place a trio of roller bearings in the largest equilateral triangle pattern that will fit in each footprint. (I like to leave an inch from the edge for safety.)

 

3. Place the marble tile, smooth side down, atop the roller bearing balls. (Ideally, the tile will match, or be very close to, the size of the speaker's footprint.)

 

4. Place the plywood platform (also, ideally sized to match the speaker's footprint) atop the marble tile.

 

5. Carefully place the speaker atop the plywood. (The platform will "jiggle" if it is working properly.) No adhesive needed. No risk to the speaker's finish.

 

Hope this helps.

 

Best regards,

Barry

Soundkeeper Recordings

www.soundkeeperrecordings.wordpress.com

Barry Diament Audio

Metrum Onyx DAC, Matrix X-SPDIF2 DDC, Snake River Boomslang Digital cable, Verastarr Nemesis USB cable;

Backert Rhumba 1.2 Preamp; Coincident M300B Frankenstein mkII SET monoblocks

Omega Super Alnico HO Monitors (Cherry finish) / Martin Logan Depth i Subwoofer

Macbook Pro (mid-2012, 2.3GHz i7, 16Gb RAM, 512Gb SSD), HQPlayer, Tidal, Roon;

Cabling by Cerious Tech (Graphene SC, Blue PCs), Verastarr (IC and PC) and Teo Audio (GC IC)

 

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