Question 'Audio chic' solid wood speaker stands - any good?

Gray

Well-known member
Hi
For aesthetic reasons I'm really keen on the hardwood tripod speaker stands that Audio Chic make (https://audiochic.co.uk/collections/bookshelf-speaker-stands) but I can't really find any reviews of substance. Obviously for that price they should be very good, audio wise, but can anyone give any insight as to whether in principle solid wood designs like this will sound good?
Thanks
To be honest, I don't think their expense will necessarily equate to better sound.
But, importantly, they look like they'd be stable enough.
If your speakers end up with tweeters at ear height in your normal listening position, I'm sure they'd be at least as good as many more popular stands.
If I tell you that I've got (sand filled) Atacama SE24, you'll understand why, looks-wise, I've investigated wooden stands myself - but you're right, they're not cheap.
 
It depends on the speakers, I’d say. Some like light but strong supports, Torlyte being an extreme example; others seem better off with very heavy and solid. Harbeth, for example, suggest that a kitchen stool with a couple of encyclopaedias is fine as long as the height is correct!
They certainly look immensely stylish, though pictures with wood and speaker mismatching look a bit strange to my eyes.
 
D

Deleted member 188516

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It depends on the speakers, I’d say. Some like light but strong supports, Torlyte being an extreme example; others seem better off with very heavy and solid. Harbeth, for example, suggest that a kitchen stool with a couple of encyclopaedias is fine as long as the height is correct!
They certainly look immensely stylish, though pictures with wood and speaker mismatching look a bit strange to my eyes.

here is the theory behind the torlyte you mention. this info applies to the torlyte loudspeaker stands as well:-
 
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D

Deleted member 188516

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Gray

Well-known member
here is the theory behind the torlyte you mention. this info applies to the torlyte loudspeaker stands as well:-
Good old RA.
Where there's a product, there's a reason for it :).
 
D

Deleted member 188516

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Good old RA.
Where there's a product, there's a reason for it :).

agreed but have you tried torlyte ?

you can take his free advice and use alternative suppliers products instead.

removing the sand / mass from my speakers stands plus the recommended blu-tach made them sound so much better and it cost me nothing to try this advice...

adding oak cones under my sony amplifier, raising it off the supplied rubber feet, silenced the noisy transformer that buzzed annoyingly.
 
D

Deleted member 188516

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To be honest, I don't think their expense will necessarily equate to better sound.
But, importantly, they look like they'd be stable enough.
If your speakers end up with tweeters at ear height in your normal listening position, I'm sure they'd be at least as good as many more popular stands.
If I tell you that I've got (sand filled) Atacama SE24, you'll understand why, looks-wise, I've investigated wooden stands myself - but you're right, they're not cheap.

i had atacama se24 stands that, as advised by the hifi shop that "sold" them to me, were filled with sand and had the speakers blu-tacked down. great for one note bass and treble that sounded like polystyrene being rubbed together !
 

Gray

Well-known member
i had atacama se24 stands that, as advised by the hifi shop that "sold" them to me, were filled with sand and had the speakers blu-tacked down. great for one note bass and treble that sounded like polystyrene being rubbed together !
Your SE24 findings are interesting Plus - and would go against my reasoning, especially in terms of treble performance.
I would say there were only 2 ways that a support could affect treble.
First (and most unlikely) if it was unstable enough to allow the speaker to move around - all over the place!
Second would be where, say, an empty metal pole was resonant, then one (or more) frequency could cause the pole to sing along.
As far as I'm concerned, the most important consideration is that the stand holds the speaker firmly in free space. Firmly enough so that, no matter how much bass energy, the cones move relative to the cabinet, never along with it.
(I've even toyed with the idea of placing very heavy weights on top of the cabs for optimum pindown).

As for his oak cone feet.....someone had to buy them 😀.
I've got Foculpods under my Cyrus amp for 2 reasons only.
1) It used to slip on its felt-bottomed feet when its buttons where pushed.
2) I got them free.
 
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D

Deleted member 188516

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Your SE24 findings are interesting Plus - and would go against my reasoning, especially in terms of treble performance.
I would say there were only 2 ways that a support could affect treble.
First (and most unlikely) if it was unstable enough to allow the speaker to move around - all over the place!

Second would be where, say, an empty metal pole was resonant, then one (or more) frequency could cause the pole to sing along.

