BTW I just found this article some time ago:
Manitoba Fabello: cheap CD treatment fluid
Your wife already uses it
If you're thinking the HiFi treatment fluids are way too expensive for your system then it's time to try a cheap, available-anywhere magic spray: you have already it at home, it is the spray your wife (mother, yourself etc...) uses for cleaning wood furniture.
Since the names of these products vary from one Country to another it is quite impossible that the one I've tested, the Fabello, is available with the same name in your Country.
Just use those sprays for cleaning wood furniture that come in large spray bottles (400 ml) and cost few dollars.
No, this is not a joke but a real, serious, extensive and detailed listening test that kept my ears and my system *busy* for several afternoons. So, please, take it *seriously* as I did.
How does it works
You know how these sprays should be used: just spray a little amount of this silicone-based fluid over the CD surface, spread it with a clean soft cloth and wipe till the disc is dry and clean, exactly as you do with any conventional hifi CD treatment fluid.
These sprays for wood furniture are intensely perfumed and after having treated some discs your listening room will literally stink
So treat one or two CDs at a time or do this with your windows wide open (no, not the Microsoft Windows...).
How MUCH does it work
Before you start laughing out loud, please keep in mind that this listening test took me several days before getting some serious results.
These sprays work. Seriously. And if you know the basic principle and ingredients you shouldn't be surprised.
These are nothing less than silicone-based sprays that improve the optical readability of the discs, hence the sound.
It is the mid-high range that clearly (pun intended) improves: everything is *clearer* and better focused.
The increase of the overall dynamics is almost nothing though the 3D soundstaging becomes wider (laterally) and the image becomes more realistic and natural.
Like other similar devices the effect in the bass range is nothing and hence you should expect to get a more brilliant sound reproduction that, with some systems or discs, could be *too much*.
Conclusions
You already know this: TNT tests everything, from standard commercial HiFi products to cheap and clever alternatives, available anywhere at extremely low prices (the Italian section is PLENTY of listening tests of common-use devices used for fancy HiFi tweaking, we are so sorry we can't translate everything. Try using Babelfish to translate).
This listening test (long and ears-tiring
) proves once more that sometimes it is not necessary to spend tons of cash to improve your HiFi system, some tweaks are cheap and worth trying.
Obviously enough, the differences you've just read about are small, you shouldn't expect dramatic improvements.
Also, you need a highly-revealing system (and a long listening experience) to be able to *tell* the difference.
Plus, you need at least two identical Compact Discs: the first one to leave as is while the other one should be *treated*. Even better, do not limit the test to one disc only, try do do the same with as many discs as you can.
This is the only way to listen to the effects these fluids have on the sound of your CD playing system.
Copyright © 1997 Lucio Cadeddu -
http://www.tnt-audio.com
