DIY Ground Box Thread

[diystereo]

Today, my magnet polarity tester will arrive... which polarity is preferable? Should the north pole be facing toward the meter cabinet, meaning upwards?

I'm going to stay with the suggestion to have the north face stick to the meter and the south side face away from the meter but my headphone system right now is entry level ChiFi stuff. You'll probably be a better judge of which is better.

 

[Boodle]

Oyaide NRF-005T non-magnetic noise reduction tape. About 60% through the first roll, and just ordered a second roll. Hint, I like the product.

Almost everything mentioned and discussed in this thread has a similar theme, it is about lowering the noise to improve system performance. But all the different tweaks and devices effect the sonic performance of the audio system differently. Oyaide NRF-005T is also such a tweak, but again is different. Aside when I tried it on the Ethernet cable, does not effect the original signal like any EMI/EMF absorbing or shielding material.

The material is 15mm wide and comes as a 4m roll. The material itself is very thin, soft and pliable. Has a fairly strong adhesive backing. On the side of the box is a ruler from 0 - 50mm. On cables I used 40mm length for thinner cables and 50mm length for thicker cables. Installing the tape is as simple as cleaning/wiping the cable surface with 91% isopropyl alcohol and wrapping the tape around the cable. The effect of the tape can be heard immediately but takes about 20 mins or so to settle in. I spent probably 15 hours testing and critically listening. There are many places that can be possible good candidates for installation of this material. I have only tried some cables and a couple of locations inside the DAC so far.

What does installing at the two ends of the below listed cables do?

- Improves instrument and sound location separation.

- Improves timbre and realism of what is heard. Like a piano note, the bite and sound of the decay, more immersive difference in sound and experience listening to the different keys being played. Wood boards being walked on, realism and focus of the creaking sound of the wood. You do not hear more, what you hear feels more to real life, or more life like.

- Vocal purity, nuance and clarity is improved.

- Decay of notes or sounds have more air. Also better awareness of size of venue. I can now sometimes hear decaying notes or sounds bounce off objects in the recording venue in tracks I have not heard this effect before.

- Improved dynamics. Depends on what I am listening to I was surprised at how well the amp controlled the drivers to produce such a sonic effect.

- Nuance and focus of vocals and individual instruments. Even when listing to an orchestra, each of the different instruments are better defined and separated.

- System feels more resolving with a more beautiful presentation. But the odd thing is I do not think there is more information. It is like the system can better decode the information it is receiving.

The above happens at about 0.5 - 1% per application or cable install. What I am trying to convey is after 16 installs, I got approx. 9% performance boost (effects listed above). May not seem like much but trust me is obvious enough for me to buy a second roll. I listened critically after each install before installing the tape on another cable to hear for any changes.

Where I have installed the Oyaide NRF-005T. Many more to try, including inside gear.

- 11 ground cables. Have 4 more to go.

- Ethernet cable. Did not like it here so I removed it. Made the system sound more rich but felt like I lost resolution.

- Internet feed Coax to router.

- SPDIF coax cable

- Across panel data ribbon cable in DAC

- One end of SATA SSD cable inside PC (source)

- Balanced headphone cable. Installed at the amp end and on each of the two ends that attach to the headphone.

- Three video cables from PC to three 25" monitors. Very nice, literally upgraded the video. Richer and deeper colors. Also was like the resolution was doubled. There is nothing special about these video cables, they are the freebee cables that came with the monitors.

In summary, if someone has at least a fairly resolving system, I highly recommend trying this product. By the way, the pic is from my iPhone 12 mini with the tape installed, reducing the pic size to post and from YouTube. The iPhone camera is not really that good but should give you an idea.

Maybe the wrong photo got uploaded.

 

[cdacosta]

Maybe the wrong photo got uploaded.

LOL that is the correct photo. I took the pic of my monitor from my iPhone 12 mini. The camera on the phone is ok, having to shrink the file size to upload does not help. Just wanted to show the picture quality after application, was just what I was watching at the time.

Tonight I found out treating the video DC power cables and SMPS DC cables also yield pretty good results. Video was improved further after treating the SMPS that power them. Here is screen capture of a random photo, snipped after also treating the monitor power cable at the monitor only. The idea of the pic is to show that the Oyaide NRF-005T improves video.

