CD’s have a reading surface which can get dirty: dust and fingerprints may leave a trace that can influence the sound in a way that changes the laser beam’s readings, and in the best case just increases the activity of the interpolation circuits for error correction.

The fact that the discs have to be handled with care, and kept as "clean" as possible, is a commonly accepted concept in the audiophile community, but it radically changes when we go from the concept of "cleanliness" to the concept of "improvement" of the CD sound through various products that can be found on the market and promise to maintain this kind of "modification" for a long time on the discs treated in this manner.

To be historically correct, everything began with the green AUDIOPRISM marker in 1990 e and with its following low-cost derivations like UNIPOSKA etc etc.

Do you remember?

You had to paint the CD’s edge and central portion green (a more "suitable" color than black) to prevent the laser beam from dispersing its reading capacity because of unwanted reflections.

The result was supposed to be greater precision in the disc reading and a general audio performance improvement: I had made, at the time, various experimentations with the marker, it was hard and a job of precision, and you had to pay attention to smudges. In several CDs I obtained results that weren’t satisfying enough to continue using the marker, though magazines like Stereophile commented on it enthusiastically.

Like suggested above, in 1991 came Finyl.

It combined antistatic cleaning functions and was said to improve the sound significantly: greater detail, more brightness etc etc.

Urged by American press reviews, I obtained, through AUDIO-ADVISOR, a few packages of the liquid.

I used it for quite a bit, objectively noticing,after the treatment, an improvement of the sound, especially in the overall brilliance, and the image that was significantly more evident, but eventually the spray ended up in a drawer, taken out to try this comparison with its modern siblings.

Some time ago Antonio Cinti of Estro Armonico, Audience’s italian importer, gave me, with Igor’s help, a pack of AURIC ILLUMINATOR, which the american press described as great: the idea was to try the product for this column, but, as it often turns out, more ideas come when you’re on the way, so I decided to work on a "comparison" test looking for other similar products to compare how each affected the sound quality and to find out if the "known" differences were the same that emerged while listening.

For this Test, apart from Finyl and the aforementioned Auric, I lined up the best on the market: AUDIOTOP DIGITAL, from the swiss company with the same name (this product is not imported in Italy), MAGIC CD imported by Audio Azymuth together with Walker Audio’s VIVID, available here: http://www.playstereo.com/ ; along with these "professional" products, following the directions I found on some home-made tweaking forums, I bought a lens spray, SEE SIDE from NEXT VISION ITALIA, in an optician store near my house, to verify its eventual functionality in an "alternative" use.

To maintain the most objectivity that is possible, in the subjectivity of listening, I made 7 copies of two of my favourite CD’s, that is OGGI E DIMANE by Massimo Ranieri (Sony Music 2002), great songs, brilliant voice, wonderful arrangements by Mauro Pagani, excellent recording, and FOR THE STARS by Anne Sofie von Otter & Elvis Costello (DG 2001), a record I often use for listening tests.

Then I treated the 14 CDs with the products I had, obviously keeping an untreated copy for reference, alternating them consequentially to notice the differences in audio performance of each product I used.

The audio installation used for the test were the LECTOR Digicode/Digidrive CDP’s, SONIC EUPHORIA passive preamp and a pair of QUAD 988’s tweaked by my friend Giacomo Pruzzo and piloted by my custom OTLs, recently re-valved and re-wired with silver cables; two TBI MAGELLAN VIII subs with their dedicated amps, ANJOU cables from Adam Blake’s Pear Cable between CDP and preamp, YBA Crystal between pre and final, QUAD cable between final and speakers, Atlas Hyper for the passive subs.

The first thing to notice is that the products aren’t all the same. In fact, they can be grouped into two categories, anionic tensioactives (transparent liquids) and cationic tensioactives (creamy gels with a liquid soap-like look and feel). A substance’s "group" will determine the final result of the treatment.

The second observation to make is any one of the treatments will NECESSARILY have an effect, what we want to determine here is what kind of improvements we’re going to obtain. Now let’s examine each product I tried out one by one, the reviews are short for obvious reasons, but I hope they will be exhaustive.

AUDIOTOP

This is an Anionic liquid produced by a company that specializes in hifi cleaning products. You simply have to spray the liquid on the CD and then cleanse it with the paper tissue that’s included in the package.

From the audio point of view, the CD sounds more brilliant, high frequencies being more evident (this is, as we will see later, an effect that is common to all anionic products), sibilants sound more metallic, and the voice gets thinned down, and less rich in harmonics. The effect on the low frequencies is not as evident, but still there is more impact, as if the treatment improved the data flow from the CD to the decoder.

It’s a cationic liquid, a pale blue gel that should be placed in little drops on both the sides of the CD, reading surface and label (singular mode of application that I have not honestly understood well), the tissue supplied for polishing is of optimal quality, a very compact one.

The difference of sound compared to the anionic class is obvious: here to draw greater advantage is the region of the lower-middle frequencies with a greater balance compared to the anionic products, without this "prevalence " emphasizing the sound in an unnatural way; in particular the treatment seems to obtain a beneficial effect on the voices and the sound stage appears deeper and more articulated .The total feeling is of a much more clear sound in comparison to the reference sample but with a "warmer" connotation and a much more natural one.

