Townshend Isolation Products.

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"I have owned Townshend and StarSound loudspeaker platform products. The effects were equal to my ears." I believe Starsound new name is Live Vibe Audio? As an alternative to Townshend, some prefer Live Vibe Audio.

I recently placed some Vibrapods under my Oppo 103 and was very pleasantly surprised at the result. On the strength of this I bought a used Townshend Platform to replace the Vibrapods, which elevated the sound further. The difference was IMO well worth the greater expense.

Prior to the Vibrapods I had 3 Isoacoustics Oreas under the Oppo and can state that in my system the Vibrapods were superior at a fraction of the price. I will not be considering Isoacoustics again.

Spikes contrary to popular opinion do not decouple and will allow vibration to pass in either direction. I have proved this to myself by using an old tone arm and cheapo cartridge jury rigged to rest on the surface of the speaker or component of interest and noted the V/output. This is a sensitive and informative way to understand vibration transmission. If amplified through a phono stage simply shouting at the rig will produce results. Best done behind closed doors 🙄

I will be removing the Gaia feet from my speakers and replacing them with DIY damped springs sized to the weight to provide a resonant frequency of about 3Hz.

@barts Sounds like a great system - I built and modified Hafler kits on Sunday for extra $, which i poured into….. tubes… ha.

We carried CJ,,, ARC was the enemy…. funny how things… change..

Best in music - i greatly enjoyed your journey story…..

My Townshend Seismic podiums under my speakers are the best tweak I have added to my system. The improvement was very noticeable. Bass tighter and mid range was also improved. 

i only used my homenmade devices and various materials sandwiches but it is my experience that each material will absorb in his own way some frequencies more than others and will couple with others materials in his own way too ...

I selected some various materials for their "timbre effect" ...

And the tuned damping load over the speakers too was very important for details by eliminating or decreasing resonance...

Then i think this sentence about different footers must be right :

I find each have their own impact on tonal balance.

@tomic601

I bought the Hartley Reference from the owner of the company (Rich Schmeterer) amazingly the year was 1980 and the Hartleys cost $10,000 for the pair, I was 26 at the time.

Rich an EE did a bread board of a three way electronic x-over and had Furman build three of them. He offered me one (because he knew I was nuts) and I purchased it for $700 in 1982(?). He never put it on the market. So I have one, he has one and the third is MIA.

Ripped out the x-over, added some other terminals and hard wired the internals with 10 gauge Hartley Reference speaker wire Rich had custom made.

First it was all David Hafler stuff, which I have in a closet somewhere, then all ARC stuff which I still have also (LS15, D110B, D110B, D111 and a D60). The last iteration just came together and its a REF6, Pass Labs X260.8, X260.8, XA30.8, XA30.8. Also changed the x-over to a Marchand XM-44 that I spec'd. 

I know that there are better speakers out there, but it’s been a 44 year love affair and these puppies still kick my butt down the block.

Regards,

barts

I’ve used Herbie’s (Tender Feet, Big Fat Dots, Spike Decoupling Gliders for speakers), all to great effect. I tried IsoAcoustics Oreas under my amp and other components and returned them. I’ve now tried Townshend Pods under my Tambaqui DAC and now under my new Makua Preamp (with embedded Tambaqui) and I think they are the best. That said, I’m not convinced yet that they are the best for all of my components.

I find each have their own impact on tonal balance. Herbie’s tamp down upper mids a bit while creating a pleasing highly rhythmic and deep bass and opened up the soundstage while unlocking upper frequencies. IsoAcoustics Oreas boosted the overall sense of scale and “bigness” under my Gryphon amp, also opening the soundstage and improving upper frequency clarity, but they sounded overblown and overdone on my system - too “big”. Also they boosted upper bass in an unnatural and bloated manner. Townshend Pods under my Makua (and before that my Tambaqui) was more even-handed, but MAY have slightly boosted upper mids a bit. But clarity is improved, soundstage depth improved, bass is tighter, and I think the impact on tonal balance may be the most even-handed of them all. They make the sound less “dark” with a more free flowing sense in the upper mids and high frequencies.

Of course this is in my system. I’ve ordered a couple of platforms for my Gryphon Amp and Makua preamp. Based on my experiences so far I feel confident this is a good choice for the Makua. Not sure about the amp yet. And not sure about the Pods (vs Herbie’s) for my other lighter components. Once the platforms arrive I can experiment moving the Townshend Pods under my other components. It’s hard to do that now as I lose the benefit of the Pods under the Makua when I do the switch. I’m not convinced at present that I will prefer the Pods to Herbie’s on the other components but we’ll see.

