Isolation feet/cones for PS Audio NuWave DSD DAC

Speaking of cone tips and hardness, I got a set of the original Mod Squad Tiptoes when they were introduced in the 1980's, and installed them under my 140 lbs. apiece loudspeakers, with steel discs under them to protect my hardwood floors. It didn't take long for the tips of the soft (aluminum) Tiptoes to become flattened. Oh well, nice try.

The DH cones work especially well under my Townshend Rock Elite turntable (even better than those by BDR), whose unsuspended plinth is an upside-down steel frame (like a rectangular cake pan) filled with plaster-of-Paris and bitumen pads---very non-resonant. The p-o-P and ceramic cones make a great coupling

ghosthouse---Yup, the stiffness of cables coming from the back of components (especially lightweight ones) is a concern. A stiff power cord contacting a shelf can certainly "foul" the suspension, short-circuiting the isolation properties of any footer, not just a roller bearing. But those bearings, being so free to move, are the most susceptible. Careful cable dressing (delicious ;-) is in order.

One problem with softer bearing "bowls" is that the weight of a heavy component can actually cause the ball bearing to "dimple" the surface of the bowl, obviously not a good thing. If going DIY, I would give the steel drawer handles/pulls a try, in place of any plastic item.

Yup ghosthouse, Geoff already stated the case---it’s a matter of friction. The plastic of the caster cups isn’t smooth (on the microscopic level of the vibrations we are talking about) or hard enough to provide a friction-free surface for the ball bearing to be free to move across.

But I agree with you, Diament’s wooden Easter egg cup suggestion is worse than your plastic caster cup one, wood being way too soft and textured to work well as a bearing cup. Barry proposed it to anyone wanting to try the roller bearing idea on the cheap, before spending any money on real ones. A poster on his site is the one who suggested concave drawer handles/pulls, the best idea for ultra-cheap bowls. The good news is that Ingress offers a set of three top/bottom cups for so cheap that the even cheaper alternatives aren’t necessary.

IMO, what Geoff has long suggested for isolation---the combination of roller bearings for lateral/rotational, and springs for vertical, provides a whole lot of isolation for not that much dough. To get more, one has to move up to the Townshend Seismic products (around $350 and up), and then up to the microscope isolation platforms by MinusK, Newport, and others. That’s some serious money, over $2k!