{"id":4601,"date":"2014-08-24T14:18:53","date_gmt":"2014-08-24T12:18:53","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/?p=4601"},"modified":"2021-04-19T13:23:38","modified_gmt":"2021-04-19T11:23:38","slug":"artesania-platforms-and-dampers-part-1","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.hifi-advice.com\/blog\/review\/accessories-reviews\/racks-stands-feet-reviews\/artesania-platforms-and-dampers-part-1\/","title":{"rendered":"Artesania Platforms and Dampers"},"content":{"rendered":"

Background and use with digital playback<\/h2>\n

After I reviewed the Glass Turntable Platform in 2013, Artesania started work on a variety of new platforms made of different materials, as well as an extended range of dampers, of which the heaviest version is hardly movable!\u00a0Because these platforms are actually meant to be used with Turntables, I will post this review in separate installments as I go along, starting with the effects with digital playback, then moving on to using them with various turntables.<\/p>\n

Artesania review samples provided by Artesania Audio<\/a><\/h4>\n

Avid Volvere turntable, Grado and Benz cartridges and Musical Fidelity M1 Vinl phono stage supplied by StudioAlkmaar<\/a><\/h4>\n

Prices (ex VAT, so add 21% for the Netherlands):
\nTreated Glass Platform – 1900 euro
\nKrion Platform – 2470 euro
\nDigital Server Platform – 1500 euro
\nDamper smallest version, approx 1.4kg – 128 euro
\nDamper “Improved” 2.4kg – 160 euro
\nDamper “MKIII” 3.8kg – 200 euro
\nDamper DP 20 12.5kg – 430 euro<\/h4>\n

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These Platforms are meant to be used with Artesania’s Exoteryc audio racks<\/a>, as pictured above, but some of them can also be ordered as standalone floorstanding versions.<\/p>\n

Krion Platform<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Krion Platform really is immaculately finished: silky smooth, and reassuringly dead when knocked on. It is largely made with natural minerals (ATH-Aluminium trihydride) and some high resistance resins. Like the Treated Glass Platform, the Krion Platform changes the sound of my system merely by being in place, without using equipment on it. That is, I did try “dampening” it (as if that were needed or possible) with a CD player, but that did not change the result. No matter if there’s equipment on top, with the platform in place, the sound becomes a little bit boxier, as if the Apogees gain some coloration aspects of cabinet speakers. This is nothing to be alarmed about as it is an effect that any normal cabinet or wood rack would have. It’s just that my setup is entirely free from platforms and as such it becomes obvious as soon as one is added. And as mentioned in the earlier Glass Platform review, this is most likely also a function of my setup and the type and placement of the speakers. As a result of acoustic reflexions, I assume, the sound becomes more forward in the midrange which I don’t really like but at the same time the midrange aquires a nice sense of focus, which I actually don’t dislike.<\/p>\n

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Krion Platform – digital playback<\/strong><\/p>\n

Leaving the influence of the Platform’s acoustical presence on the system aside, and using it as an actual platform for placing and using equipment on it turned out to be a pleasant surprise. Like any platform, board or shelf, the Krion is audibly recognizable for being a platform. Compared to using the Levinson 390S CD player on the Artesania Exoteryc’s top level, the player sounds markedly different when used on top of the Krion platform: images are more outlined, a little bit contoured, and the sound is a bit more forceful. I don’t know how else to put it. People who have moved from a shelved rack to a rack without shelves will know what I’m talking about. Usually it is a matter of coloration and edge as a result of resonance build-up disappearing.<\/p>\n

But in the case of the Krion, there is actually no coloration at all, the platform sounding as neutral as the rack itself. But maybe it does not sound as natural as the Exoteryc’s levels. Such is the nature of a shelf-less rack, that any shelf, even the best ones, will sound different. But make no mistake: I have used many racks and I can tell you that for a platform, the Krion really sets the standard, and it sets it very, very high. Like the Exteryc rack, it is superbly neutral, and in spite of the heavy damping, it doesn’t constrain rhythm, nor does it artificially speed up the pace. Its balance is just right. I can probably illustrate this better by comparing to the Treated Glass version.<\/p>\n

