With the Pagode Signature MK II, the German specialist for hi-fi racks, Finite Elemente GmbH, located in the North Rhine-Westphalian city of Paderborn, is offering a new line with a particularly attractive price-performance ratio for all those who don't want to compromise, but still want to keep their feet firmly on the ground in terms of price point. We took a close look at the E14 model.

Finite Elemente has made a name for themselves in the hi-fi scene thanks to its extremely sophisticated hi-fi rack solutions, which have been successfully established on the market for many years. For me personally, these products are a prime example of "Made in Germany" transported into the present day. So to say from the good old days, when this term still had a meaningful value in contrast to today. But hi-fi racks, hi-fi furniture or equipment bases, what is actually the right designation for these, well, "solutions" from Finite Elemente? As soon as you browse or scroll through the product pages, it becomes clear that these are not simply mundane "racks". Personally, I would even be inclined to speak affectionately of a "harbourage" for hi-fi components.

Following the Pagode Carbon Edition, Pagode Edition MK II and Pagode Master Reference MK II lines, Finite Elemente has now introduced the new Pagode Signature MK II range, which comprises also our review sample E14 at a price of 5,490 euros. This can certainly be understood as a friendly entry-level offer, because anyone reaching out for the Paderborn company's top lines mentioned at the beginning is prone to invest the equivalent of a well-equipped small car. Let’s then look at the keyword "Pagode": Each product line is preceded by this name. Wikipedia defines the English spelled “Pagoda” as follows (quote): "A pagoda is a distinctive, multi-storey, tower-like structure whose individual storeys are usually separated by projecting cornices or eaves." How appropriate!

But even those who are prepared to spend "only" five and a half thousand euros on four levels in order to position their hi-fi components on them will, on the one hand, put this amount in a reasonable relation to the price of their system and, on the other hand, expect decisive added value in terms of sonic performance. So, what does the buyer get? For such a price, you would actually have to grant a rack component status, but I wouldn't go quite that far yet. Or, should I actually have to? I'll defer this question for a while. Nevertheless, the purpose is to keep high-quality and sensitive hi-fi equipment, especially turntables and tube amplifiers, from being affected by impact noise and other annoying vibrations, so that the equipment can tap its full sonic potential. And this is precisely where Finite Elemente reaches deep into their bag of tricks, but first of all, the formalities.