I have just spent over 2 hours at a friends home tuning his Quadraspire. I had no idea how tuneable that stand was. When I got there he had it all far too tight.

The sound was overblown & shouty. after much loosening & then tuning ( I couldn't believe how sensitive those top nut things could be ) it sounds pretty damn good.

Does the Hutter have this tuneability, or does it work at it's optimum straight out of the box?

Bob, (who is now thinking about putting Quadraspire on my short list, even though I think it's a visual nightmare!)

Has anybody tried Projekt?

Brian

I took a look at Projekt prior to opting for Base.

It looked quite nice and I was willing to try a home dem but the dealer really steered me well away with regards to the out of the box quality of the stuff. He also steered me well clear of Maaaaaa-na (sheep noise)and its sonic effects when he heard what I didn't want the rack to do - ie enhance the mid to upper in any way at all (I believe and so did he that Naim systems are already fully optimised in this respect)

I toyed seriously with the idea of Hutter Racktime but neither myself or the wife could live with the looks at the end of the day (a bit like Russ Andrews Torlyte meets Ikea c/w teutonic build quality) so we opted for our beloved Base cabinet and I have absolutely no regrets at all - my wife liked the look of this thing so much she even paid for it!!!

I suppose the proof of the pudding is in the stirring though

Regards Pierre

If you're in the UK, go visit Mana. In the US, one needs to contact the distributor to arrange for a home trial. Rack systems are expensive. It's not a decision you'll want to make lightly, because the costs of switching out can be high.

In my own case, the Mana racks made the difference between a very expensive hifi that was annoying, and a musically compelling, well-balanced system. I'm not the only one who has experienced this. Perhaps other racks can provide
the same benefits, but none of those readily available in the US came close.

Ignore the politics, ignore the hype, just try it. If it doesn't float your boat, OK.

I think the issue is that Mana works as a system, as does Hutter. They do their stuff in diferent ways, and hence may be largely incompatible with each other - trial will be necessary. Tread cautiously.

Rico - musichead

quote:

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He also steered me well clear of Maaaaaa-na (sheep noise)and its sonic effects when he heard what I didn't want the rack to do

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Pierre,

You were told by someone not to try something, therefore you did not try it.

Maaaaa.

Check out www.sheepgame.co.uk Hint: you play as the dealer.

Tony.

Mana user, not Mana fundamentalist.

Paul(from naim), didn't you have your own HIFI on Projekt stands?

I think I remember (from some lost web pages) that projekt is good looking (at least IMO, better than mana)

do they have a web site at last?

jean-christophe

quote:

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the dealer really steered me well away with regards to the out of the box quality of the stuff. He also steered me well clear of Maaaaaa-na (sheep noise)and its sonic effects when he heard what I didn't want the rack to do -

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Pierre - Dealers that would forego a sale by recommending a product they cannot sell are few and far between. Are you surprised by this response?

Rico - musichead

in other term, does mana only cope with the engineering imperfections (mainly mechanical imperfections), and would not be needed whenever the equipment is able to get rid of its own mechanical problems by itself?

is there a more prononced mana effect on a Planar 9 or on a suspended TT?
is there still a mana effect on a CDS12 or a Linn CD12?

many thanks
jean-christophe

quote:

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is there a more prononced mana effect on a Planar 9 or on a suspended TT?

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The LP12 really seems to love Mana, a Reference Table helps it work even more than it does a P9. The effect on CD players and amps should not be understated either.

Tony.

Hi. I'm new here, so be gentle ;-)

As a QS to Mana convert, I have to say that although I love the QS aesthetic, the effect on the sound is minimal. I can see how some people like them - its a relaxing, civilised sound, but ultimately a bit dull :-)

Mana seems to strip away a certain something; my analogy being that of polishing a clean car - it looked clean before you started, but once you get the T-cut out, you start to see how mucky it really was. Anyway, I've just gone to Phase 5 under the electrics and Phase 3 under the turntable (on a wall shelf) and it's never sounded better. Enjoy!

TC '..'

TC '..' (phase 5 Mana - it gets *serious*!)

quote:

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In my own case, the Mana racks made the difference between a very expensive hifi that was annoying, and a musically compelling, well-balanced system. I'm not the only one who has experienced this.

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Jim.

As far as CD playback in my system is concerned, I feel almost exactly the same way.

To answer another question above, I found the effect of Mana on my CDX to be a bit more pronounced than on my P9.

Vuk.

Music is the answer.

I'm not sure I like the look of the Hutter gear, although if it floats yer boat...

I haven't heard it though, so I won't cast any negative or positive conjecture on its sound, but I would be very surprised if it could better the Mana Effect...

...anyone in Scotland got some for me to hear?

TC '..'

Has anyone else tried this stuff?

Jonathan

quote:

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Some of my kit is on project, but all is soon to be replaced by hutter, this stand has all the stuff mana does but more, the major plus on the hutter is the natural qualities of instruments which is 2nd league on the mana.

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What Phase Mana were you comparing with? Having heard the magnitude of the difference between a Phase 4 and Phase 6 Mana I was wondering if you thought that Hutter was better than say a Phase 7, or were you comparing at Phase 2 or 4? The ability to upgrade Mana as money allows seems quite attractive.

Nic P

I had a peek at the hutter website and it looks like they employ a similar-ish system to soundstages, so perhaps hutter is also upgradable.

I'm on Phase 5 and I can't even comprehend anyone buying anything but Mana now that I've seen the light - I even had a letter printed in HFC this month to that effect

TC '..'

Anyone interested in a top notch support for a LP12 should try the Aurios Media Isolation Bearing--or MIB. In a 2 hour dem it was significantly better (used in conjunction with a Target turntable stand) than a Mana Reference table. In the US 3 MIBs are $300 vs. $725 for a Reference Table.

Cheers,

Bob

PS--Dave Dever--When is NANA going to import Hutter ?