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Finish<\/strong><\/p>\n

Above is the Digital Server Platform, placed on top of the Krion Platform. The former is less wide, less deep and less thick than the latter. The difference in class is clear from these pictures: the Krion has a flawless silky-smooth finish, while the MDF structure is visible on the Digital Server Platform. A note on the Krion finish: the surface may be silky smooth, but it isn’t scratch-resistant. After having placed the platform on its side on the laminate floor and replacing it a little later, I found noticed very light scratches on the edge. The platform is finished to the same high quality on all sides, so if it were to be damaged badly then there’s always the possibility to turn it upside down or front to back.<\/p>\n

I will also test this platform with a selection of turntables. You can read all about that in part 2 of this review.<\/p>\n

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Treated Glass Platform<\/strong><\/p>\n

Like the Krion Platform, the Treated Glass Platform changes the sound of my system merely by being in place, and without using equipment on it. Its effect is a little bit more marked though and higher up in the frequency range than that of the Krion, and like with the Krion, its effect is both in the “welcome” and “less welcome” sense. The presence in the midrange is more pronounced, but the added focus is, too.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

The platform consists of three layers of glass with a bonding material inbetween. Forget about glass sounding edgy or ringing when knocked on: this platform is so very heavy and so well-damped that it will not ring at all. It sounds as dead as a material can be. There’s also no harshness or anything similar. Still, apparently there’s something to the material that prevents me from enjoying it.<\/p>\n

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Using the glass platform with the Levinson 390S on top instantly took me back to the earlier review, and reminded me of why I didn’t like it. As mentioned, using the glass platform, music definitely isn’t edgy, or anything else that’s usually associated with using glass shelves. But here is a lot of added tightness, which can sometimes be a welcome effect, but in this case it is simply too much, making the sound overly controlled, mechanical almost, squeezing out the magic in the process. I feel like PCM now really sounds like the digital format that it is. Fluidity, and the sense of listening to real music is diminished and I find that I can only relate to the music on a cerebral level, not emotionally.<\/p>\n

By contrast, this is where the Krion Platform really proves its value: I can’t listen to the glass platform without starting to feel uncomfortable after a few minutes, but the Krion relaxes me just like using the Exoteryc levels does, and even though it is well-damped, it maintains dynamic contrasts and still makes my feet tap.<\/p>\n

Nevertheless, I will again try the Treated Glass Platform in the next round, using what it was meant to be used with: a turntable. And I won’t stop at one turntable: I will actually try several models.<\/p>\n

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Different placement<\/strong><\/p>\n

I also placed the Krion Platform on the right hand rack, just to see what would happen. As it turns out, in that position (still only placed into position and not used as actual shelf for playing equipment) it still excites the midrange prominence described above, but in a highly diminished manner. Its presence is still detectable, but definitely less so. I suspect that if the platforms are used anywhere else but between the speakers, they would likely have even less of an influence on the sound, perhaps even rendering this issue non-existent. After all I also have tables, chairs, wall shelves and such. I just don’t have them inbetween the speakers. The point that I’m trying to make is that your mileage may vary if you have the racks set up on either side wall, or use cabinet speakers, i.e. not dipoles like me.<\/p>\n

Coming up: turntables!<\/strong><\/p>\n

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<\/p>\n

Bring in the turntables!<\/h2>\n

Regular readers of this site will know that there was a brief period in which I took analog replay to high end levels, only to abandon it soon thereafter. Here’s how Artesania brought me back into analog!<\/p>\n

I hadn’t before collected any vinyl, but had decided to purchase a Michell Gyro SE with Orbe Platter, Tecnoarm and Benz ACE lo, along with a Lukaschek MC preamp. Because I had no software, I started buying second-hand vinyl, but it quickly turned into a desillusion as sound quality never reached convincing levels. In retrospect it might have been down to a non-synergystic arm-cartridge combination but somehow I couldn’t get passed it and when comparisons showed that my dCS Delius+Purcell paired with any CDM1 or CDM4 swing-arm Marantz CD player sounded a lot better, I sold the whole lot.<\/p>\n

Ironic, then, that 10 years or so later, a review of the Artesania Platforms would reinvigorate the analog spirit in me.<\/p>\n

