Can an audio rack be that important?

To the OP’s question, I find his subjective quality characterizations interesting:

• a good audio rack
• ultra high end audio equipment
• sub-par equipment racks
• a high end audio rack
• a reference rack
• high quality components

These types of subjective quality modifiers have been used widely throughout these forums, and throughout this thread, and I often wonder what level of correlation exists between the meaning of these phrases when used by various authors.

In this case of audio racks, I am interested in what physical/mechanical characteristics take an audio rack from the realm of being sub-par or basic to being good, high-quality, or reference? Racks costing thousands of dollars are made by a variety of manufacturers, from a variety of materials, using a variety of assembly and support methods. What makes an audio equipment rack good?

What makes an audio equipment rack good? Making it as non-resonant as possible is a good start, which often involves some decoupling of the shelves from the rack superstructure. Racks do make a difference to sound quality but they are best considered in the same context as the general category of resonance management devices.

Of course they have to be suitable for the equipment being housed and aesthetics matters a lot to some people.

What makes an audio equipment rack good?

1 High Audible Function (any Component or Loudspeaker).

2 Includes Vibration Management Technology.

3 Reduces Operating Temperature in All Electronic Components.

4 Design using Physics and Geometry as the Core Principals.

5 Material Science Yielding Zero Audible Frequencies When Vibrating.

6 Audio Furniture is Just Furniture. Wood is Noisy and has Very Limited Benefits for Reference Rack Function.

7 Realize that Making a Shelf Sound Good is Impossible.

8 Adding Various Types of Component Footers and Active Isolation Systems is a Band-Aid® Approach to Treating a Wound.

9 Changing Cables Equals the Same Results as Footers, a Tweak, or Investment Loss.

10 Stay Clear of the Audio Industry’s Branding and NonScientific Categorizing. DeCouple is the Latest Meaningless Description in Analyzing Functions.

11 Avoid Attempting to Stop Vibration. Electricity Establishes Vibration that Affects the Systems Entirety.

12 You can Audition the Financially Guaranteed Racking System in Your Environment.

13 Sonic Results Take You to a Place of Newfound Listening Enjoyment.

14 Provide us the Opportunity to Hear How Much Sound is Missing and Prove Science Exists Without Constant Subjectivness!

Robert

Live-Vibe Audio

Disclaimer: I work with a vibration management research company and retail products in the audio-video, musical instrument, and commercial electronics industries. This post is not an advertisement or shill for sales. I am available to answer all questions. 330-260-6769.

First real stand was Target.  Improved most parameters...some.  Then moved onto Quadraspire SVT which really opened up the mid-range, controlled the bass, gave a nicer sound stage, blacker background and faster attack of vocals and instruments.

Then came the Quadraspire Reference X and everything was greatly energized.  All aforementioned parameters improved with increased impact.  

The real shock was moving my wife's system from an IKEA teak bench to a Quadraspire SVT.  Night and day performance.  You asked.

@audiopoint 

Regarding your list of answers to my question:

what physical/mechanical characteristics take an audio rack from the realm of being sub-par or basic to being good, high-quality, or reference? 

• Nos. 1,2, and 3 are important and desirable.
• No. 4 is claimed by just about all designers.
• No. 5 is a design goal that is attempted by most using a variety of methods and materials, including the structure itself, shelves/supports, elastomeric supports, and footers.  Unfortunately, the level of achievement of this goal is near impossible to show between designers/manufacturers since there is no common participation in uniform testing to measure rack performance. 
• Nos. 6 through 11 are opinions.
• No. 12 is a nice-to-have opportunity, although less common due to the size/weight of equipment racks and the custom-built nature of some of them.
• No. 13 is a lofty goal for a rack (my opinion)
• No. 14, well...

In the end, people buy what they buy and I suspect the reasons are a combination of appearance, perceived performance based on information the buyer has reviewed and on recommendations by others, persuasive marketing, and price.  Most who "upgrade" (to a usually more expensive option) generally say the upgrade is "worth it."  However, this may have as much to do with confirmation bias as with performance.