DIY speaker plinths for floorstanding speakers, need some help.

[shafesk]

Dear helpful forumers, I am thinking of making some speaker plinths for my Mezzo 6s. Is it as simple as putting some granite under them? Is there anything I can use which will sound better like mdf? Do I put spikes under the plinth too? Some ideas and pictures needed.

Appreciate the help,

Shafin

 

[CnoEvil]

Read through this thread, and my pictures are on page 3:

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/your-system/bens-hifi

Nb. The only possible problem is raising the Tweeters too high - doesn't matter so much with the Kef Uni-Q design.

 

[Captain Duff]

Well the Mezzo 8's (like the Aviano 8's) come with their own thick MDF plinths, with spikes underneath and the plinth screwed to the cabinet with a gap between them and the speaker. It seems to work very well, and while I notice the 6's don't come with the same system I guess it would be easy enough to diy recreate. Alternatively you could look for some cheap granite off0-cuts from kitchen worktop places, or failing that I've seen to very cheap granite choping boards around that could be used to experiment for not much outlay...

 

[Overdose]

What type of floor do you have and is it in an appartment or house?

The solution will differ depending on the answers to those questions. You need stability, security and either need to couple the speakers or isolate accordingly.

 

[shafesk]

Read through this thread, and my pictures are on page 3:

http://www.whathifi.com/forum/your-system/bens-hifi

Nb. The only possible problem is raising the Tweeters too high - doesn't matter so much with the Kef Uni-Q design.

Thank you for the link Cno, I've seen your engineering prowess before. As far as I can make out, it seems like its a layer of carpet, then some foam on both sides and what appears to be sound dampening material, the layer after that is carpet as well or are those granite? Did you try your plints vs granite slabs too?

 

[shafesk]

Well the Mezzo 8's (like the Aviano 8's) come with their own thick MDF plinths, with spikes underneath and the plinth screwed to the cabinet with a gap between them and the speaker. It seems to work very well, and while I notice the 6's don't come with the same system I guess it would be easy enough to diy recreate. Alternatively you could look for some cheap granite off0-cuts from kitchen worktop places, or failing that I've seen to very cheap granite choping boards around that could be used to experiment for not much outlay...

Thats a good idea, I'll try to see if any dealers have those speakers in stock so I can take a look. TBH I prefer the granite to the MDF as it looks slicker in my opinion. I don't know which sounds better though.

 

[CnoEvil]

Thank you for the link Cno, I've seen your engineering prowess before. As far as I can make out, it seems like its a layer of carpet, then some foam on both sides and what appears to be sound dampening material, the layer after that is carpet as well or are those granite? Did you try your plints vs granite slabs too?

My room has carpet over a suspended wooden floor. On top of that, there are two Granite worktop savers (laid side-by-side), and on top of them is an Auralex Gramma (tough cloth covered wood [MDF?] with robust acoustic foam stuck under it).

The Gramma on its own was better than the Granite, but for me, the two together made a considerable difference. NB. Without the wooden side trim, the Gramma was a little wobbly.

It's always worth trying the Granite on its own first, with spikes into spike shoes (which can be homemade if necessary).

 

[philipjohnwright]

In the past I've experimented with ordinary paving slabs available from B&Q and the like, resting on three screws (so self levelling) that go through the carpet into the floor. You can tart the looks up to a certain extent, but the main benefit is that it's low cost, so you can see if the 'mass' approach works for you in your circumstances. If yes then either spend more time getting them to look better, or more likely go out and spend money on a nice granite (or slate) solution that looks and sounds the part. Oh and the screws don't damage the carpet, so S/H WMBO should be OK.

Basically you get to play for under £10. And it's amazing how useful the slabs can be in the future; I once used 2 under a Bose Soundock 10 to tame the bass. But boy what bass it then kicked out!