 

[Boodle]

LOL that is the correct photo. I took the pic of my monitor from my iPhone 12 mini. The camera on the phone is ok, having to shrink the file size to upload does not help. Just wanted to show the picture quality after application, was just what I was watching at the time.

Tonight I found out treating the video DC power cables and SMPS DC cables also yield pretty good results. Video was improved further after treating the SMPS that power them. Here is screen capture of a random photo, snipped after also treating the monitor power cable at the monitor only. The idea of the pic is to show that the Oyaide NRF-005T improves video.

Ok. Thanks. Perhaps you can post a couple of photos showing application on the cables.. it costs £20 for a half meter here.

 

[cdacosta]

Ok. Thanks. Perhaps you can post a couple of photos showing application on the cables.. it costs £20 for a half meter here.

20 pounds for .5 meter is expensive. Look on eBay, just looked and it seems they ship to other countries from Japan. The pic of many different cables is from Oyaide's website and that is how I treated the cables including the ground cables, at both ends.

 

[cdacosta]

@Boodle
Should come in a box like the pic. And include 4m of the tape. I am in the US, you may have to pay a VAT or import tariffs from Japan, no idea how it works for you. The pic is of my eBay order and I also paid the seller after an additional $10 for expedited shipping through FedEx.

 

[Boodle]

@Boodle
Should come in a box like the pic. And include 4m of the tape. I am in the US, you may have to pay a VAT or import tariffs from Japan, no idea how it works for you. The pic is of my eBay order and I also paid the seller after an additional $10 for expedited shipping through FedEx.

Thanks. I ordered a half meter length to try. Yes it’s available on eBay for around £80 for the 4 meter length. Will try it on the GB both ends, and receive end of interconnects and spdif and Ethernet at the switch end. Don’t know if its ok for power cables.

 

[cdacosta]

Thanks. I ordered a half meter length to try. Yes it’s available on eBay for around £80 for the 4 meter length. Will try it on the GB both ends, and receive end of interconnects and spdif and Ethernet at the switch end. Don’t know if its ok for power cables.

Have not tried on power cables yet. I would also try installing at speaker cable and headphone cable ends. I am going to try inside components later today.

 

[Ghoostknight]

i just made the tweak of the year...
the primer cube... "drumroll" attached to an room-fan lol

i kinda try to usually act "decent" but im astonished at what the difference is, if you guys believe in magnetic tweaks you have to try this!
since im unsure at what rpm my fan runs (my guess is 200-500rpm) its still hard to judge what the original "primer cube" does at its 1000-3350 rpm

after expierencing the difference i just searched for something like this
really a shame you just get these devices fairly expensive, if you are poor like me stay tuned, i might come up with an diy version with variable speed

 

[joscho]

please explain what you did...

 

[Ghoostknight]

please explain what you did...

removing the cover of such a fan: https://www.thespruce.com/do-fans-cool-a-room-5271790
and attaching the magnet array / primer cube i was showing before in the center of the ventilator, so the magnet array spins with the fan

 

[cdacosta]

For those of you that care about video quality, the Oyaide NRF-005T is a gem. Today I had a good friend over. My wife has a 5-6 year old Dell i5 desktop computer with two 10+ year old 22" monitors. While they were both in front of the computer, I installed 40mm length of the tape onto both ends of the video and power cables for both monitors. They could not see what I was doing. When I was done, which was 3 mins later, they were both shocked. My wife said, "I just got two new monitors". They both wanted to know what I did to the computer. When I told them they were in disbelief. The cables are nothing special, freebee cheap cables and one monitor had a SMPS walwart. The cables were treated with Furutech Nano Liquid 1.5 years ago, other than that nothing special.

The performance change was similar to what I got when I treated my three 25" monitors. The difference looks like a different and upgraded monitor with higher resolution. I am impressed, especially with how simple this tweak is.

 

[diystereo]

The light got brighter!
Inspired by diystereo, I placed 8 neodymium magnets right in front of the cellaroutput to the Garden leading to the 9-meter deep ground rod of my house, as shown in the attached images. While doing so, the light flickered briefly and has been shining brighter ever since. I removed the magnets and placed them again. Once more, there was a brief flicker before the light remained brighter. Incredible. In this basement room, I’m using an old 40-watt incandescent bulb with an E27 socket. I've also attached pictures of the magnets positioned at the entry point of the main cable leading from below into the meter cabinet.

