Harmonic Resolution Systems (HRS) EXR Audio Stand
Continued Listening using other Audio Components
What’s so great about HRS’ modular approach is that the choice is ultimately left to the end user. No matter if you buy just a set of footers, an isolation platform, or an entire rack, you are always free to select the footer of your choice meaning that you can perfect the balance for every audio component individually.
As my tests progressed, I involved ever more components. First, the Grimm MU1 music server. Below is how I normally use it: on top of an Artesania KSH2 Krion shelf that sits on the Exoteryc rack’s Linear Arms of an Artesania Aire platform, similar to how I normally use the Aqua La Diva M2 player. Because the Grimm does not sound quite as natural as the Aqua player, lately I’ve been using Artesania Beechwood discs to subtly enhance its timbre.
The MU1 is a small and lightweight unit that has no moving parts inside. Yet, when placed on the EXR rack, it responded in exactly the same way as the Aqua CD transport. And once again, I found the ideal balance with it on three relatively huge Vortex footers.
Again, the Vortex footers massively increase the soundstage depth, and believe it or not, just as with the La Diva M2 transport, they also enhance the clarity of the deepest bass notes. Oh, and it also produces the emotionally most involving presentation. The large discs may seem like overkill under such a tiny box but the combination sounds absolutely great!
With the Grimm, the Nimbus is better balanced than Helix and sounds really quite nice! But for me, the reduction in propulsion and liveliness compared to using the Grimm with its own feet is not worth the increase in calmness, transparency, and serenity. Of course, that will be a very personal matter.
What also works remarkably well with the Grimm, on the Artesania Krion Shelf as well as on the HRS EXR rack, are Ansuz Darkz footers, in this case, the Stainless Steel S2T footers provide a wonderfully solid, spritely, direct, and focused sound.
But wait, the Aqua and Grimm are lightweight units. Would the result be different with very heavy audio equipment? To answer that question, I asked a friend to help me lift the 42kg-heavy Taiko Audio Extreme Music Server onto the HRS rack. Built out of very thick aluminum panels and with lots of internal bracing, this is an enclosure that hardly rings and certainly does not flex.
Before explaining the sonic impact, I should mention there is a difference in the starting point with the Taiko server. Unlike the Grimm and the Aqua for which I use KSH2 Krion shelves on top of the Exoteryc rack’s Linear Arms, the Taiko Extreme sits directly on the beechwood discs of the Carbon Fiber Linear Arms of the Exoteryc rack, just like the CH Precision Components.
After the move to the HRS rack, surprisingly, the Extreme does not sound all that different initially. The midbass and lower midrange are again more solid and expressive with the HRS rack which adds more of a “live” sense to vocals and better propels them out from the mix, but the overall difference is subtler than with the Aqua and Grimm. This adds to my longer-standing suspicion that the Exoteryc rack works better with heavier components than very lightweight components. Meanwhile, the EXR rack seems to work with any component weight.
Adding Vortex footers, however, makes a world of difference. Now, the Taiko Extreme Server sounds significantly better on the HRS rack, altogether sounding more alive, expressive, and realistic. And again, with the same high resolution, and without sacrificing even an ounce of smoothness or flow. The sound is just as natural but more neutral, precise, and linear. I have to confess that I did not think this was possible. As mentioned, so far, audio racks have always been something of a compromise, weighing certain aspects versus others, forcing the user to choose the balance of virtues that best matches the system and personal preferences. But not this time, apparently!
I also tried the Helix footers with the Extreme and that led to a sweeter, rounder, and more relaxed sound that is not as articulate and expressive as with the Vortex Footers, or when using the server on its own aluminum/tankwood footers, for that matter. Since I heard the same effect with the lightweight Aqua and Grimm units, one could conclude that my preference for the Vortex footers is more a matter of taste than one of component synergy. But of course, YMMV (your mileage may vary), in other words, please, and by all means, try it for yourself.
Finally, I turned to the Antipodes Oladra music server. With its extremely thick and heavy casework, one might expect it to be less susceptible to what it is placed on. But I also thought the same of the Taiko server and pretty much the inverse turned out to be the case. The Oladra’s top section is milled from a solid block of aluminum but its bottom plate, onto which the motherboards are built, is standard thickness aluminum or steel plate, likely the latter. The Oladra’s own footers are no afterthought but a proprietary sandwich of two different metals with a thick polymer between them, seemingly not unlike the Helix and Vortex construction. I must confess to wondering if the HRS footers would still prove to have as much influence here as they did before.
