NMSONIC Product Review (ACA.gr)

An Audio system, as it works, produces E/M radiation, which affects the sound and makes amplifier's and speaker's life more difficult to produce this clean and effortless sound we here in live and unplugged Concerts. Apart from that, these days we are living in an environment with all sorts of electronic transmissions, which also affect the system's performance. These NM sonic purifiers seem to absorb all those and leave the music signal clean...

This product comes in 3 versions, depending on the use: 'cable standard', 'reference' & 'signature'. What they do is cleaning tremendously the sound, broadening the soundstage, presenting the instruments and the human voice more realistically in dimensions, depth and tonality and making the system completely silent and unstressed!

The good thing about them is that they are passive, meaning they are NOT adding anything but just taking out the E/M radiation etc. from the signal going to the speakers!

The manufacturer Nikos Mendrinos is an old Greek Manufacturer and High End gear Representative. He has designed mainly speakers and racks in the past and the product we are reviewing here is the result of his vast experience in Audio and his love and passion for High Fidelity music reproduction.

He is working the idea for three (3) years and he decided to make his first unofficial test in a Show room during the latest Athens High End Show in November 2008.

Due to the A.C.A. President's impression that this idea sounds really incredible to his ears, NM decided to give a complete set to him and to the Club's Secretary Christos Simopoulos who have set up really state of the art Audio systems and who couldn't refuse the honor...

The pictures below are taken from their Audio systems (the first group from the Skaloumbakas's system and the second group from the Simopoulos's one)

Theoretical Notes...

All electromagnetic fields are force fields, carrying energy and capable of producing an action at a distance. These fields have characteristics of both waves and particles. An electric current flowing in a wire or coil produces its own magnetic field. A compass needle will swing at right angles to the wire. What is the difference between an electric field and a magnetic field? Actually both are usually all around us, since they are present wherever there is electricity. Both an electric and a magnetic field exist around power lines, appliances, light fixtures, and electric wiring; but electromagnetic fields are generated only when current is flowing through a wire. The voltage on a wire produces electric fields.

NM sonic purifiers reference on the DB box, close to the central dedicated thick power line going to the rack
NM sonic purifier reference at the end of the dedicated central power line
When an electrical current flows in a wire, the movement of the electrons produces a similar field in space, but one that is oriented around the wire. If the current is a DC (direct current), the magnetic field is steady, like that form a permanent magnet. The strength of the magnetic field depends upon the amount of current flowing in the wire--the more current there is, the stronger the magnetic field will be. If the current in the wire is fluctuating, the magnetic field will have the same fluctuations. We characterize the field in this case on the basis of the rate, or frequency of fluctuation. All of the possible frequencies of electromagnetic waves or fields can be put onto an electromagnetic spectrum, starting with the slowest frequencies and going to the highest. The electromagnetic spectrum is usually pictured as a line that increases from zero, to trillions of cycles per second. About three-fourths up the frequency spectrum is something we are very familiar with--light. Sunlight, as well as the light from electric lights, is the same thing as the magnetic field. It is produced by the movement of electrons and has the same characteristics as the Earth's magnetic field, radio waves, and X-rays. It is an electromagnetic field, but one for which we have developed specific anatomical detectors--our eyes. Electrical currents flow in living organisms and they produce magnetic fields that extend outside of the body and can be influenced by external magnetic fields as well. The magnetic field produced by the brain is easily detected using a special magnetometer.

Extra low frequency magnetic fields, such as those from 50 or 60 Hz systems, penetrate even a cast iron bath tub with little attenuation. They freely intrude our homes and our bodies. They are biologically active at intensities of a milligauss (mG) or less.

A changing electric field can produce a magnetic field. The electric field is fundamental; the magnetic force arises directly from the electric force. In two parallel wires each 40" (100 cm) long and are one cm apart and carry one amp of current will attract each other with a force of 0.002-gram equivalents due to the magnetic force. The force will double if the current in either wire is doubled or if the separation is reduced to ½ cm. If the direction of current in one of the wires is reversed, the force will become repulsive, but will remain the same strength. The current in the first wire creates a magnetic field that acts on the current in the second wire. In a similar way, the second wire also acts on the first. The attraction is mutual; the first wire attracts the second with the same amount of force that the second attracts the first. No charge will actually flow through the air gap between them, yet a magnetic field will be created in that gap as if the charge were flowing. The amount of magnetic force a wire experiences is proportional to the product of magnetic field strength that the wire is subjected to, times the length of the wire, times the amount of current (in amps) the wire is carrying. The direction of the force is at right angles both to the direction of the magnetic field and the direction of the current.

