Partington Speaker Stands?

Karl#

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Im looking to buy some Partington stands i like the look of the super dreadnought, and if i can wait a few weeks the broadsides

I read they are "pre-filled with partingtons unique resin & silicon iron dampning system" sounds great! then on a site where the broadsides are selling for £240 they are offering tubs of "Atabites" to fill the columns is this necessary as to fill the broadsides it would cost me another £125 would this be money well spent? or could i just use sand out of the kids sand pit i mean how good can this "Atabites" be?

Are these stands still a 5 star product without the columns been filled?
 
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Anonymous

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I bought mine used off ebay and already had the attabites and floor spikes

I would not use sand, however, I recall reading a few threads where people have used some type of builder's sand that was first dried out in an oven

perhaps small builer's stones would be effective? .... I also read that the stands should only be filled 3/4 way
 

Andrew Everard

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Karl#:or could i just use sand out of the kids sand pit

Sand of that kind is a really bad idea: its moisture content can cause corrosion from within when used in some stands.
 

Karl#

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Ok so if i'm going to fill them it needs to be with the right stuff, thats fair enough but how necessary is it if the gains are worth it i'm happy to save up the cash and buy these "atabites"

Question remains is this a five star product as standard, but if they need to be filled to really produce their best i'll probably have to go for the super dreadnoughts as opposed to my prefared choice the broadsides and spend a bit on the "atabites"
 

sometimesuk

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I have a pair of Partington Dreadnaught Broadsides. The top base plate and bottom base plate is filled with resin.

The tubes are fillable. Don't waste your money, just buy a bag or two of KILN DRIED sand, for about £2/3 each from a DIY Store.

Just make sure, that when you fill the sands, do it progressively / in stages and make sure you tamp the sand, as this helps the sand to settle / compact better and removes air pockets, so that its doesn't settle latter.

To do this, you just get a stick, and once you've filled up 1/3 of the tube, you push the stick in and out of the sand for 30 seconds or so, then repeat the process once its 2/3 full and then 3/3 full. Put on the cap on and Jobs done.

The stand will be dead and heavy so it will be stable. Just make sure you level the stand properly so that it doesn't rock back and fore. Its worth investing in a small level from the poundshop.
 

Karl#

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thanks sometimesuk with regard to filling them it sounds like you have filled them to the top, any comment on only filling them 3/4 as mentioned in earlier post?
 

mikegtar

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I filled my Dreadnought Broadsides with one tub of Atabites either side, adding 9kg to each stand. Atabites are 3 times denser than sand, thus heavier, and the shape of the Atabites lets them interlock to reduce potential vibrations and minimize airgaps. At only 10% of the cost of the stands and a tiny fraction of the cost of the rest of the kit I though it worthwhile going with the Atabites at the time for peace of mind - didn't want to be thinking afterwards whether I could have done more to get the best out of my new speakers!
 
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Anonymous

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Go to B&Q superstore and in the builders section outside, they sell bags of kiln dried sand for about £4. Buy a plstic measuring jug and fill the main column about 3/4 full, and the same with the outer tubes.

Does exactly the same as the atabites, but at a fraction of the price. So long as they are weighted down the outcome will be the same.

Attabites are bits of metal, but will have an extremely small difference to the sand, if any!
 

crusaderlord

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against the popular advice i just used a bag of kids sand - although not from my kids sand pit - a new bag from the shop taken home and opened straight in to 3/4 full

my room is not considered damp i.e no condensation etc and carpeted and i have never had any problem - i cant really see how you would get corrosion from dry sand with partingtons but hey i guess you can

maybe they used in a cold conservatory or something
 

Craig M.

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i have atabites in my stands, reckon sand would have done as well.

filling all the way up can apparently deaden the sound a bit.
 
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Anonymous

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The only problem with the sand is that if you have an unsteady hand, it goes everywhere lol
 
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Anonymous

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from what I have read, some people say that solid wooden stands (such as oak) are the best ... have seen some advertised on ebay
 
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Anonymous

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I have just taken delivery of a pair of Dreadnought stands bought from Audio Fair. There were no instructions at all!

5 plugs are supplied for each stand. But the plugs are threaded whereas the insides of the columns are not. Hence I cannot screw them in and I do not want to force them in. Should I (once I have filled the stands) force them in for example by banging the bottom of each plug with a hammer? If I force them in will I be able to get them out again if I want to alter the amount of ballast? They are made of plastic and I don't know how robust they are.

Michael
 

Messiah

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I think you have to knock the bungs in and maybe use pliers to get them out.

As for filling I guess the best thing to do is try it and see if it makes a difference. There are a few comments by people saying they have used sand, attabotes or nowt but none to suggest a comparison of any of these options to see if there is a difference.

Personally I don't have any filling in my superdreadnoughts. I have owned many stands over the years and tried various fillings etc and cannot say I have ever reall noticed a difference. My advise would be to plonk them in place, put the speakers on them and enjoy the music.
smiley-smile.gif
 
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Anonymous

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mikegtar said:
I filled my Dreadnought Broadsides with one tub of Atabites either side, adding 9kg to each stand. Atabites are 3 times denser than sand, thus heavier, and the shape of the Atabites lets them interlock to reduce potential vibrations and minimize airgaps. At only 10% of the cost of the stands and a tiny fraction of the cost of the rest of the kit I though it worthwhile going with the Atabites at the time for peace of mind - didn't want to be thinking afterwards whether I could have done more to get the best out of my new speakers!

could'nt of said it better myself, i have tried sand but it did'nt add any weight to the stands in comparison to the atabites.
 

Soopafly49

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I have these stands and filled them with attabites. the plugs are not all that hard to get out or put back in so you should be ok. I filled mine up to the top though. It just made sense at the time but i guess I cant really compare to 3/4 filled becuase ive never done it so im none the wiser really.
 

CJSF

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Has no one ever thought that weight in a stand, ie filling to make it stable, is not good reasoning . . . A speaker stand properly installed on spikes is a solid connection to the floor, preferable a concrete floor.

Therefore fillings used are an energy dump . . . as such, must be tuned to the stands/speaker combination. Filling material used, the amount and the connection of speaker to stand are all important. Takes time, patience and understanding to do this . . .
 

Inter_Voice

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With my limited knowledge, filling up the speaker stands with whatever is not to make the stand more stable but rather to change its resonant frequencies.
 
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Anonymous

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I forgot to mention that when i tried using sand in my super dreads i was shocked to find that the sand had absorbed moisture and rusted the inside of the stands which i wasn't too happy with..
 
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Anonymous

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THESTIG08 said:
I forgot to mention that when i tried using sand in my super dreads i was shocked to find that the sand had absorbed moisture and rusted the inside of the stands which i wasn't too happy with..

Did you use kiln dried sand or bog standard sand? J
 

audioaffair

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Hi All

In our experience filling 3/4 of the way usually sounds best, as many have stated its not merely a weight thing, its a case of solidly 'gripping' your speakers through weight. this in turn means the only 'moving part' is the driver rather than the cabinet along with the driver. Sand is fine however the Atabites never have a moisture problem :)

Regards
 

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