Audience also supplies in the pack a black water-based marker that’s used to paint the external and inner edges of every CD with a similar way of application to the green marker of the nineties.

In all honesty I must say that its "stand alone" application has not brought any change in positive or negative to the sound of the CD, neither its "usage" has changed in any way the sound of the CD to which AURIC ILLUMINATOR has been applied.

Together with the package come tissues to spread the spray on the surface of the CD and cotton discs (much like the ones for make-up removal) for polishing, it should be noticed that such discs tend to leave trace of themselves on the CD (microfilaments) for which I have preferred to use a better tissue like the one by Audience in order to proceed to such operation.

Miracle CD Cleaner is an anionic product, its effect is concentrated above all on vhf that turn out to be more shining, with a vital and "present" sound compared to the reference. The voices appear a bit thinner but, unlike, for example, Swiss AUDIOTOP, one here perceives smaller metallic-type sound of the sibilants and therefore a greater naturality of emission. the vlves appear increased and the soundstage turns out more articulated with a greater dimension in terms of the increase of the sound scene regarding the speakers, instead the depth appears unchanged.

It’s the "father" of all the anionic products for the treatment of CDs, in the pack beyond the spray and the velvet cloth, similar to ones you cleaned up LP’s with many years ago, for its treatment also come small auto adhesive marks to apply to the box it of "the finylized" CDs.

Like for the other anionic products also here we get a greater presence and an emphasis of the vhf’s, with the voices that join and get thin and slightly more metallic, especially the female ones.

Finyl has a sort of "monitor effect" carrying forward the positioning of the sound stage that does not even lose depth and in wealth of microinformation that indeed, as object of this test, happens with all the products, appears increased contributing in a meaningful way to the greater total brilliance of the sound.

The second cationic product object of the test, is introduced like a golden cream that gets applied with an appropriate tampon, and a very dense one at that, then the CD should be polished with a tissue of optimal quality and consistency.

As for the Auric by Audience, also with this product the sound appears mainly modified in the lower-middle frequencies, the voice turns out fuller, round and rich of harmonics, and much more natural.

The soundstage introduces a greater depth, the increase of the microinformation is meaningful and that helps to render the sound without actually turning out richer and never too brilliant, the mid frequencies are not invading nor particularly in evidence and the lower ones do not introduce unnatural emphasis.

Anionic tensioactive, and even pleasantly perfumed: I have chosen the fragrance named Sport. For the application I have used the cloth given in equipment for lens polishing (use for which this product was invented and for which is commercialized in the nearbyopticians at a cost that is a fraction regarding the other products made especially for HIFI.) to clean the disc.

The thing that it hits you more, at first impact, is "the increase of volume " in the sense that the system seems to play louder. Analyzing the played musical message as SEE SIDE modifies it giving greater analyticity to all the spectrum of the frequencies without exalting the highest ones more, as it happened with the other products of the same class, the voice appears warm, rich of harmonics, the virtual scene much more rich and above all increased in depth as in height and width.

It seems in other words to reassume in itself the good sides of the cationic products on the mid-low freqs with the brilliance on the very high ones typical of anionics without an evident prevalence, the sound turning out improved regarding the untouched sample without tending too much towards one of the sides of the spectrum.

Actually bought randomly SEE SIDE behaved in a really great way on the CD’s, a true revelation among this panel of products.

Here they go:

a. The CD must, as the LP, be cared for and such maintenance, e.g. cleaning of the reading surface, gives benefits to the sound, ALWAYS.

b. The products in evidence offer, beyond a valid solution (each and every single one of them) for cleaning, also a certain effect on the sound of the CD and therefore all differ from the others.

c. Characteristic chemical compositions of the products, anionic and cationic, determine meaningful differences in the sound

d. The anionic products produce a more shining sound and an at times meaningful exaltation of vhf, and from this point of view, the most balanced turns out to be DISC DOCTOR.

e. The cationic products generally give the best of themselves in the voice and of the lower-middle frequencies

f. Having to make a choice between the products specifically "studied" for hifi my preference goes to this last category because a given CD offers a more natural and balanced sound.

g. Between the two cationic products my preference goes to AURIC ILLUMINATOR and not the VIVID in a much similar context but the first one prevails a bit on the second in the nature of the sound and returning a deeper and realistic sound image.

h. The true winner of this test is SEE SIDE, that seems to include the pros of the two categories of products without at the same time getting the "cons": a performance of great interest and absolutely notable, for a "Do-It-Yourself" solution of little cost and sure satisfaction, which personally I’d advise to every reader out there.

i. The only doubt that connects all these products and that I do not know the answer to is about the "duration " in time of such treatments. The producers swear all in unison on how much their products "last" and that the effect therefore is extended and that, further periodical applications on the CD after a single one are not needed. To our children the arduous decision.............................