NM sonic purifier Standard, parallel to the arm rail
Two (2) NM sonic purifiers Standard, parallel to the arm rail
Besides being influenced by a magnetic field, a wire that is carrying a current also produces a magnetic field. If the wire is long, the field strength is double at half the distance from the wire and is four times as much at a quarter the distance. Milligauss is a unit of flux density, not magnetic field strength, but the difference is not important. A wire that carries one amp will have a magnetic field of 200 milligauss (mG), a distance of one cm away. At two cm the field will be one-half as much. Certain types of metal--iron, steel, nickel, and vanadium--internally produce this circulating current without the help of a battery or wires. These metals are called ferromagnetic and their single outer electrons each produce a tiny, circulating current due to the electron orbits. All electrons in a Ferro magnet (if fully magnetized) spin in the same direction. If two such magnets are brought close together with the North of one facing the South of the other, they will attract. This attraction is because the electron currents spin in the same direction around the edge of the magnets. If the North of a magnet is brought close to the North of another magnet, they will repel, because the electron currents are circulating in opposite directions.

A changing magnetic field can create an electric field. This is the basis of power transformers and electric power generation. One coil of wire is placed close to another. An increasing current flow is established in the first coil, which creates an increasing magnetic field. The increasing magnetic field causes electrons to circulate (current) around the second coil in such a way as to oppose the increasing magnetic field that the first coil is trying to establish. The changing magnetic field creates an electric field directly in the wire, which causes electrons in the wire to move. The amount of voltage generated is proportional to the total length of wire in all the loops. A changing magnetic field will also create an electric field in the human body, which causes a current to flow. The current is at right angles to the direction of the changing magnetic field, and is strongest near the extremities of a person. Current tends to flow along the outer surface of the body. Its strength is proportional to the rate at which the field changes.

The changing electric and magnetic effects make possible electromagnetic waves (radio waves). These waves are usually emitted from a wire (antenna) connected to an oscillator (in essence, a battery changing polarity very fast). The antenna rapidly oscillates between + and -, creating a rapidly changing electric field. Most radio waves are in the frequency range from half a million to several billion oscillations per second. That rapidly changing electric field creates a rapidly changing magnetic field. The magnetic field, in turn, creates an electric field, which reinforces the existing electric field. Because of this reinforcement, the strength of the electric field far from the antenna is much greater than it would be without the reinforcement. For example, if a one-foot antenna is connected to one volt DC (electric field is not oscillating), the electric field one mile away will be 1/100 billion V/m.

NM sonic purifier signature near the arm base and standard on the phono cable and touching the phono stage
NM sonic purifiers standard on the digital interconnects and power cables
However, if that same one volt is continuously reversed 200 million times per second (proper frequency for a one foot antenna), the peak electric field one mile away will be 1/3000 V/m, or 33 million times higher. By using radio waves, the fields can be carried a long distance. For the AC frequencies typically encountered in the home, antennas and coils would have to be at least several miles long to emit true radio waves. Because the devices that emit these fields (vacuum cleaners, fluorescent lights, etc.) are much smaller than that, household sources of fields are often pure magnetic (from wires or coils that carry AC current), pure electric (from metal plates or wires that are connected to the electric "hot" wire, regardless of whether any current is present), or some mix of magnetic and electric. Unlike radio waves, household field sources tend to weaken quickly in strength when you're more than a few feet away.

Actually, the electromagnetic fields are generated within the circuitry of the entire device. The TV set is what is called a broadband radiating source, meaning that it gives off a variety of frequencies, from the 50 or 60 Hz power frequency to radio frequencies in the MHz (mega hertz) range. The radiation is given off in all directions from the TV set and computer screen. The fly-back circuit operates in the VLF (very low frequency) range, generally around 17 kHz, and this frequency is a major part of the total frequencies given off. When you sit in front of the set, you are being irradiated with a wide range of frequencies, with the strongest components probably being the 50 or 60 Hz power frequency and the 17 kHz fly-back frequency. In general, the larger the size of the screen, the stronger the fields, and the further out from the unit they will extend AC Electric Fields.

