Artesania Audio Exoteryc Rack

In the northern part of Spain is the autonomous community of Aragon - in the small town of Barbastro, for over 20 years, tables and stands have been created that aim to please the ear more than the eye by controlling vibrations and resonances as effectively as possible. These can adversely affect the final sound of the components. Artesanía Audio's handmade racks also use high-tech materials developed by the company itself - this also applies to the mid-range model of the Exoteryc series.

The basic characteristic of all model designs is the fact that they are not folded solutions - it is good to consider how many shelves you need, because you cannot simply add more (or rather, you can, but because you specify the height of the internal structure and the whole table during production, you will reduce the height of the individual floors by adding more shelves). The entire Exoteryc rack is custom built and very carefully and beautifully welded according to that initial specification. It makes handling a bit more difficult (for example, the tested version with two rows of three tiers weighed about half a metre), but it improves strength and stability a lot.

Visually, the rack is a supremely technical affair, and it's a wonder how it manages to combine minimalist lines, austere technicality and a certain form of refined aesthetics - the latter perhaps due to the overall very nice workmanship and small details that break up that purposeful austerity.

The basic building blocks are vertical legs with a diameter of 6 cm - these are hollow profiles filled with a mixture of elastomer and unspecified "special particles" (it is difficult to judge whether this is silica sand, some form of metal beads or something similar) to reduce the resonant frequency. At the bottom, each leg has a screw-in foot, which allows the rack to be positioned in height and also allows for possible levelling on uneven floors. The foot fits into a cushioned hemispherical base. There is a similar base at the top of the support leg (and here it is stainless steel too), and a special extra plate for turntables can sit there.

When you tap your foot, you hear absolutely nothing - the metal is totally dead, perfectly damped. The manufacturer has also paid attention to such details as the colour coating (available in any RAL shade, of course) - it's quite thick, which helps prevent fingerprints, but it is also said to act as a diffusion element for acoustic energy, although the effect there will be absolutely minimal. However, attention to even such an unimportant detail says a lot.

The basic ultra-rigid structure is also connected to the inner structure through several contact points, hinged a bit like a "hedgehog in a cage". The result is a virtually floating element, carrying the components.

The contact point is the stainless steel tines, which sit on special damping Teflon rollers with a diameter of 3.8 cm. The manufacturer lists a total of three different separating elements (those Teflon rollers, but also anti-vibration feet, on which the component rests), preventing the transfer of energy from the main structure to the inner floating one, but of course also in the opposite direction.

The placement of the support legs on which the components rest is very interesting. They combine Teflon with a soft coating and can be screwed into one of the pre-prepared positions on the installed stainless steel arms - this makes it easy to set the optimum place for each component to rest, and you can experiment whether it works better to rest the feet or directly on the chassis of the unit. The load capacity of the entire rack is listed at 320 kg for the three-storey version, so you don't have to worry about heavier devices.

If you want, you can buy an additional insulation layer for your components, specifically cryonite plates. It is a virtually non-resonant material, referred to as artificial stone - about 2/3 is a mixture of minerals, the remaining 1/3 is resin and binder. The load capacity of one plate is 200 kg. The C9 purpose is to offer an additional layer that suppresses vibration.

The last accessory to come to us as part of the Exoteryc rack was a range of 'dampers' - Artesanía Audio make 'weights' with a circular shape, a soft contact surface at the bottom and a range of weights available up to a massive 12.5kg for large amps. The simple element is (according to the description on the sticker above) "to eliminate parasitic resonances and suppress magnetic interference and RFI in digital systems". The added weight and the suppression of resonances are somehow intuitively related, how a piece of metal should prevent radio frequency interference or magnetic fields from entering the components is a question.

We tested the Exoteryc rack in the main editorial setup (simply because it didn't physically fit anywhere else) on the occasion of a rack rebuild, along with the replacement of the Kinki Studio EX-P7 / EX-B7 with the Norma Revo SC-2 LN / Revo PA 160 MR. It was the new setup in particular that we first tried to put on the Exoteryc and then into the classic rack (which itself is very sturdy, though not specially treated). As part of the testing we also tried to place OPPO UDP-205 and M étronome DSC1. Listened through Xavian Quarta Evoluzione on Nordost Heimdall 2 cables and through GMG Power Harmonic Hammer 3000P washing machine.

