@pcrhkr Precisely why isolation or vibration control devices may be robbing you of that bass sound/feel that you may like. The claim is to clean up and make bass more focused but at what cost? Sure measurements can show a frequency response but how do you measure weight and impact?
Footers under new speakers
Hi , I’m seeking advice regarding footers and/or platforms under my speakers. I purchased Tekton Double Impact’s and have heavy shag carpet and padding over a cement slab floor. House is 35 years old, cement is thick and well cured. I’m from that old mindset of spikes into cement and I am looking for an improvement. I’ve looked online at Gaia footers and Herbie's Studded Giant Gliders. I emailed Herbie’s and specifically inquired about the studded gliders alone on the DI’s over carpet. I asked about stability and was told the speakers were “ heavy enough “. Unfortunately I just set up the DI’s temporarily to get a little break in time. They are without any footers upright on my carpet. At 115 lbs the speaker does about zero to compress the carpet. I understand weight Vs footprint is abysmal but they won’t even stand straight. I’ll probably put the spikes on for a bit until I formulate a plan. But my first concern is that Herbie’s gliders alone are not enough and due to the minimum cost of the speakers I am struggling with purchasing Gaia’s footers and footer spikes. The seismic stands look exceptional, but I’m trying to be frugal. So I’m looking for suggestions like, gliders or dots with or without spikes on wood / stone plinths spiked to the floor. My goal is to try some sort decoupling (Gliders / Springs / Dots) AND eliminate the need of having to rely on the carpet being compressed. And yes I have cheap speakers and seek a cheap solution, so I get that limitation. Unfortunately I can’t afford Tannoy’s or Fynes to compliment my 180 watt tube mono blocs for at least a year. Cheers , Mike B.
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@prof – I read it as "solidity." So much is dictated by folks these days, I just go with my best guess as to what they meant! |
I tried a TON of different footers and materials underneath my loudspeakers. First under my Thiel 2.7s, but I tried even more under my Joseph Audio Perspective 2s.
I tried to soft footers , spikes, various pucks, Springs, and MDF platform I built which sandwich some sorbothane isolation material, I raised height with cedar post caps, hockey pucks etc. and I tried all sorts of variations and combinations. My speakers sit on a carpet which is laid over a wood floor. The spring footers essentially is isolated the speakers pretty much totally from the floor. But when I found, I didn’t ultimately care for the results I realized that I wanted some level of coupling to the floor, and yet still some gains in the sound from the speakers. I consulted with some people who actually worked in resonance control and they pointed out that even if you’re working with something like a granite bass, you’re not totally getting rid of vibrations or resonances - you’re essentially just pushing around resonances to different frequencies. So I could play with that. And that’s what I was doing I felt essentially finding a combination that I liked, and that I felt improved the sound. It was fascinating because depending on how I oriented the same materials, it would change the sound. For instance, and one combination I had the speakers on a sheet of granite, below the granite was a hockey puck on each corner, then the thin isoacoustics carpet spikes, and those carpet spikes were going into another hockey puck which was on the floor. So essentially below the granite at each corner or two hockey pucks sandwiching spikes, and the last thing the “ floor saw” was the rubber hockey puck. That was more isolating from the floor - produced more of a disappearing speaker act for the bass, a really big airy sound. Though a little lighter in tonality than I wanted. But if I simply reverse the materials at the bottom , made it a stack of two hockey pucks sitting on the iso acoustics spikes, so the spikes were going directly into the floor, then that clearly coupled everything more to the floor, and it changed the bass character and the overall tonality. Bass was a little bit richer, puncher, and rounder and the overall tone slightly darkened and got amazing smooth and “ free of hash.” I liked the higher and more open and realistic soundstage with the speakers raised something like 4 inches. But with certain combinations, it was a little bit too airy and bright. With other combinations, I could get a little bit too dark and lose a little bit of “ golden glow” tonality I like from my CJ amplifiers. Once I tried different combinations and found things to like in each, I kept going until I got the best combination of all: Joseph Perspectives with Isoacoustics Gaia on the back. The front is raised on the supplied Joseph outriggers and spikes (there was a problem and that I couldn’t take off the spikes to put Gaia on), but those front spikes go into hockey pucks in the front, which raised the angle perfectly. All that is a top a granite platform I had built : two one and a quarter inch slabs with sound damping material in between them forming a sandwich (damping material used for cars). It’s incredibly dead to the knuckle rap test. And then that granite platform is sitting on hockey pucks at each corner, and the hockey pucks are sitting on the Isoacoustic carpet spikes into the rug/wood floor. With this combination, the speakers are raised something like 6 inches high , which gives a huge, expensive realistic sound stage size. And yet the sound is not light weight at all - it has the golden glow, but incredibly smooth and free of any hash or grain whatsoever, really “ black background”, the bass is really punchy and warm but at the same time the tightest bass I’ve ever had from these speakers - it changes chameleon like with recordings. And the speakers totally disappear. The speakers are about 8 feet apart , and I sit between seven and 8 feet away, at this point, I’m sitting 7 feet away. And I use a curved diffuser in between and behind the loudspeakers which adds some more sonic density to the images. My pal who reviews ultra audio gear for soundstage came over for a lesson once I had everything dialled in and he was shocked. Like as soon as the music started, he said “WTF? How did you do this?” He said the sound was so incredibly expensive and immersive but with incredibly palpable sonic images, bass that energized the room but which was really tight, and upper frequencies that were “ just buttery smooth like I could listen all day no matter how loud.” He felt it was one of the best systems he’s heard. That was satisfying to hear. Anyway, after that long description, here are some photos you can click on . Certainly doesn’t look like anything special: https://i.postimg.cc/HnBN1TFF/IMG-3862.webp https://i.postimg.cc/Hk7K8wgj/IMG-4289.jpg https://i.postimg.cc/fbZCgfNV/IMG-2401.jpg
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@prof , Thank you , Thank you. I appreciate you taking the time to write your post . I will definitely learn from all the effort you put into finding what works for you, under your circumstances. You have invested hundreds of hours to find out. I appreciate people like you and Hilde45 who have put in the time to find out. You both have a curiosity and an open mind. The whole point in my post is for me to alter my mindset and I’ve asked for and received great advice. What I try to avoid is the closed mindset and especially knowing my truth will probably be similar but not identical to others. What I avoid is for example “ Power cords make Zero difference”. Then someone makes that same blanket statement every single time as if that absolutely applies to every other person. FWIT I peaked to see if you had a posted system but I noticed a post you had about 12AX7 and 12AU7 substitutes. I read it because I’m at that point with the amps that are new to me. I just pulled the nos Telefunken 12AX7’s and put in GE 5 Star 12AT7’s , after trying new production Tung Sol 5751’s. Next up will be Sylvania Gold label in 12AT7, or 12AY7. Regards , Mike B. |
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