MapleShade Samson V.2 and V.3 Equipment Racks

Steve Blinn Designs must have gone out of business as I’ve left several voicemails and texts over 2 weeks and have not heard back. I have no feedback but was interested in making a significant purchase based on comments made on this site.

Thanks! for sharing- All.
a great rack can certainly add value to any system!

Ebm ,i realize you posted nearly four years ago, however I am looking for a new rack. I read somewhere that the symposium had a bright and harsh sound. Not what I'm looking for in my room. I have constellation amp/preamp, ps audio direct stream, p5, parasound JC3 +, OPPO 105d and a project tt. Do you have SS or tube stuff?

FWIW, I replaced my Grand Prix Audio rack with a Mapleshade Samson. It simply sounded better and was about 1/3 the cost.

02-03-10: Rhljazz
Everytime I see a lab photo where some guy's designing/building his amp, the stuff is on a workbench with formica surface over what I would guess is 3/4 plywood. Maybe that's the ultimate shelf since it seems like many amps are voiced sitting on that type of surface.

Now you've let the cat out of the bag!!! Now you can look forward to $2000.00 per sheet "audiophile" plywood at Home Depot and Lowes!!!

Have you considered Steve Blinn Designs? He advertises here on this site. Stunning products and Steve is easy to communicate with.

I am using a Mapleshade Samson V3. I am delighted with the performance and appearance of this A/V furniture. It is beautiful enough to satisfy my wife and it provides a stunning upgrade to the sound of my system.

I use a Wadia 860x SE with 2 Electrocompaniet 220 Watt Monoblocks driving Gallo Reference 3.5 speakers - a very revealing system. The upgrade was not subtle. The price performance considering the competition seemed to be unbeatable to me.

My rack tops out at about 40" and provides 8 spaces for components on the Cherry finished 2" shelves. It is a center piece in our living room.

Hope this helps. Daniel

A Mapleshade rack is on my wish list. I do have one of their platforms that I am currently using to support a power supply and outboard phono. I feel it offers a sonic improvement over the Polycrystal shelf it rests on. Mine has the cherrywood stain but it really doesn't look like cherry either in color or obviously grain.

The Adona looks interesting also, but after my negative experience with the Polycrystal, I'm hesitant to try a shelf with a hard material in it.

Everytime I see a lab photo where some guy's designing/building his amp, the stuff is on a workbench with formica surface over what I would guess is 3/4 plywood. Maybe that's the ultimate shelf since it seems like many amps are voiced sitting on that type of surface.

I'm currently using the V.1 and V.2 racks. I've been very happy with them - excellent quality and virtually infinite adjustability. Happy to send you photos - feel free to email me.

Thanks for the feedback. I've been looking at the Adona racks also; very nice, but a good bit more money than the MapleShade ...

I do, and feel it's good value for the money. They will work with you to design a rack to fit your needs. My rack is just over 40", and the shelves are fully adjustable. I chose the rosewood, which is really a mahogany color, with black/brass uprights. I chose the 2" shelves to keep the total height down, as I have five shelves.It is very stable and solid,and the workmanship is truly first rate.