On the basses in "Ptáci jsou hloupí" (Ondřej Soukup | "Válka barev" | 1995 | Monitor Records | 6603652331), there was a firming and concretization, more pronounced than, for example, when the components were backed by specialized feet such as Nordost Sort Kones or IsoAcoustics Orea. Especially with the source components and the preamplifier, we clearly noticed the difference, the more "fragile" the component (either in the sense of low-level signal processing or mechanical movement - for example, when reading discs), the more pronounced the effect.

Tracy Chapman's vocals on "Subcity" ("Crossroads" | 2008 | Warner Music | 8122-79908-9) stood out and separated better, sounding more concrete. They're not dramatic changes, but you'll notice a difference in the level of choice of feet/pads or perhaps cable replacement. And if you already have a really high-end setup, maybe every little change is no longer something you just wave your hand at, but that little bit of openness and clarity on top becomes a relatively addictive part of everyday listening.

The minor treble details in Yellowjackets' "Silent Night" ("Peace Round" | 2003 | Heads Up | HUCD 3090) also gave a more concrete impression, as if better articulated, perhaps a bit louder. The difference even here is not in the "I can't live without it" style, but it is audible and it is pleasant.

Thanks to a step clearer delivery, even "Sea Nature" and a punchy drum or guitar line (Steve Hillage | "Green" | 1990 | Virgin | 0777 7 87279 2 7) seemed more lively, more intense. Holland's "Ario" ("Overtime" | 2005 | Dare2 | 982 714 2) also took a step towards better readability, there again specifically in the sense of a more vivid, wider and deeper space.

With all the above mentioned qualities, the influence of the cryonics board was also felt a bit, not surprisingly again especially with sensitive components - it is (at least in our case) a relatively small influence, rather really complementary, but for example under a turntable or under tube instruments with a tendency to microphonicity, it is another meaningful isolation point.

The question of whether a rack can affect the sound is probably not too difficult to answer - especially with mechanically sensitive components, it clearly does. In this light, then, a design as exacting and honest as Artesanía Audio's Spanish Exoteryc must be one of the most effective solutions. Add to this the possibility of precise adjustment of the "shelves", the possibility of adding even further improving cryonics plates (or, if you want to have a 100% feel, also further damping weights, whose more pronounced effect we could not 100% determine and distinguish from the subjective feeling) or the possibility of choosing the finish according to your own taste and you have a competently designed, honestly made and aurally functional rack - as with any other custom-made but also quite juicy expensive. However, if you want to give your first-class components costing hundreds and hundreds of thousands an optimal working environment, a solution like Artesanía Audio Exoteryc makes sense without question.

MEASUREMENT

The vibration measurements were performed with an accelerometer glued to the chassis of a completely ordinary amplifier, which will be more susceptible to vibrations than the components that are expected to stand on such a rack, i.e. the measurement result may be more pronounced than in real life.

Red curve - standard vibration spectrum, instrument on a very solid wooden table
Green curve - the device placed on legs directly on the upper floor of the rack
Light green curve - device placed on a cryonics base

from EUR 4 490,- (approx. 116 500,-)

EUR 8 990,- (approx. 233 500,-) - tested version 3+3

EUR 590,- (approx. 15 500,-) - 1pc cryon shelf

EUR 149,- (approx. 4 000,-) to EUR 529,- (approx. 14 000,-) - damping weights 1,4 to 12,5 kg

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KLADY

• robust and "dead" construction
• setup and customisation options
• audibly and measurably helps components, especially players and turntables
• configurable for small and large assemblies

RESPONSIBILITIES

• the price is pretty juicy
• at least in the editorial setup, the damping curtain had more of a feeling effect

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IMPORTERS: Dream Audio | www.dream audio.sk

for Hi-Fi Voice e-magazine / www.hifi-voice.com / by Daniel Březina