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I started my turntable platform comparisons with the Krion Platform and placed on top a diminutive Technics SL-J3 linear tracker that a friend brought over. It’s almost 100% plastic but don’t underestimate it – I did initially, but upon setting it up connecting it, I was very impressed with how well its system worked and what’s more: it sounded much better than I’d anticipated. Was the Artesania Platform debet to this? I would later find out.<\/p>\n

I won’t explain too much about the various Technics turntables used, there’s a separate article<\/a> for that, but suffice to say this funny little J3 was not only a fun starter for this section of the review, but it was also clearly good enough to kickstart my personal interest: I couldn’t help myself and had to obtain two higher end linear trackers, so I now have three, with various cartridges both MM and MC to play with.<\/p>\n

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Being the first turntable in my system in 10 or so years, this little Technics performs to a much higher standard that you would expect. Its tangential arm system is cleverly constructed and works flawlessly. But it clearly isn’t high end and this was only the beginning of course. After a few tracks you start to notice that it could sound fuller, more refined, more room-filling, less plasticky\/synthetic etc.<\/p>\n

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The humble Technics J3 actually made me purchase a Technics SL-7 for myself. 35 or so years old, and still going strong, unlike the J3, the SL-7 is made of aluminium and zinc diecast, contains almost no plastic at all, and seemingly weighs a ton.<\/p>\n

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98% plastic J3 on the left, 98% aluminium diecast SL-7 on the right – just kidding with those figures of course, but the SL-7 really is almost entirely made of aluminium diecast, even the top part of its lid. Given its diminutive size, the SL-7’s 7KG weight really seems very heavy when you pick it up.<\/p>\n

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An SL-15 also made its entrance, and after it, even more linear trackers, but for now I’ll leave the Technics players and move on to the more serious work.<\/p>\n

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In order to get a well-balanced review, I also borrowed a beautiful Avid Volvere with SME 309 tonearm from Ben Hoedjes, proprietor of Studio Alkmaar, an audio store in Almaar Netherlands, that sell new and second hand high-end audio equipment.<\/p>\n

It’s like the Avid is made for the Artesania Platforms, or the other way around. Either way, I think that the combination looks mouthwatering.<\/p>\n

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Isn’t this just pure eye-candy? I feel like a kid in a candy store. Of course the Avid is sitting on the wrong platform – it is a Digital Server Platform after all. But I was intrigued to find that the platform doesn’t bend at all under this heavy weight.<\/p>\n

Before the Avid moves into prime position on the Krion Platform, I will compare the sound of the Technics players on the Krion Platform with their sound on a normal wood table, which I guess is how a lot of people would normally set up their turntables.<\/p>\n

Let’s get started!<\/strong><\/p>\n

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As you can imagine I carried out extensive comparisons between the various Technics players, using 3 different cartridges, and compared them all to the Avid Volvere. Apart from the Musical Fidelity M1 Vinl phono preamp I also had a Jeff Rowland Cadence at hand and along with the various ways to set them up and place them on the racks or platforms, this made for endless possibilities. For the finale, I invited two friends and we had ourselves an overwhelmingly interesting evening. For more info read the\u00a0extensive review<\/a>.<\/p>\n

But this review is about the Artesania Platforms, so I’ll just skip straight to the part where we had picked our favorite player\/cartridge\/preamp.<\/p>\n

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Technics SL10 on Krion Platform<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Technics Linear Tracker choice of the crop was the SL-10 with 310MC cartridge into the Jeff Rowland Cadence MC phono preamp. One thing that I must mention at this stage is how flabbergastingly good the SL10 + 310MC sounds. It’s only natural that one would underestimate this player, and I did too, but I can tell you right here and now that it really is a fantastic player. It sounds at once powerful and big, with full, deep bass, as well as being tonally neutral and much, much more refined than it has a right to. This player retailed for 800 euro in 1982 btw. For the first assessments of the Artesania Platforms with analog playback, the SL10 will be used along with the Avid Volvere as benchmarks, for assessing the Artesania Turntable Platforms the way they were designed to: with turntables!<\/p>\n

