Do people really buy this stuff?

[mike175gr]

I am honestly a little stunned, do people really buy this stuff?

http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/auc.pl?accstwek&1149477328

"Brilliant Pebbles is a concept created by Machina Dynamica that capitalizes on unique atomic mechanisms in crystal structures to dissipate unwanted acoustic and mechanical vibration in audio systems."

This is probably said with a straight face no less!

:screwy:

[bigpoppapump]

Looks like Jelly Belly's to me.

[jrsystems]

As an ordained Minister of Audiophilia, it is a documented fact that by blessing your system I will significantly improve your imaging and reduce total harmonic distortion. Then there is the Prayer of the Standing Wave that will all but eliminate these bothersome annoyances. For an additional donation to our church, I am able to perform a complete excorsism of your system and flush out all of your harmonic demons. I'm booked through July, so make your plans soon!

Reverand JR

[Sandy G]

Yeah, well, I'm a DISCOUNT ordained Minister of Audiophoolology, & whatever JR will do it for, I'll do it for 15% less...an' give a WONDERFUL set of genuine metal Steak Knives to boot...But you gotta hurry...Call BR-549 NOW...

[theodoric]

Do people really buy this stuff?Perhaps you should do a Google Maps search for the mailing address for Shakti Innovations. I believe you'll find your question answered.

Quartz will develop an electric charge if it is mechanically distorted (the Piezoelectric Effect (http://www.efunda.com/materials/piezo/general_info/gen_info_index.cfm)). Knowing that, the question becomes, does the addition of quartz in such a manner actually affect the EMI field to the point where the charge is going to produce an audible change, or is it a bit like tossing a pebble in the ocean to raise the sea level? And why wouldn't one just buy a couple dollar's worth (http://www.curiogrove.com/minerals/min038.htm) of assorted mineral samples at The Nature Store (http://thenaturestore.com/geology.htm), rather than give some guy a hundred bucks to do the same?

Everything changes something else; if I bring a glass of water into the room with me when I listen, it affects the room's air volume and its reflectivity to an extent. The question is: How big of an extent? Is it significant?

Could I make a fortune by selling audiophiles "special" drinking glasses (http://www.designspotter.com/weblog/archives/glas_plodes.jpg) to put their water into? Probably. I recently visited the home of a well-known and respected engineer that does a lot of contract work for well-known and respected audio manufacturers, including some worshipped as The Ultimate X among members of AK. In the crazy collage of stuff that one accumulates in a Great Room/Living Room/Family Room over the course of one's lifetime, there were three little geometric pillows of the type sold to audiophiles a dozen years ago placed way up high on a bookcase. Did they make a difference in sound? Yes. What would the difference be? If you saw the room, you'd guess they would have had a reflection absorbtion ratio of about .000003% compared to the rest of the stuff in there (by the way, his speaker cables were not on those little towers). I'm sure he didn't buy the pillows. But he still had them, and he must have thought enough about them to keep them in the room. I don't know what that says. I think the pillows were ugly. If I were worried about room absorption, I'd buy a Navajo rug or something else beautiful to put in the room, rather than to give my money to someone who repackages accessory pillows of the sort that many women bring home from the store to scatter about sofas and the like, albeit at a markup of 1000% or more.

My inclination is to let the audiophiles that succumb to what I consider that nervous affliction worry about that kind of stuff. I'll save my money, or use it to buy some records or a good meal instead.

[doucanoe]

I usually would like to think that I would reserve comment until trying them. In this case, I am going to march right out there and say it.

BULLSHIT!

RC

[gearhead]

As an ordained Minister of Audiophilia, it is a documented fact that by blessing your system I will significantly improve your imaging and reduce total harmonic distortion. Then there is the Prayer of the Standing Wave that will all but eliminate these bothersome annoyances. For an additional donation to our church, I am able to perform a complete excorsism of your system and flush out all of your harmonic demons. I'm booked through July, so make your plans soon!

Reverand JR

Rev-do you actually need to come here, or can I somehow get this on a handy compact disc?
Seriously-my fave has to be the magic little clocks or whatever they're called.

