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Stands, to couple, or not to couple, contradicting products and positive reviews

There are many practices/products intended to "couple" a stand-mount speaker cabinet to the floor of a room (spikes, adding mass to the stands via sand/shot, specific bolt-on stands for certain models, etc.).  Conversely, there foam speaker pads by Auralex and others, which are intended to de-couple or isolate the speaker from the stand, with rave reviews of audible sound improvement.  

So which is right, should I try to "connect" my speakers to the mass of my house, or do I want to "float" the speakers so they are free to resonate on their own?
waxhawfive

Showing 2 responses by chayro

chayro
3,023 posts
 
IMO, in a domestic living environment, there is absolutely no way to predict the sonic effects of coupling, decoupling, spikes, gliders...
I have had many different speakers in my home and needed to work with each one to find the most pleasing sonic result.  Some standmounts, like my Operas, liked to be Blu-tak'd to the stands, while my Harbeths preferred a hard non-anchored mounting.  In the end, you just have to listen and decide what works in your room.  People never seem to like that answer for some reason  
chayro
3,023 posts
 
Yeah, but Geoff, who's to say the OP will like the sound?  The OP is asking which is "right" - to couple or isolate.  It's certainly worth trying both, but he might like the sound of just putting the speakers on the floor.  When I had my Operas, I tried Symposium platforms under the speakers and they definitely cleaned up the sound, which would have been great if the sound was boomy.  But it was just too thin for my taste.  
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