Granite Speaker Plinths

[alastairpearce]

This question has probably been asked 100's of times, so sorry in advance.

I'm looking into the Argos granite plinths to place my floorstanding speakers onto.

At present, I have a hardwood suspended wooden floor, with the speakers sitting on spikes directly onto the wooden floor.

The bass in my room tends to be quite boomy, which could be a result of the room being quite small, but could also be due to the wooden suspended floor.

So I'm going to experiment with the granite plinths to see if this alleviates it.

I have two questions:

1. Would you sit the granite plinths directly onto the wooden floor? Or would you place some sort of feet/spikes betwen the granite and the wooden floor?

2. Do you place the speaker spikes directly onto the granite plinth? Or would you use some sort of alternative to speaker spikes?

Any advice, and thoughts in general on the the use of granite plinths would be much appreciated.

 

[bigfish786]

some spikes are two way, they have a rounded side for hard floors.

i've got the granite straight onto the floor.

when i had hard floors, i didnt notice any less boom to be honest.

having a fully carpeted room did make a difference though.

 

[Al ears]

As bigfish says it's very much suck it and see. I know some people swear by sorbothane pods under the slabs in a situation like this.

Spikes directly onto smooth slabs can also be a problem in some instances, I'd see if you can get some metal 'cups' like some manufacturers produce to prevent scratching laminate flooring and use these. They are pretty cheap.

 

[Tear Drop]

The question of using spikes/feet/sorbothane etc can only be answered when you ask yourself, 'What am I using granite for?'.

 

[DandyCobalt]

I use the Argos granite plinths (worktop protectors), with spikes from speakers into cups on the plinth, but nothing under the plinths (just the small antislip pads that are already on the plinths.

To be honest, I think any bass booming etc from my speakers is more affected by other room acoustics and placement away from walls etc.

 

[RobinKidderminster]

The question of using spikes/feet/sorbothane etc can only be answered when you ask yourself, 'What am I using granite for?'.

Good question. Pity no answer forthcoming

 

[Per-Sony-fied]

An excellent cheap way to rest your spikes on to prevent damage are 2p coins. Alternatively you could use a set of pozidrive wood screws into the flooring (providing you're okay with doing this) to rest your spikes on.

I have found heavy stone slabs like marble/granite do provide a less bass rich sound when used with a speaker stand with spikes. I'm not 100% sure tho' that this is an improvement over the latter.

 

[MakkaPakka]

Using 1p coins is even cheaper...

I use Argos chopping boards because I could feel a fair amount of movement through my cheap laminate floor which is on top of a suspended wood floor. The slabs sit on top of adhesive felt pads. They work well.

 

[bigfish786]

they do look nice as well.

 

[respe]

As you are trying to decouple from the floor to reduce the boom, spikes couple, so try something that decouples.

 

[alastairpearce]

In answer to your question, I guess I am thinking of using granite to isolate the speakers from the solid wood suspended floor.

I live in a victorian terrace, so the floor has a bit of movement in it.

When playing something quite base heavy, Rolling Stones Gimme Shelter which I think has quite a heavy bass guitar line, the rest of the track seems to get a bit lost in the bass.

I can feel a fair bit of vibration through the floor when playing a bass quitar heavy track, and am looking to cut this out and achieve a cleaner sound.

 

[bigfish786]

speaker positioning could possibly help, a little movement away from the walls, foam bungs, if the speakers are rear ported.

 

[alastairpearce]

Oh, and as you rightly say, I'm also thinking of doing it because they look good.

 

[Per-Sony-fied]

Maybe a set of LINN Skeets to decouple the speakers would do just dandy (that's if they still do them).

Some blurb...... "Linn Skeet floor protectors are perfect for use on wooden or tiled floors, protecting them from spiked feet whist providing a solid foundation for your loudspeakers to ensure that all you hear is the music. They are heavy and "skeet-like" so the speaker can be moved on a polished surface without falling out of the skeets."

 

[CnoEvil]

Valhalla Technology also do isolating spike shoes, which could be used on top of the Granite.

 

[DylanFan]

The wood floor around where my speakers are sited is quite springy & nor particularly level (1930’s house) so I obtained some quite heavy granite slabs a few years ago & bought some of the spike shoes off Ebay as I remember which have a very small amount of blu-tack under them which holds them in place on the granite. A big big improvement added to which one the speakers are levelled on the shoes you never need to adjust the spikes again. In my room the music is more taught with none of the lose bass I was getting as before I had the slabs it was near impossible to keep the stands from moving as the spikes were often working their way into the soft flooring. If I had concrete or even a good solid wood floor I wouldn’t bother with the slabs. IMO the heavier the granite or slab the better.