[dcottrell6]

I knew this sounded familiar, Brilliant Pebbles was the name of a missle defense system in the Regan era. ***bad hotlink removed***

So this is what spending a couple of billion gets you..... :rolleyes:

[masterlu]

Yeah, they really do work. I have thousands of them scattered around the room, makes for tough walking though. You can't argue with Science! :nutz:

[rlrct]

Yeah, they really do work. I have thousands of them scattered around the room, makes for tough walking though. You can't argue with Science! :nutz:

The only problem in your room is that, when the cannons go off in Master and Commander: The Far Side of the World, the brilliant pebbles jump off the floor and make a helluva racket ...

[ashnut]

Wow! I found something to do with that old rock tumbler of mine in the attic next to the spirograph and lite-brite. Looks like I can quit my day job.

[Blue Meanie]

Perhaps you should do a Google Maps search for the mailing address for Shakti Innovations. I believe you'll find your question answered.

Quartz will develop an electric charge if it is mechanically distorted (the Piezoelectric Effect (http://www.efunda.com/materials/piezo/general_info/gen_info_index.cfm)). Knowing that, the question becomes, does the addition of quartz in such a manner actually affect the EMI field to the point where the charge is going to produce an audible change, or is it a bit like tossing a pebble in the ocean to raise the sea level? And why wouldn't one just buy a couple dollar's worth (http://www.curiogrove.com/minerals/min038.htm) of assorted mineral samples at The Nature Store (http://thenaturestore.com/geology.htm), rather than give some guy a hundred bucks to do the same?

Everything changes something else; if I bring a glass of water into the room with me when I listen, it affects the room's air volume and its reflectivity to an extent. The question is: How big of an extent? Is it significant?

Could I make a fortune by selling audiophiles "special" drinking glasses (http://www.designspotter.com/weblog/archives/glas_plodes.jpg) to put their water into? Probably. I recently visited the home of a well-known and respected engineer that does a lot of contract work for well-known and respected audio manufacturers, including some worshipped as The Ultimate X among members of AK. In the crazy collage of stuff that one accumulates in a Great Room/Living Room/Family Room over the course of one's lifetime, there were three little geometric pillows of the type sold to audiophiles a dozen years ago placed way up high on a bookcase. Did they make a difference in sound? Yes. What would the difference be? If you saw the room, you'd guess they would have had a reflection absorbtion ratio of about .000003% compared to the rest of the stuff in there (by the way, his speaker cables were not on those little towers). I'm sure he didn't buy the pillows. But he still had them, and he must have thought enough about them to keep them in the room. I don't know what that says. I think the pillows were ugly. If I were worried about room absorption, I'd buy a Navajo rug or something else beautiful to put in the room, rather than to give my money to someone who repackages accessory pillows of the sort that many women bring home from the store to scatter about sofas and the like, albeit at a markup of 1000% or more.

My inclination is to let the audiophiles that succumb to what I consider that nervous affliction worry about that kind of stuff. I'll save my money, or use it to buy some records or a good meal instead.

But you apparently DO believe in green pens for CDs. But at least they (the pens) are inexpensive.

[theodoric]

But you apparently DO believe in green pens for CDs. But at least they (the pens) are inexpensive.
Yeah, I believe in the green pens for CDs. I took three of our SACDs - Saltanah - left one untreated, one got a Sims ring, and one got the green pen. I not only listened, but I captured the output to an MasterLink ML-9600 (http://www.alesis.com/product.php?id=4) at 24-bit, 96kHz and a Sound Devices 722 (http://www.sounddevices.com/products/722.htm) at 24/192, then listened to the hard disk outputs through my reference system (which is not my living-room system). Let's just say that I feel it's worth the less than 1¢ per disc it costs to give a CD the green pen treatment. In fact, I would actually pay the $20 that the retail outlets charge for their green pens. But what I did was get a box of ten for $50 in Japan, where they are sold as just plain water-based markers (sans notched tip). So, for five bucks, one can see if it makes a difference.

By the way, the Sims ring made a positive difference, too. But they don't make those anymore, so that point is moot.

I never said that the quartz crystals and the ugly pillows and the cable towers and the crazy expensive power cords didn't make a difference; of course they make a difference! Everything makes a difference. The glass of water (Patent Pending) makes a difference. Wearing a cotton versus rayon shirt makes a difference.

The questions are:
A) Are the differences discernible;
B) If A) is true, then is the difference better, worse, or just different;
C) If A) is true, and B) is "better", then is the cost of the change reasonable?

