You probably know the English nursery rhyme of Little Jack Horner, sitting in his corner who puts his thumb in his pie, pulls out a plum and exclaims: “What a good boy am I.” A historical exploration of this 17th Century rhyme reveals that Jack Horner was actually the steward to Richard Whiting, the Bishop of Glastonbury (1461-1539), in charge of the Bishop’s financial dealings and accounts. The Bishop secreted the deeds to twelve English estates in a pie (commonly used as a hiding place at that time) to King Henry VIII as a bribe to keep the King from seizing the Bishop’s lands. Alas, the Bishop was later convicted of treason and hanged, but Jack Horner inherited the most valuable of the Bishop’s estates (the “plum”) and the Horner family continued to live on this property until the 20th Century.

I thought this a fun introduction to the Tweak Corner where I too sit, (like Jack Horner), listening intently to decide whether the newest accessory to come my way bespeaks a plum or merely a pit in my audiophile dream pie. I share the skepticism of many when it comes to tweaks, but I agree with the sentiments of Robert Harley, who observes: “Many accessory products whose value is now without question –AC power conditioners and Tiptoes, for example-were once dismissed as worthless by those who had never listened to their effects ... We must listen and trust our ears, and not rely solely on pure theories, no matter how elegant or well-argued.”

The Appetizer
Into my Tweak Corner arrived the Quicksilver Contact Enhancer kit, (“Quicksilver”) recommended by a thoughtful reader and heralded by its enthusiastic inventor/CEO Brian Kyle of Extreme AV, the company that manufactures and distributes this product. The kit consists primarily of a four-gram jar of Quicksilver product, a clever retractable brush to apply it and a spatula to mix Quicksilver before every use. Generous online instructions from Extreme AV’s website are provided for treatment sequence on audio and video connectors, break-in periods necessary (which in my experience can be over a 4 day period with added improvements thereafter) and instructions for easy removal of Quicksilver from your connectors utilizing a cotton swab dipped in isopropyl rubbing alcohol. (Repeated application may be needed if your connectors are unplugged often) Even the steward, Jack Horner, would have appreciated the fact that Extreme AV offers a 30 day money back guarantee if after 14 days of your evaluation you are not satisfied with the results. Quicksilver consists of a proprietary micron-sized silver powder, cryogenically treated before it is suspended in a custom formulated, antioxidant-enriched carrier, chosen for its dielectric characteristics. By pasting it in sequence on all or many of your video and audio connectors, Extreme AV claims that Quicksilver maximizes surface area contact for maximum unimpeded energy transfer, “resulting in increased macro and micro-detail resolution and a lowering of the noise floor in both audio and video applications.”

A Visual Feast
I am lucky that in sitting in my Corner (unlike Jack Horner’s in the 15th Century) I have a wonderful collection of audio and video gear to size up the effects of the Quicksilver treatment to see if it gets me closer to the visual and sonic creations of artists that I strive to recreate at home. After months of evaluation, I would offer that Quicksilver is definitely a plum when it comes to my video system enjoyment. Quicksilver was a welcomed ingredient in sweetening my visual experience, most notably in the areas of vibrancy of color, blacker contrasts and dimensionality that I had not seen previously from my Sony XBR Trinitron monitor. After pasting Quicksilver on my component video cables, male power AC plugs and even the coaxial jack connecting my roof antennae, I was treated to a new environment of vibrant color and sharper contrasts in all video. There was Big Papi, (aka. David Ortiz) of the World Champ Red Sox (apologies to Yankee fan audiophiles) spitting into and adjusting his batting gloves on a splendid green Fenway, where even the inscription on his batting gloves could now be observed clearly with Quicksilver applied. Sharper contrasts and deeper, more vibrant colors were everywhere, from the shadows falling at Fenway Park to the water trickling down in pools and rivulets from the fallen roofs in Ladder 49 [Touchstone Pictures, DVD 2004]. The entire DVD of House of Flying Daggers [Columbia Tristar 2005] is a masterpiece of visual splendor and sonic delight. I had viewed this disc both prior to and after applying Quicksilver to my video system and the visual improvements were transforming. Not only were the green bamboos of the swaying forest now individual trees, sculpted against a deep sky, but one could visually discern the contrast in broken tree limbs between the darkened insides of the trunk and the shiny, smooth outsides. Faces were more sharply defined, with beads of sweat clearly defined on skin tones. I can only conclude that in my video system, the addition of Quicksilver to all video connectors resulted in a major improvement in all areas of color, contrast and dimensionality that make a good monitor so captivating and just plain fun to watch.

