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Cheap/free tweak of the Magneplanar 1.7s, etc.

Reading up on some of the extensive tweaks--if not downright full rebuilds--of the Magneplanar 1.7s, it inspired me to try something really simple.

So, figuring the Maggies could use a bit more anchoring and stability, but not wanting to spend anything *just yet* I grabbed 16 volumes of my Encyclopaedia Britannica and put four volumes on each of the feet--two on each foot in the front and two more per foot in the back.

The results surprised me, matching (at least) the improvement you get from speakers sitting on the carpet vs. spiking them through the carpet to the floor underneath. There was a fuller-bodied presentation, a more organic and less disembodied presentation. It increased the sensation of bodies in the room making music. Imaging improved, and resolution of high-pitched percussion noticeably improved. Sounds of orchestral bells, the triangle, tambourine, etc. were easier to hear in large orchestral numbers.

There was more body to the bass, so much so that I turned my subwoofers off except for recordings that had significant sub-40Hz info.

If you have some relatively small heavy things lying around the house, place them on your Maggie feet and see what you hear.

Later today I intend to hit Home Depot for bricks or paver stones or thrift shops for old dumbbells or small free weights.
johnnyb53
johnnyb53 OP
3,510 posts
 
Sounds like a great suggestion. The 100-lb. bag is $8.47 at Home Depot. Do you have a recommendation for what sort of cloth or bag to use for rebagging? I want to make sure that the weave is tight enough that I don't have a silica dust problem in my listening room, and that it's strong enough that they won't split from the weight..

I take it that you suggest four 50-lb. bags, each positioned laterally to anchor a pair of feet while also damping the bottom of the frame?

Thanks for the tip. Do you use this with some Maggies? What results did you hear?
mktracy's avatar
mktracy
91 posts
 
I have MMG's and I placed a 12X12 paver on the legs after I got my MMG's straight vertical. Made a huge difference in the sound and imaging.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,821 posts
 
Yeah Johnny, four bags, one for the front and one for the rear of each speaker leg. That would take care of one speaker, so eight bags for a pair. You could make each bag 25 lbs, even. I used material that looked like felt on one side and velvet on the other. It was quite a few years ago, and I don't remember what it was called, but I got it at a fabric store. The results are just what you would expect: A little more focused sound, just like when you adjust the lens on a camera.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
9,821 posts
 
Let me add that the mass of the sand just stabilizes the panels, keeps them from swaying fore and aft. When I had stacked Quads, I put spikes on the tops of the stands I had made for them as well as the bottoms, and secured the spikes to the ceiling. If you have an 8 ft. ceiling, I highly recommend it for Maggies as well. Make a pair of braces to fit between the panel tops and your ceiling, with adjustable spikes on the top of the braces, to tighten into the ceiling. Now those panels ain't goin' nowhere!
labtec
189 posts
 
I did a similar thing a year or so ago after running warble tones through my system.

I noticed that the 1.7 speaker structure on one channel would slightly resonate at a certain frequency/volume level. I used some Bright Star 10 pound weights that were actually designed to go on top of source equipment/speakers. Magically, it worked on the 1.7 speaker feet too.

Alternatively, your best bet is to just get Mye stands for 1.7s.
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