Dieter Ennemoser is a lute master that lives in Flaurling, a small village between the mountains of the Tirol on the road leading to the Lake of Costanza and Innsbruck. I read of him on Tnt-audio: years ago Lucio Cadeddu had interviewed him e and tried his "magical" lacquer called C37 , which Dieter puts on sale in his website (http://www.ennemoser.com/) .

The Swiss of AUDIO CONSULTING extensively use the lacquer in their realizations and asked about it have confirmed Cadeddu’s surveys.

Curious I wrote to Dieter and I asked to try his product, after a few days I received at my doorstep some packages of the lacquer adapted to various temperatures of use and one solvent bottle, turpentine.

Dieter Ennemoser says (he published a "white book " on his site on the topic) that his lacquer be used in the electronics, by painting the walls of the equipment, in the diffusers by painting internally and externally the cones of the woofer, externally the tweeter and extensively all the walls of the diffuser, improving the sound of the system changing the resonance of every component in "a more natural" way for the human ear.

While on the application modes Dieter has been very precise with me, to my questions on the principle of operation of C37, he opposed a polite but firm "no" in one email to me: " "perhaps we know the secret of the sound of a Stradivari? ".

As a good St Thomas, but at the same time prudent owner of objects which I a was and am very fond of I decided first of all to make an experiment with my then Sub, Gravis by Sonus Faber, leaving from the prudential principle that anything that "would happened" to the diffuser difficultly it would have a lot degraded the sound because of the frequencies.

Following the indications of Dieter, I have opened the box, I have taken apart the large woofer loaded in bass reflex and have proceeded to the complete lacquering, that is with a small paint-brush, in order to avoid dangerous slobbers, I have painted, trying to render possibly the thinnest lacquer hand, the two sides of the cone, noticing that the lacquer, has the appearance of the flatting for wood and that goes at least diluted with turpentine to the 50-60%, got quickly absorbed from the inner side of the loudspeaker, while from the other side already of its treatment the lacquer was dried up quickly enough rendering the cone visibly "more polished". I have then lacquered the small basket of metal in all of its parts; only paying attention not to get the lacquer on the rubber splice that connects the cone with the structure, fearing damage to its elasticity. Then closed the box again, turned on the dedicated amp and the polit, and having verified, WITH RELIEF, that the diffuser worked to duty. Dieter emphasizes that it turns out that consistent sonorous differences of the treatment can be only heard after much time, months, and that in the meantime the quality of the sound can vary in better or worse under the effect of the C37.

Relieved from the ascertainment that the operation was enough simple and that it did not provoke damage I went ahead.

I have, since a long time ago a pair of Triangle CELIUS 202 and for a long time I meditated on how to get the best from these speakers, acclaimed by the press as Best Buy, but that to my ears and in my sphere of listening had some defects: piloted by an Audio Synthesis Seamus showed an optimal behavior at low levels of listening but raising the volume the speakers lost their great analyticity and the low freqs became less controlled and banging .

I tried in past to pass to the biwiring but, as this configuration recently was defined by Sam Telling on Stereophile, even if the speakers are predisposed, this lowers the sound quality BIG TIME, and therefore is to avoid.

I have then thought to substitute the amplification and to pass, supported in these from positive past experiences, to passive biamping acquiring 4 Xa-50 from Musical Fidelity piloted by my personal reference among Preamps, the world champion in price and quality, Sonic Euphoria: the situation clearly improved the low freqs were much more controlled, remarkable dynamics, the resistance to high volumes finally satisfactory.

In order to verify the C37, in a more precise context, I have decided to apply it to the CELIUS in order to understand if this tweak would have improved the quality of the sound even more.

Always following step by step the instructions of Dieter: I have lacquered the small baskets and cones of the woofer inner and externally, the tweeter only externally, then passed to the piece of furniture that I have completely repainted with the Austrian product, like in the case of the Sub I have used version 22 advised by the producer for usage with the speakers.

More than three months passed from then and given time as "prescribed" I can tell you on how it turns out to you; if with the Gravis Sub it gave me the impression of it being difficult to estimate the changes honestly (one of a greater control in the emission but the differences from before are not macroscopic), with the Celius it’s completely different and the outcomes, to my ear, are incredible, the effect on the sound of the speakers painted with Dieter’s lacquer is exceptional and dramatic: the perfect lows are now perfect, controlled, deep but without the boom effect that before was present, and that the biamplification associated to the treatment with the C37 is now completely eliminated, the sterophonic image and the soundstage have gotten a deeper connotation and "gets solid" with a less forward projected acoustic scene and a more realistic one that without arriving to the levels of QUAD 988 was dangerously approached to us to a fraction of the cost, the hold in power is absolute and the sound does not endure more change with the increase of the volume, always "is clean" never pasted, a marked increase of the transparency is perceived and the distortion is lower and listening absolutely not tiring, summing up the Triangle seem practically perfect speakers, to the point to ask myself if the treatment with the C37 lacquer is to advise to all the possessors of Triangle, also the new series ES that has replaced the one in my possession.

