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Tweakers' Asylum Tweaks for systems, rooms and Do It Yourself (DIY) help. FAQ. |
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Tweakers' Asylum Tweaks for systems, rooms and Do It Yourself (DIY) help. FAQ. |
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In Reply to: Re: horizontal isolation posted by Fatcobra on June 4, 2004 at 19:08:04:
Please check out the linked post on the bottom for my thoughts on rollers and horizontal isolation versus vertical coupling. As you've suggested, there doesn't seem to be any data other than anecdotal (that I know of, at least) relative to what percentage of the benefit of rollers is due to the isolation versus the coupling.I wholeheartedly agree that if the normal vibrations to which a roller is subjected do not overcome the static friction of the bearing system, then any benefit is 100% attributable to vertical coupling.
"Maybe now would be a good time to ask a couple of questions...
ONE: In IYO, how is horizontal isolation benificial?"
This is a question that I believe has no generally accepted answer (in other words, it's pretty controversial). I don't claim to know the answer, but I'm willing to speculate. There are obvious reasons something like a CD player or turntable would benefit from reduced vibrations, so let's consider something like an amplifier. You've got lots of wires in there, all generating their own magnetic fields as current passes thru them. Now, what happens as a wire passes thru a magnetic field? A current is induced. Although we can't see circuit boards and wires move in a typical amp in a typical listening environment, the fact is that any material will deform to some degree when subjected to force, and vibration is simply an oscillating force. Consider that vibration travels thru an amp much like a sound wave thru air (in fact, it's really much the same thing, and often at audible frequencies, the only major difference being that sound travels thru solids much more quickly than air - vibration is really nothing other than sound travelling thru a solid), so the different parts of an amp are constantly moving relative to one another when vibration is present - quite chaotic. This would mean that the magnetic fields that any one wire is subjected to, even though minute in most cases, are constantly changing when vibration is present. Reduce vibration, and you reduce the effect. I don't think this is far-fetched, but I'm sure there will be disagreements.
"Two: Can you dispute any of the following?Roller balls do not dissipate vertical vibrational energy by rolling."
I'd never dispute that. Search for some of my posts on the topic and you'll see that I've always described roller balls as a horizontal isolator and vertical coupler, and I'm the only person I'm aware of pushing the notion that vertical coupling is critical in any isolation system, whether horizontal or vertical.
"Roller balls are fully coupled while rolling (so long as they maintain traction with both surfaces)."
This is true in the vertical. Roller balls are horizontally decoupled when in motion (At input frequencies below 1.4 times the resonant frequency of the roller system the isolation is less effective, and isolation becomes completely ineffective at and below the resonant frequency of the roller system).
"Airborn resonances cannot overcome the static friction of a roller ball (much less with the added weight of a component)."
I once again agree, but I also wouldn't ever claim that a roller ball would do much to manage airborne vibration. Roller balls are only effective at helping to manage floorborne vibration. The one role that roller balls can play in helping to manage airborne vibration is their vertical coupling properties. If you use the roller balls to couple an equipment chassis to a constrained layer platform, for instance, the vertical components of the vibration present in the chassis due to airborne effects can travel into the platform where they can be converted to heat. This also helps with self generated vibration, such as that caused by transformers and transports.
"This, IMO is a pos effect, which some are contributing to 'horizontal isolation'. IMO, horizontal isolation has no benifit w/ relation to conductive, or airborne resonances.
...prove me wrong?"
I can't, and I'm not so sure anyone really can (if the last statement of yours I quoted was meant to be confined to airborne vibration only, read no further; if it was meant to cover floorborne vibration, then read on). I've given you my best guess as to why vibration negatively affects audio electronics, and reducing vibration at all frequencies and in all directions without amplifying any of them makes audio equipment perform better (I should point out that I've always believed that an effective vibration management scheme consists of both horizontal and vertical isolation, as well as damping, with particular attention paid to the vertical coupling between any two pieces in the system).
So, you see, I think we might actually agree more than you may have realized at first....
Cheers,
Pete
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