I mentioned earlier in this review that I suspected that the Artesania Platform might well have a very large effect on the sound of the Technics players, and now was the time to find out if this was the case.<\/p>\n

Until the final listening test, I always had 2 Technics players (SL10 and SL7) side by side on the Krion platform. A funny thing happened when I removed the SL7, to start the serious comparisons: bass tightened up, midrange opened up, and dynamic behavior, already very good, also improved. We all heard it at the same time but couldn’t believe it. Go figure: the platform weighs multiples of the two turntables’ combined weight, and still it would matter if I remove 7kgs? But repeated tests showed that yes indeed, we heard it right the first time. But it gets better.<\/p>\n

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Leaving only the one player on the platform, but sliding it into the same position as it was when the two players were set up side by side, produced the very same result! So, it wasn’t the weight, but the position on the platform. Apparently the spring-board principle is valid even on the 5,5cm thick Krion Platform. Placement precisely in the middle made for the best balance of virtues.<\/p>\n

We had been getting used to the combined sound of the SL10 on the Artesania Krion Platform, but nothing prepared us for what was to come…<\/p>\n

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On regular hard wood table<\/strong><\/p>\n

All it took was 10 seconds for all three of us to realise that the wood table was absolutely not beneficial to the sound of the SL10. Where the SL10 and the Artesania Krion Platform were obviously synergetic, making for a highly emotional yet truely high end audio presentation, the SL10’s sound on the wood table was very mediocre at best. Bass was still full, but entirely without definition and very woolly. Midrange was recessed and sounded boxy, soundstage was a big blur laterally and there was absolutely no depth layering. Rhythm was severely hampered and the worst thing was that the sound had attained a colored, chesty hollowness, rendering the presentation dull and uninteresting. Even if this table was made of hard wood, and had no cabinet walls, it managed to severely color the sound, and not in a good way!<\/p>\n

If ever there was an incentive to recommend a true audiophile audiorack and turntable platform, this was it.<\/p>\n

Then I started thinking: perhaps the Technics needs the benefits of the Artesania rack and platform more than a “proper” turntable with more serious suspension, such as the Avid Volvere?<\/p>\n

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Avid Volvere<\/strong><\/p>\n

The Avid had thus far been sitting on the Digital Server Platform, just looking nice without having played a single record. I very much feared connecting it up, figuring that it would slay the SL10. That would’ve been sad for me because I like these tangential spinner so much. But it had to be done.<\/p>\n

While leaving it on the Digital Server Platform, I felt that it sounded technically very good, with very stable bass, black backgrounds, excellent low level detailing and a warm, recessed midrange. Tonality was a little richer than with the SL10 and the whole presentation was slightly more luxurious. Dynamics and pace however were a bit restrained, making the player appeal more to the mind than the heart. It was easy to admire the precision and handling of the 309 arm, as well as the idea behind the platter, which really is for turntables what VRDS is to CD players: the spindle sits a little higher while a larger screw-on damper forces the record to the platter. I felt that this pressure could be heard in the sound, producing both desired, and undesired effects. As a result I was not emotionally moved by the Volvere. I should mention though that at this stage I only had a Grado Statement Platinum 1 cartridge at hand, an 300 euro MM (MI to be precise) type. With its highish compliance, this may well be a less than ideal combination, so I’m not yet done assessing the Avid itself. For these first platform tests however, it will do just fine.<\/p>\n

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Avid Volvere on Krion Platform<\/strong><\/p>\n

Moving the Avid from the Digital Server Platform to the Krion Platform did precisely the same for the sound as it did for the SL10: to tighten up and open up the sound. Only, while with the SL10 this was a superbly synergistic affair, with the Avid the improvements only worked on a technical level, and not really helping carry the message across. Even if the Avid’s bass improved immensely, gaining tightness and articulation and the whole sound was a lot more energetic, in fact, I found the Avid to sound too controlled and too tight now. Of course this is a matter of taste as well, and some listeners might prefer this technically more accurate sound, but myself, I prefer more flow and fluidity.<\/p>\n

On balance I think it is safe to say that the Krion platform did not match very well with the Avid, perhaps emphasizing too much its already controlled nature (to be tested more elaborately lateron), or highlighting a less than ideal arm-cartridge combination.<\/p>\n

