Sand or shot for speaker stands?

I am going to experiment with a hot lead pour- only 'cause I have access to a factory that produces and ships lead in all forms aywhere around the world (and they said they can do it). They will mix it with ~ 3% antimony (an impurity), otherwise the lead will 'shrink' too much inside the stands. You can't beat the density using this method!!- But who knows, perhaps I will get to the factory, and end up with lead shot like everyone else. Oh well, I thought it was a cool idea! If I do actually do it, I'll try and remember to let you know how it turns out. By the way- here's an interesting fact- pure lead weighs .4092 lbs/cubic inch. Goood luck!! Sutts

Hi Guys, Thanks for all your help and suggestions. I will definitely try the #9 shot (thanks Garfish), and the silica sand, with a mask and a big pan (thanks Albert). Unfortunately, shot seems to be hard to locate in NYC, so I have temporarily put "playground" sand in my B&W stands. Anybody know where I can get lead shot in my area? I am just breaking in my new B&W 805's and if you will forgive the pun, they seem to sound a little "drier" now that the stands have been filled.(Redkiwi)Thanks for making me aware of the possible liabilities. The sound does seem a little bit more closed in, but it is early in the a.m. and volume is low and the speakers need to be placed more precicely, so I will check into it later in the day. My room is 20 X 12, and my floors are wood, which "gives" a little, with an 8 X 10 rug and the usual assortment of furnishings. Do you think I should use the spikes instead of the rubber stickies on the bottom of my stands to counteract an uneven and slightly "floppy" floor?

Sackrete Contractor Grade Fine at Home Depot is uniform and dry (they keep it inside unlike the kiddie sand) and slides right thru a flunnel ~ $4 for 50lbs. My two-column targets took 20 lbs. each and no regrets. Don't forget to stick your 805's to the top plates lest you knock them off. Has anyone tried 90 weight gear oil :-)

I reckon the spikes are best to support the speaker, particularly if you have loaded your stands, and this will probably get rid of the "closed in" sound. Another issue I didn't mention was the nature of the speaker cabinet. With very dead cabinets, or ones with a low resonance point - such as the birch ply used for some UK speakers, I have found that aluminium stands can be best ie. very light and rigid. With most speakers now using MDF however, steel stands with some damping is usually best. Albertporter knows this well - don't get sucked into thinking that any tweak gets rid of resonances, they just shift them around. Whether it is lead or sand, you are just shifting the resonance point. What you try to do is smooth the resonances so that they dispell their energy quickly and over a wide band. Steel stands get rid of their energy quickly but over a narrow band. Filling them you spread the band, but the speed is compromised. Filling them with poured lead would probably be a disaster. You can get back some of the speed by using the spikes to support the speakers. Sorry for the rambling nature of the post.

Redkiwi, I want to be clear that I am asking about spikes into the floor instead of rubber feet. The 805's have an option of suspending the speaker itself on a type of small spike or mounting it to the stand with 2 screws through the plate that the speaker sits on directly into the underside of the speaker itself, locking it into place. The stand is a bit wobbly, even with the sand, so I guess I will try the floor spikes. I think that B & W's stands are aluminum, with a steel base. It seems that the speaker have good transparency, but are not imaging that well yet. I don't know if it is speaker placement or the sand fill. I will try the spikes on Sun. afternoon and see if that helps. I am still breaking them in and these sound aspects may change. That was very interesting info regarding resonances, and it makes sense to me.