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Fundamentally this wasn’t decisive of course because we don’t know what the actual placement in the studio was. Yet the holographic illusion was rather stronger. This furthered the suspension of disbelief to subtly help my space to seem like the venue in which the music happened. If before it seemed more like the oft-invoked window on the action, I now stepped in to share the same space with the performers. This is a matter of taste but personally I’d rather sit inside than look in from the outside.


What surprised me more was that once I’d identified this effect, it became child’s play to determine whether the MKT were in place or not. I even confirmed this with a friend who remained ignorant of their presence. He noticed whenever I removed or returned them behind his back. He too at first couldn’t verbalize the difference. Once I let him in on the secret, he had no trouble describing the effects. Weird, huh? I don’t care. The MKTs already have pride of place. Incidentally, altering the distance between the two upper bowls can to a certain extent stretch or deepen the stage. I wouldn’t go overboard to exaggerate this but common sense can reap nice dividends.


Since the MKT was supposed to also work beneath components I first approached the transport/DAC combo of Holger Stein. Years ago this gear had befriended me again with the digital medium and had always sat on SteinMusic’s nicely named Natural footers for a very natural relaxed pairing [above]. Swapping feet now was less obvious than expected. The presentation felt less laid back but somewhat more resolved and airier between the musicians.


I considered it a lateral move and matter of taste and in truth was somewhat relieved that the MKT didn’t invalidate what I had already considered a good balance. While they are probably a good option for many stock footers, I didn’t see any reason to replace my Naturals. More as a confirmation than with any grand expectations, I next slipped three MKT beneath my Moll Audio isolation transformer which feeds the digital separates. In the spinner sat Arcadi Volodos’ latest release In Vienna which of course was recorded in the Grand Hall of the Wiener Musikverein.


While Volodos was busy with Robert Schumann’s Forest Scenes Op. 82, I replaced the resident Sound Mechanics footers with three MKT. I cued back to the beginning of the transcribed hunting song when it happened. Arcadi Volodos seemingly braced his back to attack his keys with even greater vigor. The attacks of this staccato-heavy piece substantially gained in mass and precision and the resonant body of the large concert piano became more tacit.


When the final "Good-Bye" segment of the Forest Scenes had faded and the audience applause took over, I realized that the MKT had involved me more deeply in the piece. Apparently their effectiveness underneath power bars or isolation transformers—i.e. power delivery devices—isn’t to be underestimated. I highly recommend experiments in that direction. An Acapella Fondato Silenzio platform that I’d used in that position very satisfactorily for a long time was clearly bested by the three HighendNovum bowls.


Encouraged, I next tried the devices under speakers, under active and passive preamps and under phono stages. The speakers and phono stages—one a small Tessendor, the other a bigger Basis HD by Audiosysteme Schäfer—benefited the most. The manner was similar to the isolation transformer if admittedly a bit more subtle but still appreciable. Beneath the preamps the effects recalled the prior results with the digital sources but didn’t invalidate other quality solutions like the Acapella bases.


I ended up thinking that the MKT were surprisingly beneficial and in various applications. My system improved beyond my own expectations and in areas which are not usually addressed by tweaks, i.e. they don’t manifest as more boom, zing and tizz.  Each removal of the devices caused withdrawal symptoms to lead to their quick reinstallation. I thought that the chasm between replay and real music diminished each time when I employed the MKT. These are tweaks which clearly serve the music. The degree of improvement varies with location and ranges from subtle to quite powerful. This merits a personal audition.


Yesterday Michael Jungblut called again to inquire about his MKTs. In passing he let slip that he was working on further improvements of his accessories and that significantly more would be possible…

redaktion @ fairaudio.de

HighEndNovum website