As far as I'm concerned, the most important consideration is that the stand holds the speaker firmly in free space. Firmly enough so that, no matter how much bass energy, the cones move relative to the cabinet, never along with it.
(I've even toyed with the idea of placing very heavy weights on top of the cabs for optimum pindown).

As for his oak cone feet.....someone had to buy them 😀.

I've got Foculpods under my Cyrus amp for 2 reasons only.

1) It used to slip on its felt-bottomed feet when its buttons where pushed.
2) I got them free.

the se24's were also pushed firmly into the wooden floor boards - no wobble whats so ever !

the treble improved when the mass/sand was removed and replaced with polystyrene chippings to damp, but not add weight, to the se24 stands.

i think the "mass" was trapping the vibrations created by the loudspeakers drive units inside the (crappy) cabinets of the b&w 601 s2 loudspeakers i initially had.

the kef ls50's, that are built like solid bricks, showed no difference whether placed on heavy stands or a couple of wooden stools ! i put this down to their superior (strong) cabinet design...

oak / wood cones can be bought from multiple suppliers - i did not say i paid russ's prices !
 
D

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I'm a great believer i isolating kit and speakers from vibration, but not by using overpriced wood courtesy of Russ 'ooh, look at my oscilloscope' Andrews.

but the torlyte range is not about isolating kit...
its about coupling kit together to allow vibrations to be dissipated and not be trapped...
this was the problem i experienced when i set my speakers up in the conventional manner.
it was free advice so i was not complaining !
here is the theory again:-
 

Gray

Well-known member
I think the "mass" was trapping the vibrations created by the loudspeakers drive units inside the (crappy) cabinets of the b&w 601 s2 loudspeakers i initially had.

the kef ls50's, that are built like solid bricks, showed no difference whether placed on heavy stands or a couple of wooden stools ! i put this down to their superior (strong) cabinet design...
Now there's some logic to that theory.
(I like logic. Too many theories come without any logic, which is why they attract such contempt).
 
I understood RAs argument to be that traditional rack materials like glass and metal can 'ring' and thereby prolong how long it takes to dissipate vibrations, and that lightweight, overpriced wood would allow the vibrations through without this phenomenon.

But stopping the vibration in the first place just has to be a better solution, even applying that logic. So levitation it is!

(I get the impression that RA is about as divisive as Marmite, or a certain, soon-to-be-unemployed American. But we'll stay on topic!)
 
D

Deleted member 188516

Guest
I understood RAs argument to be that traditional rack materials like glass and metal can 'ring' and thereby prolong how long it takes to dissipate vibrations, and that lightweight, overpriced wood would allow the vibrations through without this phenomenon.

But stopping the vibration in the first place just has to be a better solution, even applying that logic. So levitation it is!

but isolation devices only stop floor borne vibration entering the components.

they also trap vibration inside the components the ones created by the components themselves (eg cd's spinning, loudspeaker drive units moving etc).

they also do nothing to stop air borne vibrations, created by the loudspeakers, affecting kit also.

this is why, i believe, when you added mass / lead to your components you then experienced an upgrade as you were then making your components heavier and less affected by the air borne vibrations via your loudspeakers.

this then only leaves the vibrations created by your kit to deal with which, i admit, may not be as big a problem as russ andrews would like us to believe !
 
but isolation devices only stop floor borne vibration entering the components.

I don't think that's true, you know. I have a client who used to work in engineering, specifically damping down vibrations in heavy machinery. He always said that if you imagine putting something on a spring, the spring will damp vibrations coming into it from either end. Shifting resonant frequencies to where they were least detrimental was the other part of it.

But yes, increasing mass will reduce the amplitude of vibrations induced by a given force, which is why high end gear tends to be heavier. I had a bit of a bass-fest when listening this afternoon and can confirm I have no issues!
 

styleoversubstance

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Nov 17, 2020
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To be honest, I don't think their expense will necessarily equate to better sound.
But, importantly, they look like they'd be stable enough.
If your speakers end up with tweeters at ear height in your normal listening position, I'm sure they'd be at least as good as many more popular stands.
If I tell you that I've got (sand filled) Atacama SE24, you'll understand why, looks-wise, I've investigated wooden stands myself - but you're right, they're not cheap.
Thanks Gray, much appreciated
 
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TomC

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Jan 10, 2017
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An interesting debate. So the ideal approach would be to combine mass to reduce vibration and additional material to insulate the remaining vibration?
 

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