Best current footers for preamps?

also important to isolate from airborne vibration. it seems many products that keep out floor vibrations, keep in airborne vibrations...

jl35
1,001 posts
06-10-2016 8:47am
"also important to isolate from airborne vibration. it seems many products that keep out floor vibrations, keep in airborne vibrations..."

Damping the chassis, tubes, capacitors, CD transport, etc. addresses airborne vibrations. Or if you use an iso stand, damping the too plate is also useful in dissipating any vibration in the component whatever it's source - transformer, acoustic waves in the room, motors, etc.

FAT PADZ  is effective against:

Vibrations in the component caused by airborne energies (eg. from loudspeakers) or from activities within the component(eg. transformer
vibrations)

Vibrations from the shelf or rack on which it rests.

FAT PADZ is constructed like a sandwich. The "meat" in the sandwich 
transforms vibrational energies into heat.  The 2 outer "breads" are made from highly polished stainless steel. The top one transforms energy from the component into the sandwich. Stainless steel is used because it is such a good conductor of energy. This is why most professional cooking
pots are made from stainless steel. The bottom one not only transfers
energy into the FAT PADZ but also damps the shelf itself, thereby reducing the amount of spurious energy imparted by the shelf or rack.  

While on this topic I should mention that the top of most preamps are made from materials that vibrates a lot. Knock it with your knuckles and it rings like a bell. This situation smears music and needs to be separately addressed. There are several ways to deal with this at very little expense
Years ago I used Dynamat which does a good job. I now use Walker Audio's one inch ( 1" ) resonance control disc available from walkeraudio.com for $75.00 and worth every penny..



 

My pre/ power reside on the floor on top of 1 3/4" maple butcher block with triple 1" carbides screwed into the bottom. I go further by treating open bare metal inside pre and source cases with Dynamat. It stops vibration and resonance in its tracks.  

I have a  custom Vacuum tube Direct Heated Triode Preamplifier and I use the Tall Soft Tender feet 
And they work great with detail and focus with fast tight bass .
Thd other guy that likes thd stock feet maybe should have used the Tall firm footers. Also as was told to me before securing the feet try different locations 
Like under transfotmers and power supplies those usually are the most 
Effective areas.