Today, my magnet polarity tester will arrive... which polarity is preferable? Should the north pole be facing toward the meter cabinet, meaning upwards?

While placing the ring magnets around the cable entry into the meter cabinet a week ago, I didn’t notice this effect. But this room is equipped with a fluorescent tube light...

I would consider experimenting with magnets on any home electrical generators such as solar panels or wind turbines. They may help with efficiency, improving power output.

I'm watching my power consumption in kWh to see if there is much of a difference. Possibly, but not sure. Christmas Eve is the biggest power usage, about 41kWh hours. I decided to run the oven for 12 hours at 210 farenheit and ventilation and 3 computers and tv and all lights on which is way more than what we use on Christmas Eve and got 48kWhs. So I'm not fully. I recommend watching your electric bill usage, just curious if there is a noticeable difference.

 

[diystereo]

Oyaide NRF-005T non-magnetic noise reduction tape. About 60% through the first roll, and just ordered a second roll. Hint, I like the product.

Almost everything mentioned and discussed in this thread has a similar theme, it is about lowering the noise to improve system performance. But all the different tweaks and devices effect the sonic performance of the audio system differently. Oyaide NRF-005T is also such a tweak, but again is different. Aside when I tried it on the Ethernet cable, does not effect the original signal like any EMI/EMF absorbing or shielding material.

The material is 15mm wide and comes as a 4m roll. The material itself is very thin, soft and pliable. Has a fairly strong adhesive backing. On the side of the box is a ruler from 0 - 50mm. On cables I used 40mm length for thinner cables and 50mm length for thicker cables. Installing the tape is as simple as cleaning/wiping the cable surface with 91% isopropyl alcohol and wrapping the tape around the cable. The effect of the tape can be heard immediately but takes about 20 mins or so to settle in. I spent probably 15 hours testing and critically listening. There are many places that can be possible good candidates for installation of this material. I have only tried some cables and a couple of locations inside the DAC so far.

What does installing at the two ends of the below listed cables do?

- Improves instrument and sound location separation.

- Improves timbre and realism of what is heard. Like a piano note, the bite and sound of the decay, more immersive difference in sound and experience listening to the different keys being played. Wood boards being walked on, realism and focus of the creaking sound of the wood. You do not hear more, what you hear feels more to real life, or more life like.

- Vocal purity, nuance and clarity is improved.

- Decay of notes or sounds have more air. Also better awareness of size of venue. I can now sometimes hear decaying notes or sounds bounce off objects in the recording venue in tracks I have not heard this effect before.

- Improved dynamics. Depends on what I am listening to I was surprised at how well the amp controlled the drivers to produce such a sonic effect.

- Nuance and focus of vocals and individual instruments. Even when listing to an orchestra, each of the different instruments are better defined and separated.

- System feels more resolving with a more beautiful presentation. But the odd thing is I do not think there is more information. It is like the system can better decode the information it is receiving.

The above happens at about 0.5 - 1% per application or cable install. What I am trying to convey is after 16 installs, I got approx. 9% performance boost (effects listed above). May not seem like much but trust me is obvious enough for me to buy a second roll. I listened critically after each install before installing the tape on another cable to hear for any changes.

Where I have installed the Oyaide NRF-005T. Many more to try, including inside gear.

- 11 ground cables. Have 4 more to go.

- Ethernet cable. Did not like it here so I removed it. Made the system sound more rich but felt like I lost resolution.

- Internet feed Coax to router.

- SPDIF coax cable

- Across panel data ribbon cable in DAC

- One end of SATA SSD cable inside PC (source)

- Balanced headphone cable. Installed at the amp end and on each of the two ends that attach to the headphone.

- Three video cables from PC to three 25" monitors. Very nice, literally upgraded the video. Richer and deeper colors. Also was like the resolution was doubled. There is nothing special about these video cables, they are the freebee cables that came with the monitors.

In summary, if someone has at least a fairly resolving system, I highly recommend trying this product. By the way, the pic is from my iPhone 12 mini with the tape installed, reducing the pic size to post and from YouTube. The iPhone camera is not really that good but should give you an idea.

