“Tales Of The Unexpected…”

By Roy Grégory.
Original article: https://gy8.eu/review/tales-of-the-unexpected/

A new approach to a familiar problem.

Things come, things go. Some even get to stay…

It’s easy to forget that once upon a time, systems got plugged into stock extension leads (normally using captive power cords), speakers sat on the floor and if stands were used they often had wheels rather than spikes. These days, AC supply components and equipment support constitute entirely separate product categories in their own right, while a speaker arriving without spikes is unusual to say the least: it’s more normal for serious speakers to turn up sporting complex, layered and adjustable ‘footers’ – often featuring ceramic balls and massive threads. But that’s at the extravagant end of the market where speakers cost more than cars and systems cost more than a house.

Back in the real world, things are more prosaic: most performance orientated systems (irrespective of price) have got as far as some kind of dedicated power cords and hopefully a star-grounded distribution block. These days the vast majority of speakers are fitted with adjustable spikes. But as is often the way, many manufacturers see these things as peripheral and treat them as an afterthought. Cable manufacturers tend to concentrate on the cable itself, often fitting stock connectors chosen on the basis of availability (or even appearance) as opposed to performance. In the same way, most affordable speakers are equipped with raw steel spikes, mainly because it’s expected and they represent the most ‘cost-effective’ option – where ‘effective’ is measured in terms of some matrix of appearance and price. As anybody who has (or is sad enough to have) conducted comparative listening to connectors will attest, they can make or break the performance of a cable – and whilst the same might not be true of speaker spikes, better spikes a better speaker make. It creates a fertile field for modification or upgrade, either with aftermarket tweaks or DIY adaptation – sometimes with surprising results.

Simply replacing the raw steel pointy objects that arrive with most, even semi-affordable loudspeakers, with precision-machined stainless-steel spikes from Track Audio (although I’m sure other alternatives exist) has a shocking impact on speaker performance. Whether that is down to the performance of the spikes themselves, their profile, the ease with which those silky smooth threads can be adjusted, or the fact that you can tighten the free-running lock nuts without inadvertently shifting the spikes, who can say? But the results are real, repeatable and significant enough that the Track spikes have been a go-to set up upgrade, for years, the substitution a no-brainer.

Now, an alternative has finally emerged, albeit at a price…

The iconoclastic Stéphane Even of Neodio has a long history with supports, his latest Origine B2 footer garnering considerable interest, while leaving more than a few listeners seriously puzzled by the scale of its impact. His latest offering is intended as a replacement for the stock spikes found on loudspeakers and racks at the more affordable end of the market. And for once, these ‘spikes’ aren’t pointed at all! Machined from solid stainless steel, each Harmonie footer has a profile not unlike a flying saucer: 50mm in diameter, they are flat on top with a sharply bevelled edge, a vertical peripheral band and then a shallow, tapered, conical underside, culminating in a short, cylindrical ‘stub’, 10mm in diameter, its flat base intended to meet the floor. A picture is worth a thousand words, so what is hard to describe is easy to understand, once you see it, especially in the flesh.

The centre of the top surface is drilled to accept a threaded adapter (with 6mm, 8mm and 10mm options available). The top and bottom surfaces also feature a deep slot, running edge-to-edge, upper and lower slots at right angles to each other, while each Harmonie footer shows considerable, if subtle additional shaping. The end result is not unattractive, in a funky kind of way and it’s certainly feels like a solid lump, weighing in at 190g – nearly seven ounces (or ten-times the weight of a Track Audio M8 spike and locknut). In other words, fit a set of four Harmonie footers to the average floorstander and you’ll be adding nearly two pounds weight of stainless steel mechanical interface between the cabinet and the floor. Even if only in material terms, that’s likely to be significant!

The Harmonie footers can be ordered in sets of anything between three and eight and are priced at €110 each (inc. 20% sales tax) – a little more if you want the M10 adapters. And talking of adapters, this is one area in which M. Even and I differ… The supplied pieces are cut from brass, have a (very sensible) screwdriver slot in each end and offer 10mm of M8 thread that sits in the footer, leaving 10mm for adjustment. My immediate response was, “That isn’t enough…” an assumption that quickly proved correct. So I bought myself some pre-cut 30mm and – just for the hell of it – 45mm M8 stainless steel threaded rod (they are actually produced for mounting exhaust manifolds). While I was about it, I added some M8, large-flange, stainless steel lock nuts as the Harmonie footers aren’t supplied with any. Thus equipped, I was able to compare and contrast…

As luck would have it, the Living Voice OBX-RW4 loudspeakers currently installed in the Reading Room system are sat on – you guessed it – a set of Track Audio M8 spikes and shoes. With the speakers 33mm off of the floor, I needed to use my 30mm threads, but with the Harmonie footers duly equipped, it was possible to exchange spikes for footers while retaining exactly the same height and angular settings. Settling down to listen, I was expecting a difference – after all, what doesn’t make a difference – but I wasn’t expecting the Harmonie footers to embarrass the Track spikes quite so comprehensively. The Neodio feet delivered more scale, more weight, considerably more texture, a more developed acoustic but most impressive of all was their impact on the music’s sense of rhythm and flow.

The Neodio Harmonie Footer installed on the Spendor speakers: note the ‘arrow’ in the trim line that serves as a visual aid to the degree of rotation; note also the steel mounting plate on the speaker with its off-set threaded hole to set the spikes/feet wider. A simple solution that increases stability and mechanical coupling, I’m amazed other companies haven’t copied it.

