in this video we hope to give you some insight into the line of isoacoustics isolation platforms
iso acoustics is out of canada and they specialize
in very well thought out products for both home and professional use
as you might guess from the name these are all about isolating components so let's get started
if you want to read more about the importance of proper isolation be sure to check out the link
in the description that will take you to our full article on audioadvice.com there we take a deeper
dive into how isolation works and what components will benefit the most from it isoacoustics
makes both isolation bases and isolation feet we covered the feet in another video linked below
isoacoustics has two series of bases called the zazen and the delos they both work in a very similar
fashion and picking the best one comes down to matching the size and weight of your component
to the right base both of them work on the same principle of using a base with some degree of mass
integrated with their special isolation feet the base on the different models will vary in mass
based on the weight of your component and the feet are a similar design to that used in the
award-winning isoacoustics gaia series these use a top isolator a bottom isolator
and a component to connect the isolator to the base the shape stiffness and materials of the
feet used for each base are specially designed for the weight range of the base and your component
these feet are slightly recessed into the base for a look we feel is pretty cool while you can
just purchase the correct isolation feet for your component you'll have to play around with
the feet to get them positioned properly and the base takes all the guesswork out of that
the base is also perfect for those turntables with a separate motor like a vpi or project rpm series
plus the mass of the base itself will help most turntables and tube products as well
the zazen i is about one and a half inches thick while the zen ii is 1.65 inches thick
you'll want to make sure your surface you are putting the base on is level first
the way the feet for the isoacoustic bases are designed does not lend them to be adjustable
if your component is less than 25 pounds in total weight the zazen i would be the
perfect choice the zazen ii is made for components weighing up to 40 pounds putting your turntable
tube component or cd player on a zazen base will usually greatly improve clarity and detail
we find the deeper bass tones your system can reproduce the bigger the improvement you will
hear the name delos comes from greek mythology meaning the floating island the delos lineup
is broader than the zazen with both size weight limit and wood species options to work properly
with the delos your component needs to be pretty heavy weighing in at at least 40 pounds or more
what is neat about the delos is they can support gear weighing up to 100 pounds this makes them
perfect for some of those massive vpi and other larger turntables or big tube amps on the market
iso acoustics chose maple and walnut as the woods to use for the platform both of these hardwoods
are used in the making of musical instruments from guitars to pianos they take different sized pieces
of wood bond them together using a green type glue that dries quickly and is formaldehyde-free
this results in a much stronger structure than a single piece of wood this solid structure is
then finished with a very durable urethane based satin finish to keep it looking great for years
iso acoustics tells us the two finish options just come down to personal preference and there's not
a performance difference between the woods they can measure within each type of wood there are
two sizes and two different thicknesses you'll find one to be 18 inches wide by 15 inches deep and the
other 22 inches wide by 16 inches deep then you get to choose between an inch and a half or three
inches thick the thicker wood does provide more mass so if your turntable is based on a massive
type design we suggest going with the three inch version the smaller one and a half inch version
can support up to 65 pounds and the thicker three inch model is best for components up to 55 pounds
when you move up to the larger models your gear can be up to a hundred pounds for the
one and a half inch thick model and up to 90 pounds for the three inch version
the 22 inch by 16 inch versions use six isolation feet compared to the four on the smaller ones
adding mass and isolation to audio components especially turntables has been a path many music
lovers had taken for decades whether it was a piece of granite a heavy butcher block or whatever
people have experimented with adding mass and isolation to help their gear sound better
heck i remember cutting tennis balls in half myself before there were any isolation components
on the market to help out my turntable i did a test with the new mark levinson ml5105 turntable
which in itself is a great table it weighs 75 pounds and it's pretty well isolated already
so we took the biggest isoacoustics base listened to the turntable without it then
popped it under it listened again pulled it back out the difference was just wow much
better tracking it sounded more effortless bass tones sounded cleaner and clearer and i just felt
just like there was less surface noise even it was pretty amazing these new bases from isoacoustics
allow many more people to experience what isolation is all about for less than ever before
plus with the delos they add that super cool factor a big piece of butcher block accomplishes
with the added benefits of their isolation feet which model suits you comes down mostly to simply
matching the weight of the component to the best base we do feel the three inch tall models are
better suited for big turntables and tube amps that have a lot of mass the benefits you'll hear
from an isolation system has a lot to do with the acoustic profile of your room if your gear happens
to be sitting in a spot where it gets hit with a big bass mode you'll likely hear huge benefits
if you have any questions on which of these bases might work best for your system be sure to give us
a call chat with us on audioadvice.com or stop into one of our raleigh or charlotte showrooms
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