Sounds like a keeper.

It made me think about insulation and minerals again:
Mica mineral and rubber hoses for liquids.

Mica mineral is the best electrical insulator out there and used in high power lines due to its ability to insulate and tolerate high temperatures. I havent looked into prices but keep reading its an abundant mineral, nothing exotic or rare about it. There hasent been much written on this thread about mica, but it is very important in the transport of electricity and in my opinion should be considered in this thread.

Now for the rubber hoses. Below is a video from OCDHiFiGuy who deconstructs and explains the simplicity behind audio cables. Use two hoses, a thin one to house the conductor, and a wider one to house and insulate the thinner hose/conductor. With the conductor and thinner hose you will terminate with you connectors (RCA / XLR or what have you) and then slip that thinner hose into the wider but slightly shorter outer hose. This outer hose will have heat shrink sealant / zip ties and be filled with sand to serve as vibration control. Why not apply this idea to already well made interconnects that you have and improve on them?

Take a highly sensitive interconnect like a USB cable, slide it into a wider but slightly shorter rubber tube, seal one end with heatshrink and zip ties for extra strength, fill it with Mica powder or any appropriate mixture of minerals from this thread and then seal the other end up. Wouldn't that replicate at least some of the Oyaide NRF-005T benefits?

https://aximmica.com/mica/what-is-mica/
https://aximmica.com/mica/types-of-mica/

 

[cdacosta]

Sounds like a keeper.

It made me think about insulation and minerals again:
Mica mineral and rubber hoses for liquids.

Mica mineral is the best electrical insulator out there and used in high power lines due to its ability to insulate and tolerate high temperatures. I havent looked into prices but keep reading its an abundant mineral, nothing exotic or rare about it. There hasent been much written on this thread about mica, but it is very important in the transport of electricity and in my opinion should be considered in this thread.

Now for the rubber hoses. Below is a video from OCDHiFiGuy who deconstructs and explains the simplicity behind audio cables. Use two hoses, a thin one to house the conductor, and a wider one to house and insulate the thinner hose/conductor. With the conductor and thinner hose you will terminate with you connectors (RCA / XLR or what have you) and then slip that thinner hose into the wider but slightly shorter outer hose. This outer hose will have heat shrink sealant / zip ties and be filled with sand to serve as vibration control. Why not apply this idea to already well made interconnects that you have and improve on them?

Take a highly sensitive interconnect like a USB cable, slide it into a wider but slightly shorter rubber tube, seal one end with heatshrink and zip ties for extra strength, fill it with Mica powder or any appropriate mixture of minerals from this thread and then seal the other end up. Wouldn't that replicate at least some of the Oyaide NRF-005T benefits?

https://aximmica.com/mica/what-is-mica/
https://aximmica.com/mica/types-of-mica/

Normally I would not respond to a post like yours. The topic of building SOTA cables is deep and complex. I spent about 4 years prototyping, building and experimenting with audio system cables. Countless hours discussing theory and concepts with designers, the topic really fascinated me at the time. But since you referenced my post, I will give a short general thought on your question of , "Wouldn't that replicate at least some of the Oyaide NRF-005T benefits?".

The answer to your question is no. The Oyaide NRF-005T is blocking or absorbing Mhz to Ghz frequency noise from being transferred through the cable. This Mhz to Ghz frequency noise smears/distorts the original signal enough that effects your gear's ability to fully read the original signal. I am finding out this is super obvious with video gear.

I would bet money without listening to the cable referenced in that YouTube video "will not be SOTA". Will it pass a signal, sure, but not SOTA performance. Why I say this is that build for a speaker cable is far from optimum. Also any filler/dampening material will add to the dielectric mix, which will 100% effect what is heard through a mid-fi to ultra-fi system. If you have any techflex or PET sleeving material on hand, here is a quick and easy experiment you can do. Not many people know about this. If you have a signal cable, slide the techflex over it and then listen again critically. The techflex or PET material will mix with dielectric of the cable and will smear the signal. Looks good, but bad for performance.

Shunyata has been experimenting with quartz crystal inside cables for probably 2 decades and sells retail cables like this. But just the dampening material and crystal formula used in the mix will require crazy amount of hours of experimentation to find the right combination for a specific cable build.