Fraim - long vs medium legs

Martin- By far, the best thing you can do for your 552 or 555 head units is place them on the top shelf of your Fraim. If you must place them on lower shelfs, the medium level legs seem to be the sweet spot - the tall legs may permit easier loading of CD's into the 555 though . The top shelf is really the best location for the most sensitive source components- I feel the 552 and SL fall under this category even if they are not truly the signal source. The top shelf is holy ground .

ATB,

Mark

Martin asks a very good question-  I know some here purchase fraim shelves to remain empty. Aside from shelling out a lot of money for a shelf that is not used I thnink it aesthically does not work- perhaps taller shelves would accomplish the same sonic benefit at cheaper cost and improved aesthetics. 

Many thanks for replies. I have the CD 555 on the top and then an empty shelf but that's now filled with an NDS.... so I looking for the best solution to make space between 555-NDS-552. Hence the thought to have fraim legs only. besides aesthically, I wonder if there is any sonic differences between using medium or tall legs, due to the gap being bigger?

I thought NDS was also meant to be on top..

Chag -

davidf posted:

Martin asks a very good question-  I know some here purchase fraim shelves to remain empty. Aside from shelling out a lot of money for a shelf that is not used I thnink it aesthically does not work- perhaps taller shelves would accomplish the same sonic benefit at cheaper cost and improved aesthetics. 

Thats what I do - I use a tall shelf to space out certain items. I like how it looks

S

 I am very aware of magnetic field radiation (MFR) as was part of my daily life in my pre-retirement work & understand that it is advisable to separate Naim units with large transformers as far as practical from the low signal level units such as preamps,  plus of course pre-amps do not have an internal transformer for just this reason.   Toroidal transformers have low magnetic leakage compared to other types  & I am not fully convinced about the sonic benefits of very wide spacing other than aesthetics,  so my question is does anyone have any EMF measurements related to Naim units that support this theory ???. 

Martin Dudgeon posted:

Does anyone have experience if there are difference in using medium or long fraim legs (instead of standard) to do this?

Thanks!

To answer - yes, the spacing does alter the presentation. I preferred using Medium levels between 555 head unit sitting on top of fraim, with the Pre (552 when I used this) under using a Medium level between in and the 555 and also another medium level under the 552 and the empty base level.

People are correct that if you have enough fraim stacks to have the Pre also on top it is better, but life is a set of compromises needed to fit room and cost, so putting the Pre onto a stack clear of transformers is more important - as is the 555 head unit. I now use my 555 head unit atop two empty Medium levels on an empty base, because it sounded so much better. I tried removing a level and it lost performance so rather begrudgingly I realised it sounded best atop more levels.

Experiment, as I'd rather had a different result for convenience.

Tall Levels are also good and can be better, but these need to be done-up a little tighter and not stacked in multiples unless the very top box is light. For example a very tall fraim stack I tried with a 552 atop sounded sea-sick as the torsional mode vibration was beating with the 552 internal suspension mode, defeating it's otherwise positive effect. Things also interact.

DB.

......  i'm obliged DB.    I have tried a few listening experiments with both removing & powering items on/off,   problem is I'm somewhat limited to anything significant as my amp (at the moment) is a Supernait.  Directly under that is NDX & as its XPS powered it should not be affecting the amp so I'm probably as good as it gets.      But getting back to my post,  my question is theoretical & question if its possible/has it been done to quantify in SQ gains per Inch terms.  My thinking is that 80% of the gain will be in the first 'n' mm & I'm wondering what that 'n' is.  A gauss meter would be handy,  sadly since retiring I can't borrow one.