Electric fields are not very strong in most parts of a house. High electric-field areas are found near TVs, computer monitors (including laptops), fluorescent lights, light dimmer controls, and improperly grounded equipment. Field strength drops off rapidly if at least 3 feet away. Electric fields are high near high-voltage power lines AC Magnetic Fields.

Magnetic fields are much more common in the home than are electric fields. They don't represent a shock hazard, but, like electric fields, they produce current in the body. Any wire that carries an AC electrical current produces magnetic fields.

NM sonic purifier signature on the transformer of the preamplifier's p.su.
NM sonic purifiers standard on the power wires and signature or reference on the transformers of the p.su's
Sources of Magnetic Fields

The main sources of AC magnetic fields in a home are transformers, motorized equipment, sloppy wiring inside the house walls, excess current carried by plumbing, and power lines or underground power cables. Running cars have a strong AC magnetic field especially nearest the front floorboard, even though the system is classified as DC. Commercial aircraft also have a strong field inside. The fields in cars and aircraft oscillate faster than the 60 times per second typical of household AC power. Wall outlets generally produce no magnetic fields. Any piece of electronic equipment that plugs into the wall, such as a clock radio or answering machine, will have a transformer.

Transformers, Motors, Microwave ovens & Cell phones

This transformer either plugs directly into the wall (AC adapter), or is built inside the equipment. The magnetic field is strong up to three feet from this transformer, whenever the power cord or AC adapter is plugged in. This field exists even if the appliance is not turned on, or even if the adapter is not connected. If an electronic device uses an AC adapter, to avoid high field you should stay three feet away from the adapter, but you need not avoid the electronic device itself. However, if the device has an internal AC adapter and a plain power cord, stay three feet away from the device itself, whenever the cord is plugged in. Microwave ovens also have a large transformer built in, but they emit a magnetic field only while cooking.

NM sonic purifier signature on the transformer of the phono p.su. and standard at the power cable
Four (4) NM sonic purifiers signature on top of both digital and below the CD transport
Ordinary incandescent light bulbs produce very little magnetic field. However, high-intensity halogen desk and floor lamps have a large 12-volt transformer built into their bases and usually produce a strong field up to three feet away. Fluorescent lights use a smaller transformer and usually have little magnetic field past three feet so they are not a field source unless the light is used in close quarters. Motorized equipment also produces strong magnetic fields. Generally speaking, the higher the power, the stronger the field. The field is low when you're at least three feet away from vacuum cleaners, motorized alarm clocks, and electric can openers, six feet from washing machines and furnace motors; and 18 inches form electric razors, hairdryers, and battery-powered motorized equipment.

As for Microwave ovens & Cell phone,s this is a very long story... but going into this is beyond the scope (and the length) of this paper...

Sources of Electromagnetic Fields

There is a general perception amongst many in the community that there are health risks resulting from exposure to electromagnetic fields (EMF) from power lines. All alternating electric currents generate electric and magnetic fields, collectively known as EMFs (sometimes, incorrectly referred to as electromagnetic radiation). The electric field is proportional to the voltage (which can be considered as the pressure with which electricity is pushed through the wires). The magnetic field is proportional to the current, that is, to the amount of electricity flowing through the wires. The direction of the current, and therefore that of the magnetic field, changes 50 or 60 times per second.

NM sonic purifiers signature on top of the preamplifier, the tuner and both digital
NM sonic purifiers standard on the interconnects to the amplifiers
These fields emanate from the wires delivering electricity to our homes and all devices which use electricity in the home. Many people are concerned about the alleged link between exposure to magnetic fields, in particular, and an increased risk of contracting cancer. These concerns are raised when stories appear in the media in which the words radiation and cancer are emphasized, especially when children are also involved.

Electric fields are shielded by many common building materials and the earth but the shielding of magnetic fields is more difficult and can be very expensive. Usually, the easiest way to reduce exposure to magnetic fields is to increase the distance from the source, particularly for fields generated by appliances.

