Stands, to couple, or not to couple, contradicting products and positive reviews


There are many practices/products intended to "couple" a stand-mount speaker cabinet to the floor of a room (spikes, adding mass to the stands via sand/shot, specific bolt-on stands for certain models, etc.).  Conversely, there foam speaker pads by Auralex and others, which are intended to de-couple or isolate the speaker from the stand, with rave reviews of audible sound improvement.  

So which is right, should I try to "connect" my speakers to the mass of my house, or do I want to "float" the speakers so they are free to resonate on their own?
waxhawfive
I’m getting a strong sense of deja vu here but recall, gentle readers, roller bearings in cups isolate in the horizontal plane AND the three rotational directions, you know, twist, rock and roll. 🕺 That’s why when roller bearings are used in conjunction with some nice springs hint hint you can isolate in ALL 6 DIRECTIONS.

geoff kait
machina dynamica
serving audiophiles’ isolation requirements since 1996
AMEN to all that chayro !It's both the fun and the agony of audio, cut and paste .
Yeah, esp. if you’re shooting blanks in the dark, right, Schubie? 😎
Roller bearings employed in conjunction with springs provide, as Geoff again correctly postulates, isolation approaching that of the much more expensive Minus K, Newport, Herzan, Vibraplane, etc. platforms.