Another new sound system

[bosshoss]

3 or 4 people have some Nuclear paint which I sent out only to the keenest and bravest forum members. It would not be a good idea to use the Nuclear paint to make The Box, because the Batwing formula contains 4 extra ingredients which are vital to getting the incredible sound of The Box.

 

[Outside_Lookin_in]

NOTES ON POST #1,142

1. The live, neutral, and ground wires need to be wrapped in thin strips of Batwing magnetic tape. (I took a regular strip and divided it into two or three strips with a pair of scissors and a steady hand, for wrapping individual wires.)

2. The remaining length of the power cord also needs to be wrapped in Batwing magnetic strip.

3. The inside of the chassis needs to be plastered with STB Batwing sheeting cut to size.

4. Plug in (with some BCE) and enjoy!

 

[bosshoss]

I will do all of that when I'm sure the Box is completely optimized. There are many more experiments to be carried out, which may require extensive modification. Until then, it needs to be easy to open, modify and handle. Plus I want to be sure exactly what is happening sonically with each mod, so need to keep it simple.

 

[howlin' hoosier]

Would a plastic box provide an added margin of safety as far as keeping the strips completely isolated/insulated from each other?

 

[Outside_Lookin_in]

1. Metal primer spray can
2. Meter / breaker box cover removed, cleaned, and 7 coats of primer applied (underside only)
3. 3rd coat of STB Platinum paint drying (minimum of 5 coats planned)

 

[bosshoss]

Would a plastic box provide an added margin of safety as far as keeping the strips completely isolated/insulated from each other?

Yes a plastic box would be good. I don't think there's any chance the strips are going to touch the metal casing. The only way that could happen is if the adhesive of the plastic pillars failed. Unlikely unless I was tossing the box around like a football. When I replace the mu metal with copper, I'm going to exchange the adhesive pillars for plastic pillars that are attached by screws in the chassis. I already bought them (see below).

It will mean I have to be very careful to drill the holes in the chassis to exactly match the holes in the copper strips. Not too hard. I recommend screwed pillars, for long term safety.

 

[bosshoss]

I also ordered these for stacking multiple layers. They are called "nylon PCB standoff spacers"

https://core-electronics.com.au/hardware/spacers-standoffs/10-sets-m3-20-nylon-standoffs.html

I estimate you could use these to stack 3 layers in the box I'm using.

 

[bosshoss]

In a recent post, I reported that there was not much difference wherever you plugged the double adapters. I said something like :

plugged into the same socket as the stereo = 10
plugged into nearby socket in the same room = 9
plugged anywhere else in the house = 8

I have discovered for The Box, it is more like :

plugged into the same socket as the stereo = 20
plugged into nearby socket in the same room = 9
plugged anywhere else in the house = 8

I just tried it for the first time in the same outlet as the stereo. It blew me away, how much better it is. It's literally about twice as good as I thought it was, when I had it in a nearby socket in the same room. Mind boggling!!! I have the laptop sitting on top of the unit, maybe that helps as well...?

 

[howlin' hoosier]

How thick are the copper strips you're thinking of using?

 

[bosshoss]

How thick are the copper strips you're thinking of using?

They are 1mm thick. I will have to inspect them when they arrive to make sure that's thick enough to remain rigid when mounted in place on the standoff spacers.

 

[howlin' hoosier]

A quick glance at Amazon yielded 99.9 % copper buss bars in varying thicknesses and lengths:
https://www.amazon.com/Mssoomm-Copper-Flat-1000mm-Metal/dp/B08L9C9PSY/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1VUDR2JE6II9F&keywords=copper+strips+3mm&qid=1649092474&sprefix=copper+strips+3mm,aps,66&sr=8-6&th=1

Might be cheaper to smelt a batch of pre-1982 US pennies which are 95% copper and 5 % zinc; US pennies are now 97.5% zinc and 2.5% copper (if they manage to get covered up by dirt outdoors and sit very long they eventually self destruct). There's also the step-up to silver for even higher conductivity (for the extra well-heeled audiophile who has to have the maximum utmost in ability to conduct). Have you determined if the effect works best on surface area/length of the conductors, or is it tied to the mass of the copper itself? If it's mass, 1 ounce .999 copper bullion bars might be a far more cost effective way to get copper:
https://www.jmbullion.com/1-oz-indian-head-copper-bar/

 

[bosshoss]

It would be the surface area, not the mass. The copper is only a carrier, it's the paste which does the work.

Smelting pennies sounds way too difficult. 3mm would be ok and very stable but a bit harder to work with. I would prefer 1mm and supported with plenty of standoff spacers on both edges. Silver would be a good (expensive) option, if you could find the right supplier. Here is a supplier of pure copper strips in all sizes, For a box the same size as mine (300 x 280 x 90mm), I suggest you buy copper strips 50mm wide x 1mm thick x 1000mm long. Then cut the length to suit the box. Just click the squares that match the sizes to get the price and availability.