Magnetic fields generated by power lines decrease with distance and this happens more quickly when the individual wires are closely spaced, either in a bundled overhead cable or when buried. Where the wires are close together, the magnetic fields from electric currents flowing in opposite directions cancel more completely. Overhead and underground power lines will often produce similar levels of magnetic fields on nearby streets and paths. In some cases the fields from underground cables may be greater. Underground power lines will usually produce lower fields at the distance of nearby houses.

Power lines include transmission lines (mounted on large steel towers) and distribution lines (mounted on concrete or wood poles placed on the road reserve).

Transmission lines generate both strong electric fields and strong magnetic fields. Distribution lines generate weak electric fields, but can generate strong magnetic fields.

Two (2) NM sonic purifier signature on both sides of the transformer, two (2) standard/ch at the bottom of the chassis and three (3) standard at the interconnects and the power cable
NM sonic purifiers standard at the power cables, the interconnects and the speaker cables and signature on top of the servo-amplifier
Extensive listening experience with many friends' systems for over 30 years I am dealing with Audio equipment, drove me to the conclusion that even in expensive and nicely set-up audio systems, there is something that is holding them from giving the maximum of their capabilities, something which prevents them from sounding immediate and natural to our ears... My conclusion has been that the main reason for this are the Electro-magnetic fields created mainly by the audio gear themselves, apart from the ones created by external sources.

After a research of three (3) of years, I have come up with a series of products, designed to absorb these electro-magnetic waves. Audio equipment, relieved from all this radiation, work more linearly according to their specifications and the pure musical signal travels from an electronic part to the other, from wire to wire, to end up to our expensive speakers to produce a clean and balanced sound for both channels...

All those years, although I have tried not to be taken away by fantasy and enthusiasm usually manufacturers have for their own creations, it seems that these products are working efficiently in most systems, as proven by so many state of the art A.C.A. members audio set-ups!

NM purifier standard around the wire and touching the distributor's body
Just an idea of an NM purifier standard, touching the tuner's chassis
For all those who do not know me, think this is new to me and face this new product with scepticism or even a negative attitude!

I would like to inform them that I have studied electronics and in the audio business I am involved for thirty (30) years, having worked as a recording engineer, having designed audio products as an owner of an Hellenic speaker producing Company since 1983 using KEF, SEAS & FOCAL speaker drivers and at the same time I have been a representative of 24 Audio Companies. (JEFF ROWLAND, MARTIN LOGAN, CONRAD JOHNSON, AUDIO NOTE, AUDIO INNOVATIONS, THETA DIGITAL, KUZMA, CARDAS,VOYD, LOGIC, MANTICORE, MOTIF, SONOGRAPHE, JM LAB, TARA LABS, BENZ MICRO, BRYSTON, TARGET, LOVAN, AUDIO POWER, WIREWORLD, AMPRO, STEWART, FAROUDJA etc.)

Many people ask if I have used ferrites or magnetic material in these products and my answer is NO! This is a small, light, anti-magnetic audio accessory, absolutely safe and easy to use on our high end audio systems... This product has the ability to absorb internal and external Electro-Magnetic waves which they exist, no doubt... and they are measurable, using pediometers.

NM sonic purifiers signature near the arm and the motor
NM sonic purifier reference on top of the t/t p.su.
After extensive listening tests of the NM sonic purifier reference on top of an ordinary record clamp (please be sure and pay attention if you do it yourselves), it has been proposed by A.C.A. members for a fourth type of NMSP, the 'ΝΜ sonic purifier clamp', which will be announced soon as an update to this paper! This is another prove that love for music and audio drives people to improved designs, new ideas, new innovative products etc...

As for retail pricing, I would like to inform you that:

- CABLE STANDARD NMSP (50gr) retails for €100/pc.
- REFERENCE NMSP (80gr) retails for €200/pc.
- SIGNATURE NMSP (200gr) retails for €300/pc.

My friends in Audio,

I have the honour to make this FIRST official presentation of the NM sonic purifiers to the members of A.C.A., after extensive listening tests and comparisons who have placed them permanently on their systems. My desire is to be judged by the results and not produce to you pseudo-technical graphs and figures etc., which impress at first sight, but usually confuse most of the people who love Music and want to listen to it as realistic and close to reality as possible...

