'Front end first' - yes, but make sure you go right to the very front...

[jimdgoulding]

Not in my room, and, I suspect, not in yours. See that speaker in my avatar? Around the tweeter is a device that I make. It's made from highest quality real wool. I make it to absorb waveforms from being reflected off this and any conventional box speaker baffle. Works real good. Trues up everything. Received an '08 Golden Ear Award from Robert E. Greene, technical editor, The Absolute Sound. The least expensive device to ever have received this.

[Filterlab]

Received an '08 Golden Ear Award from Robert E. Greene, technical editor, The Absolute Sound. The least expensive device to ever have received this.

Praise where necessary Jim. You know how I feel about my baffle covers, they are now relieved of their velcro and are full time fixtures on my speakers.

[Tam Lin]

One of the biggest differences I heard, for example, was installing a separate 10mm Earth for my system via 5 x 8ft star-wired copper Earth rods plunged into my garden and connected to the dedicated consumer unit I use for my hi-fi; the difference that made was amazing in terms of how it lowered the impedance on my mains supply (particularly when kept wet) and the way in which this impacted on the performance of my system.

Anyone considering adding local ground rods for their audio system should do their research and be aware of the hazards involved. I recommend these references as a starting point.

http://www.diyfaq.org.uk/electrical/electrical.html
http://www.acoustica.org.uk/t/earth.html

One hazard not discussed is lightning. A nearby lightning strike can create a potential difference of hundreds of volts between the earth on one side of your house and the other. If your local ground rod is not connected to the earth connection at the main service panel with a large gauge copper conductor, anybody that happens to be in contact with an audio component and anything that is connected to the main ground could receive a fatal shock.