Isolation tables/stands for valve monoblocks?

Hi folks,

Can anyone recommend me some isolation tables/stands for valve monoblocks? Given all the dust & microphony issues with them being on the floor next to the speakers, I think its worthwhile investing in a pair.

Any ideas? The amps are 60cm long and 30cm wide.

Budget? Up to £200 I suppose...

Cheers,
DT

 

Cut some squash balls in half and use them. If you want to go posh then try some vibrapods.

To prevent dust try hoovering a bit more often.

 

some granite slabs (i use argos chopping boards but they might not be big enough for your amps) and mitchell tenderfeet blu tak'ed to the bottom. keeps my monoblocks off the floor, still need to dust / hoover them though. if granite isn;t your sort of thing then there's all sorts of wobblyness available from sandwiched innertubes or the high density of sandboxes.

 

Hoovering? Isn't that something the magic cleaning fairy does for me while I'm sleeping?

 

Granite slabs will be too obtrusive and odd-looking. Limited space too - there's a hulking great Wega inbetween the speakers (I know, I know!!).

 

Have a look at " Grim Reaper " plinths on www.hififorsale.com
or ebay they are granite but may be more domestically acceptable

 

DT, I have read about and considered most of the branded racks out there over the years but made do with old Sound Org tables and a monster VPI metal jobbie too. I'm far too grown up to ponce about with angle iron of any kind in a lounge that's not supposed to look like a teenager's pad and just abandoned the lot.

I took a chance with £20 Ikea Corras tables half expecting them to sound soggy but figured I could put extra isolation tables or feet into play if necessary. I have two of them stacked and one stand-alone, an SME10 on top of the stacked tables and the bottom shelf of that one and the separate one housing valve monoblocks. They fit, they've room to breathe, this was cheap and surprisingly it works. Combined with the shift to listen across the room and make more space of my limited room this is better than it was previously and is the best sound I've achieved at home, period. I have no intention of spending Pagode or Hutter money based on what I'm achieving for £60.

 

Hi,

Goeth thou downe to ye olde lokalle B&Q'e, havest though cut ye olde 3/4 inch ticke spruce plywoode into boardes 12 inch by 24 Inch, a total of foure or sixe.

Buyest thou as well a packe of felte diskes at B&Q'e as well as eight of large Michelle Tenderfeete and placeset though one boade on the Tenderfeete and then each further boarde on topeth of the previouse, using felte diskes in eache corder and spaced across the boarde in a pattern using ye olde magical numberes of 1 to 1.618 making an inwarede counterclockewise spirale.

Stacketh though as many stages as though wishest, makest though ye olde amplifier isolation stande....

Ciao T

 

Now that sounds....interesting.

Can you be a little more specific with the use of the ratio, as I'm being dense this morning.

 

Hi,

Golden Ratio use.

Ideally I personally would make the boards actually 1 X 1.618 in the fundamental dimension. You then divide the surface fractally into ever decresing surface rectangle following the same ratio, dividing ever the larger portion remaining. Place 1" felt disks at the intersections.

Ond base and one "stage" is good, two is better and in some ways this is M@n@ish, stack more, get more.

Dieter "C37" Ennemoser calls spruce "Tone Wood" for good reasons. Worth trying. A sheet of 48" X 96" Spruce Ply costs around 20 damp squid at my local B&Q,each cut 50 pence, a pack of felt Disks a damp squid or two, at my local HiFi Shop Tenderfeet are 3.50 each, or at least where when I last got some.

Ciao T

 

Thanks ......

how do you divide fractally ?

I woken up thick this morning ...just can't get my head round it.

 

Lol - Fibonacci isolation stands

Given that my DIY abilities are up there with Reg Prescott's, I'll be leaving that option well alone! Alternatively, I could always get my father (french polisher/cabinet maker by trade) to make some for his #1 son as a birthday present....

Hmmm, how about african ebony with rosewood marquetry and 22 coats of laquer (C37? ), finished off with some fluted brass spikes?

Should sound interesting....

DT

 

Golden Ratio.

 

Hi,

Why? Any resanobly large B&Q has a nice huge circular saw system that mkes extremely clean and accurate cut. You go to B&Q, buy the wood (18mm Spruce Plywood), take it there, tell the guy to cut it up into (in my view best) 60cm X 37cm boards, I like the natural wood look, so all you need is a rag and some oil to oil the wood.

The Michell Tenderfeet I normally just put under the board with a dab of blutack.

Place the base down firmly, if required adding metal disks between wooden base and laimate/wood flooring, for carpet make sure the Tenderfeet really "bite down" (I usually do it by jumping up on the board a few times, which with my considerably substantial frame beds the base down very nicely.

Then just take the self adheasive felt dots (found in teh furniture sections) and place them on the remaining boards following the pattern illustrated by "Lord" (thanks, this is EXACTLY what we are talking about) and place these boards on top the earlier ones, stacking as many stages as you like.

If you buy a 2440mm X 1220mm Sheet of plywood (< £ 25) you should get around 12pcs 600mm X 371mm Boards so you can have a six-stage setup left and right.

Including 5mm felt and 25mm for the michell tenderfeet a 6-Stage stack comes up to 158mm or around 6" and has quite a bit of ability to isolate and provide a solid support.

If you like, get some types of spring (SolidTech feets of silence?) or web/string based ones or the Hyperion Magnetic ones (I use these below my CDP) or such between base and first stage.

Sure. It may be a bit excessive for the job, but does not harm.

Ciao T

 

Putting felt dots in the shape of an involute sounds a bit involved

 

Hi,

Well, we are only talking about around 14 Felt Dots (self adheasive) per board. Draw up the diagram once (A2 Paper), print through to the board, stick the felt on and do it 10 times is also quite quick.

Finally, the warm glow of feeling of having accomplished something unique yourself is priceless, to buy all the bits, there is Visacard....

Ciao T

 

I think we should all try that, then we'd all have something unique.

 

Thanks a pic speaks 1k words......

just might have to give it a go !

 

If we are going to observe the golden ratio it must be done properly and thoroughly.

Firstly bear in mind that the dimensions of the boards must be in a harmonius relationship with both the room and the monoblocks to be supported. The logical consequence of this is that the monoblocks and the room must be in a suitable dimensional relationship with one another. If they are not, it will be necessary either to purchase new monoblocks or to readjust the dimensions of the room.

Secondly, each board should be 0.618 of the thickness of the one below it. I'm sure B&Q can accomodate this if asked nicely.

Thirdly, when arranging the felt pads in an inward spiral, each pad should be 0.618 of the size of the preceeding one. Should it be 0.618 of the diameter or the surface area? I'm not too sure. The sensible approach would be to try both options. Listening to the sonic results would of course present a clear anwer to this question.

And how far should one continue with the spiral of ever-decreasing felt pads? Ideally, to infinity, of course. Sadly, the limitations of the physical world preclude this. I would advise continuing until the distance between pads becomes less than the wavelength of the highest frequency found in your record collection.

Finally, remember that the spiral should be counter-clockwise for those of us in the Northern Hemisphere, but clockwise for those south of the equator, for obvious reasons.

Hope this helps.

 

isnt all this golden ratio malarky completely over the top for just a stand to wallop your monoblocks on top of?

how about paving slabs ?