Better sound

Using either sharp feet or vibration absorbing platforms essentially changes how vibration in the speaker cabinet is dissipated. An absorbing platform does not increase the shaking of the cabinet, rather, it conveys that energy into the platform and dissipates that energy as heat (from molecules in the elastic core rubbing against each other. Pointed feet direct that vibrational energy down into the flooring for dissipation by the flooring. If the flooring is very solid (e.g., concrete or hardwood on concrete), the energy is again dissipated as heat with very little radiation of sound from the flooring (because the flooring is very solid and massive it is hard to move, and therefore, does not readily vibrate). If that flooring is also covered by carpet, whatever sound is radiated is mostly absorbed by the carpet. If the flooring is wood on some kind of suspended structure, there is greater chance that the flooring itself will act as a kind of soundingboard and radiate sound. This could muddy the sound, or alternatively, it could add some warmth to the sound that is needed by the system.

Putting some sort of solid puck under sharp points to protect a hardwood floor actually prevents sharp-pointed feet from working fully as they are intended. The lack of intense pressure on a small point reduces the coupling of the footer to the floor so less energy is transferred to the floor. That means more energy reflected back toward the speaker, and therefore, more "shaking" than the use of no puck under the foot.

I don't know of any way to reliably predict whether one approach is better than another other, and instead, I rely on experimentation. Having helped with a lot of setups, I can only report that use of absorbing platforms is often the preferred approach (perhaps a little over 50% of the time).

"Interesting! How do you know the OP's ears are IN the, "vertical sweet spot?" How high is his listening seat? How tall is he? A speaker that was so beamy, in the vertical plane, that it could not remain accurate if raised or lowered by an inch or two, would be pointless. How many people do you know, that are exactly the same height? Just curious! Just saying....."

I do not know any of the particulars about his situation, or yours for that matter. But I can tell you that there is one vertical height at which his (and your) speakers sound their best. Once you experiment and find that position, you can either adjust them or you so that you achieve the best sound.

I am not talking about millimeters here. But if he is considering raising his speakers several inches off the floor, I don't think that is advisable.

Shakey

Hi Shakey- If he were thinking of raising them several inches, I'd have to agree(beyond already agreeing with your recommendation to experiment).

Hi Larry- Regarding, "better": Like I said in my first post; it's a matter of preference(completely subjective) and YMMV. By all means: experiment! If I had exposed hardwood; it would just have to suffer(a matter of priorities)! Metal under spikes is by no means optimum. BTW: Spikes are supposed to(theoretically) act as a sort of mechanical diode, allowing vibes to travel from their wider part, to their points(one direction), then into whatever they are atop("Mechanical Grounding"). Some substrates work better at that, than others(again: experimentation required). A different approach to vibration handling than the, "Energy Conservation" method of yours or the Stillpoints(converting motion into heat). Auralex is basically foam rubber, and would allow much more motion of the cabinet and drivers relative to one another(action/reaction) and to the listening position. It takes very little of that, to have a deleterious(to me, anyway) effect.