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Speaker Spikes - Working Principle

Vibration damping obvious makes sense (in speakers just as well as in cars). 

That involves 'killing' (converting into heat, through typically internal friction) kinetic energy. So any sort of elastic material (rubber has lots of internal friction) makes sense. 

And then there are spikes. Using a pointy hard object and pair it with a softer, elastic material (to deform, and kill kinetic energy) can work; think metal sharp spike into carpet or wood floor. 

But what is the idea behind pairing fairly unelastic metal (brass for example) with similarly unelastic (brass, stone, etc) material (example photo provided)? Only thing I can come up with: LOOKS good and makes owner feel good  thinking its an improvement (works only for Audiophiles though),

Even more curious: are they ENGINEERED "spikes" (vibration dampers or shock absorbers) for speakers that are TUNED for the frequency (and mass)  that needs to be dampened? Can piston style fluid dampers be designed for the high frequencies (100, 1000, 10000 Hz) using geometry, nozzles size and viscosity of the fluid?

 

kraftwerkturbo
scm
299 posts
 

A couple months ago I took the spikes off my Revel F52`s and put Loctite Fun-Tak strips under each corner.

The speakers are now firmly coupled to the ceramic tile floor.

I`m hearing better bass definition and a more musical midrange. 

curiousjim's avatar
curiousjim
4,177 posts
 

And don’t forget how cheap spikes are to make. I replaced mine with the Isoacoustics Gaia 1’s and there was a large and immediate change. The current price is $500 for a set, a heck of a lot more than a set of spikes!

kraftwerkturbo OP
310 posts
 

Another misconception: "depends on the spring rate and the mass": that is called a SWINGER for good reason. at resonance frequency, amplitude will be infinite. Try driving your car with spring only. 

That is were the DAMPER comes in. Now you have a system of spring, damper and mass, and can be tuned to KILL vibrations. 

This has NOTHING to do with the vibrations the emitted sound is producing ('will vibrate even if suspend the speaker in the air'). It has to do with the vibration the mass off the speaker is COUPLING to the floor (not those of the soundwave). 

 

motown-l
170 posts
 

My listening space is on a slab, covered with a vinyl laminate. My speaker stands are on elastomer feet, no spikes. Based on how the floor isn't suspended and concrete is pretty dead acoustically, not using spikes works in my environment.

kraftwerkturbo OP
310 posts
 

@yoyoyaya Spikes as level and holding device: no issue. But piece of sticky felt, folded paper (to level), stick on rubber would do the trick without punching holes in the carpet or floor, and complicated designs. 

Spikes have become another 'pixel dust' for audiphiles (considering that people spend $100 or more for some). Unless of course. they become ART: 

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