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Infocenter |
AUDIOPHILE 01.2001: BrainworkFinite Elemente Pagode 80 HD, around DM 5700 |
| It was early
in the morning. Dew lay on the leaves on the bank of the slowly flowing
river. The light and sleek boat of dark wood moved languidly, but purposefully,
in the cloudy water. Long paddle strokes kept it in motion; the exotic
landscape passed by in the mist. The silhouette of a pagoda came into
view ... ... and then I woke up to find myself in the audio room and began to heave the CD player and the amplifier from the previous test onto the Pagode rack from Finite Elemente. You'll have to excuse my dream trip to Asia that happened when I was surfing on my laptop, but the sight and the name of the rack aroused associations. And not unjustly as it turns out, as the Pagode is, in a transferred sense, a temple for hi-fi equipment. But you won't find any incense sticks; the design of the top model in the Pagode series is based much more on the results of scientific research. In co-operation with Professor Borchert of Dortmund Technical College (Faculty of Mechanics), Finite Elemente has developed a sound optimization process using resonators to get rid of unwanted resonances. This process, for which a patent has been applied for, determines the geometry of the resonators using mathematical formulations on the basis of mechanical energy principles. Annoying oscillation energies are dissipated, i.e. converted into heat, by the easily energised and sound-neutral resonator rods. The idea is that the equipment shelves no longer vibrate, but the resonators installed in the struts of the tensioning frame. A separate resonator is responsible for the dissipation of a defined frequency range. The materials used for the rack components are solid maple, special steel and aluminium. The shelves are made of absorber panels with a cleverly devised structure: using a sandwich design a thin intermediate silicon layer is floated between two 8 mm thick layers of medium-density fibreboard (MDF). There is therefore no fixed connection between these two MDF layers. The high-damping intermediate layer produces a low-resonance material as the base for the hi-fi components. Finite Elemente is therefore probably one of the few manufacturers to integrate scientific knowledge into the design of audio furniture. And this also explains the lightweight construction of the rack, as the resonance in the Pagode is not countered by lead pellets or quartz sand. That's the theory at least, but what about in practice? Can the Pagode rack meet its promises? After Luis Fernandes from Finite Elemente had personally adjusted the rack, we carried out an initial crosscheck: a Marantz CD-6000 OSE was placed on the top level and connected up to the reference equipment (pre-amp/power amp Mark Levinson No. 32/33H with Dynaudio Evidence speakers). The changes compared to the standard equipment platform were of a positive nature and easily audible. But would you test a Mercedes, when Jürgen Schrempp was in the passenger seat? Probably not. You would be biased and probably be very careful in your criticism. This is the reason why I had the Pagode concept explained to me and postponed the listening exercise so that there was enough time for the test. In addition to the audio reference rack from Creaktiv I also used the Sony CDP-XA 50 ES CD-player and the Marantz PM-17 MKII amplifier. The following then happened on the Pagode rack: the room became larger and more tangible. Clearly a gain, as the much more homogeneous and more exact depiction now placed the listener in the centre of the action. In the instrumental piece "Bergerette sans roch" by Tilman Susato shawms, bombardes, krummhorns and percussion played together. The improvement in sound was enormous here as well. The verve and vitality of this, crudely put, renaissance-techno fascinated just as much as the now deep-sounding drum. The more natural decay behaviour of all musical events, which provides the majority of spatial information, is in my opinion responsible for the remarkable proximity and reality. And because listening to this CD with old music already had me under its spell, I wanted to know more. What would be the result with an organ recording that was made in an acoustically dry room? Which tonal heights would the Pagode manage? When the CD player and the amplifier were on the Pagode rack I started with the "Danse infernale" (from "L'oiseau de feu"). The absolute precision of the reproduction was immediately striking. Low pitches, which otherwise sound blurred with a tendency to booming now showed structure. You could feel how the master tunes of the pedal in 32 and 16 foot positions built up and which air volumes were moved. The organ imitated pizzicato double bass and cellos so well you could hardly tell the difference. Great dynamic eruptions with the horizontal high-pressure trumpet almost blew me away, as the sound in this register almost presses you into the armchair. And here the hall acoustics, which are generally rather unfavourable for organ music, were integrated into the instrument. You could almost feel the place of recording, as this opened up like a panorama in front of the listener. Nikolay Rimsky-Korsakov's symphonic suite "Scheherazade" (DG) was put in the CD drawer as the crowning finale. The final movement allowed the hi-fi rack from Finite Elemente to once again display all of the facets of its expertise. The broad image of the Berlin Philharmonic under Karajan allowed precise statements about the positioning of the instrument groups. The dynamic range had increased considerably, and noises in the orchestra such as turning pages and creaking chairs were audible in general rests. Again the decay of the instruments was more natural, which made the characteristic even more penetrating. Low-pitched strings and horns played cleanly and with drive, pizzicato parts seemed realistic and rough. Even high-frequency instruments like the small drum gained in transparency and verve. The tonal substance remained exactly the same at high volume levels. Nothing began to wear on my nerves, which is proof of the immunity of the rack towards loud volumes. In short: Each hi-fi component can enjoy an unbelievable improvement in sound on the Pagode rack. And if you planning to stack your expensive hi-fi components on the living-room shelving unit, you should ask yourself this question: Would you drive a Porsche in summer with tyres that allow a maximum speed of only 100 mph? With the Pagode rack you can't help asking yourself how many music details you have been missing until now. |
  Objet d'art: In spite of the high design and scientific complexity the rack enjoys a distinctively attractive and neutral appearance. The Pagode rack can therefore be integrated into a wide range of living rooms.  Exact fit: When the absorber panel is placed in position, this comes into contact with the resonator rods via four special steel feet.  The cutaway model on the right was photographed from below; the orange resonator rod can be clearly seen. Resonances are led from the panel into the tensioning frame, where instead of the unit shelves the resonators dissipate unwanted vibrations inaudibly.
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