hat drew my attention in the name of the Rogoz Audio 4SG50/BBS anti-vibration platform, was the last part of the abbreviation. The letter-numerical symbol preceding it is so anonymous and tells us so little that I did not even think about it. It turned out that I had good intuition – BBS (Balancing Board System) is an anti-vibration system Rogoz Audio developed specifically for this series of platforms. Janusz Rogoż, the company owner and BBS designer said:

The platform structure incorporates a new proprietary Rogoz Audio antivibration system, BBS (Balancing Board System, Patent P.404137 Pending). The system consists of a threaded, height-adjustable spike made of high-fiber-content steel alloy, on top of which two elements are placed, each with an inner bearing. An intermediary (middle) element is made of carbon fiber and supports another element, a steel bearing inserted into the shelf. Point contact between the steel spike and the carbon intermediary element prevents movement of either element relative to its axis, but it allows pendular motion. Meanwhile, the contact between the intermediary element and the bearing inserted into the shelf allows restricted rolling motion and sliding motion. Consequently, the advantages of spike point support (contact area has been minimized and kinetic energy turns into heat) have been combined with the effects of deadening vibrations owing to to sliding friction and rolling resistance.

We wrote about the company itself on a few occasions, so you might know by now that Rogoz Audio offers anti-vibration products – pads, racks, platforms, and speaker and audio stands. What they all share is high quality, great look, a positive impact on sound (which was confirmed in tests for both High Fidelity and Audio) and reasonable pricing, which might be of the highest importance for many music lovers. All of this holds true for the 4SG50/BBS platform. It is a system with four legs ballasted with quartz sand. The top is made of a 50mm thick rosewood-veneered MDF board. It is separated from the frame with the BBS system. The structure is complemented by two other elements – 3S40 spikes and BW40MKII anti-vibration bases, which can be put beneath the device that you want to decouple:

Anti-vibration spikes with sandwich structure and adjustable height are designed for high end audio systems. The anti-vibration effect of the spikes, which rest on massive protective disks, consists in minimizing vibration transmission between the base and audio components. Minimizing contact area results in kinetic energy turning into heat energy (entropy). The spike structure has been tuned by means of special blending of alloy and high-fiber-content steel and carbon polymers. Available colors include silver, gold, and silver-gold.
BW40MKII anti-vibration bases also have a sandwich structure. The anisotropic properties of the materials used and the differences in their surface densities (tensile and compressive stresses) allowed the desired damping characteristics. Available finishing colours are silver or silver-gold.

For logistics reasons, I used only BW40MKII legs, which, in the conducted test, supported an Ayon Audio Spirit III amplifier. It so happened that the legs were just above the mounts connected with the top from beneath. The spikes should be first glued to the amplifier and then precisely inserted each time into the pad holes – I could not do it despite dozens of attempts during a single session (the amplifier weighs 31 kg!).

Records used to monitor platform performance (selection)

• A Day at Jazz Spot 'Basie'. Selected by Shoji "Swifty" Sugawara, Stereo Sound Reference Record SSRR6-7, SACD/CD (2011).
• Dominic Miller, Fourth Wall, Q-rious Music QRM 108-2, CD (2006);
• Daft Punk, Random Access Memories, Columbia Records/Sony Music Japan SICP-3817, CD (2013).
• Nirvana, In Utero, Geffen GED 24536, CD (1993).
• Danielsson, Dell, Landgren, Salzau Music On The Water, ACT Music ACT 9445-2, CD (2006).
• Frank Sinatra, Sinatra Sings Gershwin, Columbia/Legacy/Sony Music Entertainment 507878 2, CD (2003).
• The Modern Jazz Quartet, Pyramid, Atlantic Records/Warner Music Japan WPCR-25125, “Atlantic 60th”, CD (1960/2006).
• Johann Sebastian Bach, St. John Passion, BWV 245, Smithsonian Chamber Players and Chorus, Kenneth Slowik, Smithsonian Collection Of Recordings ND 0381, 2 x CD (1990).

Japanese versions of records available at

The effect of the Rogoz Audio system on sound is easy to identify and define. Changes brought about by the platform are clear and very positive. Their character has a clearly defined direction, however, their perception might not be equally warm in all systems.

After placing the amplifier on the platform with BW40MKII legs under Ayon bases, everything became more abundant. It is a truly interesting experience: let's listen to the device on a classic shelf (top) and then put it on this system (I regard the platform and the legs as a system designed to work together) – this will persuade any doubter (or, to put it more precisely, someone with inadequate knowledge) that products reducing vibration really change the sound of devices put on them. The difference is huge, a zero-one kind of difference.

