wonder if you noticed on the images of Dirk Sommer's (chief editor of hifistatement.net magazine) system he sent us last month a certain detail – anti-vibration elements made by Artesania. You can see a fragment of one of them below Einstein The Preamp, as Dirk described his system HERE.

Artesania is a Spanish company making all sorts of anti-vibration accessories for audio systems. Their best known products are racks – beautiful, complex and advanced designs used by many in their top-high-end systems. We used such rack with a complete dCs Vivaldi system during one of the meetings of Cracow Sonic Society (see HERE).

Spanish company offers also some other products – accessories like so called „dampers” for example. The Mk III version is very popular and you can see it on top of many devices during High End Show in Munich every year. Their basic job is to counteract the vibrations generated by electronic devices, like transformers. When used with digital devices dampers act as a shield against electromagnetic radiation.

One can find this type of products made also by other brands like, for example, German Finite Elemente, whose Pagode Edition rack has been a part of HighFidelity's reference system for a few years now. If you check their offer you will find, under „HiFi accessories”, an anti-vibration element called Resonator°. It works bit differently than Artesania Damper, as it damps mainly vibration at and around 1000 Hz frequency, so exactly where our hearing is most sensitive to distortion.

Company Verictum, that debuted not so long ago with their X Bulk filter, offers something completely different, and yet having the same function as above mentioned dampers. Namely X Block eliminates EMI/RFI. Although it might also have some damping properties as the housing is made of wood with a piece of rubber at the bottom, and the inside is filled with some resin.

But it is not an anti-vibration element, but one that suppresses unwanted EMI/RFI. So its function is similar to the one of Tranquility Base platform by Synergistic Research (see HERE). The obvious difference here being that we put some device on Tranquility Base, and in case of X Block it is put on the device. Another significant difference is that American platform/filter is an active element while the X Block is a passive one (does not require a power source). There are more similarities than differences though, as both devices act as “vacuum cleaners” sucking in radiation after it is emitted by electronic circuits. If I remember correctly also Tranquility Base's manufacturer suggested that its main function was to eliminate (“suck out”) the radiation, but it is, of course, also a platform.

hen Verictum's bosses – Mr Marek Stajndor and Paweł Czubryt – brought X Blocks for test to me, they also left two other products: fuses that should officially be available any moment now, and X Block – a black, flat element that should be placed in similar spots as the above mentioned dampers. I simply had no time to try out fuses but the X Block landed on my Ayon Audio Spheris III preamplifier's power supply and hasn't been moved from there since. I haven't written about it before because manufacturer still worked on its look – present version looks much better.

Polish product looks differently than Artesania and Finite Elemente accessories. Just like the Verictum filters also X Blocks sport wooden housing, and not metal one. They are also rectangular and not round in shape. They also sport a piece of rugged rubber on the bottom that doesn't allow them to move on most surfaces while the metal ones have a metal bottom which transmits energy in the best way.

This test in „High Fidelity” is X Block's premiere, just as the test of X Bulk premiered that product. X Block is so new that it hasn't make it to manufacturer's website just yet. Manufacturer recommends placing it “over device's power supply, power transformer and so on; it is also recommended to move it around to find an optimal spot; sometimes it works best placed over analogue inputs and outputs”.

Recordings used during this test (a selection)

• Charlie Mingus, Tijuana Moods, RCa Records/Original Records Group ORG 174-3, CD/SACD (1962/2015).
• Electric Light Orchestra, Out of the Blue, Epic/Sony Music Japan SICP-30111, Blu-spec CD2 (1972/2013).
• Lisa Gerrard, The Silver Tree, Sonic Records SON212, CD (2006).
• Marc Copland & John Abercombie, Speak To Me, Pirouet Records PIT3058, CD (2011).
• Marek Biliński, Mały Książę, Bi.Ma. BiCD-09, CD (2010).
• Ron Carter, Uptown Conversation, Embryo Records/Atlantic/Warner Music Japan MTCJ-6007, “Atlantic Original Collection | Vol.7”, CD (1970/2005).
• The Beatles, Abbey Road, Apple/USM Japan UICY76978, SHM-CD (1969/2014).