Quicksilver and Audio
My experience with pasting Quicksilver on all of my audio connectors in my reference listening system resulted in less dramatic results than seen in my video system, although there were improvements that I did hear and continue to hear with time. Over the past six months since placing the McIntosh MC 501 solid-state monoblocks into my system, I have enjoyed a great improvement in image specificity and the width and depth of my soundstage in my system. I have also loved the great bass foundation that comes with the McIntosh amps, as bass literally rolls into my long room, deep and rhythmic. With the addition of the Quicksilver treatment, I assumed I would gain even more micro and macro details, and maybe even more soundstage width and depth. However, in listening to some of my favorite recordings since pasting the Quicksilver into the system, I only heard a slight improvement in these areas. What I did discern as a significant improvement was in another area: a further enhancement of ambience or the sense of the space in which music is recorded. Quicksilver added a greater sense of “you are there” presence and dynamic realism.

For example, one has to love the interplay between blues greats Albert King and Stevie Ray Vaughan on their In Session [Stax Records 7501-2], a blistering collection of guitar combustion. In listening to these cuts with the Quicksilver in place (after several days of break in period), there was a clear improvement in the weight and air surrounding Vaughan’s guitar and amp with a more dynamic perspective of this molten genius performing in the space of this small, enclosed studio. Even Albert King’s dialogue on the recording was infused with greater realism, hearing his comments and pauses echo off the recording room walls like I had not heard before. The same improvements were heard on Todd Garfinkle’s recording of the pristine vocals of Maria Ann Babone, on MA Recording’s “Senhora da Lapa” [ma recording, mo46A]. This recording literally transports you to the vaulted chambers of the church in which this recording took place. The luminescence of Babone’s vocals, the tenderness of the accompanists is captured in this acoustic space perfectly, with the music itself a complex and beautiful caress. The whole experience was only heightened after the Quicksilver treatment was placed in the mix, noticeably creating more surrounding air and space around these instruments and adding to their naturalism of tone in this soaring venue. Again, it was a small improvement, but a pleasurable and noticeable one in my particular system.

Finally, I want to mention the standout Chesky disc, Oregon, Beyond Words [Chesky JD130], a disc filled with musical complexity, emotion and the playfulness of great synergy between great musicians. In “Leather Cats,” a standout reference for bass quality, the addition of Quicksilver lent a new dynamic presence to Glen Moore’s great fret work and creativity with his bass, noticeable immediately as a new facet to this great rollicking and playful number. Everything was a bit more real, more dynamic and placed the listener closer to the realistic space of the musical event itself.

Pass that Slice of Pie
In leaving my tweak Corner, I would happily return to the immediate and wonderful visual benefits of adding the Quicksilver treatment to my video system. I can also recommend it for treatment in audio systems, albeit with less dramatic results, but ones that were a benefit to this listener’s preferences. Kudos to Brian Kyle for recognizing the evolution of this new product and encouraging listeners to write him with feedback and impressions of Quicksilver in their own systems. With further break-in time and evaluation, (and with different equipment configurations), my own conclusions might very well be redefined. In any event, I think that at $64.95 per kit and with a money back guarantee, even Jack Horner can come out not only a good boy, but a lucky one at that!

Next from the Tweak Corner: Meet Bob, the newest creation of Ric Cummins of Argent Audio!
 

Nelson Brill

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Company Information
Extreme AV
Website: http://www.xtremeavllc.com e-mail: xtremeav@cox.net

Contact: Brian Kyle
Tel: 949-488-7662