If a speaker stand is mass-loading, how much does it matter what they're made of?


Looking for speaker stands. At this point, I'm not sure of the height of my long term listening chair/couch, so I don't want to break the bank on stands.

Looking over different options (Sanus, Monoprice, Pangea, Skylan) raises a question — if a stand is can be filled (shot, sand, etc.), does it make much difference what it's made from (steel, MDF)? What is that difference, in your experience? (Listening, durability, aesthetics, etc.)

With the above in mind, any opinions on modestly priced stands? Perhaps 20" - 22" high?

(Again, I'm not in the market for expensive stands, right now.)
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So I have owned a number of stands in this price range. Skylan is overrated imo. People love or hate the aesthetics but these Solid Steel were actually the best stands I ever used (I have floorstanders now):

https://solidsteel.it/my-product/ss-5-vintage-hi-fi-speaker-stands/

They supported very large and heavy ATC SCM19’s very well. And they look great imo. Available at music direct, crutchfield, upscale, etc. SS-5 is the 20" version. Made in Italy. I got mine from a local dealer for $450 all in.

They are basically a pre-welded steel tripod (no screwing together) with a secure but floating mdf top plate that sits on ball bearings. Attached by an o-ring to the base. It’s a really smart idea.
Because they are tripods they are not tippy. With the weight of the ATC’s they were incredibly stable like a rock. You can fill the tubes if you really want to. Everyone who has ever used them seems to love them (again, aesthetics aside).

Thanks for the suggestion. One member on this forum suggested a fairly inexpensive way to make rollers with furniture cups and ball bearings which could decouple any number of things, including speakers. 

I'm kind of suspended in indecision at this point. The solidity of Deer Creek stands (similar to Anchor but made locally and less expensive for some models) appeals, as do the aesthetics. Price is high. The Skylans could be custom fit and are at a good price, but aesthetically, meh. If I wanted to get a "meh" stand, I could get an inexpensive Pangea stand, fill it, add a heavy top plate bought locally, some blue tak and I'd be done. 

People are split about wood. It looks nice and some is clearly resonant, but some is rather hard, inert. 

At the moment, the sweet spot for me is to wait and shop used. Or just forget about it.
@twoleftears Chris from Kemala called me at home and we had a really nice conversation about this stand:

http://customdesign.kemela.com/prod-pages/spk-fs106.php

Thanks for the tip.