Galvanized from what happened with the speakers I continued with the lacquering (using, when it was the case, the version of the C37 adapted to apparatuses that heat up more), in this order I painted: the external and inner walls of the LECTOR Digidrive and Digicode, of the Pre Phono Electrocompaniet, the transformers of my OTL, the slab in support metal and the frame in wood of the same, the base in plastic and the advanced cover of Quad 988, the piece of furniture in wood and the plate of Record player AR, the Rega arm and the needle Blue Point., without arriving to the point of that American audiophile who taken by the enthusiasm covered the surface of the electrostatic panels of his Quad with the result of having to then, obviously, throw them away.....

I would be a liar if i asserted of to have found in the successive lacquering the effects that I have had in positive with the speakers, I can say that I have not had worsenings but I do not feel, in my mind, to advise also these modifications to you as i instead feel to do it, I assure, for the diffusers.

Known since always is that the goodness of an instrument in wood is given also from the lacquering of its parts and that the "secret" of a great lute-maker resides in the formula with which he composes the lacqueres that he uses in the at times legendary construction of his works.

It’s also known that often the manufacturers of speakers use lacquer on the transducers, frequently acquired on the OEM market and that this treatment, searched and intentional from the planner in function of the electroacoustic parameters of its plan, makes the difference and generates the musical character of the loudspeaker, modifying the resonance of the transducer.

The peculiar function of these treatments is modification the factor of damping and resonance of the cones; that therefore a "lacquering" of a diffusor especially of its dynamic members and probably also of the piece of furniture "can" modify the final yield in terms of sonorous quality, I think its acceptable data and condivisibile by all, technical and audiophiles, but what is not understood is how, with the "magical" lacquer of Dieter Ennemosers, the functions get much much better INDEPENDENTLY from the model of speaker and consequently independently from the below plan (comes to mind the crossover net planned specifically and often a lot refined and personalized).

Dieter has confirmed to me that the lacquer "works" with all the models, its only necessary to be patient and wait for the necessary time for the treatment with the C37 to start coming out, which is what that I have done before publishing this test.

I have tried to insist again on this specific point with Dieter but the answer always has been the same one: " is the secret of the sound of a Stradivari known? Why do you worry so much about understanding?, enjoy the result and have no other worries ".

Try it absolutely without any ifs, buts and whys......

I’m not the only doctor who, for delight, writes professionally of HIFI. On Enjoy the Music writes Bill Gaw a gynecologist from New York of German origin..

Reading his likeable rubric "AUDIOLICS ANONYMOUS" I found an enthusiastic book review of an other great liquid, the Tub-o-lator, this time produced in Germany from a strange engineer that elaborates hifi and motorcycles named Robert Altmann.

I have then uncovered that Mr. Altmann was friend of Dieter and I have written him asking to try his "liquid" on sale and, after many insistences from me, Altmann shipped a sample and those that follow are my observations.

The Tub-o-lator arrived to me in a small plastic bottle. The instructions say to shake before use, to arm ourselves with a cotton swab and to proceed to the swabbing of ALL the parts "right for the treatment" the inside of the electronics, using the swab like a paintbrush.

The principle on which this "lacquer" is based would be the one to eliminate or to change in euphonic-term resonance and vibrations of the single present members on the circuits of a hifi installation, on his website Altmann says not to know well why his lacquer works but "that it works"........

The liquid seems a suspension, there is a "dark part" that would seem to be graphite that is deposited and that through shaking recombines with the liquid, the indications say to cover with this suspension all that comes painted gray, all the plastic parts, beyond that the operational ones, integrated circuits and the D/A conversion chip.

I have used the liquid on the DAC/CDP Lector pair and on the inside of the Prepre Phono Electrocompaniet. The confection is microscopic (average cc) but the necessary amounts are very small, only problem the extreme volatility of the product that stretches to evaporate in a hurry also from the swab for which it is necessary to hurry up in the job of "painting", actually easy and as said by Altmann lacking has no contraindications in case of slobbers or errors in the "paint job".

As Bill Gaw said, after a first moment of abashment for a worsening of the sound, with passing of the days the sound of the electronics improves becoming more "tube-like", softer and satisfying.

From my point of view and in all honesty I must say that Altmann’s liquid actually does "something " after its application, in a way that, as can be found in the article from my colleague Gaw, the sound of the CD as that of the Record player has become more sour, sibilant on high freqs with a marked worsening as well as the obvious sign of an action

After some days the bad effect disappeared thanks to God for the good of my coronaries and for good sound’s sake, leaving its place to nothing, that is the application of the Tube-o-lator has not left trace of itself, "it evaporated " like snow in the sun.

The 0,5 cc pack of lacquer was sold by Robert Altmann at approximately 50 Euros, I think he has done good suspending the sales......... and dedicating himself to his very particular electronics about which Igor Zamberlan talks just in this number in his review.

In the panorama of hi-end the voice of Peter Moncrieff arrives from the far away seventies and still now, irregularly as always it has been heard, in his style of "alternative".

His last "creation" is a really expensive liquid for the treatment of the electronics of hifi equipment, its name is MUSICOAT and it could not be missing in this more or less magical fluid review.

