Ground box

Ground boxes are not made the same, full stop. You can imagine these guys' tireless trial and error to get the product right. The quantity, the composition, the size and type of minerals, precisely, these are the formula. Many argue its effectiveness, may your argument stays in your head, everything will be answered if you just try one in your system. Listening is believing. Let the sound convince you. And I'm not going to lie that ground box is essential, for me of course, especially if you can't afford power conditioners.

We expect a cleaner background with ground boxes, busting electrical buzzing. Naturally, improved articulation is at sight. I never expect it as a tone control. Oh! Before I forgot, always buy the biggest ground box, the cost is well justified. This conclusion is drawn after repetitive with and without the ground box. I like what it does to the sound. Until I came across a guy in a forum, his scrupulous works on his ground box caught me attention. Well, what's the heck! I thought I give it a try since it's not expensive. There I was, I didn't wait long to have my hand on it. 4 days later the ground box is at my door, the Chinese efficiency by any standard is admirable. The world has every reason to worry about China's productivity, at the height of capitalism. Efficient use of resources.

A new ground box in hand, without any delay, I replaced the old ground box right at the same spot for a direct comparison. Holy Mackerel! I can't believe what I've heard. So good that my impetuousness urged me to get another one, quick-quick! Even at the height of the coronavirus pandemic in China, the city was in lockdown, people weren't allowed to work, the supply chain was broken, in spite all the hurdles, he shipped his last unit out to me. Let no one escape, I got ground boxes to serve each of them. Perfect.

If you're still reading up to now, you will know that I like my new ground box by a wide margin. Warmth, I didn't see it coming. Where the hell it comes from? Entreq explains that our grounding couldn't get rid of home appliances' high-frequency noise and stay voltages. Our grounding is overloaded or not constructed to handle these millivolt currents of very high frequencies effectively. Instead, they flow around in our system. These stay voltages often generate very large magnetic fields that pollute the sound.

Even at the distribution box, the best result comes from the front end. I arrived at an optimal result with a respective new ground box at cd player and buffer, the old one to the amp. Believe me, I've tried them at all different places. Pinch me if I feel pain, I'm not in a delusion. The first impression of intuition never goes wrong. The mids sounded so good. Voices have a human quality, emotive, reaching deeper into the heart. While I don't deny that it's a colouration, the voices have that a little more "tangibility", more presence. For all you know, I have no penchant for hi-fi-ish sound, cold, super-extended and rather emotionless, I want a world-class mid. The old ground box never gives me that kind of intimacy but accentuates the highs and extension.

To begin with, my mids isn't solid-state papery lean. I got small tubes in the audio chain. Tubes are a lovely colouration as opposed to stone-cold solid-state, hands down. Three ground boxes, they got my background darker. But the diminishing return is nonetheless evidenced with the following addition, I'm afraid.

Why new ground box is superior? It must be the single run cable for grounding, minimum connectors. It's my belief that the more connectors along in the chain, the greater sonic degradation regardless of the quality of connectors. Connectors are bad but we can not do without them. The signal passes through from the connectors to the solder that holds the cable, to the solder and of course, the connector again at the other end. Signal contaminations. That's why I prefer not to have my amp modified to IEC socket to allows third party power cord. In addition, my speakers are highly efficient. My primary concern is to preserve signal integrity. As you can see, my belief goes against the mainstream, the latter triumphs in terms of power and scale for their moderate speaker efficiency, their systems benefit from power. Given many stages of amplification, it works for them. Many have reported silver grounding cables better either copper or silver coated cables, I couldn't confirm this. Sorry.

Ground box is a low cost and high impact solution, heartily recommended. Doing away electrical buzz is a big deal, you will love it.

Harmoniser in action

Earth pulse

Schumann resonance, the link is an excellent write up, care for a read? Earth cavity produces very specific pulsations, an earth pulse of 7.83 Hz. NASA came up with the calculation. The scientists discovered that indeed there is a correlation between Schumann Resonance and brain rhythms, a deeper states of consciousness. Hence, all living things maintain good biological health if their brain electromagnet waves synchronize with earth pulse, 7.83Hz and the related frequencies power factor to 7.83, it goes on as to 13.7, 19.6, 25.5, 31.4, 37.3 and 43.2Hz.

Don't ask me

This subject, earth pulse is too heavy for my uneducated brain to explain. Hence, I will not try to explain what is already not completely understood by me. What and how this earth pulse things affect our audio is the matter I would like share with you folks using my set of ears. I do not have the best set of ears but chances are you will hear what I hear.