I will re-visit the Avid in part 3 of this review, when another cartridge to test it with is in: a Benz ACE.<\/p>\n

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Avid Volvere on Treated Glass Platform<\/strong><\/p>\n

I’ve already mentioned that I’m not a big fan of the glass platform. Its presence between the speakers alone makes for an overly bity midrange, and tests done with CD players on top weren’t succesful either. But because I had thus far only carried out tests using digital equipment, I couldn’t be sure that matters would be the same with turntables. So, out went the Krion and in came the glass, with the Avid on top.<\/p>\n

The glass platform sure is a looker, no doubt about that, and I think that the Avid looks even better on it. The resultant sound however was very, how shall I say this, un-analog. In fact, it was very reminiscent of digital. I honestly can’t say that it sounded bad, and technically it was impressive in a way, but to me the sound had just lost all of what made analog so appealing in the first place. There was sublime control, and the glass certainly doesn’t ring or anything, but the presentation was so very tight and controlled, so dry and devoid of color, and the transients so short and peaky, that I couldn’t enjoy the music anymore. Instead of caressing me, I felt that the system was now shouting at me.<\/p>\n

That closed the chapter on the Glass Platform for me. If you have a very warm and smooth sounding turntable and ditto speakers, then maybe it will compensate nicely, but frankly, I feel that the Glass Platform is too much removed from the superb neutrality of the Exoteryc racks and Krion Platform.<\/p>\n

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Back to SL10 – final comparisons<\/strong><\/p>\n

While I ultimately preferred the SL10 and Rowland Cadence combination, the Musical Fidelity M1 Vinl really is no slouch at all. The details can be found in the Turntables review, but no matter MM or MC input, in short the MF sounds very, very good: deep and full, yet articulate bass, natural uncolored (but not devoid of color) midrange and airy, grain-free treble. Importantly, its timbre is spot on neutral and there’s not a trace of artifice. For around 800 euro, I can’t imagine that one could do better. If you dig deep, it can be beaten of course, for example by the Jeff Rowland Cadence, which beats it in most areas, except the bass, which is more powerful and articulate with the MF.<\/p>\n

Anyway, getting back on track with the Artesania review, finally it occurred to me that we had only listened to the M1 Vinl sitting atop the Digital Server Platform.<\/p>\n

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Moving the M1 Vinl from the Digital Server Platform and right onto the Exoteryc rack made for a baffling difference: the M1 Vinl hadn’t completely transformed into the Cadence but it was now much closer! The midrange gained much more of that typical Jeff Rowland luxuriousness, treble, already very good before, became even subtler and airier, and the soundstage layering also improved immensely. It’s that I had the Cadence at hand, otherwise I would probably be fully satisfied with this little Musical Fidelity unit. Such is the influence of the Artesania rack.<\/p>\n

On the next page, I will also listen to the Digital Server Platform using a Digital Server and I will discuss the various Artesania dampers.<\/p>\n

<\/p>\n

More turntables, Artesania Digital Server Platform and Dampers<\/b><\/h2>\n

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Can you guess what brand and type turntable the Grado Statement Platinum 1 is now mounted in?<\/p>\n

Of course you can! Yes, it’s a Technics SL-1210. That’s the black version of the well known SL1200 which is perhaps the most well-known turntable in the universe. Hardly what one would call high end, and not the most characterful player in the world, but still I have to say that it performs admirably. It has a very neutral sound, and like the SL7 and SL10, it is very pitch accurate, and this aids DJ’s and audiophiles alike. You can read more about its sound in the Technics Linear Tracking Turntables<\/a> review.<\/p>\n

Technics SL-1210<\/strong><\/p>\n

I started my listening tests with the SL1210 with it placed on the Digital Server Platform. First cartridge used in it is the Grado Statement Platinum 1, which is adjusted with the excellent Acoustic Solid protractor and with VTF set to 1,4g. Set up like this, the SL1200 produces a somewhat thin, but dynamic, well paced, free-flowing and relaxed sound, with lots of air and great transparency. The Grado clearly works better in this arm than in the Avid’s SME309. The Digital Server Platform also seems to be a good match.<\/p>\n

