2. speakers
  3. 1006356803

Huge difference in sound : Spikes vs. Vibrapods

I have a pair of Martin Logan prodigy speakers which after reading a few discussions about coupling and decoupling, I put of Vibrapods. So I have decoupled the speakers from my tile floor.
Several questions now:
With this setup I das this tingling feeling in my stomach once in a while, which you get from a powerful bass, when the sound really drops low, like with a baritone singer. Should you be able to *bodily* feel the bass once in while or is this what is called a boomy bass?
When I put my speakers on spikes, I immediately had the impression that the speakers could not go as deep as they used to go before.
This gut feeling was completely gone. (I do not experience this all the time of course, only at certain, very low passages with a double bass e.g.) and I had the idea that the base is lacking almost a halve octave. Is somehow has lost its punch a bit
So when you read my short description here, do you feel that my bass sounded to boomy with the Vibrapods and that the less authoritative bass with the spikes is the right sound.
O personally seem to prefer the bass with my speakers on pods.
tekunda

Showing 1 response by pendragn

pendragn
11 posts
 
Hi guys. Over the years I have always endeavored to increase the mass of dynamic speaker systems in order to lower their natural resonant frequency. I'll use my set up as a case in point. Each speaker weighs 55 lbs. The stands, unfilled, weigh about 20 pounds each and I've filled them with another 80 pounds each of a combination of sand and clay-based kitty litter. The speakers are bluetacked to the stands and the stands' pointed feet pierce the carpet to the concrete beneath. This couples everything together so that the resonant frequency of the whole is much lower than it is for an individual speaker. When I first got this pair I tried them out of he box on unfilled stands with rubber bumpers and non-piercing cones on the bottom. This gave boomy bass which didn't reach terribly low and gave male voices "in a barrel." After the changes cited above the voices sound natural and the low bass is now apparent with authority and impact.

I have not run into a dynamic speaker that hasn't responded this way, but I'm open to the possibility that a given speaker takes into accout its natural resonance as part of its design. Such a speaker will require compliant mounting. The other thing is that you should go with whatever sounds most right to you...always trust the ear!
More to discover