John Zurek of Positive Feedback on the VCS Toolkit – Part 1

These days, more than ever, I look for a price-to-performance ratio that makes sense for this economically challenging time, and the ARCHs fit right in with my philosophy […] Using ARCHs designed for components, speakers, and cables allowed my system to sing at a higher level when they were used collectively vs. individually.

John Zurek of Positive Feedback on the ARCH Platform

Why is it the ARCH Platform sounds better than just using the ARCHs directly under the feet of the component? I couldn’t have placed all six mini ARCHs under my preamp because of the way it is built, and I’m sure the correct weight loading—i.e. how many ARCHs you place in the Platform for the component you’re using—really makes a difference. The Platform allows you to get that weight ratio correct, and you can easily experiment with the number of ARCHs to tailor your sound.

Vibration isolation – Gingko mini ARCHs

Everything I had enjoyed up to the insertion of the mini-ARCHs was now elevated. Individual instruments and voices in the music were easier to follow, existed in their own space and had improved tonal characteristics. This translates into better attach and more natural, extended decay (for example the strike of a cymbal and its shimmering tone as it fades off). Bass notes have better tone and are much clearer.

Audio Bacon on the Mini-ARCH

Further sonic improvements were gained by placing the Mini-ARCHs under my Chord DAVE, sMS-200, tX-USBultra, and BRIX media server. This is quite nice given the form-factor, ease of use, and price of the ARCHs. I was also able to tune my system using various amounts of Mini-ARCHs under my source equipment. This worked especially well for the SOtM sMS-200. Having 8 Mini-ARCHs was a tad bright while using 4 struck a perfect balance. Tuning your system with vibration isolators sounds ridiculous but I think adjustability makes these ARCHs quite attractive.

Audio Bacon on the Lite-ARCH

I used the Lite-ARCHs on the Omega SUPER 3i monitors and the deepOMEGA 8 subwoofer. The results were instantaneous and obvious. The music opens up in limitless fashion and the bass tightens up beautifully. Guitar plucks have more tactility, piano notes have a more natural decay, and vocals have an eerie sense of realism. Resonances are much larger with lower frequencies but having the Lite-ARCHs on the subwoofer provided an amazing amount of control, detail, and authority.