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A pattern is starting to emerge: more accurate \/ less harmonically rich players seem to favor the less accurate \/ more colorful sounding Platform. It seems that once again this is a classic case of “matching is everything”. The Digital Server Platform may be much simpler than the Krion Platform, but the Krion is not always the best match. Nor could it be of course as it’s all relative after all.<\/p>\n

As a cross-check I did try the Technics SL10 on the Digital Server Platform as well. Even though I now missed the extra articulation and transparency that the SL10 was capable of when set up on the Krion Platform, it was still a very musical presentation. The same was true with the Avid Volvere.<\/p>\n

Speaking of which: now that I also had a Benz ACE SH high output MC cartridge at hand, I had to re-do the Avid tests. But that’s for later. First this cartridge was to be mounted in the SL1200.<\/p>\n

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Different\u00a0Cartridge<\/strong><\/p>\n

Like the Grado, the Benz ACE Hi Output MC cartridge was adjusted using the Acoustic Solid protractor and after raising the tonearm to adjust for VTA and re-adjusting the VTF to the Benz’ recommended 1,7g, listening resumed.<\/p>\n

Remember that I stated that the Linear Technics players tracked much better than the SL1200 with the Grado? Well, guess what? With the Benz ACE, the SL1200 tracks even better. All tracks including the last one track with superb clarity and no sibilant S’s anywhere. The Benz even tracks my most worn album as if it is in perfect shape. The secret is in the much more refined needle shape: a very fine line versus a normal elliptical shape for the SL7 and SL10.<\/p>\n

Not only is the tracking much improved, so is the level of detail and the sense of listening to real acoustical instruments.<\/p>\n

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Further upping the game by setting up the SL1200 on the Krion Platform really took things to a whole new level: more accurate bass, better transients, more powerful mids… in spite of the decidedly mid-range SL1210, I think objectively this was a very high-end sound. Of course, the SL1210 needs help from a cartridge that costs more than the entire player, and the Krion Platform. But it wasn’t as satisfying with all records. On balance, I think I prefer the more relaxed sound of the SL1200 set up on the Digital Server Platform, even if that was objectively less high end.<\/p>\n

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Avid Volvere with Benz ACE SH<\/strong><\/p>\n

While the Avid Volvere sounded lush and tonally rich, yet dynamically restrained and somewhat dull when paired with the Grado cartridge, the Benz ACE makes for a much better combination. Set up on the Krion Platform, this combination provides the highest end, most accurate sound of all players. Transients are much tighter and there’s much more attack, as well as much better detailing than with the Grado. Dynamics are better, but still not really outgoing. The music still seems to be hitting a ceiling somewhere. I think that’s the effect of the screw-on clamp, squeezing the record to the platter, forcing it flat, which is technically a good thing. It definitely is in case of the TEAC VRDS CD transports. But somehow the Avid’s implementation seems to take away some life from the records. Compared to the Technics SL1210, the Avid is technically better on all accounts, most notably its timbre and tonality, but somehow, in spite of its much thinner sound, the 1210 just sounds more fluid and engaging.<\/p>\n

Record quality also plays a big role of course. With full and dynamic sounding records, there’s real emotion with the Avid, too. Anita Baker’s Rapture for example never sounded better. With that album the Avid’s even-handedness combined with the Krion’s neutrality really pays off. However, with less than stellar records, this combination quite quickly becomes unforgiving and too technical, somewhat reminiscent of the Avid when it was set up on the glass platform. I think the Avid + ACE produce sound that is just a little bit too controlled. And the very neutral Krion Platform is not helping covering that up.<\/p>\n

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Balance is everything<\/strong><\/p>\n

As indicated above, it becomes more and more evident that balance is everything. Smooth and warm sounding players sound absolutely flabbergastingly fantastic with the Krion Platform, while more recording-critical players can better be placed on a more forgiving (more bendy, in this case) platform such as the Digital Server Platform.<\/p>\n

