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| Web Site Reviews: Audio Asylum: Mini-review: Maher's Infinity filter (circuit breaker type) ~ bartc Audio Asylum: Alan Maher Designs Infinity DIY filter Power Conditioner/Surge Protector ~ Chris Porada Customer Comments: Hi
Just thought I would send you some feedback re the 3 CBF I purchased about 3 weeks or so back. I install one on the main cable bundle entering the house the second on the Circuit breaker feeding the sockets and the last one on the actual socket feeding my HI-FI gear. The first thing I noticed was an improvement in my TV picture; I am using a Panasonic video monitor, connected to a set top box. There were richer colours and the black levels had increased. Very 3D like picture.
Now the sound, as I have read on Audio circle it seems to be a bit of a roller coaster ride, as this was true for me as well. I got an increase in the bass, but all my vocals seemed to disappear pushed right back in the soundstage, Then it started to sound flat and thin, with no body in the music, hard to listen to...It been about 3 weeks now, and last night I put on Tracey Chapman, via my iPod. I actually put in on for some background music....Oh My! I couldn't believe what I was hearing, everything came into focus, The speakers seemed to disappear, you could hear the vibration of her Guitar strings, the music just gelled together...There was no background noise, just pure music, with body and emotion.
A great product that does work.
Thank you
Warrick Moore
Hello Jen, Alan asked me to let him know how I got on with the Infinity Circuit Breakers, and as he is on tour I'm e-mailing you, and to thank you for the free one you included in the package. Well I have to say I'm quite dis-orientated by them. The usual price to performance ratio has been so totally re-written that my previous power purchases are looking like hideously over-priced under-achievers. The Infinities excel in all the usual areas expected such as greater resolution, deeper bass and more extended treble, but several stand out for particular comment. 1. The varying sound quality dependant on time of day has been all but irradiated. 2. In my pursuit of a distortion free sound I had lost sight of the importance of dynamics, both macro and micro, and related timing. I was both surprised and delighted by their return which has made the music more exciting and involving. This is particularly noticeable on percussion, piano and plucked instruments. There is no artificial leading edge to create this effect, just accurate reproduction. 3. I can now make out lyrics that were previously unintelligible, and the vocals (and instrumental solos) communicate much more emotion. 4. Individual instruments are more clearly defined and possess a palpable quality I associate with the best valve amps. 5. I had never really understood the desire for a live sound as it didn't seem relevant to the sort of music I listen to, but had a "Damascene" moment when I realized my system was now sounding live. The power to my house has been an ongoing problem for me and I have tried many and various products ranging from $25 fuses to $1000 power conditioners with varying degrees of success. Some have worked better than others, some representing good value for money, but none have close to the bang for buck these give. It is easy to get over-enthusiastic in such situations and resort to hyperbole, so I resisted writing sooner, but the conclusion is the same; I'm now enjoying a level of fidelity I thought I would never achieve and can only congratulate you on such an outstanding product. I'm using two Infinities on the circuit breaker and one over a spare wall socket as recommended by Alan. Please feel free to use all or any of this as a review. As you can tell from the above I'm more than happy with things as they are, but would appreciate your opinion as to the next move, bearing in mind that listen mostly to CD through a digital amp. The Infinity Shield would appear to be the obvious choice. Thanks again,
Dave Sheard
Hi Alan, Well its been a week now since I put the infinity on the breaker. It has finally come together. Here is my response:
Egads, what happened, this is amazing!!!!!!
Not only did the soundstage come back, it came back in spades. Huge, expansive, awesome.
The most amazing part is the bass. I have full range Lowther speakers that don't particularly go very deep. It sounds like there is a subwoofer in there now. I was just listening to some organ music, and no it doesn't actually shake the floor but it sounds like it should now. On several folk recordings I can now clearly make out the string bass counterpoint that I never knew was there before.
I sing in several choirs and am very much into choral music, but good recordings of big choirs never seem to come out right. When things get going strong I start hearing distortions, I always thought it was the amps distorting or the Lowthers not having enough Xmax, but not any more!! I was just listening to the Crystal Cathedral choir going full tilt and it was clean and pure all the way from pp to fff. Simply stunning.
And that was with just one infinity in the system, I have 5 more to go.
Yesterday morning things were starting to come back together but it still wasn't all there. This afternoon, WOW! What a difference a day made. And it probably hasn't finished yet.
This is BY FAR the best value in high end audio, $25 for this level of improvement is simply unbelievable.
