Alan Maher CBFs

[TomM]

To all that ordered the Alan Maher CBF's ,they have arrived.Give a call or email.




 TomM

[BobM]

Are you bringing them to the Rave on Saturday at Rollo's  for those Ravers who placed an order?

[tmazz]

Yeah!!!   

New toys!!!

[rollo]

Are you bringing them to the Rave on Saturday at Rollo's  for those Ravers who placed an order?

  Tom will drop off the CBFs for those who ordered and will be at my place Sat. He has a previous engagement.
   


charles

[Lissnr]

   I'm already liking mine (CBF's) after 24 hrs...(yesterday) I'm wondering if it'll truly be a rollercoaster of improvement then degradation... back to improvement again??? I'd like to hear other people's opinions. It just hit 50 hrs this minute and I'm going to listen again...  This should be interesting.
BTW:  Here's where I placed mine (6 total)
 * I put one in my dedicated [10 outlet] box's main bundle. I didn't need to use wire ties or anything here, as there were a few wires in there snug enough for the CBF to wedge into nicely and stay secure...
 * I put one on the breaker leading from my house panel into my listening room making sure there was enough room for it to "throw" all the way if it had to trip, without smacking the CBF (It's a 2 pole 70 amp breaker leading to [the above] dedicated outlet box). I used velcro for this...
 * I put one wire-tied onto the connecting collar where the umbilical from my separate pre-amp power supply connects to the pre-amp itself (2 wire-ties, CBF sitting on top of the locking collar).
 * I have 2 rather large power conditioners, one is used exclusively for all my digital source components, (it's an MIT Z-Center); I put a CBF where the Z-center's main power cord enters it, (wire-tied similarly as the pre-amp umbilical collar but this time it was to the male end of its' power cord... ).
 * The last two I rigged identically: my power amps are mono blocs and each have their own wall outlets. Using velcro I attached the CBR's over the unused [top] outlet of each one...(I carefully hand-trimmed the velcro tape with scissors, around the perimeter of the outlet, only onto the wall plate, as I didn't want to get the sticky tape actually ON my hospital grade outlets...).
    For the record, I just got back from my 50 hr listen... no improvement from yesterday... in fact, maybe it's psychological but I may have had my hopes up too high expecting a lot tonight and I didn't get it. In fact, it was something of a let down... I wonder if the roller coaster is hitting some bumps and dips... I'll stay with it with my fingers crossed.

[topround]

I found that at first they would shrink the soundstage, but improved tone a bit, it took maybe a month for mine to truly open up.
I know they do something good, because there was a short period when I was not happy with my system.
One day putting clothes in the dryer I noticed my CBF had fallen off the circuit breaker and was on the floor.
I put it back and all was good again. I am sure there is some psychological aspect to this, maybe how much they improve things can be enhanced by the mind. But the change you hear when you first put them in is real.

Caveat:  I use a Shumann Resonator and love it, just to let you know where I lie on the tweak spectrum
so you my take what I say with a grain of salt.

Mike

[rollo]

Lissner.
           Be patient. At first you will hear a taste of what the outdome will be. Then the bass and soudstage go south for a while about 10 days. After that expect a rollercoaster ride of I love it I hate it.
    After 21 days like a switch was flipped heaven, your in heaven. Larger soundstage, clarity, air, bass images more clearly defined and a more natural tone especially the topend.

  charles

[Lissnr]

