Anyone ever use granite for...

fishbones

...isolation under speakers for carpeted floor? Or any other type of isolation?

I have a carpeted floor over wood (2nd floor). It's 30 yrs old and getting creaky. Because of this it's somewhat difficult to get speakers level because of old wood base underneath and I've seen some folks doing granite slabs as bases under speakers. I'm wondering how the sound might compare to using the spiked feet like I've been doing (through the carpet)?

EndersShadow

I have seen folks use big pieces of tile under their subs with decent results. I would assume the same would be true of speakers......

dorokusai

fishbones wrote: »

...isolation under speakers for carpeted floor? Or any other type of isolation?

I have a carpeted floor over wood (2nd floor). It's 30 yrs old and getting creaky. Because of this it's somewhat difficult to get speakers level because of old wood base underneath and I've seen some folks doing granite slabs as bases under speakers. I'm wondering how the sound might compare to using the spiked feet like I've been doing (through the carpet)?

I've used granite above and below subwoofers and bags of shot for floor standers and stand mounted loudspeakers....all with benefits large and mostly small. Spikes have been the most consistent in regards to sonic changes.

newrival

EndersShadow wrote: »

I have seen folks use big pieces of tile under their subs with decent results. I would assume the same would be true of speakers......

O put a big piece of granite ON TOP f my old sub. it was downward firing and would try to take off with every explosion! :biggrin:

PSOVLSK

I have my LSi 15's spiked on an 18x18 piece of tile. Don't know that it was really an improvement over having them on the carpet, but it makes me think I'm getting last bit of performance out of them

gdb

They used to sell smooth round stones to the looney boys for placing on top of components. I have some audiophile grade concrete blocks for sale at extremely reasonable pricing, although, shipping can be costly.
Threaded spikes are what I'd use on your type of floor.


http://www.shakti-innovations.com/audiovideo.htm

http://www.stereophile.com/content/coconut-audio-vibraportal-stone-clarity-1

F1nut

MillerLiteScott uses something under his speakers, I believe it is granite. Drop him a PM.

TroyD

I've had better results with spikes than anything on top of carpet. YMMV.

BDT

Face

Another vote for spikes.

grimmace19

I have slabs of 1" granite under each of my subwoofers. I got them for free from a friend who works in the business. After putting some rubber feet to help them dig into the carpet evenly the subs sounded much better. A downward firing sub on thick carpet just wasn't doing it for me but the granite helped a lot. Now that I have my fathom 112 on the way and will be moving the klipsch's out, I plan to put the slabs underneath my LSI's to see if there is any improvement. With everything else equal at least they look very nice.

tonyb

I have carpet over concrete and used granite under the SRT's when I had them. You would think such a heavy speaker wouldn't benefit but it did tighten up the low end a bit.

Joe08867

Prefer spikes of something underneath speaker.

steveinaz

My spiked monitor stands are on 18" x 18" tiles, which sit on the carpet. See my showcase.

nooshinjohn

tonyb wrote: »

I have carpet over concrete and used granite under the SRT's when I had them. You would think such a heavy speaker wouldn't benefit but it did tighten up the low end a bit.

What possessed you to give up a set of SRT's!:eek:

dorokusai

Mine have been sitting in a closet for almost 2 years.

BlueFox

Maple platforms under the speakers are the way to go. I use two 4" maple platforms with brass carpet spikes. As soon as I put the speakers on these platforms the sound became much clearer.

"Mounting your speakers on good stands will dramatically improve their sound. Our air-dried maple stands offer much warmer, clearer, punchier and more detailed sound than granite, slate, glass (the worst), myrtle or exotic hardwoods, or any of the hi-tech damped composites. Adding brass footers to drain vibration out of your speakers into the maple stand doubles the good effect."

http://shop.mapleshadestore.com/Speaker-Stands/departments/60/

Gadabout

I have carpet over a cement slab. I tried tile under the spiked floor standers and sub. I couldn't tell much of a difference on the floor standers but the tile is still under the down firing sub. It seemed to tighten up the base a bit in the HT system.

Never tried granite. Really didn't consider it because of the cement slab. In your case the granite might be better.

Scott

faster100

dorokusai wrote: »

Mine have been sitting in a closet for almost 2 years.

you must have some very large closets :biggrin: lots O speakers and gear stuffed away

MillerLiteScott

I use 3 spikes under my speakers on 2" thick bluestone for a while just sitting on the carpet over a concrete slab for a while.

I built some 3 1/4" thick laminated maple blocks out of 1X4 maple I bought at home depot. Each block is 16 pieces of 1X4 maple glued together. I spiked the maple blocks (3 spikes) and leveled them through the carpet over a concrete slab and set my speakers with 3 spikes on top of the maple blocks. I tried the same thing with the bluestone but to my ears and in my room it sounded better with the maple. The midrange was better to my ear. I have yet to try just setting my spiked speakers on the carpet over concrete.

All of this was derived from the Mapleshade solid blocks that I could not afford. In his cataloge (Piere ? of Mapleshade) also says that the concrete slab saps/or drains energy out of your speakers. I have noticed that you do not feel bass as much in the floor of my room but you feel it in your body and in the furniture which leads me to believe in his claim I guess. Also note that Mapleshade sells Amish crafted solid maple blocks VS. my laminated blocks.

I do have my Dreadknaught (sp) sitting on a piece of the 2" thick bluestone but I do not think that would have any effect on sound.

gdb

Lots of places to get thick maple besides mapleshady.

http://www.irawoods.com/John-Boos-B12S-Mini-Butcher-Block?sc=2&category=48857

BlueFox

BlueFox wrote: »

Maple platforms under the speakers are the way to go. I use two 4" maple platforms with brass carpet spikes. As soon as I put the speakers on these platforms the sound became much clearer.

