Coupling vs Decouplling: What you need to know

[Charles]

Puma, how much difference a non resonant cabinet, like in the Rockport Lyra or the Magico M6, makes I don't know. I suspect a lot. These speakers will not resonate, notwithstanding that even Mt. Everest has a resonance frequency.

I recently installed some Wilson Pedestals. I have to say they made a noticeable difference but it was not revelatory. I will be interested to learn of of your experience with Stillpoints. I chose the Pedestals for obvious reasons. They also easily slide under my Mac gear and raise it about 1/4". No way would I remove the unit to remove the footer.

Best

Charles

[Audiophilehi]

Originally Posted by Antonmb

This should be interesting [emoji848]

Indeed!

[theophile]

One month later...

[Formerly YB-2]

Over the past few weeks I've made a couple of modifications to my speaker stands which affects the coupling to the floor (carpet over concrete).
First, added ~10# of media to each stand. The result is that the the speakers became more 'focused' and the bass tighter, faster & 'deeper' (last is very subjective).
After a week of listening and liking what I was hearing I added spikes with a base under them, which raised the speakers about 1.5". This resulted in the speakers becoming very focused to the point of beaming. All the music is now coming from each speaker rather than being spread across the sound stage. I'll be removing the spikes today.
Next up will be installing a couple of screws (once they get here) thru the stands to tighten the speakers to them (the stands are matched to the speakers so have matching holes). They speakers have been sitting on Herbie's pads (3, each. 2 at the front of the speaker & 1 centered at the rear) and will lock them down to the stands with the screws, which will compress the Herbie's pads a bit. Can't do without the pads as the finish is piano black and I do not wish to scratch even the bottom of the speakers.
Don't know if I'm coupling or decoupling (suspect the former) but am definitely hearing the results.

[jimtranr]

I received an 18"x14"x1-3/4" Butcher Block Acoustics maple equipment platform two days ago for my bedroom system's ARC LS16 tubed line stage and conducted some listening tests with various footer configurations to determine (1) whether adding the platform to the shelf on which the LS16 sits would improve perceived performance, and (2) how much, if any, improvement (or degradation) I would hear with a given platform/footer setup.

The equipment "rack" is actually a DIY open-backed cabinet consisting of 3/4" red oak sides and shelves. Prior to the BBA platform's arrival, the LS16 sat on four Stillpoints Ultra Mini footers atop the cabinet's top shelf. I'd originally considered ordering spikes with the maple platform. But after BBA's Jim Whithorne said in a phone conversation that in his experience "draining" vibrations was most effective if the drain system extended all the way past the bottom of the rack--something not feasible in my setup--I skipped the spikes. Note that four 2"x2"x3/4" cork-and-rubber "anti-vibration" pads are included as standard equipment with the butcher block for optional placement under the platform.

Cutting to the chase, what wound up as the "magic" configuration in my setup is pictured below--the LS16 on the four Ultra Minis atop the BBA platform sitting on the four anti-vibration pads. While some other combinations with the butcher block (direct coupling to the shelf or mounting the Ultra Minis beneath the maple platform) elicited some perceived improvements in one area or another, each of those was accompanied by a barely-perceptible but noticeable-enough "metallic glaze" that detracted from long-term listening pleasure. Placing the LS16 directly on the maple platform (i.e., without the Ultra Minis as footers) "softened" the overall presentation, "slowing" transients and mushing out bass.





So was the result with the "magic" combination an improvement over what I'd already achieved with a recent series of power cord upgrades that elevated system performance well beyond its pre-upgrade state? Yes...most notably in image and soundstage focus, transient snap, transparency, and bass solidity.

My wife, who'd been wowed by what the power-cord upgrades brought to the listening table, made a few choice comments following a listening session with the "magic combination" built around the BBA maple platform: "Well, that cleared out some mud!" "Where did all that 'air' come from?"

As always, this is a result achieved on an individual system. So YMMV.

[PHC1]

Perfect example of the brain conjuring up images of the sound we expect to hear while dealing with the various materials. Wood “warms” the sound, glass is terrible and “shrill”, metal makes it harsh, rubber makes the sound mushy. Notice the trend?

Having said that, if that’s the trick and that’s what we tend to hear and carry over into our reality, who cares right?

Copper is neutral, gold is great and shimmery, silver too thin... Plutonium we haven’t tried yet but platinum is very sweet.

[PHC1]

Mapleshade racks are also very effective when one needs to warm up the sound. The trick is to see and visualize wood and the system will sound relaxed and musical. It’s magical in its effect. The fancier the wood and veneers, the thicker and more visible they are, the better the effect. I’m being totally serious.

[JemHadar]

Originally Posted by PHC1

Perfect example of the brain conjuring up images of the sound we expect to hear while dealing with the various materials. Wood “warms” the sound, glass is terrible and “shrill”, metal makes it harsh, rubber makes the sound mushy. Notice the trend?

Having said that, if that’s the trick and that’s what we tend to hear and carry over into our reality, who cares right?

Copper is neutral, gold is great and shimmery, silver too thin... Plutonium we haven’t tried yet but platinum is very sweet.

You forgot to mention unobtainium [emoji854]

[PHC1]

Originally Posted by Jem666

You forgot to mention unobtainium [emoji854]

It would have an unpredictable sound effect. First the rumors and listening impressions would need to circulate and set the tone for the rest of the audiophiles. Then all the adjectives of praise and new vocabulary would follow. The higher the cost, the more perceived effect. Obviously.

Back in the day, DeBeers diamond company, singlehandedly made diamonds an object of desire and great cost. It was advertising campaign like no other. They changed the culture.The more you loved the woman, the higher the price of the ring should be and of course the more expensive that piece of insignificant but very hard rock is, the more pretty and desirable it is to the eyes. We can’t help ourselves. That’s how it is.

[jimtranr]

Originally Posted by PHC1

Wood “warms” the sound.

Not in this instance...though, as I indicated, YMMV. Focus, transparency, transient snap, and bass solidity, yes. But not what I'd construe as "warmth" coloring the sound. That didn't happen. Note, too, that it was a direct connection of wood-to-wood --maple to oak--that resulted in the perception of a "metallic glaze".