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Benefits of a Shallower Rack

I’ve got a relatively small listening space to work with. Also limited adjustment toward the center of the room as I’m not the only one using the space (yet it is largely dedicated to the stereo). Although I’ve managed to arrange things so my speakers are at least three feet from the sidewalls, I really can’t go past 19” from the front wall - measured from the rear of the speakers. Being that the room is only 11x12’, I’ve noticed that even minor adjustments and wall treatments can render serious results. Even moving my Pangea (a cheap and monolithic four tier) audio stand slightly from left to right when experimenting with sub placement can majorly affect the center image.

So I wanted to ask here how many of you may have gone to a wider/lower rack to good effect? Or did it present yet another problem that became more of a trade off than a benefit? The idea being that I would remove some spurious reflections via bringing my gear closer to the floor and out from between the immediate field between the speakers.

Ultimately looking to diy a decent wood rack that would sit far lower than what I’m currently using.

Thanks to everyone in advance!

 

riccitone

Showing 3 responses by sbank

sbank's avatar
sbank
3,378 posts
 

@riccitone A couple of small considerations if you move it to a side or corner:

- if you have a turntable putting it very close(<3ft) to a speaker can cause feedback, when the speaker output gets picked up by the cartridge

- low frequency energy congregates in corners, so if side is an option vs. corner, it's usually a safer choice to avoid any complications

+1 on Timbernation, he made some custom sized amps stands for me about 20 years ago that served me well until I sold them along w/those amps. Good value and craftsmanship. Cheers,

Spencer

sbank's avatar
sbank
3,378 posts
 

If you're contemplating a change, seriously consider moving the rack to a side wall if you can do so, it can help a lot. Go with longer interconnect and keep speaker cables short. Often the amp only between speakers on a low amp stand and everything else racked on the side wall is great if you can make it work. Cheers,

Spencer

sbank's avatar
sbank
3,378 posts
 

@riccitone I missed earlier that you'd consider DIY rack. If interested, my system page thread has a very old post here listing the parts from McMaster-Carr that @slipknot1 and I used to build mine. I sourced maple from perfectplank.com  Almost 20 years later, the solid parts quality and adjustable design has served me well thru 4 household moves and numerous component/configuration changes. IMHO, flexible shelf height adjustability is a must if you plan for the long run! Cheers,

Spencer

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