What improved in particular was the sound energy. Perhaps that is why I had an impression of abundance of everything – both high and low frequencies, mass and space. The sound grew and became more refined. The changes were not as fundamental as with expensive platforms from top producers such as Finite Elemente or HRS, the modification was much shallower, to put it so (it is not about the size of modification, rather its effect on the structure of sound). There is no doubt here – if you want the absolute high-end you will need to pay much more. If you have a mid-range (or basic) system, your money will be well spent.

What impressed me most was the spread of the bass. Or, perhaps not as much its spread as the energy of the bass. With Mr Rogoż’s anti-vibration system, the bass from a Daft Punk album was remarkable in its volume, in its physical strike. This is a sound of a bass guitar played live with a large guitar amp. As I once said, I was at one of Edyta Bartosiewicz’s concerts marking her return to the stage. I sat then a few metres from an amp like this. During the concert, the bass player somewhat changed the sound volume, effects and also played in a different way. The platform tested had an impact on the sound of this instrument as if the musician put some more energy into it, as if he slightly turned up the sound volume knob. Without blaring, without stretching, with simply a better presence, a harder hit. To tell you more – I felt the effect of the platform the same way when I came back home from a Portishead’s concert on the 25th of June in the Nowa Huta ArcelorMittal Poland tinning hall and put on the latest third record. The amplifier put on my table top played it hard, in a complete way, with the bass going quite down (these are the characteristic features of this amplifier). I liked it. When I put the amplifier on the platform, my half-sleepy wife came from the next room with her eyes blazing and “asked” me to turn this “pounding” off. When I asked if she had heard anything earlier (I lost my sense of self-preservation for a while), she suspiciously asked if I had listened to something. She didn’t notice anything earlier. I can wholeheartedly confirm it: the second time listening was much more energetic, the bass going down much more. No wonder it was heard stronger on the other side of the wall. This is the way I enjoyed the concert I am talking about. Records do not convey a flicker of the energy and power conveyed live. Records sound chill-out! The platform pushed sound this way, it livened up the sound, infused it with energy and pulsation, increased phantom sources and enhanced their volume. These were still only records, but the sound was closer to my concert experience.

High frequencies performed similarly. With the platform, the accent insignificantly yet perceptibly shifted towards the upper diameter. The change was most audible with commercial records targeted at the mass market and perhaps the direction given to the sound in the studio was brought to the fore. I do not know that for sure, I was not there. But this manifested itself in a stronger presence of the open centre, its being slightly raised. I am not talking about the brightness of the upper centre, I am talking about the centre being subjectively raised. With more purist records, including both jazz performers such as Danielsson, Dell, Landgren, Salzau Music On The Water as well as the classical music of Johann Sebastian Bach, St. John Passion – the effect I am talking about manifests itself in a clearly more refined form. Though the bass was exceptional with Daft Punk, the upper frequency range in which human voices operate was cleared to the point that you could hear the work of many people and devices associated with those voices. It was otherwise with the records I have just mentioned. I had no impression of the sound being clarified neither with a vibraphone nor with a violin. I have confirmed this impression by listening to a Sinatra’s record – what I got was a higher volume, clearer sounds without their attack being exaggerated. It seems then that the platform slightly highlights gaffes (oversights) in sound engineering. By not much, it is not an x-ray, it is more of a “sonar,” but you need to keep it in mind. Only very expensive platforms will give you something more – they will fill the message with an amount of information big enough to regard this kind of mistake indulgently.

Summary

The platform is large and will not fit all systems. If the table is high or is supposed to stand between tops, the platform might not be the best choice. It looks best on the floor or a low table. It has superb quality build and the top veneer looks particularly impressive – it is evident that this is the company’s forte. The metal elements are solid, though the visible welding points both between the profiles connecting the legs, between the legs themselves, and below the profiles show that this is a product of a small manufacture. The spikes supporting the top, the same as those supporting the whole platform, and mounts into which the spikes are inserted, are of ideal quality. The product as a whole makes a good impression. The shelf significantly modified the sound of the amplifier put on it. It opened the sound, added energy to it and deepened the bass. I was especially impressed with the latter. Without exaggeration, without blaring, low sounds became more prominent and faster. All sub-ranges were well clarified, which is good, but the higher diameter was sometimes conspicuous – when something on the CD was not the way it should be. It is a good, solid and affordable product with something only few products offer – incredible bass.

Anti-vibration platforms should be matched for a particular system and a specific device of that system, primarily considering the changes made by the platform in sound. One also needs to take account of how the shelf will look in our room. After all, it is a piece of furniture. 4SG50/BBS + BW40MKII is a very high system, raising the device 200 mm above the floor or shelf. If it stands on the floor, no problem, it is even better, it will look great. However, if it is supposed to stand on a shelf, you should first check if you have enough space.

The test was conducted as a listening comparison – the system was compared against a Base table top as well as with the amplifier standing directly on the floor. It was an A/B/A comparison, with A and B known, and 1 minute music samples.