Pierre over at Mapleshade really nailed it with his solution of using a maple/brass/elastomer sandwich under every component possible in both recording and playback. I recntly went through a period where I installed individual maple platforms under every one of my electronic components and external PSs. I now have 11 platforms in my 2 channel system and 3 in the HT rig. Every one is set up on genuine Mapleshade brand (or generic facsimile), as found used on Audiogon. Genuine mapleshade brass footers are used under many of my components, since there have been many used bargains on-line, but I also have some alternatives to play with such as Eden Stones, Bearclaws, herbies rollers and spikes and some BDR stuff. I have no genuine Mapleshade maple platforms, as my inner Scotsman will not allow me to pay those kinds of prices for a stinking piece of wood. fortunately, dawnsplatforms and Knife Merchant offer really beautiful alternatives at well under half the price.
What all 14 platforms have in common is that they share the Mapleshade 3 layer approach. That is because it really does work wonders. I sprinkled in 3 or 4 platforms at a time over months to allow me a lot of time to listen for changes and get a handle on the right component grounding layer to use by moving many of the footer, etc around. Unfortunately, due to height interference, I cannot put a platform under my Center channel without a major revision in TV placement, so major a project that I will only do it in future when my TV goes to plasma heaven. My 9" tall Infinity interlude speaker is on a 10" shelf, with the stand top and frame overhead. I did get a nice improvement by using stacks of Herbie's dots under it to take best advantage of the one inch I do have.
FWIW, I got the biggest improvement in my HT system with the smallest block. UPS screwed up my delivery and I only had the 15x15x3" block for under the ATT Uverse box for about 2 weeks until I could complete the upgrade. The improvement in sound and the TV were immediate, obvious, and put some fun back in the hobby for having won a round. My inner Scotsman sut up for a while after this. $25 for the isolation blocks, $40 for the maple block, and $50 for a used set of brass cones, 5 minutes of labor, and the improvement was like upgrading to a better TV and receiver.
