Hello Thorman and Tvad.
The stands are optional but recommended. The Stand rests on either Polished brass cones or hardened quarter inch bearings and is 17.5" or 18" high depending on which floor coupling method you settle on. The pillar arrangement is affixed to a matching granite base while the top plate the speaker rests on is black Corian. It should be noted also that the loudspeakers are available in a choice of four different granite colors and the baffle automotive finish is pretty much unlimited! The top plate can be removed to load the pillars with your choice of lead shot, sand, or (clean) cat litter. Lead shot would be our first choice especially when resting on a carpeted floor. With hard flooring, either the sand or litter will work fine and is more readily available. There are dimpled locators on the top plate in which the cones of the speakers settle into. All said and done with speaker, stands and sand loading, the whole affair weighs in at about 280lbs each. Instead of watts per channel, we're looking at weight per channel! Included with the stands also is a 4 piece set of sliding pads which make it easy enough to move the speakers and stands together for optimum positioning in the room.
The grill: We're not big fans of grills but recognize their importance. Included with each pair of speakers is a transparent grill sock that, rather than being used on the speaker, slips comfortably over your head! We recommend you remove the sock when enjoying your music.
Okay, not really. Grills will be a light weight, semi transparent arrangement that is attached via small bearings that utilize the magnetism on the tweeter face plate for attaching. The four screws that attach the face plate to the motor structure serve as the locator. For best sound, we do recommend the grills be removed during listening.
All in all, a very ambitious project and we are more than pleased with the results...we've been Sasoned! When you hear these, we believe you will be too.
Best Regards,
Robert