My argument is that ugly $100 throw pillows, $200 jars of rocks, $300 bits of wood, $400 alarm clocks, and $500 wooden volume knobs make such a tiny difference (and not necessarily in the manner their proponents ascribe), and that psychoacoustics can be such a powerful influence, that their existence can't be justified.

If someone were to say: "Here's the tweak. Get a quartz crystal cut in a certain manner, and place it above/below/adjacent to a DC motor/AC outlet/DAC chip/whatever, and it will ameliorate a detrimental RF/EMI field that affects the sound, and the total cost of the tweak is two bucks, and time spent is five minutes," then I'll admit that's a reasonable tweak. Compare and contrast that to, "Send me $200, and I'll send you a magical jar of crystals that are assembled in a special way, and will improve your listening experience tenfold just by having them in the room," then I think most of us will admit that's charlatanism.

That's the deal with the pen: it's cheap, it's quick, it's easy, and if it doesn't work for you, you can use it to label the tops of CDRs without having it affect the coating on top (unlike a Sharpie).

[Blue Meanie]

Fair enough. I understand now. Thanks for the explanation. :yes:

Jeff

[hallster]

Robert Harley would like to add this to his revised edition. Yahoooooo!!

[gearhead]

If you put a big jar of those pebbles on the nightstand in your bedroom, would your-oh, never mind. :D

[Upnorth]

:sigh: Here I was planning on saving a bunch of money by getting $2 worth of rocks and not having to take my amp in for a tune up. Now you got me skeptical. I guess eating all those popsicle's so I could glue the sticks together for lifting my speaker wire off the floor wasn't so smart either.

[Mark W.]

i went a whole step further and just put my speakers out in the middle of the gravel drive it was beautiful the sound was like from heaven I couldn't believe it. I was just ready to run in the office and let you guys all know how great it was and my wife came home from work.
.
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.
.
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..
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..Depressed Audiophile now looking for a new pair of speakers. I'll add the magic myself.

[Negotiableterms]

Yeah, I believe in the green pens for CDs. I took three of our SACDs - Saltanah - left one untreated, one got a Sims ring, and one got the green pen. I not only listened, but I captured the output to an MasterLink ML-9600 (http://www.alesis.com/product.php?id=4) at 24-bit, 96kHz and a Sound Devices 722 (http://www.sounddevices.com/products/722.htm) at 24/192, then listened to the hard disk outputs through my reference system (which is not my living-room system). Let's just say that I feel it's worth the less than 1¢ per disc it costs to give a CD the green pen treatment. In fact, I would actually pay the $20 that the retail outlets charge for their green pens. But what I did was get a box of ten for $50 in Japan, where they are sold as just plain water-based markers (sans notched tip). So, for five bucks, one can see if it makes a difference.

By the way, the Sims ring made a positive difference, too. But they don't make those anymore, so that point is moot.

I never said that the quartz crystals and the ugly pillows and the cable towers and the crazy expensive power cords didn't make a difference; of course they make a difference! Everything makes a difference. The glass of water (Patent Pending) makes a difference. Wearing a cotton versus rayon shirt makes a difference.

The questions are:
A) Are the differences discernible;
B) If A) is true, then is the difference better, worse, or just different;
C) If A) is true, and B) is "better", then is the cost of the change reasonable?

My argument is that ugly $100 throw pillows, $200 jars of rocks, $300 bits of wood, $400 alarm clocks, and $500 wooden volume knobs make such a tiny difference (and not necessarily in the manner their proponents ascribe), and that psychoacoustics can be such a powerful influence, that their existence can't be justified.

If someone were to say: "Here's the tweak. Get a quartz crystal cut in a certain manner, and place it above/below/adjacent to a DC motor/AC outlet/DAC chip/whatever, and it will ameliorate a detrimental RF/EMI field that affects the sound, and the total cost of the tweak is two bucks, and time spent is five minutes," then I'll admit that's a reasonable tweak. Compare and contrast that to, "Send me $200, and I'll send you a magical jar of crystals that are assembled in a special way, and will improve your listening experience tenfold just by having them in the room," then I think most of us will admit that's charlatanism.

That's the deal with the pen: it's cheap, it's quick, it's easy, and if it doesn't work for you, you can use it to label the tops of CDRs without having it affect the coating on top (unlike a Sharpie).

Theo, Theo, Theo... I agree with every word you said, but I still have to point out that it's pointless to apply logic to obsession.

