Best Isolation Device for Speakers?

Theaudiotweak...The natural period of swinging object (of any weight) on a chain as short as 40 inches is one second, not an audible frequency. The force exerted due to cone motion (its mass and air resistance) is a few ounces, and won't move a 100 pound speaker system enough to be detected. So the idea that the speakers will be swinging around wildly when they play is only believed by those who have never experimented with this setup.

Spikes, or other means of mechanically coupling the bottom panel of a speaker box to the floor may damp vibration of that bottom panel, but will do nothing for the front, back sides and top. Vibrational energy does not need to be "drained" like a fluid from the box. Damping material in and on the box absorbs the vibration which produces heat. The heat does indeed escape from the box, but you can't hear heat.

Sir you are mistaken. The back and forth motion of a 100lb speaker on a carpeted floor while reproducing music is greater than the total excursion of the tweeter in that very same speaker. So much for proper phase response and time alignment..And sound is like fluid. Unwanted energy needs an exit point..Tom

Tom,

I agree with you that one would like the speaker box to not move, and that the reaction force on a woofer (or other driver) motor/basket can be very large - many pounds. This force must be reacted by the cabinet and possibly the floor. But the cabinet is not only a mass at audio frequencies, but has stiffness and modes of vibration. While the cabinet-to-driver mass ratio can be perhaps 1000:1, the cabinet can still end up vibrating significantly at certain frequencies.

This is not a simple problem, and there is not one solution which is best for everyone. For me it did help a lot to "ground" my speakers on points to the floor - but isolation worked even better. I have a flexible wood floor. Perhaps you have a concrete floor?

Charlie

Charlie

Charlie you are correct. The cabinet is in motion and stores energy and that counteracts the motion of the drivers we only wish to hear. That is why I use the Sistrum stands under all my components as well as speakers. The designer makes claims that I agree with. That their products provide geometry and materials which expedite an speed to ground, resonant energy.. They made a huge performance gain in my system..Tom

Tom,

That is a good point about tweeter motion. This is why some speaker designs decouple the tweeter from the rest of the cabinet, rather than hard mount it to the front baffle.

Still, due to cabinet modes of vibration, even with base of cabinet "fixed" to floor, there could still be a lot of vibration of the tweeter (due to woofer-induced cabinet motion). We cannot guarantee that for all speakers, on all floors, that this product or that product will provide the best solution. Also, many times one thing gets better while another thing gets worse! That is what makes this hobby so interesting...

Cheers,

Charlie