Filling Speakers Stands

matengawhat

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Is this just a case of try and see what sounds best or is there any rules to this for example - fill to top - fill 3/4 full etc.

Is it always a trade off between depth and speed of the bass or is that only with filling floorstanders that allow it instead of standmounts?

I will be filling with atacama atabites - thanks
 

gpi

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With stands, I wish I could meet someone who could hear and point out the difference between 3/4 full, half full and full, because I'm blowed if I can.
 
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Anonymous

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Wouldn't suprise me if some people insist on fine ground diamonds...
 

professorhat

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I could - improved the timing and bass depth. But then I have relatively light stands (Atacama Nexus 6) and wooden floors so my speakers sit in shoes - not sure if being on thick carpet would help minimise the effect...
 
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Anonymous

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I think I've seen this conversation before somewhere!

IMO it is to keep the centre of gravity lower. If they were filled to the top they would be in equilibrium so to speak and would be less effective.

IMO I would be daft to think a few more inches of sand offers any tightening of any bass.ÿ
 

professorhat

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It's not really daft - with light weight stands and a less than perfect rigid connection into the floor (as you have with shoes placed on wood), the movement of the speaker cones can literally rock the speaker on its stands, muddying the sound. By weighting them down loads, this movement is minimised, tightening it all up.
 
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Anonymous

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This is precisely my point if the centre of gravity is lower the movement of the cones would find it harder to rock them!ÿ

You would be better just placing an elephant on the base of the stand instead of filling the tubes because this would keep the centre of gravity at the lowest point.ÿ
 

professorhat

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I can see where you're coming from, except that a low centre of gravity doesn't prevent rocking necessarily, just the less likely hood the whole thing will tip over. If you think about it, it's much better that the whole stand is weighty as this will provide a more stable platform for the speaker and it will be less likely to rock. If you had a stand which was really heavy at the bottom and really light at the top, it would be more likely to rock back and forth but would of course right itself without falling over.
This is all of course dependent on the base - a wide heavy base will prevent rocking, but not all stands have these.
 

gpi

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Octopo:
This is precisely my point if the centre of gravity is lower the movement of the cones would find it harder to rock them!ÿ

You would be better just placing an elephant on the base of the stand instead of filling the tubes because this would keep the centre of gravity at the lowest point.ÿ

An elephant? Brilliant, patent the idea before Russ hears of it.

PS. Do you like my change of avatar, hehe?
 
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Anonymous

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{ All my arguments presume the speaker stand is absolutely rigid. If the stand is welded, the elephant would work best }

gpi I patented it a few years back, but it failed to take off. I think it was to do with the £20 000 cost and the 45 year life span.ÿ
 

matengawhat

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but would it - i agree that it wouldn't fall over but it would still pass vibrations through the structure and then the elephant - also the elphant might end up in front of your speakers blocking the sound
 
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Anonymous

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Elephants aside.

Any resonances (and here we are talking miniscule) going on between the top plate and the tubes will not be helped by loading the tubes. Any resonances going on between the tubes and the base, loading the tubes will not be all that helpful unless it has good foundations in the first place. Think about how well the Golden Gate Bridge would perform if you built it on house foundations.

Natural resonace (ie making the stand resonate at it's natural frequency) is a different story, and would occur if tubes are loaded with sand or not.
 

matengawhat

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So I guess i need to fill them up not to much or to little with diamonds and get an elephant to sit on them whilst watching the swallows and keeping out of the way of the bullets - didn't know hi-fi could be so Indiana Jones!!!

I think i will just experiement!
 
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Anonymous

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Yes experiment with different wildlife in other words. Just don't forget the running costs.
 

daveh75

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matengawhat:So I guess i need to fill them up not to much or to little with diamonds and get an elephant to sit on them whilst watching the swallows and keeping out of the way of the bullets - didn't know hi-fi could be so Indiana Jones!!! I think i will just experiement!

that sounds like a plan
 
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Anonymous

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Don't forget to tie it's trunk down though, last one I used had detrimental effects on my B&W Nautilus tweeter.
 

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