DIY unit

Housed in a PVC casing of 155mm x 110mm x 45mm, it weights less than 200gm. this harmoniser is a passive component that radiates 7.83Hz resonance. Powered via 12V DC via adaptor, no indicator light on the box itself. You need to peep through to the air ventilation hole of the box to see if there a red bulb lighting. Not commercially available, I just got lucky able to get three. This thing induces a deeper relaxation that will to put you to sleep!!!

The harmoniser works better than sleeping pills. Using one in my bedroom, guess what? I sleep like a baby, my wife complained that it gives her headache. It goes to say, different individual responds to things differently. The irrelevance stops once you turn your audio on.

chances are you will hear what I hear

Like an ioniser machine, you feel a breeze of fresh air akin to the air near waterfall or lightning, you smell something reminiscent of chlorine. You do feel immediate changes in the ambiance when this harmoniser is on. It is difficult to describe with my limited vocabulary. More about harmoniser later.

I was advised that two is ideal and two it is. Strange enough, I feel like I am in a dark mines under the earth, stuffy. It was an eerie experience. The first emanating of sound wave sounded vastly different. To avoid concluding hastily, I took time to digest by revisiting some familiar CD and turn on and off repeatedly to reaffirm my assessment.

Works best on hard surface

Track after track I play, slowly and surely, I noticed there is a change in sound quality whilst the timbre largely remained unchanged. I started with two harmonisers in my small sound room and found two is too many of good thing. I felt "suffocated", uneasy and heavier chest in 10 minutes. Moving further away reduces the uneasiness. More is needed for a bigger room. I know someone is using 5 units in a 20' x 28' x 11' room, and I feel normal in that room.

I started experimenting the positioning of the harmonizer. I tried left and right, front and back positioning, placing them side by side at the plane of the speakers. The size of the room and the distance the harmoniser to the seating arouse different degree of uneasiness. In the end, I placed the harmoniser down the middle close to the front wall which is about 12 feet from my seating. The following report is based as per se.

Playing the excellent Jack Johnson's Sleep through The Static folk pop album,  I'd describe in one word "organic". I like the live ambiance as opposed to studio recording. This album is recorded via solar power, I have no idea if it will sound cleaner. Guess what? This album is mastered is by Bernie Grundman, you can expect a certain quality to it. Studio recording is too clean and too dead for its own good. This particular album is relatively uncompressed except a little at the kick drum.

The difference between hi end and mass market speakers is sound quality, timbre and texture. What I gathered is the harmoniser transforms goose bumps texture to normal skin texture, less hairy, less char, applied a smoother texture. As if a gush of fresh air cleansing the unwelcoming sonic fog, the harmoniser removes the fog that I did not know it exist, I thought I have removed those nasty fog long time ago, shame on me!!!! The harmoniser consistently lets you hear more into the recording. Jack's resonating of strings, acoustic guitar and the ushering of decay is breath taking. What more to ask? The vocal was clear and articulate. The slight huskiness of Jack's vocal is reserved. I could hear the tape splicing of this album.

The presentation was more effortless. You do know, effortlessness does not come by easily. The unhurried quality is to be heard to appreciate. I heard that from vintage speakers and vintage low power electronics, not mass market gears. It is a statement of finesse. No, not in the expense of dynamic. Micro and macro dynamic are intact.

The bass ranged from 100Hz downward benefited the most out from the harmoniser. Whilst the highs and mid sounded nimble, the bass received a make over. The harmoniser accorded a certain degree of fullness and extension to the bass. It adds weight and scale. Turn it back on, the extension is restored. The plucking of double bass is snappier than before, the pumpkin bass has been revitalised. A new found bounciness, the Q-ness like silicone elasticity.This is indeed a good news to bass deficient system. But knowing audiophiles, they will never have enough with bass. The more the merrier.

The harmoniser renders a more airy and spacious presentation. Light off, the soundstage is perceived to be extended beyond the concrete walls. I prefer light off for all electrical appliances generate EMI and recycle back into the power. The culprit, EMI is the mother of nuisance, get rid of this promises a new level audio elevation.

The banker facial reaction

You might doubt I make thing up, the shrewd door guy called me early in the morning says to cross check his experience. He wanted two more. The high spirited banker was cursed by the harmoniser, expressed a funny facial expression - raises eyebrows, popped eyes, rounding lips and in state of ecstasy. I bet he could not recall his name at that moment. Even the contended KF also jumped and wanted one after 10 seconds into the music. As I always say KF is very geng (good). He will fall asleep and snore if he did not like what he hears.

No eye candy, listen without prejudice

The harmoniser is one important component in my audio must have list, it stays there. NOBODY TOUCHES THEM unless I say so.