This overly technical sound is likely not entirely caused by the Avid, but more so by this particular Arm-Cartridge combination. I can’t rule out that the ACE is also not the best candidate for this arm\/player combination. Ultimately, having also listened to it with the otherwise natural-sounding SL1200, and digging back to old memories of my using the ACE lo in my Michell Gyrodec SE with Tecnoarm, I think that I have more respect for either of the Benz ACE cartridges, than love. In my opinion, they could do with more smoothness, and while they do sound impressive, in the spinners I’ve tried them in thus far, they’re just a bit too dry for my taste.<\/p>\n

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I am not done experimenting with the Avid just yet though. Because I have read multiple reports that state that it can indeed sound very musical, I will obtain some other cartridges for further comparisons. The player might be intrinsically dynamically restrained, but I still should be able to find a cartridge that sounds open and lively, without making the Avid sound overly technical.<\/p>\n

I will also listen to various other turntables, both old and new. Coming soon is a Linn LP12, which will likely prove to be a very interesting subject.<\/p>\n

But first, let’s move back to digital playback, and see what the Digital Server Platform can do, for a digital server.<\/p>\n

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Digital Server Platform<\/strong><\/p>\n

This platform is simpler in construction than the Treated Glass and Krion platforms and is made of MDF, with a layer of neoprene and a special paint. Unlike with the other platforms, its surface is deliberately not smooth, but actually very rough. Interestingly, its effect on the overall system sound is less than that of the other two racks. Perhaps because of the softer materil or also due to the rough surface.<\/p>\n

The Server Platform being an MDF construction does mean that it superimposes a more evident character upon the music. But that’s not intrinsically a bad thing.<\/p>\n

As described higher up in this article, I have listened to several turntables on this platform, and generally that works very well. Compared to the Krion Platform, using turntables, the Digital Server Platform has a friendlier sound signature, but is also more colored and less precise. Now how does it perform when used for its intended purpose: with a digital server?<\/p>\n

Subject of this test is a SOtM sMS-1000u VortexBox music server. This device is quite similar to my resident AAZ UltraFlow, in that the software and the USB soundcard are the same. They do differ in other aspects, also in sound, but on the whole you could say that they are of equal quality but having slightly different characters.<\/p>\n

SOtM sMS-1000u placed on Exoteryc Rack<\/strong><\/p>\n

Placed on the Exoteryc Rack directly, and connected to the Rowland Aeris<\/a> DAC via a KingRex uART USB cable, the sMS-1000u sounds very good: highly resolving, neutral yet rich in tonality, open, airy and unforced.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

sMS-1000u on Digital Server Platform<\/strong><\/p>\n

Moving the sMS-1000u to the Digital Server Platform (swapping the server and the phono stage) makes for a very different sound. Surely a server (basically a computer) is not supposed to be this sensitive to placement, but I can assure you that it is.<\/p>\n

Placed on the Digital Server Platform, the sMS-1000u gains a lot of bass power and heft, a more dynamically\/acoustically convincing midrange with piano especially and overall more impressive dynamics and soundstage width. However, it’s not all positive: the soundstage might be large, but is less well-differentiated, especially in the middle and in terms of the layering into the back of the soundstage.<\/p>\n

It seems all the added power does come at the expense of differentiation, subtlety and focus. But it is not at all unpleasant: it’s actually a pretty exciting sound. One could even say that the platform livens up the otherwise more factual computer sound, in the same way that it makes the otherwise a little gray sounding Technics SL1200 sound better. On the other hand it is clear that the platform does add color and accentuation to transients. Not in a bad, etchy way though, but for example when playing Bebel Gilberto’s Tanto Tempo title track, which contains some highly EQ’d deep bass, some of the bass notes now boom a bit too heavily, where this is not the case with the server placed on the Exoteryc rack.<\/p>\n

Overall, I find that I do prefer the more natural, more unforced, more even sound of not having a platform under the unit at all. I guess you just cannot beat the superbly natural sound of the Exoteryc rack!<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