NM sonic purifiers reference and standard for the phono stage

NM officially presenting his product at the first A.C.A. meeting of year 2009!
MUSIC is what we love and what we serve!

Applying these products to various systems, I came up to the following conclusions regarding the recommended places these purifiers should be put on:

NM Sonic Purifiers Signature should be placed near the transformers and, if possible, inside their boxes and on top of them. For smaller transformers, NM sonic purifiers reference are adequate. On CD players signature purifiers are recommended to be placed exactly above the laser beam and possibly a second one (signature or reference) on top of their transformer...

NM purifiers standard must be placed at the signal and power cables, as close as possible to the chassis they are 'travelling' to, except speaker cables which have to be placed as close as possible to the amplifiers, unless speakers are electrostatic which need them as well due to their transformers...

It is not a bad idea to place one piece of a standard or reference NM sonic purifier on the DB box of the house and one very close to the power distributor!


Presenting of the MNSP's and placing tips (part I)

Presenting of the MNSP's and placing tips (part II)
As far as the analogue set-up, we are still experimenting and placing tips are not that straight forward, depending on the configuration of the arm - turntable. Never the less, a signature sonic purifier placed as close as possible to the platter is recommended and the exact position should be such that the cartridge will be symmetrically away from it, as it travels from the outside to the inside of the record.

Soon, a record clamp from this material will be available, which has proven very beneficiary according to preliminary tests and more specific placement recommendations will be given...

It is quite an experience to see large speakers disappear from the room! It is really shocking to watch the soundstage cover not just the width of the room but beyond! Far beyond! Beyond the sidewall - beyond the back wall of the speakers...

NM sonic purifiers on top of the t/t p.su. and the CD player
NM sonic purifiers signature on top of the Audio Note mono-blocks
Rhythm of music is enriched with energy and timbre, musicians not only simply play music but they are absolutely synchronized and INVOLVED... with one soul and all together but in the meantime absolutely separated in width and depth and staying there if they are still or moving when they move or turning when they turn! Human voices are not coming from microphones but from the people themselves, you have them in front of you, you see their face, their smile, their sorrow, you watch their fingers on the piano or on the strings, you participate in their passion, if they have passion with what they are doing... HARRY BELAFONTE is on the stage, he is not even for a second in the speaker or even close... Speaker? What speaker?

Completely silence, this silence which prepares you for the thunder, this silence which frightens you because you think it can't stay for long... You loose the sense of right and left channel, you loose the dimensions of the room you are listening in, you loose the sense of frequency spectrum - what the HELL is this anyway?

Music flows unstressed, you have the impression you got tripled the power of your system and the volume of your room... you are just left speechless, you don't want to move to destroy the fantasy... Even listening to the CD player, the electronic flavour has disappeared completely, highs are extended and silky, voices have become natural and focused, soundstage is larger and deeper.

NM sonic purifiers standard at the wires behind the Audio Note mono-blocks
NM sonic purifier signature on top of the CD player
And then, when you move to large Classical Orchestras, then you discover that this is the first time you listen to the play. You discover how the musicians are placed in front of you, you think you are sitting at the 10th row, just a few meters away from the pontium, you discover that you listen very loud but YOU DON'T FEEL IT! as it happens in real Concerts... It seems these stuff by removing any trace of E/M interference (possibly different to each channel...) make the picture holographic, clear and BALANCED!

Finesse, Synergy, Realism, Energy are presented so naturally that you don't think of these words; you suppose that those had to be there in the first place... You are just missing them when you remove these sonic purifiers and you realize that you can no longer listen to your precious system without them! This has happened to our wives, this has happened to George Toufexis's wife Panagiota, who called Nikos Mendrinos shouting: - "Bring them back to George's system. I can't hear like that anymore!!!"

Given the fact that a 10% on average is given to signal wires, we would safely propose a 5% of the system's cost to be spent on these NMSPs. To our opinion, these are the best value for money accessories in the Audio world, giving a lot more than a 12% of system's cost wire vs a 2% wire...