I don't know exactly how you did it, but Thank You! John Swenson
OK Alan. How do you do it??!! A little plastic box of rocks on my curcuit breaker and I go on a roller coaster ride from the bottom to the top and everything in between. But now it's been over a week and I am ready to declare that you are a friggin genius and I am an APM deciple. This thing has settled in BIG TIME. The soundstage is E X P A N S I V E and the texture of the soundscape is unreal. I hear tiny details everywhere that I never heard before. And so much more bass. (Tonight I was completely mesmerized by the Los Lobos cd The Town and the City). It really is just about at the point where I feel no desire for any additional improvment. Of course in this hobby that can be perceived as disappointing, right? If I HAD to nitpick I could use a little more focus and tightness in the low end. It's possible I need a better subwoofer. (Currently I have an HSU VTF-2). Other than that really I can hardly imagine how things could possible improve in my system. I should add that I also added a Majik Buss power filter recommended by Danny at over at GR Research (another Audio Circle site) which immediately took my system up a full level when I plugged my digital into it and the Buss into my BPT PC. I had no idea how important getting serious about treating the power was until now. No component upgrade could come close to the improvements I've experienced this year using your products and the Majik Buss. Right now I have 2 PEs, 2 ref IIs and an infinity filter. I want to enjoy it as is for awhile because it is soooo Damn good. But you know how it is. I'll be coming back for more. And when I do what will you be recommending? What ever it is I will bite. You've completly converted me to the Maher Method. I'm under your spell. Brad Morris
I was recently fortunate enough to try out Alan’s newest offering; the Infinity DIY filter. I took Alan’s advice and installed the first one inside by breaker box right near the breaker that feeds my dedicated audio circuit. The second, I was not sure where to begin, so I installed it inside my SACD player atop its power transformer. I figured that was a good starting point, based on all the literature I’ve read about other EMI/RFI blocking devices and the sensitivity of digital circuits to these forms of interference. Alan had warned me that these things would produce mayhem with my circuits for several days, but I couldn’t resist a listen about 4 hours after install just to hear how things were coming along. By now, I should know that Alan’s products always produce very strange effects upon initial installation and then, as they set up, more and more of their magical abilities are revealed. Well, the new Infinities were no exception to this rule; my initial reaction was that I had taken several steps backwards in sound quality. Everything sounded rather thin a bright, and the soundstage collapsed entirely down to the point that all sound seemed to be coming almost directly from my speakers. There was no width, depth, or height. At 48-72 hours after install, things had changed dramatically for the better, and when I say better, I mean better than anything I had ever experienced. Suffice it to say that it was as if the gates of Heaven had opened in my family room and from them was pouring forth the music of the cherubim. Listening to The BIS SACD of Beethoven’s 9th with Vänskä was a revelation! The final movement with the choir and soloists was unlike I’ve ever heard it reproduced. Each soloist could be placed at a precise location both side to side and front to back. Moreover, I could actually hear the vertical positioning of the choir members, with some higher up, I suppose on risers, than others. Starker playing The Bach suites for cello was almost a religious experience as was listening to Bono singing MLK on the Mobile Fidelity gold CD release. Every subtle nuance and inflection is there. Listening at night with the lights off is almost spooky; you’d swear people were in the room singing/playing just for you. In conclusion, I don’t know what exactly the Infinities are doing to produce their effect (they don’t look like much; just little black boxes), but wow! The soundstage is so big and clear you can almost walk around in it and the sound is like liquid gold! It’s unbelievably clear and detailed, without even the slightest hint of harshness or brightness. Alan hit it out of the park with this one. I can’t wait to order more and treat everything I can find to see how far the magical spell the Infinities have cast over my system can be taken. Thanks Alan for another great product that redefines what I thought was possible in audio reproduction. Chris Porada
I have been privileged to audition a few of Mr. Maher's new Infinity filters. I can only say, "Thanks, Alan!", because, as usual, Alan has hit a HOME RUN! These little gems act like distortion sponges, sucking up nasties from any and all sources, all the way from your panel box (installed directly over specific key breakers produced an enormous "WOW!" factor) to your power cords, ICs and anywhere else you might have a mind to place them. Alan's website provides guidance, but let your imagination be your guide. These little babies can go anywhere, with their credit-card sizing and BIG SONIC WALLOP! Expect an over-all lessening of sonic hash, especially mids and high frequencies. This provides a dramatic increase in the low level detail we can perceive, thereby creating a truly monstrous, deep soundstage with precise image placement within the soundfield. Each instrument in massed ensembles appeared to stand out as strikingly individuated, but more importantly, with tonally distinct imaging. This, in turn, gives an uncanny three dimensionality to the instruments or performers recorded, along with a naturalness and sweetness of tone that is truly 'to die for'. Did I say Alan hit a, "Home Run"? At $25 bucks a pop, it's more like a GRAND SLAM!
Again, Alan Maher comes through with a common-sense scientific solution to a problem many of us don't even know we suffer from. But just pop a few of these little black distortion sponges into your system as Alan's website suggests, and prepare to be absolutely BLOWN AWAY! (He should have named these guys "Nitros" or "Cute Nukes"!)
Well, now that I reflect on it a while, maybe "Infinity" filter makes a lot more sense as the name. Because once you try them, you'll want them in your system forever, and your sound stage will seem to extend, "... to Infinity and beyond!" (as Buzz Lightyear might say.)
In fact, I just placed an order for 10 more. It'll be the best $250 bucks I'll drop on audio this year. And I'll probably order more soon, as well, once these ten little guys get used.
I better face it: I'm addicted.
But audio IS an addiction. Let's face it: we're all sound-cravers and audio-addicts. And Alan Maher Designs simply has the sweetest 'stuff' for our aural 'needs'. I'm really glad Alan is around to help us discover what our systems can really do. He's my kind of 'dealer', and audio is my kind of 'habit': one that brings tears to your eyes with every achingly beautiful aria, or movement to your feet with every swinging note!
Thanks, Alan! Your new Infinity Filter is a ...... BIG WINNER! (Fill my order soon, please... ) Michael Danis | |
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