Then the "best" stand would be the one that brings the speaker to the right height, is stable, and looks good. I think Allan uses a Quad SS amp (909?). |
11-24-11: Pubul57
I would go by what Alan uses, recommends - he is such a nudnick about resonance, I would assume stands matter to him and the performance of his speakers. Despite Alan's dogma that all amplifiers sound similar, I have yet to see someone using a Sony amp to drive the Harbeth. If you've read through some of his responses on HUG you would notice he doesn't really care about the stands for his speakers. He suggested that the Harbeth will sound equally good when placed on bricks or telephone directories. |
I would go by what Alan uses, recommends - he is such a nudnick about resonance, I would assume stands matter to him and the performance of his speakers. |
Till he switches to the next thing to whore out.
Then what will you buy? |
My Harbeth dealer only uses Sound anchor stands and he is the #1 selling Harbeth dealer in the country. To me that says it all. |
Given Alan's thoughts on resonance as part of his design philosophy, I would think that whatever stands he uses or recommends are an important part of his design philosophy - if he works with Skylan, it is likely that the two are made for each other - you would think he would make his own stands to accompany his smaller speakers, but I guess that is a different kind of work. |
Perhaps they work with other speaker brands, but not with the harbeths. My listening panel reacted just like your wife. You're lucky to have her good ears and sense. You two would be fun to listen with. |
Chashas1 - you're absolutely correct about Herbie's Big Fat Dots under the speakers. I found that out for myself. My wifes jaw hit the floor when I removed the Herbie's. I think they're better suited for use underneath a rack. I love the tenderfeet under my CDP as well. |
If the sound anchors were better musically, I would have bought them.
The sound anchors do very much effect the way a harbeth sounds! That's my whole issue with them! And they rob them of all their great capabilities.
Why take a great speaker and muck it up.
Each to their own, I suppose. Just don't invite me over to listen. :) |
Chashas1: I think the Sound Anchor just don't add anything to the inherent sound of the speaker that's sitting on them, I don't think they sound warm or bright or anything . If you want a stand that you can "tune" or that adds or changes the fundamental sound of the speaker then fine, it's all good..I owned Harbeth SHL5 for a year or so and they are a warm sounding speakers, I think making them even warmer sounding isn't a real good idea, but that's just my opinion. Fwiw I used kitty litter in my Skyland stands and they were pretty darn inert. I just felt when I got the stands that $500.00 was a lot for 4, one inch pieces of MDF, with a beveled edge, painted black, and some rectangular plastic tubes, that one then has to assemble. A couple of hundred bucks I can see but $500.00?? just my opinion. Not trying to rag Noel he seems like a nice enough guy, it's not like I'm saying his stands are junk. He's entitled to sell them for what he feels there're worth and if people want to buy his stuff that's cool. I also think the SA stands are overpriced but there's a lot more materials cost involved in producing them than the Skylands. I'm not trying to rag on anyone, just my opinion, we're all entitled to that aren't we :-) |
I agree with Chasas1. I think the build quality of the Skylan's is great. I've owned metal stands before and I don't like them.
I've heard of some build quality issues with the Foundations but not many. |
Canada! Build quality great. Seems like an extruded polymer or something similar, pillars have a nice sheen and finish to them, the plates are mdf it seems, and ingenious way of threading together with long thin rods., plate to plate. Has lil nubs or wafers of rubber for the speakers to sit on... Don't use herbies pads between, makes em dull. Comes with spikes and carriage bolts. Comes flat packed and are easily assembled. Top plate has holes for easy filling of kitty litter or poly pellets. Very good value.
Just don't put a harbeth on something that will deaden it, like sound anchors. I hear good things about the foundations, also from Canada, once they got the frame strength sorted-- could get a bit wobbly. |
Chashas1,
Is the Skylan "Made in Canada"? Or, made in China?
Can you describe the construction and materials used for the Skylan stands? What's the build quality?
Thanks. |
Erik, you answered your own question--"they sound inert".
That's how the Sound Anchors make the Harbeths sound. If you like that sound, fine, but I don't think you're showing how a Harbeth can be so engaging. Just like when someone loads a Skylan, made in Canada, with sand. |
I've had Skyland for a pair of Harbeths, and I have Sound Anchors for my current Proac's . The build quality of the SA stands is far and away superior to the Skylands. The Skyland stands have tops and bottoms made of MDF, the pillars are a reasonably thick plastic. When I got the Skylans stands which come shipped flat in a box to be assembled I was a bit surprised, looking at the materials I thought $500. Was a lot for $50 worth of MDF and plastic. The Sound Anchors although even more $$ are solid one piece welded steel filled and damped with some proprietary material and weight like 70 lbs each... With the SA stands you feel like youre getting what you paid for. I'll not comment on sound quality differences except to say the SA don't really have any sound they are about as inert as is practical. The Skylands stands due to their construction can be tuned with different "fill" to sound different. |
Not sure why the sound anchors would be cruel, chashas. They make many stands look like toys. |
I have been told that the Skylan is made in China. |
Hi, thanks for the feedbacks.
What's the Skylan stand made of? Metal or wood or some other materials?
Do I order directly from Skylan and pay the retail price? $500 is a hefty price for a pair of stands.
Thanks. |
I own the Skylan stands for my C7ES-3's. I believe they're 20 inches. I researched stands for quite awhile on the HUG. They're great stands and look very nice. Noel from Skylan suggests filling them with kitty litter, which I did, and the speakers sound amazing on them. They're made in Alberta Canada. Just tell him what speakers you have so you're sure to get the right stands. He's good buddies with Alan Shaw of Harbeth and is no stranger to Harbeth speakers. |
I have the Foundation stands, and while I have nothing else to compare them to, they're working fine for me. Google Harbeth Foundation Stands.
-Bob |
Yep, ol Skylans highly recommended.
Also the new Wayne Taylors-- open metal tripod style.
Nay to Sound Anchors-- don't be cruel to the C-7's. |
Second both of the above; I have Target, Sound Anchors and Skylan stands for various speakers; Noel is a pleasure to work with. Atacama is also good but I am not sure about their current availability. |
Skylan seems to be preferred for Harbeth's. I ended up getting a pair and am very happy with them. They are custom made to 20" for the 7ES-3, but I had them cut to 18 inches for me. I think Harbeth recommends 15-21 inches depending on your seating position.
Noel is a great guy and terrific to deal with. |
I used custom made Target three posts with mine (19") but I'm sure the Skyland stands or Sound Anchors are equally good. Let the height be determined by your listening chair and seating position. One suggestion is to make sure the top of the stand conforms to the dimensions of the speaker so that they resist being toppled off the stand (particularly if you have kids, dogs, etc). As for amps (your other post) I found the C-7's sound really good with just about anything driving them (more so than most speakers) yet do benefit from improved amplification. I think they like more power than most people seem to believe and got the best results with a combination of at least 100 wpc solid state power with a nice tube preamp. Again, they will sound very, very good with even a decent quality integrated (better than most speakers out there) so don't feel compelled to break the bank. Good luck! |
