Posted by Lew on January 06, 2005 at 08:27:13:
In Reply to: Vibrational Isolation Experiences? posted by Bill Lamb on January 05, 2005 at 19:41:17:
I would not think that using vibrapods or any other flexible type of footing under a speaker
(planar or other) is a good thing, but I have not tried it. As I think about it, what one wants is to
have the speaker as immobilized as possible on a good, solid flooring, and for the speaker frame
to be as stiff as possible, in the case of an ESL. Under such conditions, a minimum of amplifier
power is dissipated in frame vibration, AND greater clarity and transparency would be realized,
since the speaker is not moving around while also having to move air. With any kind of spongy
footing, the speaker can wobble around when driven by the amplifier. I have one relevant
observation to support these ideas: I recently placed 40-pound barbells, one each on top of the
backplates of my Sound Lab M1s, and danged if I don't have another fraction of an octave or so
of deep bass that is cleaner than ever before. The effect is distinctly audible on an LP that I have
been listening to for years. This result is consistent at least with the notion that you want your
speaker to be as fixed as possible on a solid floor. That's also why some people spend the big
bucks to get the U1s as opposed to the M1s or A1s.