Addicted to music Posted October 26, 2017 Share Posted October 26, 2017 If you raise any speaker of the floor or surface and use a stand, it's going to sound less boomy. You can hear that difference even on an iPad speaker Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frodo Posted October 26, 2017 Share Posted October 26, 2017 Oh well.. Looks like I'm going to Bunnings tomorrow 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
audiofeline Posted October 27, 2017 Share Posted October 27, 2017 I have cut these into quarters to replace the rubber or plastic feet under the electronics. I feel they would be much better than plastic or rubber which has hardened over time. I do note that these squares are promoted for use with heavy equipment that has obvious vibrations (eg. washing machine), the anti-vibration may be less effective for lighter loads (electronics). Still, at this price there is virtually nothing to loose from experimenting with them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted October 27, 2017 Share Posted October 27, 2017 Yeah, the smaller ones are of greater density in structure compared to the 100mm x 100mm ones. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArneS Posted October 27, 2017 Author Share Posted October 27, 2017 51 minutes ago, audiofeline said: I have cut these into quarters to replace the rubber or plastic feet under the electronics. I feel they would be much better than plastic or rubber which has hardened over time. I do note that these squares are promoted for use with heavy equipment that has obvious vibrations (eg. washing machine), the anti-vibration may be less effective for lighter loads (electronics). Still, at this price there is virtually nothing to loose from experimenting with them. Let us know how they turn out mate Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
audiofeline Posted October 27, 2017 Share Posted October 27, 2017 (edited) Quote Let us know how they turn out mate They turned out well. I used a 10mm spade drill bit to create a recess for the bolt/washer. A full-size one can be used with four bolts securing them to the chassis. Edited October 27, 2017 by audiofeline Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grumpy Posted October 27, 2017 Share Posted October 27, 2017 On 10/26/2017 at 4:38 PM, Grumpy said: Just got back from Bunnigs with 2 packs of the 100 x 100 pads . Put 3 under my TT and am going to cut the spare into 4 for my preamp. Question : - l have my rack sitting on carpet over the old wooden floorboards, no spikes. Would these pads help if l put them under the rack? Well a brief listen to a few favourite tracks today with the pads under my TT and preamp was a little strang. First thing that had me a little stunned (l wasnt expecting to hear much change straight away) was what l thought was a slight lack of bass - could it be that the bass was presented more cleanly, with less mudiness? Also, even more noticeable was the higher frequencies which seem to reach higher and cleaner with seperation that im sure l dont usually hear. l put that down as a result of the bass being cleand up. l dont usually believe a lot of these reports of cheap and easy tweeks that CAN improve the listening experiece, but these little pads sure have done something to my setup 4 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batty Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 Under the Rock, seems to make the sound a bit lighter, but then again the PHO-8 is still running in too. Under the Luxman, have not tried it yet. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grumpy Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 @Batty Lighter or less muddy? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batty Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 The rock does sound dark Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 (edited) @Grumpy It's a little confusing at first isn't it, I have to work out a similar thing when i placed bamboo boards under my speaker stands, the bass seemed to disappear at first! but it was just that the muddiness was gone. Edited October 28, 2017 by Muon N' Oops typos Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batty Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 Bass is still there, the PHO tightened that up. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeddie Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 Been reading this thread with great interest. But I am a little confused. I have floorstanders on carpet (with a garage underneath). Should I be putting my speakers on spikes or bamboo or those isolations pads from bunnings? If my question does not belong here then I apologise. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 I'm in a carpeted unit with garage under concrete slab, I found best result to my ears was spiking the stands of my ML-1's and placing them on bamboo boards. At first there seemed a noticeable reduction in bass, but it was in fact that the bass had become more accurate, at least this is to my ears. Floorstanders are akin to standmounts on stands the way I see things. Not an expensive path to try either. I only use the anti-vibration stuff under component platforms, in my case bamboo again, and under the feet of my equipment rack. Works for me anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ABG Posted October 28, 2017 Share Posted October 28, 2017 1 hour ago, Jeddie said: Been reading this thread with great interest. But I am a little confused. I have floorstanders on carpet (with a garage underneath). Should I be putting my speakers on spikes or bamboo or those isolations pads from bunnings? If my question does not belong here then I apologise. Try both and see which sounds best to your ears with your system. It's the only sure fire way of knowing which will sound better. Both tweaks are so cheap you've got very little to lose by experimenting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArneS Posted October 30, 2017 Author Share Posted October 30, 2017 On 26/10/2017 at 5:16 PM, Batty said: Went to Bunnings myself for some Vermiculite, found these in my trolley...... Going under the vintage Wharfedales. Have they helped your sound? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Batty Posted October 30, 2017 Share Posted October 30, 2017 Too many variables to tell, just swapped cart, phono and these slipped into the system. They do however protect the surfaces my gear sits on Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
