Isolation Feet for Laptop


It seems fairly common knowledge that vibration is a form of distortion in many electric components, not just for turntables and speakers. Isolation feet seem to work well in most applications.

I searched around and I didn't find any information to suggest that folks are using isolation feet on laptops or desktops, despite increased streaming usage. In a great many cases, there are indeed heavy vibrations coming from within the computer.  Whether it is the fan for the CPU or even GPU to the all the various chips/transformers, etc or even power supplies and batteries. If adding isolation feet to a streamer, DAC or power supply makes sense, then wouldn't it also make sense to apply isolation feet to your laptop; if you use it for music?

Well, I am going to find out. :)

I ordered some IsoAcoustics Orea Series Audio Equipment Isolators with a max weight of 16 pounds. The laptop weighs about 6.7 pounds, so it shouldn't be that much strain, even with all the cables creating some measure of down force as they dangle over the edge.

My expectation is that the DAC will be able to perform slightly better due to reduced vibration across the USB port and power filter. The DAC is a USB stick (Dragonfly Cobalt) so it has a very rigid hard connection to the laptop; so vibration is very easily transferred.

Has anyone else tried this?

128x128guakus

OP, high end DACs, preamps, phono stages, CD players, and streamers are over 30 pounds each. Amps over 100 pounds.

Title of this thread like what happen to me tonight after I pick up Tokyo girl for week to help me find best tube and horn system in Japan.

I tried semisphere rubber feet by 3m beneath my laptop and found no difference before and after in terms of sound, at least to my ears. I have placed those under each speaker I own and the sound improvement are substantial in particular on low end. These feet were even recommended by the Wharfedale manufacturer and shipped along with the speakers for the convenience of owners. I therefore subsequently used them under my DAC, ifi zen blue, CD / SACD player and the power amp (large diameter/weight capacity). But, under laptop, no improvement can be discerned unfortunately in my case. This only think that really bothers me still is, like I mentioned earlier, the fan noise.

I really wish you, OP, luck in this journey and please report back your experience with Townshend Air Platform ($800?). I sincerely hope you will get your money worth. It is possible that $800 gear will do much better justice than the $10 proven tiny device.

@lanx0003 


Well, I am an explorer. I do some DIY, cheaply and sometimes I use manufactured items. Cost is what it is. I don't look at my audio and factor in how much each song is worth, as if there was some form of monetary savings to be had. For 30+ years, all I have ever heard is, "don't do that!" or "you can't do that!" and it wasn't because they tried and failed so we were learning from their experience.  It was because they didn't understand it and didn't want to understand it. I care nothing for such rules. 

The setup I am building is new. Very, very few have ever attempted such a setup and I don't blame them. I was told there would be no benefit using high end power cables for this setup.  They were very wrong.  I was told not to upgrade to more powerful power distributors, because there couldn't be a difference.  There indeed was. I was told not to bother upgrading my interconnects because my system couldn't possibly take advantage. Again, exceedingly wrong.  I was told building my own Earth ground boxes wouldn't work, yet it did.

So, forgive me if I no longer have faith in "you can't," "It won't work" and "You shouldn't."

With that said, you're right.  The isolation feet I was looking to get wouldn't be a good fit for what I want.  I have already invested in the Townshend platform (no, I didn't spend even close to $800; hundreds less) and Synergistic's Tranquility Basik. The Townshend will be the primary platform, then the Tranquility base will sit on that with the laptop resting on the Tranquility base. So in essence, the platform will handle any vibrations that would permeate the Tranquility base and the base will eliminate more EMI coming from within the laptop.

Whether it works is anyone's guess, but I am excited to find out.