Peter Moncrieff is a mysterious man and unreachable, nobody knows exactly where he lives and of what he lives especially after a serious automotive incident that has rendered him invalid to one hand ten years ago.

I researched: on the ending of the seventies he lived in Berkeley, CA and went about the campuses in a bicycle, a large man in shorts and a cap like Charlie Brown, he managed some apartments in the parts of Telegraph Avenue, there he lived at the last floor in a messy apartment full of discs and equipment stacked in every corner, attended the Audio Society with educated and kind manners, all the opposite of the grandiloquent style that can be found now in his articles IAR International Audio Review founded by him in those years, totally without ads, diffused like a fanzine only by means of subscription, printed on red paper in order to prevent photocopying, irregularly spread, of which he was publisher and only editor.

Equipped with a plethoric and torrential writing he has been one of the most famous "gurus" of the alternative press in the hifi field in the America of those years and, from a certain point of view, has invented with his archenemy Harry Pearson of Absolute Sound, the subjective listening tests we read today.

Who wants to get an idea of the person, than among the other things "invented" WonderCaps (used for example by Research Audio) and Wonderwire, can visit his sites http://www.iar-80.com/ and http://www.trt-wonder.com respective review and place of commercialization of his products.

Made curious by the ardent debate on the American Forums on the validity of such liquid, I got on the net and got in contact with Peter who kindly wrote saying he decided to ship me one pack of the "precious" liquid.

After the canonical fortnight of days arrived one envelope from the ‘States containing three sticks a bit like cotton swabs, the hard copies of the instruction book/review also on Moncrieff’s site and one microscopic plastic "bottle" with the MUSICOAT within.

Here goes a meaningful step of the Moncrieff opinion on his liquid:

"MusiCoat is very costly and difficult for us to manufacture, but we've made it very easy for you to use. Simply swab MusiCoat on the outside casings of most parts inside your audio component: all solid state devices, all resistors, most capacitors, heat fins and sinks, and the inside of the chassis. Presto! You've dramatically upgraded your entire audio component, for less than $100. MusiCoat gives you a bigger and more musical sonic upgrade than other equipment upgrades costing hundreds, even thousands of dollars. It can make even a modestly priced audio component sound musically refined, as if you had upgraded to another audio component worth thousands more. And MusiCoat helps even the highest end products to sound better

Then follow "extremely precise" instructions on the application modalities that roughly correspond to those of the Tube-o-lator, even being the two OBVIOUSLY EXTREMELY DIFFERENT products but with the same functions: the application of the liquid, a brownish very volatile substance, that shoud modify the "resonance" of the parts on which it is applied (transistors, IC chip, resistors, capacitors) modifying the "dielectric modulation ".

According to the aforementioned: " All solid state devices in all audio products should be treated with MusiCoat. This includes all transistors, FETs, IC chips, LSI chips, DAC chips, diodes, rectifiers, regulators, etc. Tube circuits benefit from having all their ancillary solid state devices (rectifiers, regulators, current sources) treated with MusiCoat; this allows the virtues of the tube circuit to become even more naturally musical, more truly tubelike in the best senses. Even purely digital chips in purely digital circuits should be treated with MusiCoat (reducing digital problems here, e.g. jitter noise, improves the sound later when the digital signal is converted to analog). MusiCoat may also help all devices in video circuits"

I treated with this wonder all the "treatable" parts of my pair of Lector DIGIDRIVE/DIGICODE and the same thing I did with the Pre-pre ELECTROCAMPANIET, then I took a pile of my favourite CD’s and LP’s and put them to the test, to listen for the abundantly described effects by Peter: so what did I hear, you say? ABSOLUTELY NOTHING!!!

If the Tube-o-lator before disappearing provoked to a "negative " effect the Muiscoat is kinder, it does nothing but make your wallet lighter of 99 $ (but for "industrial" supplies there are reductions in price up to 50%) and the trouble is that differently from Altmann Peter Moncrieff still produces it and sells his magical liquid, his "Elisir of love " … how could it otherwise be?

In a world in which there is place for Vanna Marchi and the "Wizard" Do Nascimiento there is "also" space for him....

Perhaps we can discuss on the real qualities of signal cables especially in connection with the offered quality and to the price to pay. Perhaps we can discuss on the real and scientific "bases" on which is based the construction of many of them, but I think that nobody can deny the importance of the "quality of the contacts" in the final performance of our audio chain, therefore as no one I think can deny the importance of an accurate cleaning of the contacts for an optimal performance of any electronics, especially if we speak for a long time about apparatuses in our possession.

CAIG LABORATORIES of Poway, CA is a serious American company who operates on the market from 1956 and produces an entire line of products and accessories for the care, the maintenance and cleaning of any type of electrical contact.

These are professional products known a lot all over the world for their quality far from any exoterism and used by all the professionals of the field, repairers above all nevertheless rather unknown, at least in Italy, by the great public, audiophili in first place, also representing an instrument which is to my opinion indispensable and also not expensive, in comparison to products sold as "specifically hifi " and, like such, to exorbitant prices.

