Vibration isolation or absorption?

@emergingsoul 

I view this as 'points vs squishies'.

Points are used to move vibration into the mass to which the point is pointed. This is an old principle- I had an LP mastering lathe made about 1950. Its anti-vibration stand used adjustable points for feet.

Squishies are used to isolate- this is to prevent vibration from something else (like a shelf) from entering a piece of equipment (like a turntable). 

Platforms are supposed to be good at vibration absorption so usually the equipment placed on them has points that bear on the platform's surface. But it might have squishies beneath it to isolate it from a vibrating shelf or the like.

Speakers are supposed to be kept still so its common to see them use pointy feet.

Springs! Dampen Springs work the best

I have spikes under all of my floor mounted speakers into a concrete slab subfloor. Under my center channel speaker, I use springs which sit on my central equipment rack. You can find them on Amazon for around $30/set. These bettered other anti-vibration products I’ve tried for more money. I also tried spikes into the bases which did little to nothing for me. Things I listened for when experimenting were: less bloat/chestiness, clearer vocals (especially sibilants) and better localization of sounds.

It seems counterintuitive to have wobbly speakers on springs. However, I converted from spikes to springs a while back. Between speaker and stand. Stand remains spiked to concrete. Really cleaned the sound and opened up the imaging.

@audiom3 Im very interested in the springs you mentioned.  Can you provide the link so I can find them?  Thanks!

I would say, though, that the most universally-praised tweak I’ve ever heard of are the Townshend Seismic isolation products that are based on springs, hence my interest in the cheaper springs above as the Seismic products are not cheap.  But, without exception, the reviews and customer feedback I’ve read on all Seismic products have been exuberantly positive in every application (speakers, components, equipment stands, etc.) — something I’ve very rarely found with tweaks.

https://www.townshendaudio.com/hi-fi-home-cinema-equipment-vibration-isolation/