Thanks for the green pen info. Well worth $5 for a fun experiment!

[theodoric]

it's pointless to apply logic to obsession.Kind of like love, I suppose.

[GaryP]

Thanks for the green pen info. Well worth $5 for a fun experiment!

Of course, you may devalue the CD's if you ever decide to sell them.

Actually I might try it, too.... on a cheap CD, of course.

A lot of the tweaks that I've tried work on the "big rig" but are much less effective - ie: no change - on the "house system". For me, it depends on how resolving (I think that means 'details') my system is. For example, the Technics receiver made everythng sound the same, no matter what speakers I used!

I'd really hate to buy those pebbles without a free in-home demo, though!

Gary

[Strangeband]

But you gotta hurry...Call BR-549 NOW...

What would Junior do?

I still remember seeing him in a 10-second TV commercial saying "My wife dropped some of that Made-Rite Chilli on my head and my tongue liked to lap my brains out tryin' to git to it."

And I don't think Junior Samples would have fallen for this stuff either.

[GaryP]

What the heck are you guys talking about and who is "Junior"?

It must be a US TV commercial....

[Blue Meanie]

What the heck are you guys talking about and who is "Junior"?

It must be a US TV commercial....

Junior Samples was a character on an American TV series called HEE HAW. The show consisted of hillbilly humor and goat ropin' music. If you've never seen it, you've missed (less than) nothing. Stimulates my gag reflex just thinking about it.

Jeff

[GaryP]

Ahhh, I've heard of that old show (and seen bits & pieces, too).

Thanks.

[Blue Meanie]

Ahhh, I've heard of that old show (and seen bits & pieces, too).

Thanks.

You're welcome. Glad I don't need to elaborate further. :D

Jeff

[Bigerik]

Careful guys! Don't want this becoming a Hee Haw forum! :D

[Texas42]

Careful guys! Don't want this becoming a Hee Haw forum! :D


I agree....that is, unless you are going to post some pics of the 'hee haw honeys'

[slow_jazz]

growing up i had a bag of marbles.. threw away my retirement.... along with early comic books and the baseball bubble gum cards i put in my bicycle spokes...

instead of the green pen i buy a 50 stack of the black memorex blank cdr's and make a copy of my cd to the black memorex ones on my computer. i think it sounds better but i could be wrong. look way cooler though...

[glen65]

I am honestly a little stunned, do people really buy this stuff?

Yep they sure do,
Then even after they find out it doesnt work they will claim they hear a
difference in an attempt to save face in front of thier friends.

"Brilliant Pebbles is a concept created by Machina Dynamica that capitalizes on unique atomic mechanisms in crystal structures to dissipate unwanted acoustic and mechanical vibration in audio systems."
Actually you're supposed to use dilithium crystal.
They give your music a little extra energy.

[BridgedToMono]

Perhaps you should do a Google Maps search for the mailing address for Shakti Innovations. I believe you'll find your question answered.

:jawdrop: Well good for Ben and Johanna.... :smoke:

[Trawlerman]

You know, I was going to make a crack about people believing that they could actually get decent music from those 5" silvery discs and then I remembered about my Krell :) Guess i'll go away and crawl back under my stone.

Vinyl rules!

[soundmotor]

Obviously you have neither heard of Peter Belt nor his adherents.

Peter Belt Illogica (http://www.belt.demon.co.uk/product/bpaip.html)

The above is for your car. He used to offer the same types of products for your audio gear.

:smoke:





I am honestly a little stunned, do people really buy this stuff?

http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/auc.pl?accstwek&1149477328

"Brilliant Pebbles is a concept created by Machina Dynamica that capitalizes on unique atomic mechanisms in crystal structures to dissipate unwanted acoustic and mechanical vibration in audio systems."

This is probably said with a straight face no less!

:screwy:

[MrZero63]

Surprise surprise - nobody bought 'em! Of course I believe they work :D Why would the guy with the 100K plus system lie about something as great as the pebbles? :scratch2:

"First the Lil Clock's and then the Pebbles; they are some of the best tweaks I've purchased. I was pleasantly surprised on the effects these items had in my 100K plus system. Highly recommended Geoff and Machina Dynamica tweaks!
Positive by Buyer Stereo_file (156) on 03-10-06 re: Accessory "
http://cgi.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fb.pl?user=Geoffkait&1&1&1&1