audiofeline Posted October 30, 2017 Share Posted October 30, 2017 (edited) On 10/28/2017 at 1:15 AM, Grumpy said: ...l dont usually believe a lot of these reports of cheap and easy tweeks that CAN improve the listening experiece, but these little pads sure have done something to my setup Cheap and easy tweaks can fall into two areas: 1. Cheap and easy tweaks that actually work (for most people, they are dependent on the equipment and setup you have) 2. Cheap and easy tweaks that don't work and are just designed as an elaborate prank by some to demonstrate how gullible audiophiles are. My preferred version is the first. In many cases it's easy to see which version you are dealing with. At other times it can be difficult to differentiate the two varieties without trying, with the risk of egg on your face. Edited October 30, 2017 by audiofeline Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted October 30, 2017 Share Posted October 30, 2017 8 hours ago, Batty said: Too many variables to tell, just swapped cart, phono and these slipped into the system. They do however protect the surfaces my gear sits on This is why I try to make only one change at a time, all too often I have made too many changes at once to really understand what each has brought to the table. Although I do like that they protect the carpet with the ones under the threaded rods in my rack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GregWormald Posted October 30, 2017 Share Posted October 30, 2017 On 28/10/2017 at 4:17 PM, Jeddie said: Been reading this thread with great interest. But I am a little confused. I have floorstanders on carpet (with a garage underneath). Should I be putting my speakers on spikes or bamboo or those isolations pads from bunnings? If my question does not belong here then I apologise. The spikes stop the speaker boxes from moving on a soft surface in response to the movement of the drivers (Newton's Third Law). Isolation pads stop the promulgation of speaker box vibration to the floor and from floor to speaker box. Both may be of use. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArneS Posted October 31, 2017 Author Share Posted October 31, 2017 (edited) On 23/10/2017 at 12:52 PM, ArneS said: ...I might have been satisfied with my AVR’s sound had I just isolated everything in the first place and went from there. And though I’m happy I have that power amp, I think I’d have been happier setting things right up in the first place. Out of respect to the store that sold me the gear in the first place, I want to note that after running the system post isolation of speakers and components- but without the power amp, I'm most definitely not happy with the sound with the avr on its own. It does movies and tv rather sweetly but true two channel hifi just isn't its forte. The power amp lifts things into a new dimension- as it should I suppose. Edited October 31, 2017 by ArneS Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frodo Posted November 5, 2017 Share Posted November 5, 2017 Well blow me down with with a feather. Just tried this little "hack" and it has made a difference. I put the small blocks under amp, DAC and CD player. Everything just seems a little tighter and more defined. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Iain_r Posted November 5, 2017 Share Posted November 5, 2017 I have to say thanks to ArneS. What a difference! I have wooden floorboards and a tt on a sideboard. On my travels today I decided to stop at Bunnings on my way home and see if any improvement could be made. The first was to try the tt, which was hard to tell if the sound had tightened up, so I continued next to the speakers. Wow what a difference, the bass was tighter and the highs were more defined, but I was also hearing some sort of distortion on the highs, like it was over defined. It just didn't sound right, so I thought I might lower the VTA on the tonearm as I knew I had it slightly raised and what do you know the distortion disappeared. The only thing I can think of is that I had the VTA slightly higher to compensate for the bass sounding slightly boomy when it was lower. The sound quality by using the vibration pads has made a very noticeable improvement, especially on wooden floors. Without a doubt great bang for buck improvement, will continue and try other components and see how that goes. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ArneS Posted November 6, 2017 Author Share Posted November 6, 2017 On 5/11/2017 at 2:00 PM, frodo said: Well blow me down with with a feather. Just tried this little "hack" and it has made a difference. I put the small blocks under amp, DAC and CD player. Everything just seems a little tighter and more defined. On 5/11/2017 at 4:51 PM, Iain_r said: I have to say thanks to ArneS. What a difference! I have wooden floorboards and a tt on a sideboard. On my travels today I decided to stop at Bunnings on my way home and see if any improvement could be made. The first was to try the tt, which was hard to tell if the sound had tightened up, so I continued next to the speakers. Wow what a difference, the bass was tighter and the highs were more defined, but I was also hearing some sort of distortion on the highs, like it was over defined. It just didn't sound right, so I thought I might lower the VTA on the tonearm as I knew I had it slightly raised and what do you know the distortion disappeared. The only thing I can think of is that I had the VTA slightly higher to compensate for the bass sounding slightly boomy when it was lower. The sound quality by using the vibration pads has made a very noticeable improvement, especially on wooden floors. Without a doubt great bang for buck improvement, will continue and try other components and see how that goes. Pleased to hear you gents have had some wins. To me it was really easy to hear the improvement. For those with racks and speaker spikes already, I'm not sure how helpful doing this sort of tweak will be - but if like me all you were doing was sitting your speakers on the floor, and components directly on shelves - it's a cheap way to get some big improvements. No brainer. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Muon N' Posted November 6, 2017 Share Posted November 6, 2017 On 10/30/2017 at 8:34 PM, GregWormald said: The spikes stop the speaker boxes from moving on a soft surface in response to the movement of the drivers (Newton's Third Law). Isolation pads stop the promulgation of speaker box vibration to the floor and from floor to speaker box. Both may be of use. If using both solution, then there might be a need to add another solid substrate between spikes and anti-vibration pads. Possibly an inert stone or wood. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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