Artesania Dampers<\/strong><\/p>\n

Along with the Turntable Platforms, I received a range of Artesania Dampers, in various weights. In my system I find that I have no need for these dampers, as most of my equipment is already very heavy and either made with solid materials (Jeff Rowland), damped very well (Mark Levinson) or consisting of very thick panels (Wadia). Every now and then a review device comes over, that actually benefits of having a damper placed on top. The featherweight Ayre QB-9 USB DAC is one such device. At the time of its review I did not have the Artesania dampers at hand, so a experimented with Finite Elemente Cerapucs, adding one every time. I forget the optimum amount of Cerapucs, but it was very clear at the time that there is such a thing as the perfect damping weight. Too little and the device sounds lightweight, too much and impulsiveness and dynamic behavior are hampered.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

The effect that the Digital Server Platform had on the SOtM sMS-1000u was a trigger for me to try the Artesania dampers. The sMS-1000u itself is already well damped and not lightweight and it is not in need of extra damping, but I figured that damping it some more might have effects on the Platform’s resonance behavior. And I was right!<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

The smallest 1,4kg damper did indeed have an effect: an overall more Rowland-esque sound, which means that the sound seems to be more solid, fuller and more grounded, and less jumpy. I’m not sure if I prefer one or the other but in any event the amount of damping is not overdone: dynamics are still intact. However, it doesn’t help the booming of low bass notes in Bebel’s Tanto Tempo track.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

Bigger damper (2,4kg): larger effect. But it’s subtle, and much like the effect of the smaller damper, just slightly more pronounced. The sound becomes calmer and transients seem less sharp but for the most part, the dynamics are still intact. This damper also doesn’t help the booming of low bass notes in Bebel’s Tanto Tempo track.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

As before: bigger damper (now 3,8kg): larger effect. The differences are still subtle from damper to damper, but now the sound is really starting to change in character. It’s now riper and gentler. It’s an interesting effect that seemingly influences the feeling of richness and color, without actually adding coloration. The only downside is impulsiveness. I feel that this damper is too heavy for the server, while only marginally helping the precision of the low bass notes on Bebel’s Tanto Tempo track.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

Fun times: exaggeration mode! The DP 20 is the heaviest damper that Artesania sent me. With 12.5kg it feels like I am putting a heavy amplifier on top of the poor music server. Of course this is not the damper’s intended use. Normally it would be used to damp loudspeaker cabinets. I have no dynamic speakers but some friends do, so this calls for a followup review. But for now, let’s see if this super heavy damper can influence the low bass resonances.<\/p>\n

While it is obvious that this damper is too heavy for the sMS-1000u, I honestly can’t say that it sounds more “compressed” than with the largest of the small dampers, indicating that there is a certain point at which the extra damping does not seem to change the sound anymore. Bebel Gilberto’s bass notes also sound mostly the same. Insane, actually. But hang on: I have a second super heavy damper! Let’s add it to the mix.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

This time, I placed the dampers on the platform itself, in front of and behind the server. This was not bad at all. Dynamics and impulsiveness (transient sharpness) were restored while retaining the more earthed character. Apparently the platform likes to be loaded a little heavier. But still, Bebel’s low bass notes were unchanged. Then I came up with the final variation. And it really did the trick.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Accessories-550pix<\/p>\n

Placed laterally, all of a sudden the bass was under control! The overall sound character was the same as when having the dampers placed front and rear, but this time, Bebel’s low bass notes were much more even, and actually more like they sounded with the server placed directly on the Exoteryc rack. I don’t know a lot about resonance behavior, but it seems that the platform is picking up on the bass coming from the right speaker and subwoofer and gets excited modally, and the big dampers succeed in damping this, but only if placed in the right positions. A platform will never sound like it’s not a platform, but the Krion already proved to me that they can come really close to being neutral, and this little experiment further feeds that feeling.<\/p>\n

\"Artesania-Dampers-550pix<\/p>\n

Above: the big dampers work splendidly on top of the wood covers of the Apogee Diva speaker’s crossovers, audibly damping resonances to make for a cleaner sound.<\/em><\/p>\n

Conclusion<\/h2>\n

There can be only one conclusion: Artesania accessories and Platforms are quite simply among the very finest audio accessories there are. Needless to say, they work marvelously well with the Exoteryc racks<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Associated Equipment<\/a><\/p>\n

Manufacturer: Artesania Audio<\/a>
\nBenelux distribution: Aspera Audio<\/a>
\nKrion website: Krion.com\/en<\/a><\/h4>\n
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