 

[Al ears]

Maybe a set of LINN Skeets to decouple the speakers would do just dandy (that's if they still do them).

Some blurb...... "Linn Skeet floor protectors are perfect for use on wooden or tiled floors, protecting them from spiked feet whist providing a solid foundation for your loudspeakers to ensure that all you hear is the music. They are heavy and "skeet-like" so the speaker can be moved on a polished surface without falling out of the skeets."

They are still available but at £50 for a packet of 8 the granite plinths might be the cheaper option.

 

[iceman16]

Valhalla Technology also do isolating spike shoes, which could be used on top of the Granite.

+1 I've been using these for a couple of weeks now and the difference is remarkable. I use them on top of granite plinth which also keep the speaker stable. Vibration is significantly reduced without making the sound muddy.

 

[Al ears]

Valhalla Technology also do isolating spike shoes, which could be used on top of the Granite.

+1 I've been using these for a couple of weeks now and the difference is remarkable. I use them on top of granite plinth which also keep the speaker stable. Vibration is significantly reduced without making the sound muddy.

As a matter of interest do you use the pad-type isolators that they make or the shoes that spikes fit into? Only asked because I had planned to get the 'spike support' type for my speakers until I noticed they were only rated up to 20 kg - I know both my speakers and yours are heavier than that.

 

[iceman16]

Valhalla Technology also do isolating spike shoes, which could be used on top of the Granite.

+1 I've been using these for a couple of weeks now and the difference is remarkable. I use them on top of granite plinth which also keep the speaker stable. Vibration is significantly reduced without making the sound muddy.

As a matter of interest do you use the pad-type isolators that they make or the shoes that spikes fit into? Only asked because I had planned to get the 'spike support' type for my speakers until I noticed they were only rated up to 20 kg - I know both my speakers and yours are heavier than that.

Hi Al

i use the spike shoes which are rated at 20 kgs/feet

http://www.kronosav.com/accessories/isolation/valhalla-technology-vt-spike-feet-shoes-prices-reviews.html

 

[Womaz]

Valhalla Technology also do isolating spike shoes, which could be used on top of the Granite.

+1 I've been using these for a couple of weeks now and the difference is remarkable. I use them on top of granite plinth which also keep the speaker stable. Vibration is significantly reduced without making the sound muddy.

As a matter of interest do you use the pad-type isolators that they make or the shoes that spikes fit into? Only asked because I had planned to get the 'spike support' type for my speakers until I noticed they were only rated up to 20 kg - I know both my speakers and yours are heavier than that.

Hi Al

i use the spike shoes which are rated at 20 kgs/feet

http://www.kronosav.com/accessories/isolation/valhalla-technology-vt-spike-feet-shoes-prices-reviews.html

i might look at these as I have struggled to get my PMC 23s aligned properly in the spike feet I got for them at purchase.

 

[andyjm]

This question has probably been asked 100's of times, so sorry in advance.

I'm looking into the Argos granite plinths to place my floorstanding speakers onto.

At present, I have a hardwood suspended wooden floor, with the speakers sitting on spikes directly onto the wooden floor.

The bass in my room tends to be quite boomy, which could be a result of the room being quite small, but could also be due to the wooden suspended floor.

So I'm going to experiment with the granite plinths to see if this alleviates it.

I have two questions:

1. Would you sit the granite plinths directly onto the wooden floor? Or would you place some sort of feet/spikes betwen the granite and the wooden floor?

2. Do you place the speaker spikes directly onto the granite plinth? Or would you use some sort of alternative to speaker spikes?

Any advice, and thoughts in general on the the use of granite plinths would be much appreciated.

FWIW I doubt your problem is anything to do with the stands or the spikes, but is down to speaker placement and/or room geometry.

But putting that to one side, you need to think about what you are trying to achieve. You want to stop vibration from the speaker being transmitted into the floor (decouple it). Spikes couple, they transmit vibration. An easy fix if you are keen on using your plinths is to place the plinths on some sort of resiliant material - a few thicknesses of carpet underlay should do it. Forget the spikes on the stands, use blutack under the stands to couple them to the granite, and stop them sliding around.

As I mention above, I think you are wasting your time, but it is cheap and easy to try.

 

[alastairpearce]

Well just as a follow up, I have purchased 4 of the granite worktop savers and experimented with them. Additionally, I have also combined this with some plugs in the rear bass ports.

Overall, this combination has definitely tightened up the sound and reduced the boominess of the bass. I'm more pleased with the sound my speakers are producing, and listening to something like Sticky Fingers or Led Zep II there is noticeably more detail.

I would say plugging the bass port has contributed more than the plinths in hindsight, but nevertheless I'll be keeping the granite.