Thought you folks would enjoy this from Tom Gibbs from Positive Feedback - He was using Super Sluggo... but I couldn't leave it alone.
Scab picked - sent him Graphene
His first post about that
Enjoy
WITH PERMISSION
Swiss Digital Fuse Box Follow-up, Part Deux:
Following my review of the Swiss Digital Fuse Box, Mark L. Schifter sent me a pair of Graphene Sluggos, to replace the gold-plated Super Sluggo that was already in place in the PrimaLuna EVO 300 tube integrated; they arrived yesterday. I'll be honest, I didn't really have the time last night: we ended up getting home later than usual, and I was pretty beat after being with the kids all day and then sitting in hot traffic for an hour driving home, so I just vegged when we got here. So I didn't take a listen last night as I had planned. I just now ran upstairs, and I again put on what's become my go-to LP to hear subtle differences in equipment, etc., which is the Impex Records' 1STEP 45 rpm reissue of Patricia Barber's Nightclub, which is a jazz trio and quartet recording from the late 90's that was recorded by Jim Anderson. It's exceptionally well-recorded, and presents the sound of Patricia Barber's voice and the individual instruments very naturally and dynamically. I've had this set for almost 18 months, and have listened to it countless times since then, and know it very well.
Whoah!! With the Graphene Sluggo in place, I immediately noticed a deeper, blacker background and an improved spatial relationship between the players, which were more well defined in the soundstage. Patricia Barber's voice possessed a more impressive level of realism and presence, such that I felt I could reach out and touch her! The Scouts/Caldera loudspeaker combo seemed to play not only with a greater sense of ease, but with more control from the PrimaLuna amp, especially in the bass and mid-bass registers, where this album can give certain loudspeakers some level of difficulty. Side four of the two-LP set is my favorite, and the final track, which is PB's version of the classic "Wild Is The Wind" was much more nuanced and delicate with the Graphene Sluggo in place. The acoustic bass player, Marc Johnson, offers a really intricate plucked and strummed solo at the song's mid section, and I was pretty astonished by the improved level of realism I was now hearing -- I've always felt that I could localize the position of the players in this recording very well, but this took it to another level! I'm listening in the all-analog room in a near-field setup with the Vanguard Scout/Caldera combo, but I could lean into the music and visualize Marc Johnson's fingers on the strings with a degree of tactile realism I'd never have believed possible. The background was blacker and the soundstage was deeper -- even though I've been listening to the Scout/Caldera setup for months now, it was almost as if I were listening on a much more expensive, more resolving system! I'm incredibly impressed, especially after the shock of first hearing the Swiss Digital Fuse Box inline with the PrimaLuna -- I wouldn't have expected such an additional increase in clarity and transparency was possible.
I've had some experience in the past with Graphene-enhanced products, like the ADD-Powr Sorcer equipment, which coats all electrical connections with the compound. Here's a quote from that review that basically describes the possibility of using Graphene in electrical and audio applications:
"All wired connections are coated with [the] exotic compound Graphene which is an allotrope of Carbon in the form of a microscopic hexagonal layer of molecules. It's the strongest compound known to man, with a tensile strength 100-300 times that of steel. At one atom thick, it is also the thinnest and lightest compound known to man; add multiple layers of Graphene and it becomes Graphite. It's also the best electrical conductor known to man."
For sure, the use of Graphene in the latest iteration of Vera-Fi Audio LLC 's new Sluggo for the SDFB is a huge step-up in overall performance. One of the key points I used in my review at Positive Feedback was that the Swiss Digital Fuse Box allowed my PrimaLuna EVO 300 to perform in an a more unrestrained manner; now with the Graphene Sluggo in place, there are NO RESTRAINTS.
I only thought my mind was blown! Follow-up review coming on Positive Feedback soon!