New Fraim, nearly ready for the boxes, but a few questions

Hi-Fi Corner
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So, after 14 months stored away, it’s time for my six black boxes and Titan 606s, to come out to play.
Yesterday, I collected my new Fraim and Track Audio Isolation feet from Jack in Harlow, and have just assembled it. The base took me about 30mins, the levels about 15 mins each. I haven’t levelled it or tightened it up yet, as I will do that when I add the boxes, level by level. Just wanted to see what it looked like.

I have read on several threads how easy it is for the glass to slide off and the ball bearings go walk about. They did!:grinning:
I read Richard Danes’s kind advice on how to assemble the Fraim, it states that the Glass Locators are optional.
How many Fraim owners use them?
If it’s not a stupid question, why is there only two Glass Locators supplied when there are three ball bearings?
I obviously keep the boxes for the Naim components, but wondering if I should keep all the Fraim boxes?

Any other advice on the Fraim would be much appreciated.
Thanks👍

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I don’t use the ‘glass locators.’ I just re-align the glass whenever I notice that a slab has moved a bit.

I keep all my component boxes but didn’t keep the Fraim boxes. If I ever sell it off, I’d price it such that no one would care about the original boxes.

@HungryHalibut has posted his setup guide in the past and I can’t find it now but I did find his email to me from 2014, which I don’t think he’ll mind me pasting into this thread.

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This is the @HungryHalibut guide to success with Fraim:

The key thing with Fraim is to get the base level. Once that’s done, everything falls into place.

Tighten up all the metal parts on both sections of the base using the spanner, not really, really tight, but quite tight. That’s vague I know!

With the shelves, tighten the sharp cones as hard as you can with just your fingers, then add 1/8 of a turn with the tommy bar.

Make absolutely certain that the spikes don’t touch the edge of the cones. Polish the balls on your shirt before placing them in the cups. Then place the glass on the balls. If you have it the right way up it will ring slightly. If it’s the wrong way up, it will be more of a dull ‘boink’ sound.

Get the front of the glass lined up with the front edge of the wooden shelf.

The shelves will come with little circular disks that you can stick to the glass, to stop it getting knocked off. My advice is to put these in the bin - they look awful, and it’s almost impossible to position them to that they don’t touch the balls. Unless you are terminally hamfisted, or keep horses indoors, you have no need of them.

Now, after three months, the metal legs will have eaten into the wood, and everything will be loose. Take it all apart and tighten it up. After six months, do it again. After that it should stay OK - you just need to check the tightness when you do the annual strip down.

When you plug things in - especially the powerline - hold the front of the boxes - otherwise there is a big crash as the shelf slides forward and the balls roll across the floor. You’ll tell that I have been there!

The other thing is to add each box as you build, and make all the connections as you go. Sliding heavy boxes onto glass shelves reasting on balls is almost impossible!

Then get a flat duster on a stick for the weekly clean. Fraim, especially in black, is a total nightmare to keep clean. It will sound great, but it’s high maintenance…

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I would keep the boxes, if for any reason, you need to sell the Fraim.

DG…

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Enjoy the Fraim. It’s a wonderful addition to the system. Be sure to have your NAC A5 made up equally well, and of equal lengths :rofl: Happy Listening! :flushed:

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No glass locators here & I kept all the boxes, much easier/safer if you ever need to ship

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Same here.

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Hi David - I can’t add anything useful to the Fraim questions (apart from keep the boxes !), but it’s good to hear you’re finally getting the chance to get your system back together after all the house renovation work :+1:

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Thanks👍

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Thanks @Bart

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I must remember to polish my balls!:joy:

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Thanks James. Sadly, I didn’t quite make the fire place😂
Can’t wait to hear the 606s, with the new Track Audio Isolation Feet.

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Similar Fraim levels here. As @HungryHalibut has said in the past, try to make the connections as you go. I didn’t. It was a nightmare trying to keep the shelves still and a few ball bearing hunts ensued with me crawling around looking for them. They inevitably gravitate to the least accessible places.
Worth the effort in the end though.

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This is a really good guide, especially the warning about keeping a horse indoors

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I smiled when I read this as well. “few ball bearing hunts” I’d venture to say this has happened to everyone while building Fraim at least one time.

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I should have copyrighted it! I’m impressed that @bart still has it, as I can’t remember what I did last week.

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Now, that’s going to far……

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Such a good guide that mate, it all makes sense. Im the same so should probs print that off for when i dismantle everything!haha

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I dumbed the boxes and the plastic ball locators but agree with everything in the guide above. A trick if you need to move something once it’s built is to slide the box out on the glass. Place glass and box on a cushion on the floor in front of the rack, remove box and put the glass back in the rack. So much easier than trying to draw the box out without moving the glass, which is somewhat similar to the game with a hoop and bendy piece of wire!

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A trick if you need to lift the glass if a ball gets loose and a component is on the glass . . . wedge a magazine between the glass the the wooden shelf underneath.

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