Speaker stands for B&W 804s

Mechans:

Have you priced brass items lately? Thank the Chinese. You might find that older posted prices have risen dramtically. I compared the pricing of solid brass balls (2" diameter) to Mapleshade 2" cylindrical footers, and the costs were pretty close (about $30 for the balls and $40 for Mapleshade footers, and balls have less mass than cylinders of the same diameter).

So his pricing is dominated by the material costs. Of course, some of the fancier footers like the deep pile carpet ones with the long spikes have higher machining costs and are more expensive.

I found sources for simple 1" diameter brass cone footers that cost $50 each, so I don't think the Mapleshade stuff is outrageous.

The really costly ones are the "Megafeet" which are 3" in diameter. The brass weight is tripled in these due to size which is why these are over $100-150

Brianmgrarcom:

You are correct. The info on the Soundanchors website is incorrect. Apparently the earlier versions did bolt up the rear two mounting holes, but the design was changed because folks were damaging their B&Ws by trying to move the speaker/stand once coupled. The thread inserts in the bottom of the B&Ws are not that sturdy and I guess can be easily stripped out if you apply enough force. Which makes using them to prevent tipping dubious because the pulling force of the speaker tipping could strip those thread inserts in the same manner.

Sound anchors changed the design and now the speakers just rest on the stands. I am also told that bolting them up hard will also degrade the sound.

The best solution I have heard for the tipping is to use a strap that goes from the stand, up and over the top of the cabinet and back down. Looks like crap, but it works. Not something I would use. I think I will just try to get a stable, heavy platform to mount the speakers on and hope that resduces the tipping sensitivity enough.

I am curious to know if anyone has used the mapleshade products? The plinth they make is wider and deeper than the Soundanchors and may be more stable on the thick, dense pile carpet I have. I also have a heavy duty 3/4" pad under the carpet and I really have to stand on any spikes to get them to penetrate to the wood. I am concerned about getting the Sound Anchors splikes through this carpet since I cannot apply enough force once the speaker is mounted.

The other downside is once located, the Sound Anchors are fixed. I often like to toe in or toe out the speakers slightly with program material, and with the sound anchors I could not easily do this.

The plinth would allow me some toe in/out correctablity because the speaker can be relocated on top of its surface. With their wider brass feet (2" diameter cylinder solid brass), stability is actually improved a bit because the spiked tips are very short and if the speaker starts tipping, the edges of the larger diameter feet start contacting the plinth.

The downside (maybe) to the mapleshade products is they can raise the speaker by 6" to 8". This may or may not hurt the sound, although I know B&W 803s are 7" taller with the midrange FST driver and tweeter mounted exactly as on the 804, so I don't think this will be a major problem.

Unless something changed, you don't bolt 804's to Sound Anchor stands. I used to have N803's and the addition of the Sound Anchor stands was a very nice improvement, where the bass was tightened up and the mid-range gained some clarity. Between the speakers and stands Sound Acnhor includes Blue-Tac, which keeps the speakers from sliding on the stands, it holds them quite well.

I am not sure if Eden Sound out of Vermont is still making brass footers, but his prices for very heavy brass footers were much much less than MapleShade's. They would add significant stability and on top of a thick board/plinth would be even better. The outriggers I agree would likely provide the most stability of all however.

Check out soundanchor speaker stands. I have a pair of Cinema Adjustables being delivered this week. They are sand filled, take about 3 weeks to make, come with spikes and can be made adjustable 5'' to 48''. I need mine 48'' tall. Some are even motorized. The bases and plinths can be custom sized too. Great for leveling and for stability. I've always had floorstanders, so it take some time to get used to stands. I have Boltz stands now, but spikes are 120 per stand if you can find them. Good luck.

I owned B&W 804 and had the same problem. I would suggest to get Soundocity speaker outriggers. I think the company went bankrupt, but I'm sure you can get them on ebay or Audiogon.

Sound Anchors are highly regarded. Sonics and stability.
You can spend more... but why?