One thing, I think the highest value is with Herbie’s and at least from my experiences in my system would far prefer them over more expensive IsoAcoustics products. If you are on a tighter budget I think Herbie’s is a no-brainer, and for me the jury is still out on whether I prefer Herbie’s to Townshend for SOME of my components. So far I know Townshend is the winner under my preamp/DAC.

@barts It has to be a wooden nickel….

Congrats on Hartley - store i worked at sold Hartley subs and drivers long ago in the golden age….

I balanced a nickel on top of each speaker facing the listening position.  Then I gave the Hartley Reference a real workout...tri-amped with 24" woofers.

The nickels never moved, they stayed put for over a month and then I got tired of looking at them.

Regards,

barts

Using the Townshend Seismic Isolation Podiums under my speakers was a revelation: the music sounded completely freed from the loudspeakers: clearer more dynamic bass, more open midrange and an expanded well defined soundstage.

I had previously tried several other speaker isolation products but the Townshend are in a class by themselves. I use their isolation products under all my electronics with similar gains in SQ. Well worth the expense. 

These are great products that really work. I love that the platform is designed to the weight and size of the component. I already had Symposium under the speakers otherwise I would totally look into Townshend. 

Breaking news (anyway, experience from last night).  

I bought new speakers.  they sounded excellent on my Townsend platforms.  I took them off to try them coupled to the floor and while they were off I ordered some new feet for them.  they stayed on the floor a few days and just seemed to get harsher and harsher.  I thought "what have I done, my ears are starting to hear the harshness now.  these speakers will have to go."   

Last night I put them back on the platforms and I haven't heard a single harsh note since.  I was reminded how pleasantly surprised I was when I put the platforms under my old speakers.   One of the major tweeks I've made--at least major results.

Jerry

The next upgrade I'm going to be doing is changing my internal wire from the silver plated OFC to OCC single crystal and I'm also going to cryo the crossover.

I have the Townshend podiums underneath my monitor audio platinum 200 G2, and the before and after difference was as if I had upgraded to more expensive electronics, the bass got tighter faster more articulate The sound stage got wider deeper more airy and spacious and even more three-dimensional than it already was, best upgrades you could ever make they're not cheap but they're well worth it.

I checked my speakers last weekend. I used a dial indicator on top of the speaker. I checked with no music first to see if there were any environmental vibrations or any other causes. Zero movement on the dial. Then I stomped around within 3 feet of the speaker and got a .002-.003 movement. This  seems like nothing really but since I don’t stomp while listening I figured I’m ok. The last measurement was with music on with 85 db peaks. The only movement worth noting came with the bass notes only. There was a movement of .006-.007 which again seems very good to me. My system is in the basement on concrete. It would be interesting to see what the movement would be on podiums. I may try some in the future to see. 

Micro vibrations cannot be "seen". But you can hear the effects introduced into music playback.

Has anyone actually physically  checked to see any vibration in their speakers with no music playing and with music playing before using the podiums? 

I use Townshend Seismics under everything. Please consider their speaker podiums. They have an incredibly positive effect on the sonics. Like an equipment upgrade.

I put pods under my sub and all equipment as well as the rack isolation corners as even though the rack is isolated down to 3Hz, the individual components also vibrate. 

Their F-1 speaker cables, interconnects and digital cables are also fantastic. And fairly priced. 

Speakers vibrate and we are not conscious how it impede  the sound quality...

I was not before taking the right path... 😊

We have engineered wood on concrete floor. Currently I use a simple carpet square to sit the speakers on to avoid scratches. I haven’t fitted the rubber feet supplied yet and not sure it will really make any difference.

If my system worth was not only 1000 bucks i would be tempted by them because there exist only positive reviews...

The first one almost negative i read is this one :

The Townsend platforms were not beneficial in my system.

Underneath my power amps I preferred my Magic Carpet base.

With my speakers I preferred a more direct coupling to the floor.

Their turntable platforms are awesome. In addition, customer service is outstanding..received the platform exactly one week after ordering...from the UK. Amazing.

I use Townshend platforms under my equipment. I notice a tightening of the bass to be the most noticeable.

B

+1 for corner platforms. I have had the same issue as you. Crawl space under the floor so foot falls were a big issue. I ordered a set (4) of "D" rated corner platforms to support my rack and haven’t had a problem since. Here's AG thread I posted a couple of years ago...

I use their speaker platforms.  Physics says to isolate your equipment use springs with the proper k factor and length to damp all vibrations.  Townshend is IMHO the best supplier to do those calculations to match your mass.  

jerry