But sure enough, there was a difference, and it was not small! I wish no disrespect for the beautiful Oladra footers but apparently, the Vortex Footers either do a better job or simply work more synergistically with the HRS base. While both footers seem to employ a similar structure, combining hard and soft materials, it sounds as though the Oladra footers isolate and decouple more than the Vortex Footers. The HRS footers provide a tighter, faster, crisper, more articulate, and more lively and expressive sound, whilst retaining the server’s alluring liquidity and flow. The server’s own footers, on the other hand, further accentuate the smoothness, richness, and flow which could be an entirely valid alternate route to take if so desired.
I also tried the CH Precision C1.2 DAC and L1 preamp on the EXR rack, but for some reason, no matter what footers I tried, I could not achieve the same synergy as with placement directly on the Carbon Linear Arms of the Artesania rack. The CH components are inherently very neutral and linear, and with the Exoteryc rack, I have obtained a great balance between sobriety, neutrality, delicacy, fluidity, and air. On the EXR, the sound moves more to the dense and ponderous side, removing a measure of finesse and flow in the process.
Apparently, there is a special interaction between the CH Precision components and the Carbon and Beechwood coupling on the Artesania Exoteryc rack. Given earlier experience trying other platforms with the CH Power amp, I now suspect the CH Components’ own footers provide a balance that is too far from what I find to be ideal in my system. But even so, I could not achieve an ideal balance with any of the HRS Footers. Perhaps, with the addition of an HRS R3X or S3 Isolation Base and matched SF2 footers, I might be in for another surprise!
Using Footers Upside Down
Just for completeness (actually by mistake, but don’t tell anyone) I also tried the Vortex footers upside-down. While this makes them easier to position, it is important to note that you do lose a portion of the sound quality! Upside down, they sound smoother and fuller (which in some cases might not be a downside) but the other side around (the right side, with the point down) leads to a decidedly tighter, nimbler, faster, and more expressive sound.
Next: More Experiments and Adjustments
Once again, thanks for the in-depth examination of these components. i really like your short, astute, descriptions of how they sound.
I own CH Precision gear. The voicing of CH gear is very natural with its own support spikes in place. Music flows freely, as it does in nature.
I have tried any number of third party top plates and footers. Almost all introduce damping that clamps down and restricts flow, resulting in a loss of naturalism, and moves towards audiophile sound. None of these devices are keepers.
I gather you’re not a fan of the CH provided spike isolation system?
Artesania racks bypass component feet by design and over many years I got used to how that works and sounds. Outside of initial experiments on the floor and a few occasions where I heard my CH equipment with friends, I have no real experience using CH with its own feet or the CH Spike Option. I don’t have enough experience with it to proclaim being a fan or not. The HRS racks provided the first occasion where I seriously tried them and since I also tried a range of other footers with the CH and HRS, I would say my prefefence is more down to the combination of audio component and rack than the CH footers themselves. So, long story short, I don’t really have an opinion on the CH footers just yet.
This is a fascinating point about using HRS Chassis products with CH-Precision. I am the representative for HRS to many CH dealers in the USA. They have found that the Vortex and Damping Plates significantly improve when combined with an HRS Base. Please remember that the CH chassis design is not at fault but rather the extreme levels of fidelity that allow you to hear the results clearly.
How many Vortex footers (3 or 4) did you use under the Grimm? I’ve lately been using 4 of the Stack Audio AUVA footers to good effect with the MU1 on my HRS rack. And as you found I have been very pleased with 4 Vortex under my dCS Vivaldi APEX DAC for about a year.
Hi Steve, sorry, notifications ended up in spam somehow, leading to my late response. I tried the MU1 with 3 Vortex footers and 4 and did not discern a very large difference. Both work well but with 4 footers, I found it is very important to set the tension on the adjustable 4th footer very precisely to achieve even distribution. With the very lightweight Grimm, this can be a little tricky.
Mail filtering is unfortunately a common problem we’ve all experienced. Based on your review, and already having been using Vortex footers since late 2020, at the urging of Michael Latvis ( he’d already had experience using these under his dCS DAC with his racks), I went ahead and purchased a set of 4 and noted the immediate improvement compared to the Stack Audio AUVA feet I’d been using under the Grimm MU1. Your experience mirrors mine. I also tested the potential for additional benefit of some damping plates atop the MU1 in varied sizes and configurations to no clear effect.
Thanks for the feedback, Steve!