Thanks for the update guys...
  I can tell you that the "First taste" you mentioned was encouragement enough to be optimistic about the net results after the 3 weeks. If it really delivers as implied, I may be looking for some more...perhaps the signatures or ?? Here's a bit of a dumb question which I think I know the answer to but someone please humor me:
  Right now, as described I have 4 of the 6 locations with active current running-by/passing-along next to the CBF's (breaker, wire bundles, power and umbilical power cord), all feeding units that are actually 'on', or in [low voltage] stand-by mode...but I'm wondering about the 2 that are placed over the unused duplex outlets: those particular outlets get current passed to them when I turn my amps on, but this is only when I'm actually listening (otherwise tube amps stay completely off in my room), does that mean there is no current actually "Flowing" into those outlets when the amps are off? - and therefore the CBF's aren't getting their "break in time with the 'juice' " or is there some kind of 'constant electricity flow-loop' going on through all the wall outlets simply because they are 'live'? If there is no real flow, unless something plugged into them is turned on, would it then make sense to plug something into them like a small lamp or something, for the 21 days, instead of obviously wasting 3 weeks of power tubes at full bore... And if I do put a small lamp into the outlet(s) obviously I would have to remove the amp power cords because there's only one outlet open [due to the CBF covering the other!]. After 21 days or anytime I want to listen, I remove the lamp, plug in amps, listen, return lamps after listening...until day 21????   Otherwise, in theory, if the CBF's are only "Acclimating" with current going by, and the outlets don't 'flow' anything w/out being used... it could take months of listening at 'x' hours per day/week before 21days  x 24hrs per day is added-up worth of actual current time??? Get me???
 Do you know my wife actually knew about my obsessiveness BEFORE she married me and did it anyway?  Thanks for the input guys.
   BTW: when I mentioned using "wire-ties", that was actually my way of saying 'Zip-Ties' as in the photos on Alan's CBF site.
  Happy Lissn'n

[BobM]

There's noting "active" in the CBF's. They are only crystals in an oil bath inside a plastic housing. So I can't possibly explain in any technical terms what might be "breaking in". They seem to effectively treat/block EMI/RFI or some-such thing in the area around where they are placed.

Does a flowing current have an effect on this break-in? Who knows, since nobody can effectively explain what is actually happening for 21 days. However people have reported changes over that period, so something we can't explain effectively is occurring, and I doubt that it's the listener just getting used to it (or smoking too much dope, which some of those initial testers may have been known to do once in a while).

I would guess that since they are a passive device, obviously working in a passive fashion, that their break in would be effective whether current is active or passive. But maybe Alan can answer that question more directly, if asked.

[_Scotty_]

Silly question,if these boxes of rocks "absorb" high frequency noise why can't they be placed directly on a component and absorb any noise that might have gotten into the component from any direction instead of just the AC line. The other thing that would be possible for those who have purchased more than one of the boxes would be to start with one box on your power amp and then keep on adding one after another until the point of diminishing returns kicks in. Speaking as a long time collector of gems and minerals, quartz is the crystalline form of SiO₂ . Whether quartz occurs as a vein inside a mountain in "massive" form or as the commonly seen hexagon crystal form, the internal structure is the same. The quartz could be in the shape of pebbles and the sonic result would be the same as if it was pretty quartz "crystals".
If somebody tries this approach please post the results of your experiments.
Scotty

[richidoo]

Acoustic Revive makes several products containing quartz, for use absorbing both physical and metaphysical vibrations. They try to explain it on their website, but the explanations are not technical - how could they be? But I have heard so many positive comments from owners about their products that I don't question the veracity. The outlet cords are filled with powdered quartz, tourmaline and carborundum, supposed to be quite something.  It just comes down to, "It works, so don't worry how." Some people can go there, others can't. I vascillate between the two over time.
http://www.acoustic-revive.com/english/rd3/rd3_01.html
http://www.acoustic-revive.com/english/rtp/rtp_01.html

OT - Scotty, I collect minerals too. Do you have moldavite? Lepidolite? Some of my favs, from a metaphysical perspective.  

[_Scotty_]

I've got a Lepidolite specimen but no moldavite. I do have a small Campo del Cielo meteorite which is kind of neat looking. I would like to get a specimen of the Sahara Desert glass.
Scotty

[BobM]

I saw a post somewhere that listed the various places to put the CBF and the expected change that that location should produce. I'm pretty sure Alan posted it himself, but I can't find it now.

Can someone provide a link to that listing or, Alan, could you please repoest it here?

Thanks

[evan1]

http://twitter.com/AlanMaherDesign

[BobM]

Thanks Even. Has anyone tried these over speaker binding posts? Any effect? I thought I saw someone try this successfully over a tweeter magnet, but I can't be sure.

Applications:

1. Main Wire bundle inside the service panel prior to the main breaker - use zip-tie (lower panel noise)
2. Circuit breaker - use double stick mounting tape on either bottom or side of breaker (increased dynamics)
3. Over spare AC outlet of AV duplex - use double stick mounting tape (increased resolution and dynamics)
4. AC male - use zip-tie (increased bass performance)
5. AC male and IEC - use zip-tie (increased dynamics and openness)
6. Centered over small transformer (increased tonal purity)