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what is the theory behind maple stands and racks?

I have not "heard" a maple amp stand or rack - using Billy Bags products now, which are made from steel and mdf - but don't grasp why maple would be a good material to use - quite the opposite. Maple is used for some electric guitars because it "rings" - it is very dense and causes notes to sustain, which is to say, it continues to vibrate for a long time. This would seem to be exactly the opposite of what one wants in a stand or a rack. If there is some claim that vibration is "drained away", well, if the rack is continuing to ring, that would likely cause acoustical feedback - the equipment isn't isolated from the thing it is sitting on. Can anyone who is not a vendor of these things explain the why of it, or relate positive experiences that seem to have a basis in fact?
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photonman
96 posts
 
Yo Guido,

I am not crazy about the idea of "plastic" platforms as wood has more of a romance to it. The advantage of the plastic is that I would only need a 1" plinth according to Eden whereas with the maple, 4" was recommended which wood really make my tower speakers TOWERS.

I have lots of Eden brass footers on my equipment and the guy is really great to work with as far as customizations go.

Goofy,
I saw a show about the Stradivarius violins and I vaguely remember what was the cause of the unique sound and how it has not been duplicated to date. Maybe it was something with the varnish? darn, now I will have to google it.
goofyfoot's avatar
goofyfoot
1,370 posts
 
Photonman, the old saying is that a violin maker will spend all day telling you about his/her varnish but won't talk to anyone about the grounds they use.
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
Hello Photonman, the problem of 4" of maple butcherblock under speakers is probably not going to be the maple.... 'Tis the darn 4 extra inches, which my raise the drivers too high for ideal listening... Why not experiment with some Terrastone footers first.... They should give you an idea of what the proprietary co-polymer does for living... compared with brass. G.
photonman
96 posts
 
Guido,
well, the vendor says the gains in sonic performance of the 4" maple vastly outweighs any effects of the increased driver height. As a compromise, I could do 2" plinths but they recommend 4" for tile/concrete floors.

as for trying out the polymer footers, did you see the prices of those things, that would be an experiment I cannot afford!

I do believe the platforms make a difference as I had my monitors on 2" maple and they sounded better than the stereo shop setup on the mfr stands and using better components than my rig.
guidocorona
4,298 posts
 
Hi Photonman, what is the source size, and pricing of the 4" maple platforms? Those things tend to be ghastly expensive as well.

Post the URL if you can.

Saluti, Guido
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