Playing the familiar Igor Oistrakh recording of the Beethoven Violin Concerto (with Cluytens and ORDF) the opening drum beats had a more insistent pulse, the separation of instruments across the orchestra was more clearly defined, with a more natural perspective, greater depth and a more obvious sense of acoustic space. The orchestral playing was more incisive, with greater attack and purpose, dynamics were wider and there was more presence and density to individual instrumental groups and orchestral tuttis. Oistrakh’s violin was now separated from the orchestra in both space and height, more focused, fluid, expressive and vibrant. Instrumental textures as a whole were better defined, with a warmer balance as a result of extended harmonic development. While the increase in pace and musical intent, grace and ensemble connection is hard to miss, you might dismiss the other differences as presentational subtleties – except taken en masse they represent the difference between hi-fi and a palpable sense of performance, underpinning the new rhythmic articulation, pace and expressive range. The music steps away from the speakers and takes on a life of its own.

That’s just one example. The results with the recent Babyan/Trifonov disc, Rachmaninoff For Two (DGG 486 4805) are just as impressive, the re-shod speakers presenting the tonal difference between the two pianos more clearly, but also with greater musical relevance to the works and greater insight into the intimate artistic relationship between the two pianists. The dynamic shifts in the Symphonic Dances are wider and more emphatic, the interlocking piano parts more clearly articulated, yet each player preserves their own distinct tonal range and character. Even mainstream pop material like the Adele Live At The Royal Albert Hall recording gets a reality check and dimensional makeover. Play ‘Someone Like You’ and her voice is much more intimate, natural and detailed, her diction clearer and her vocal technique more clearly apparent. But the kicker comes with the audience participation. As the crowd sings the chorus, the expanse of the RAH is filled with voices that reach out and surround you. It’s pretty darned impressive – especially considering that the track Spikes already represent a worthwhile upgrade over the stock items…

Standard brass M6 and M8 threads as supplied – along with longerr, stainless steel threads and large-flange lock nuts.

Putting this in context, the Living Voice OBX-RW4 is already an excellent speaker: one of the most musically expressive and engaging speakers available at the price. Adding the Neodio Harmonie footers make you realise just how good the speakers are. The Track Spikes and shoes will cost you around €200 for a set of eight. They are, as I’ve already suggested, pretty much a minimum standard on these speakers. At four times the price, the Harmonie footers lift (or perhaps ‘release’ would be a better term) substantially more performance from the speakers – enough to justify the price. This isn’t a make or break upgrade: it’s more a case of realising the performance that you’ve already invested in.

I experimented with the Harmonie footers on more affordable speakers from Spendor and EJ Jordan (the stands of the Greenwich loudspeakers). In both cases the results were impressive and recognisably consistent with the musical benefits enjoyed with the Living Voice speakers. The footers may have had less to work with in ultimate terms but they also had more to work with in terms of basic organisation and presentation. They cleaned up the bass on the Spendors significantly, adding pitch, tone, pace and a more convincing acoustic, more substance to voices and a more natural balance. The crossover-less Jordan speakers were a revelation, with even more explicit timing and rhythmic nuance, natural expression and increased weight.

But here’s the rub: the Spendors will run you a little over €9K, the Jordans around 5.5K and I’d have no problem justifying the cost in either case: I’m just not sure how many customers would consider adding €800 footers to speakers at these prices, let alone €3,000 or €4,000…

In reality I suspect that the barrier to purchase here is going to be the 10% mark: I have no doubt that the Harmonie footers will add way more than 10% to your speakers in terms of believable musical performance; yet convincing someone to spend more than 10% of the price of their speakers on something they’ll likely view as an accessory is always going to be a hard sell. Audiophiles are finally beginning to recognise the fundamental importance of racks to system performance – and what you need to spend in order to get your fancy electronics working properly. They haven’t reached the same place with speakers – yet.

The Harmonie footer is either a handy upgrade, a breakthrough solution or ahead of its time, depending on your point of view. Whether it’s down to the choice of material, the weight or the shape (and I suspect it is a combination of all three) this apparently simple device is spookily effective when it comes to extracting a more natural presentation and performance from a whole range of speakers. I’ll find out whether it can perform the same trick on racks shortly…

There’s much to like here. Beyond the sonic benefits, the large diameter of the Harmonie makes really precise adjustment extremely easy, as well as ensuring that all four feet are equally loaded. The flat bottom is a boon on wooden or polished floors, eliminating the cost and complication of separate spike shoes (although beware sliding really heavy speakers on soft, wooden surfaces). I haven’t tried it, but I’m told that the ‘snub nose’ is narrow enough to effectively compress carpet, allowing the Harmonie to work in that scenario too. At present, the only fly in the ointment is the length of the standard threads. Discussing that with Stéphane Even, changes are afoot: customers will probably have to choose M6, M8 or M10, whereupon they will receive two sets of thread adaptors in that size, each of two different lengths (possibly 25mm and 35mm). Of course, if you change your speakers, you can always get another set of threads in a different size if required. But that’s just details. The bottom line here is that the Harmonie Footer works – and works well.

Stéphane Even has surprised us again, with another unlikely yet surprisingly effective device. It’s an audio sleight of hand that he seems able to perform if not at will, then with astonishing regularity. It suggests that his very different thinking when it comes to the way that systems work and in particular, interface with their environment, has some substance. Whether you buy into the philosophy or not, I’ve yet to meet anybody who regretted buying into the products. The Harmonie footer looks set to continue that trend – another effective, fascinating and challenging product from Neodio.

Price and availability:

Harmonie Footer (M6 or M8) – €110 ea. Available in sets of 3 to 8 pieces

Harmonie Footer (M10) – €114 ea.