The visit to the site of the CAIG can be very instructive for the amount of present information, for the variety of the products offered and for the different percentage of concentration of the active substances in the single lines of products in order to concur every appropriate use for every single requirement of cleaning and optimal maintenance in industrial electronics or consumer ones, each will find a solution in one of the products by Caig that offers also a series of practical accessories apt to the better use of its products and many tips for an optimal use of them.

My attention in this article concentrates on three CAIG products the DeoxIT, the ProGold and the CaiLube, those, that is, that answer the need of the audiophiles for the maintenance of the contacts in their system.

Let’s see now one short technical card of the products in the CAIG documentation:

"the DeoxIT is a fast-acting deoxidant solution that cleans up, protects, lubricates and increases the metallic conductivity on contacts and connectors. It can be used like general treatment for superficial connectors, contacts and other metallic parts. It can be applied before the use of other specific products like the ProGold, and its cleaning up force will act quick in order to dissolve to the oxidations and the corrosion. DeoxIT dissolves oxides and sulphurs that formed on the metallic surfaces. Its use restores integrity of the contacts and leaves on the surface a thin layer (organic) that covers and protects the metals. It prevents reforming of oxides, holding them in suspension and facilitating their dispersion through mechanical contact. The unique property of DeoxIT allows the use on contacts and connectors, moving and static. Also when a connector treated with DeoxIT couples a non-treated one, DeoxIT is moves and expands on the previously non-treated surface.

The chemical and physical changes on superficial of connectors and the contacts are the primary cause of degraded performance of the members and the system. When the surface of contacts are exposed to powder, smoke, gases, non-metallic substances, the conductivity becomes inhibited. Additional resistances and the friction between metallic components increase the abrasions, the noise and the interruptions of contact. "

The Caig products, for this test, got to me in a particular pack that comprises them all, called SURVIVAL KIT (in sale for 52 EURO ) but the catalogue is rich of solutions for every need.

These are professional products that do no more than what they promise, does not seem little to me. No magic, but simple and effective cleanliness and conservation of the quality of the treated contacts, I cannot not say that I am absolutely satisfied of their easy and quick use

Of all the present products in the Survival Kit supplied to me for this test the one that I repute most useful in the hifi field is the DeoxIT.

Meaningful in so far as the fact that AUDIENCE in the pack of its great Au24 interconnection cables includes a tube of DeoxIT to the 100% which is "indispensable premise" to their use and let X-trene do the same for its Quick Silver and Walker, too, before the application on the contacts of their SST.

Caig ‘s Agent for Italy is Azimuth company that offers also the possibility of an on line purchase through its virtual store.

The use of the Caig products in my systems in association, as we will see, with the SST by Walker Audio and the Quick Silver by X-treme has turned out to be excellent, so I just cannot refrain from advising to all the audiophiles out there to insert these products in their next shopping list, the will not be disappointed and will actually thank me for the tip.

SST - SUPER SILVER TREATMENT

Walker Audio of Audubon, PA produces one of the most refinedand expensive record players of the world (between 30,000 and 35,000 $ depending on the version) the Walker Proscenium Gold Turntable, one of the most sophisticated and minimalist Prepre the Walker Reference phono preamp (between 12,000 and 15,000$ always depending on chosen configuration) and a net conditioner of the same level, the Audio Walker Velocitor (2,700 $).

The mind behind the company is Lloyd Walker, an engineer who, like many in the hifi industry, began as fan "modifier" of existing equipment, in order to become later on, a time-wasting trader, until in the Nineties he made the great step to open the Audio Walker in order to put his passion to work and to construct analogic record players based on the highest technique associated to listening never reputed secondary in the choice of the parts of the system.

The maniacal precision of Audio Walker, absolutely NOT secondary in the final performance of an audio chain, has the capacities to study the problem of the interconnections between the apparatuses and to the making of the last "fluid" of our "train", SUPER SILVER TREATMENT. Finally, seen the premises, a product with prices that are not too high, as it can be acquired for 75 EURO + shipment expenses in Italy.

differently from the products by CAIG, fundamentally among the optimal cleaners and lubricators of the contacts the SST is an "improver" of contacts in the sense that it’s an emulsion in a conductive organic fluid ,with micro silver particles that make it to appear like a silver cream, than reminds me of oil with its density, and should be applied by means of included applicators on the contacts, as we will see later on, in order to improve exactly the quality in the audio field as in the video field.

The idea to use a silver-plated paste for the improvement of the contacts is not new, since it was used at the time of the war of Korea for the rotary antennas of the radars. But it is the first time that this finds an application in the field of domestic audio.

The product arrives in a confection that seems like a liquid makeup for gentleman with attached precise instructions for its application, the contained amount in the little box is very small but sufficient for an extensive use since the smallest amounts are necessary for the treatment of many connections.

I have applied the SST everywhere in my system. I have proceeded like this:

For RCA I have first of all used the CAIG DeoxIT in its formulation to 100% to clean the male and female plugs, I have used small burlap tissues, supplied by Caig in its survival kit, for the outside and the supplied rods for the inside of the plugs (notice that these rods with the foam tip lose strength soon and that their number in the Survival Kit is limited to only two, for which I advise the readers to equip at least one additional pack of 12 of rods by CAIG as additional supply). Using the spray 5% version of the CAIG ProGold I have then lubricated the inside of the plug that IT NEVER SHOULD BE TREATED WITH SST .