Japanese CD editions are available from

Many doubt the influence of such products (meaning: vibration dampers and EMI/RFI suppressors) on sound quality. The truth is that to actually recognized their impact on sound one has to know what exactly to look for. For example, after a few years of using Finite Elemente Resonator° I know that it doesn't always work the way I want it to, at least in my system. One has to find a device that works well with Resonator°, otherwise the effect might be a less palpable, less dynamic sound, like something sucked whole life of it. But with the right device impact on sound is fantastic – it results in a very fluid, sweet sound, deprived of any hint of nervousness.

X Blocks seem to be more universal – they worked well with all devices I used them with. What's more, their influence on the sound was always similar. First thing I noticed was the front of the soundstage moving a bit further away from me and sound becoming bit less palpable. I personally really care about these particular qualities of the sound. In this particular case something strange happens – front of the soundstage seems further away and yet instruments feel more present, more natural.

I'm not saying that my system lacks something. I really like the way it sounds even though I know that there are other even better sounding ones. The Polish „cleaners” managed to re-define it a bit. By moving instruments further away they “refreshed” them, they “formed” them in a better way. Hence the sound differentiation was significantly better. Usually when some electronic component of the system moves front of the soundstage further away from listener it is a result of a less substantial or even less rich presentation, but what the X Blocks actually did for the sound was quite opposite – they added even more depth, more body, more “normality” to the instruments.

The same influence was audible with every music genre. I started my session with Janos Starker recordings from a 4-disc box compiled by Okihiko Sugano, the editor of „Stereo Sound” magazine. He is a very special person – I heard that many times. Gerhard Hirt, the owner of Ayon Audio, told me that he ( Okihiko Sugano) was one of very few “total gentleman” he knew. Unfortunately Okihiko-san is seriously ill. To honor him I decided to listen to the box with his image on the cover and XRCD24 discs inside, that were prepared using HR Cutting technology, used for Platinum SHM-CD releases.

Starker's cello sounded absolutely amazing. The X Blocks added bit more air around it, let it breathe, and gave me an a better insight into maestro's technique. Without them the more quiet details tend to blend together. Just as the electronic backing track and Lisa Gerard's voice on her album The Silver Tree. Dampers made the sound richer, clearer and more natural. Sound was differentiated in a better way and as a result also more palpable. But “palpable” in a different way then when I started this test. Now it seemed like the sound did not hit the driver's cone but rather microphone's while being more nuanced – it might seem to be a small difference but actually it effected presentation in an amazing way.

Summary

Artesania describing how their dampers work says: „Dampers provide an extra control across the whole passband. They should be considered as the final touch in achieving clarity, tone and coherence in sound reproduction on room acoustics.” On the other hand Finite Elemente declares that „Resonator° converts resonance energy into heat across a broad band and specifically, thus redefining the sound of silence.”

X Blocks, although technically they are different products, do exactly the same. And even more. With them in place sound becomes clearer, better defined, more natural. One can better hear the acoustic surrounding of the instrument. Despite the fact that the front of the stage moves bit further away from a listener everything seems clearer and, paradoxically, closer. Its like the better defined contours of each instrument pulled them out of the background. I repeated the test many times with the same effects each time. I really liked what I heard. There was no device and no recording that wouldn't be positively influenced by X Blocks. These seemed to always be “music-friendly”.

It is a relatively expensive means to improve a sound of a system but one can try it without any risk, so why not try it? Unless of course, you're afraid that after trial period you'll have to keep it thus spending your money.

X Block is a flat box that measures 150 x 187 x 30 mm. Its housing is made of nicely finished, black lacquered wood. On the bottom of the housing there is a rugged rubber washer to prevents any movement of the device after it is placed in required spot. This washer reminded me of one used by a Swedish company Klutz Design for their headphone stands. Company's logo and the name of the device are placed on a shorter side of the device. The is no mineral sand inside like in the Entreq and Audio Revive products, but "modules that are frozen in nitrogen, using a process developed specifically for them and submerged in special resin that effectively suppress EMI and RFI”.

One last thing – we received X Block in a simple carton box, while the Finite Elemente Resonator° not only looks hi-tech but it is delivered inside a very nice plastic box. I think Verictum could think about some similar solution for their product.