Thiel Owners

ronkent,

I was quite interested in the GAIA for quite a while and intended on trying them with the Thiels.

However, I ended up buying some Isoacoustic Iso-pucks which I was thinking of using under my turntable platform.  I tried them under one of my Thiel speakers and didn't care for the effect - tended to make the sound a bit more flubby and less alive.  (Which could all be due only to the acoustic effects of raising the speaker - I can't be sure).

But it did dampen my enthusiasm for spending more money on the GAIA.

My speakers tend to sound best simply sitting on the floor, no spikes or risers.  I tried some other risers again - some Herbie big footers which not only add some isolation, but make them easy to shift the speaker position.  Yet again, I found raising the speakers to sound a bit less preferable to simply sitting on the floor.

I am intrigued quite a bit by the Townshend isolation base for speakers, a they are designed to isolate the speakers from the floor without raising them up, and I had terrific success using the Townsend spring-based pods for isolating my turntable (very big measurable difference with a vibration-measurement app when the pods were used under the turntable base)

I'm a bit gun-shy about messing with the tone of my 2.7s

The upgrade circuit is nearly identical to OEM. “Nearly” in that bypass caps will alter capacitance by about 1%. Otherwise all cap, inductor, and resistor values are unchanged from Jim Thiel’s circuit. The difference is a substantial upgrade in parts quality. Tom Thiel posted earlier that Jim was well aware of the benefits of higher quality parts but made his choices to optimize the performance/price curve and keep his speakers attainable for regular working folks.

But there are audible improvements for those willing to open their wallets some more, especially given the increased performance with time. Many of the parts Tom is planning for the upgrades were simply not available 10-20 years ago. I consider my CS2.4s to have excellent cabinets and, especially, drivers. But there is ample opportunity to upgrade the crossovers and get notably better SQ.

That said, Tom Thiel will be measuring the results of the upgrades to ensure that the balance is not upset in some unpredictable way. 

@prof   I would try the GAIA feet as Music Direct offers a 100% refund if not happy.  i think they are very different in design from the isopucks and should work much better.  I like my ears about 4" below the tweeter and here is something i copied from Stereophile:  Setup was relatively simple—as simple as manipulating a slippery, asymmetrical, 45"-tall, 91-lb object can be. I sited the CS3.7s 5' from the front wall and 21" from the sidewalls. I sat 91" away, with my ears about 4" below the tweeter axis. (Thiel says the ideal position is "at least 2" below the tweeter's axis.") I then screwed in the CS3.7's massive floor spikes. If you have small children or a large pet, Thiel offers "stabilizer" bars that outrig the spikes, giving the speakers a larger footprint.

anyway, are you saying you use the speakers directly on the floor with no feet at all.  never tried that but i would audition the GAIA feet.  
 

Speaking of tweaking did any of you 3.7 owners were able to order the latest crossovers that were available for the last 3.7s produced in 2013 and 2014 if i recall ?My pair is a 2010 model and when i asked my distributor if he could order the lastest crossovers in 2015 he told me Thiel didn't have them available anymore.

profgo for it! I have read about other Thiel owners using the Townsend speaker base(s) to good effect. Keep us posted on your efforts.
Happy Listening!