The obvious effect of the caig treatment: the cloth and the foam show obvious removed soil traces, actually noticeable is that the KIT supplied to me for the test, has too little rods, which get used up quickly.

After this phase of preparation, I passed to the application of the silver-plated paste: a of a suspension, I have first of all stirred the paste with a rod in its container, this is a preventive maneuver to make absolutely, in order to obtain the best results.

Using the appropriate applicator, "I have painted" with the product by Walker the external surface of taken female RCA and the 3/4 of the inner wrist pin to male RCA of the signal cable.

Then I passed to the cables of the speaker: I have followed the same procedure dealing before the connections with CAIG products and therefore applying the SST over the banana endings (adequately cleaned up) that I use to link the plugs on the ends, and directly on skinned QUAD cable that necessarily therefore I connect to QUAD 988, whose plugs do not accept other way of link.

For AC links "I painted" the plugs adequately cleaned up with the DeoxIT.

The application of the Super Silver Treatment to the valves is a bit more complicated and changes depending on of the dimensions of the tubes: for the smaller valves similar to type ECC81 and similar, before it is necessary to clean up male finishes with the Deoxit and to treat the income holes of the base with DeoxIT and with ProGold, done this using the smaller applicator in foam it’s necessary to paint the posts just for half; when when you get to dealing with larger valves it is necessary to "arm" oneself of very fine sandpaper with which you should rub the posts acting vertically towards the bottom, then pass from cleaning with the CAIG DeoxIT to the application of the SST then, the holes of the bases go beforehand cleaned up with the appropriate small brush in equipment to the KIT from CAIG, therefore treated with DeoxIT to 100% using the rod with the foam tip and finally sprayed with the ProGold at 5%.

The result of all that: absolutely sensational!!!!

in order to begin, the "sound" is increased in volume, reviewers have calculated that the increase is of 3 Decibel; but it is the quality to endure the most dramatic changes even if the volume increase is the more immediate and perceptible effect, if we want more "ruffian": all the sonorous spectrum benefits of the treatment of the contacts with the SST, vhf is more shining and extended without being tiring, the voices more articulated and detailed, the sound appears mainly radiographing the reproduced event, the lows faster and defined. The sonorous scene acquires an extraordinary vivacity, in the entirety it can be asserted that the SST allows all the members of the audio chain to give the best of them and it does not seem little to me................

Having to proceed to a test for the review I have not carried out the treatment described in an only solution but I have instead proceeded for degrees to estimate the effect of the single applications of the emulsion in several of the members of the chain and therefore I try to define a scale of values still regarding the fact that the SST is additive in the sense that you can’t live without it once you tried it but that the single changes are in positive: the greater results are obtained in the links between the RCA, pre and end, as what concerns cables for loudspeakers the effect is obvious but less meaningful, the modification of the sound after having treated AC plugs is perhaps what has hit me less, while the participation on the valves is phenomenal.

Specifically, more than the DAC Lector that has the escape to tubes as it is known, my OTL ends have mainly earned from the "painting" of the feet of the tubes, in particular having proceeded by degrees, in order to verify the quality of the participation on the sound, I must say that the more spectacular effect has been obtained treating the rectifying valve Ä4G and the 4 valves of 6c33c-b power, minor has been instead the change after to have dealt the two valves of line 1ÀX7.

Relieved by results with the audio I intended to try the effectiveness of the SST in the video field and have treated the entrance of the antenna and escape SCART of the electronic "shack" that SKY supplies to subscribers as decoder: even here the SST had a marked effect, the images are clearer and stable. The disturbance before present intermodulation disappeared, summing up: even being a great connoisseur of video performance I cannot not signal the thing to those passionate of the field.

The only contraindication is represented by the "duration " of the treatment: if the connections are left where they are there are no problems but if you have the habit or the necessity to often connect and disconnect the considered plugs that the "paint" will unavoidablly tend to disappear after some time (especially on the external surface of female RCA plugs) being a "paint" and not glue, the treatment in this case will have to necessarily be repeated, estimates in 4 or 5 times the maximum number of the connections possible before repeating the operation.

Pulling the sums I think that, also given the price, objectively low, for what it succeeds to do, the SST by Audio Walker is is indispensable for any audiophile, I’d say, even more, "acute" than serious in the measure in which its use turns out revelating of before "hidden"

qualities between the mutual contacts of our system to concur finally truly with the state of the art.