If you wanted 2 or 3 layers, you would need 2000 mm long. 1000mm would be sufficient for a single layer.

https://www.amazon.com/Bopaodao-Cop...&sprefix=copper+strips+,aps,631&sr=8-264&th=1

 

[bosshoss]

A 3-layer box would have the power to completely transform a recording or mastering studio, just by plugging it into the same wall outlet used by the recording/mastering system. I think the box could be rented out to top studios by the day. For a lot of $$$, once they heard what it does.

The box would have to be welded shut...

 

[howlin' hoosier]

It would be the surface area, not the mass. The copper is only a carrier, it's the paste which does the work.

Smelting pennies sounds way too difficult. 3mm would be ok and very stable but a bit harder to work with. I would prefer 1mm and supported with plenty of standoff spacers on both edges. Silver would be a good (expensive) option, if you could find the right supplier. Here is a supplier of pure copper strips in all sizes, For a box the same size as mine (300 x 280 x 90mm), I suggest you buy copper strips 50mm wide x 1mm thick x 1000mm long. Then cut the length to suit the box. Just click the squares that match the sizes to get the price and availability.

If you wanted 2 or 3 layers, you would need 2000 mm long. 1000mm would be sufficient for a single layer.

https://www.amazon.com/Bopaodao-Copper-1000mm-99-99-Crafting/dp/B09N2FLRD9/ref=sr_1_264?crid=1ABC39DTT54TU&keywords=copper+strips&qid=1649107325&sprefix=copper+strips+,aps,631&sr=8-264&th=1

The pennies were meant more as tongue-in-cheek (metal costs have been rising due to global instability - .999 copper bars are roughly $2.80 an ounce versus the $35 US .999 one ounce silver bars) - if there was an easy way (read that as not costing a fortune) to have the silver processed into thin strips they'd be the most effective conductors. The copper versus silver price difference per ounce is significant - perhaps a compromise might be copper strips with a silver coating/overlay.

 

[bosshoss]

Mike, it's my guess that silver would not provide an improvement that justified the large additional cost. Of course I don't know for sure.

 

[howlin' hoosier]

Silver strips on ebay:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/112871362158?chn=ps&var=413281424441&_trkparms=ispr=1&amdata=enc:1sAoyyK0dT7iEF99s0TQvGA83&norover=1&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-117182-37290-0&mkcid=2&itemid=413281424441_112871362158&targetid=1599090336657&device=c&mktype=&googleloc=9016676&poi=&campaignid=15275224983&mkgroupid=131097072938&rlsatarget=pla-1599090336657&abcId=9300697&merchantid=8575514&gclid=CjwKCAjwrqqSBhBbEiwAlQeqGkwOKa8Ub9yOmIV_E_MDb9qC0pBo2jMeHYBQgAOoi03ABCKyjsGh6BoCNr0QAvD_BwE

Too much Stereophile on my mind - they tend to like gear that has silver involved.

 

[Outside_Lookin_in]

Electrons only move on the surface of a conductor - if I got it right - and silver tarnishes; but the oil in BCE might prevent tarnishing. I don't think BCE acts as a conductor (maybe a poor one), but rather it enhances conductivity in the conductors it's applied to.

 

[Outside_Lookin_in]

Yesterday I applied the additional 4 coats mentioned in post #1,147. The effect wasn't 5x that of the first layer: it was perhaps 1.5x. Nevertheless, that's not trivial. Sound stage was further deepened with a lot of air surrounding the instruments. Frequency response was extended in both directions. Vocal realism and intimacy was noted, with a reduction of distortion and coloration. My already impossibly good speakers are now doubly impossibly good, demolishing all technical limits.

 

[bosshoss]

Silver strips on ebay:

I know you know, but for the benefit of other readers - those silver strips are too thin, too narrow and too short to be used for the current Box project.

 

[bosshoss]

Electrons only move on the surface of a conductor - if I got it right - and silver tarnishes; but the oil in BCE might prevent tarnishing. I don't think BCE acts as a conductor (maybe a poor one), but rather it enhances conductivity in the conductors it's applied to.

I don't even know if it enhances conductivity at all. My limited understanding is that it probably removes sonically harmful resonances from the AC as it passes through. I suspect that is true, because the efficiency of the formula is greatly enhanced by the inclusion of ingredients which I know to be useful for damping mechanical vibrations. And I fully understand the mechanism (chemistry) behind how they do that.

Also oil is an insulator, so it's unlikely to be enhancing conductivity. Conductivity could however be enhanced in the conductor as you suggest, if unwanted resonances are responsible for restricted current flow in the conductor.

I imagine it's the purity of the AC waveform shape as it presents to the amplifiers, that is the defining factor that is improved by The Box.