Survey on Cost of Loudspeakers Supported On Townshend Seismic Isolation Podiums

I would think that if you are spending big money on a high end speaker that they (or at least should) already come designed and built with isolation in mind.  I've gotta believe that my S/F Liliums come engineered to eliminate resonance and all that stuff. I could research it, but to busy enjoying the music to dabble in it.

PS: Love My Vinyl

I think your survey might lead you to the wrong conclusions…speaker isolation makes varying improvements depending on the flooring materials…also individuals who can afford expensive components also can afford expensive tweaks….

Somewhere on Richard Vandersteen’s site there’s a paper on the subject which echoes my own thoughts.

You want to minimize the contact area between the speaker and floor. You also want to secure the speaker from rocking against the force of the woofers. The motors are powerful, and the farther from the ground the easier time they’ll have moving the speaker back and forth and causing Doppler distortion.

This is why sometimes something as simple as adding significant weight to the top of a monitor will tighten up the bass.

Aerial LR5 - $11K inc. Sound Anchor Signature stands.  175 lbs each when mounted on the stands.  Decoupled using springs but not Townshend platforms.

I am curious why speaker cost has anything to do with it.  It is more about making your speakers and system sound their best.  The question becomes coupling (spikes) vs. decoupling (springs).  The two heavy hitters are probably Audiopoint (spikes) and Townshend (spring decoupling).  However, there are many types of springs that can be used for decoupling (such as elastomers). In addition to Townshend, common decouplers include Herbies, EVP, Gaia, common sorbothane footers, and more.

Here is an informative video from Townshend discussing their take on why using springs to support/decouple your speakers is a best option.  Here is another from Credo out of Switzerland, and here is one featuring Norman Varney from AV Room Services (i.e., the company that manufactures EVPs).

Finally, this doesn't need to cost a lot of money.  My Aerial LR5s and my similarly heavy SW12 subs are supported by regular springs such as formerly sold by Geoff Kait at Machina Dynamica.  I sized them from the weight of the speakers/stands and using the tool on the Century Spring website (which has changed and is not quite as specific as when I used it).  I damped the outside of each spring with thin, loosely applied heat shrink and provided holes to prevent air lock, not unlike the Townshend products, and ended up with virtually the same result.  The Townshend products are great for their adjustability and for speakers not already supported by heavy steel bases but some research along with trial and error could get you to the same place sonically using individual springs for a lot less money. 

A point raised but not answered: irrespective of speakers used, who has upgraded from Gaia feet to Townshend podiums (or bars), and with how much improvement? Gaias are designed to allow movement on one axis, but to arrest it on  the other.