As often it happens Walker recently has put on the market an "improved" version of its silver-plated paste, the "Extreme" version characterized essentially by the cryogenic treatment of preparation (roughly: submitting the product to low temperatures according to the idea that such treatment heavily modifies in a permanent way the molecular structure and infuences the quality of the sound regarding the same product, not treated: it should be noted that there are cable producers that apply such methodology and that TUBE DEPOT offers in its immense catalogue on line Tubes treated with Pearl Criovalve with a process very complex that is described on the website) but, at the same time, always as it happens to the products, where this is possible, "clones " are born (not without controversies between the two concurrents, inevitable) apparently characterized by the same performance and the same composition or nearly: the Audio QuickSilver and Enhancer Video of the Xtreme company Cables of Brian Kyle, CEO and "Inventor" as he defines himself,made me curious, I have taken contact with Walker and Xtreme asking explicitly a sample of the two products for a comparison with the original not treated cryogenically.

The test has been carried out following the same modalities of the previous one with the single complication of having to, at every passage, species for the OTL, clean up the posts perfectly or the several connections treated to verify step by step the sonic differences and eventual improvements in the performance between a product and the other having as reference results obtained with "normal" Walker SST.
I will not therefore repeat the instructions that are worth for all the products examine to you and will go directly to the conclusions, that I try to reassume for points:

a. Both the cryogenically treated products seem to give "a better" effect compared to the standard in the video, and in the audio field. The result is not exactly "qualitative" as it is "quantitative" in the sense that what is obtained with SST is not that different than what you get with other products, but the effect is more audible, we're not talking about "incredible" differences but of ones notable especially in the brilliance of the restitution of the audio message and in the reconstruction of the sound scene that, with the cryogenic products appears deeper and articulated reconfirming the feeling that these treatments favor a greater passage of "data" compared to untreated contacts resulting in better "sound focus" altogether. If we want (but we are in the hifi field and here this is is a "rule ") to listen with greater attention in order to find of the differences between the two products, not discarding the above observations on the SST Extreme, we can say that among the results of hypercritical listening, we can feel perhaps a greater "sweetness " on vhf while the consequence of the Xtreme seems to advantage the restitution of greater depth of the virtual acoustic scene.

b. From the practical point of view there are no differences if not for the equipment offered by the two companies: Walker adds in the pack of the Extreme some swabs for the preventive cleaning of the contacts, while Xtreme Cable wisely provides (seen the considerations that I have made in application topic) a sample of the great CAIG DeoxIT and, beside the foam swabs similar to those in the Walker packs, a brush for its application , which turned out extremely useful.
c. A consideration is necessary regarding the apparent cost difference: the Walker product costs 150 EURO while Xtreme costs 62$, but contains approximately one third of the amount in the other package, turning out to have a practically equal price, that is the double of the "normal" SST and the difference is not insignificant......
d. Which of the two products is better in the end? Of a gluing, as you say in horse riding, according to my ear, the "clone " produced by Xtreme: it's clear, I'm talking about really slight differences, but they're perceptible in the final result of a complete treatment.

Having the occasion to try the three products I cannot exclude the differences in the results, I'm still not convinced that the "enhanced" version are worth the greater price in terms of production cost and in any case the difference between them and the normal SST, for how much audible it is, is not nearly enough to justify the alternative purchase: after this experience with silver pastes I think I could to conclude that we find ourselves in front of products that no audiophile should miss, especially, as I already said, those who have valve installations, the choice of the specific product to acquire in hifi is always connected to the money that we are willing to spend to have the best results.

At the end of this article on "liquids and hifi " I think is right to try to put the tested products in quality order:
Let's begin with the ONES THAT UNDENIABLY FAILED: the Tube-o-lator and the MUSICOAT are sadly in this category, being useless products, they should be carefully avoided without being fascinated by empty and meaningless words that absolutely do not correspond to the truth.
I'm giving A BIG F- to "the special" products for CD cleaning and sound improvement of the digital discs, they are products that work and do their job with the indicated differences and the preferences that to my ear emerged but qualities do not resist in the comparison in terms of price and quality with the winners of this test among hifi liquids and fluids.
Let's then see which to my opinion are the WINNERS: at the first place, for the magic of its operation and the "mystery" that wraps itself around its operation I'll put the C37 varnish by Dieter Ennemosers from Flaurling, Austria; the application of the varnish to the TRIANGLE has modified the sound in such a positive way "to force me " to an absolute recommendation especially for the possessors of CELIUS 202 like me, I do not have enough evidence to be able to say that the product works for each and every system but the "suspicion" that it will is high and I cannot refrain from inviting the adventurous audiophiles to this experiment as what I have tried was a big success.
The second place goes to the products by CAIG for the cleaning of electrical contacts, a kit of liquids that has to be present in the house of every audiophile; The bronze medal goes to the silver pastes for contact improvement in all the points of a hifi system: as you can evince from the test probably the best one of the three products is the Audio QuickSilver and Video Enhancer, but given the thin difference in performance my preference in conclusion will go to the SST from Audio Walker that summing up offers a better quality/price relationship.
"Last, but not least", the moral winner of this review: SEE SIDE by NEXT VISION of Padova, for a small amount of euros it offers performance and results not only comparable but CLEARLY better than the products I tried with it for the cleaning of CDs.

PS: One of the things that I love more about the ‘net is interactivity and the possibility of immediate contact: I will therefore be happy to receive your feedback on my e-mail: francesco.bollorino@videohifi.com