FRANC AUDIO ACCESSORIES CERAMIC DISC FOOT(ERS)…Could You Afford NOT Have Em?!

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Their specialties in producing footers, platforms and racks that “eliminate all forms of vibrations” for the ever-sensitive audio components, have gain them some serious recognition.

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There are quite a few (maybe, too many?) designers /manufacturers in the same speciality in the audio industry, and each claiming the same. I, myself, have been in the loop of buying and playing with such “vibrational control” footers from Finite Elemente, Harmonix, Stillpoints, PyonSound (South Korea), etc, in the hope to obtain the desired sound quality for each audio component. I believed that each of the above mentioned brand enjoyed certain success and have the same following…(why?) believe it or not, each worked in its own right.

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The founder, owner and chief designer of Franc Audio Accessories, (Mr.) Pawel Skulimowski being a certified mechanical engineer, musician (drummer) and (more importantly,) an audiophile, is someone quite different from the rest.

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He believes that there is “no limit to the sound (quality)” of the audio component…once the vibrations are dealt with or (as he likes to put it) eliminated!

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His expertise “has allowed him to discover a technique of joining really hard and stiff ceramic materials together with light aluminum alloy and elastic plastics”, and from that material thereof, he has successfully incorporated into these products.

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(Mr.) Pawel sent me for review, three whole range of his foot(ers) for my different weight and type of audio components. I received the Ceramic Disc Slim Foot, Ceramic Disc Classic Foot and Ceramic Disc Fat Foot.

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My eyes were set on the Ceramic Disc Slim Foot which could act as a coaster for the spiked legs of the Sperling L-1 turntable. I have in hand eight pieces of the said Ceramic Disc Slim Foot that could fit nicely with the three spiked legs at the said turntable and three spiked legs at the accompanying separate motor chassis. To work then, I removed the Sperling Audio supplied six pieces of coasters for the respective spiked legs and replaced with the Ceramic Disc Slim Foot. Re-leveled the turntable and motor chassis (and pulley), recalibrate the speed and some fine adjustment to the whole turntable set up. Spun the first vinyl on it and I could not believe my ears! (quite literally)

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One vinyl after another…I remembered that night I played through to the early morning, until I was called for…(remember, my day job?). Simply put it, I was reminded why I love my beloved music again. I was not spinning some new vinyl records but my usual heavily spun ones that I (supposedly) knew by heart.

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I could not count how many times that I had played HARRY BELAFONTE AT CARNAGIE HALL (RCA/ SONY/ Analogue Productions APF 6006-45), but hearing him singing with such vivid personality, act and character was the first for that Sperling turntable set up. The intimacy, density, palpability and weight of the calypso, Belafonte and the whole presentation have improved to a level of (almost) touchable.

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Here, the accompanying musicians’ play and audiences’ participation have never been so vividly engaging and surreal. The coughs, cheers and shouts of the audiences were (like suddenly) presented up close and (like seated) next to you. The musicians’ body movements, their playing with the instruments and their “going along” improvisation with Belafonte (suddenly) became more inviting, encouraging and sensationally there-ness. I could not shake off the thought of being exposed to ‘time travel‘ from a vinyl record and turntable set up that I thought I knew over the years.

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Now, it may not be so far fetch to say that the Ceramic Disc Slim Foot(we s) manage to “eliminate all the vibration” from the Sperling turntable thus allowed the SoundSmith StrainGauge cartridge’s stylus to perfectly track and dug out all the details (?!).

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That whole experience has encouraged me to find the next components to be placed atop the next sets of Ceramic Disc Classic Foot. After some endeavors, I decided to place each set of three under each of the two Frank Acoustics Power Line Management PLM-5500 (Step Down Transformer by 8V), that fed to all the power distribution to all the source components, and pre-amplification (except to the power amplifiers and powered bass towers of the Gryphon Audio Kodo Loudspeakers).

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Thereafter, playing BILL EVANS TRIO SUNDAY AT THE VILLAGE VANGUARDS (Mofi UltraDisc One-Step Pressing UD1S 2-002) on the Sperling turntable was more revealing and more emotionally engaging, comparatively.

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Here, the nuances in strength and pressure applied on the keys of the Steinway Grand Piano by Bill Evans at the Village Vanguard was more obvious, palpable and tangible. There was more of that above mentioned there-ness, as if I was seated closer to Bill and the Grand Piano.

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The details of that recording session started to emerge, bloom and float therefore a I felt a sensation of freshness to an aged but known recording. The accompanying musicians, both Scott LaFARO and Paul Motian, and their instruments were given more definition, density, delineation and presence…(as if given) new life, vibe and energy. There was something refreshing and apparent about those resonating strings of the double bass by Scott, and the coarse skin vibrating at the drum after each brush and hit by Paul. I found their respective role and contribution to the session were given more light thus meaning in the play.

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The same could be said of the audiences at that session in Village Vanguard. I was so used to hearing the audiences as audiences seated distance away from the musicians… “they were there and yet not there”.

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I supposed that the inclusion of the Ceramic Disc Slim Foot(ers) and the Ceramic Disc Classic(s) shown that the actual recording has the audiences as part of the presentation. Expect to hear the audiences in a new light and role in the presentation. I remembered hearing more pronounced conversations among the audiences and more fleshed out clapping of hands by them at the end of the track, “Alice in Wonderland”.

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Playing back the track, “Maltilda” from the above mentioned record, HARRY BELAFONTE AT CARNAGIE HALL, I noticed that the soundstage of the Carnagie Hall was more apparent with height, width and depth that extended beyond the boundaries of the walls in my audio den.

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Therefore, Belafonte’s moving about the stage and the changes in the volume of his voice at different part of that stage became more obvious, instantaneous and real. The whereabout of the accompanying musicians was individualized and their respective distance to Belafonte was equally clearer. The different sections of the audiences were similarly separated and that hearing of individual voices among the audiences was easier.

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Finally, installing the Ceramic Disc Fat Foot(ers) below the much heavier audio components (amplifiers, loudspeakers, Aries Cerat Kassandra 2 LE DAC, Aries Cerat Incito S preamplifier, etc), together with the Ceramic Disc Slim Foot(ers) and Ceramic Disc Classic(s) under the above mentioned audio components, brought about another level of transparency, control, definition, and power to the total sound quality. Here, the mid bass and its punch were more tangible, control, define and clean, as in Donald Fagen’s “THE NIGHT FLY” (Mofi UltraDisc One-Step Pressing UD1S 2-003).

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In addition, the soundstage started to envelope further and closer to the sitting position, and with depth, width and height expanded equally. There was that sensation of breathing and seated in the same atmosphere of the recording venue (if the details were in the native recording).

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Having an expansive and enveloping soundstage without good imaging is not a plus point to any audiophile (right?!).

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Here, with all the foot(ers) in placed, I am thrilled to report that the imaging of the musicians was more focused, delineated, palpable, and denser. I believed that the resulted obvious spacing among the musicians did contribute to the above.

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Most of the audiophile’s audio systems that I have the pleasure to come across, have in them some foot(ers) of one brand/philosophy or multiple brands of differing philosophies. What I am saying is that they have them and (why? Because) they worked!

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I cannot say whether the different types of Ceramic Disc Foot(ers) have successfully eliminated all forms of vibration or their respective degree thereof.

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However, in term of improved sound quality, I dare say that they have improved the vividness, there-ness/sensation, imaging, presence/weight, transparency/detail, energy/transient, and soundstage(width, height, depth and atmosphere), in the total presentation.

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Check out the website: www.f-franc.com

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