I should have included a picture.

gdb

Wow , that's a seriously dark stain/dye color on your pedestals, very nice looking.

heiney9

My brother uses 3/4" thick granite slabs on herbies vibration pucks on the wood floors in his music room for his BAT VK60 mono block amps. Works very well.

H9

tonyb

nooshinjohn wrote: »

What possessed you to give up a set of SRT's!:eek:

Well, they are the Godzilla of HT for sure,but I felt they lacked in the musical department. Since I use one system for both,it was time to move on. I must say though, with the SRT's upfront,and the 3000p's in the rear, fx1000 surrounds, it was pretty awesome for watching movies. But as always,nature takes it's coarse, and music became number 1 over HT.

BlueFox

gdb wrote: »

Wow , that's a seriously dark stain/dye color on your pedestals, very nice looking.

Thanks. Rosewood to match the speaker color. Now to get Polk to offer rosewood on the new LSis. :biggrin:

ohskigod

Spikes on carpet coupling the speaker to the floor is the best option in my experience....though if you get wierd vibration issues, particularly from a squeeky floor, the Granite option is fine. some might argue granite might be overkill and any heavy stone or tile would do, there is a strong argument for that. I used granite for aspell because i got it real cheap. worked great with the LSi's

Jstas

I think granite is a bit excessive and really only brings aesthetic value. If you want pretty, go with granite. You can find cheaper chunks of stone like quartz, siltstone, soapstone or marble that will do the same thing and not break your bank account.

However, the benefit to the granite...well, any stone, is that it brings mass and you can get that a number of ways.

I have seen platforms done real nice like what BlueFox has posted. But, they are hollow and can be filled with sand or lead shot. That is probably a better way to go than granite because you can get much more mass that way than just buying stone. Plus, I think the wooden platform looks much nicer and like it's planned and not, like, an afterthought. It's a detail that pays off if you pay it some attention.

Another, cheaper way is to go get pavers from the home improvement store. Wait, listen before you dismiss this. Yeah, they aren't as dense as stone but honestly, stone is over kill and so is lead shot. doro already said he's see minimal improvements with all this and honestly, so have I. The only time I've seen real benefits are with subs which have the mass and energy to move things around. Towers and bookshelves on stands typically don't. Besides, all you want is something that's not going to vibrate and patio pavers being made from cement or compressed particulate won't vibrate.

Anyway, what I have seen done is a paver, painted. Not just any paint. What you want to do is get these pavers in a style or size you like/need. If you can't find a pattern you like, you just turn them upside down for the flat surface on the bottom. If there is molding flash on them, grab an angle grinder or rent one and knock down the edges. You could probably do it with a beat up old file too but you risk taking chunks out of it instead of just cleaning it up a bit. Go slow so you don't destroy them but just cut down the hard corners. Then get yourself some masonry primer. You could probably do it with the paint too but the primer will allow other materials and finishes to bond, not just masonry paint. Once you get a couple coats of the primer on, you should be able to paint it with a sealer and then cover it in any color you want, even gloss black for that lacquered, piano black look. I've found that something like Krylon or Rustoleum works best and comes in a variety of colors and finishes. Enough so that you can match a decor or get a certain look that you want easily enough.

I realize that it is not ideal and most here will scoff at it but if you're low on cash and can't afford a couple slabs of granite at a couple hundred bucks, $45 for pavers and some finishing material is a much easier expense to swallow. Give it a bit of effort and some patience to make it look nice and in most cases, nobody will even give it a second thought except maybe to ask what you did there.

There are other ways to do it too. I had my pair of KLH 17's on a bookshelf in my room when I was still living with my parents. Thing is they would vibrate the wall and be a nuisance to everyone else in the house. So I took pine in like 1x8 inch boards and cut them down to fit the foot print of the KLH's. Then I took 1" quarter round and cut it down to make a 1" deep border around the top edge of the boards. I glue and nailed it in place and then sanded the whole thing nice and pretty. Cleaned it up and stained it a nice dark, traditional/antique cherry color. Then I shot it with some rattle can clear coat. I filled the trays I made with builders sand. I usually use that instead of salt on the driveway for traction when it snows so I had it sitting around. You can get it from Home Depot or Lowes though. Well, I put those sand filled trays on the shelf where the KLH's were and plopped the KLH's on top, right in the sand. It worked pretty well to isolate but I ended up putting rubber feet on the bottoms of the trays too and that total set up cut vibrations by at least 90%. I had to really be cranking on the tunes to get anything vibrate but at that point, even the neighbors could hear the music so vibrations were a moot point.

There's all kinds of ways to do it, man. Put you're thinkin' toque on and get creative!

samnor

A real cheap way is to get some mdf boards 1/2" or so (you can get them at home depot), couple them together and wrap them around with a cheap throw rug. After seeing how expensive those auralex gamma subdude platforms were, I used my diy "platform" under my sub and its pretty decent.

nooshinjohn

tonyb wrote: »

Well, they are the Godzilla of HT for sure,but I felt they lacked in the musical department. Since I use one system for both,it was time to move on. I must say though, with the SRT's upfront,and the 3000p's in the rear, fx1000 surrounds, it was pretty awesome for watching movies. But as always,nature takes it's coarse, and music became number 1 over HT.

I think I would have found a way to split the systems, but that may not always be practical. One thing is certain, SRT's would be with me forever, including to the grave.:cool:

fishbones

I've learned some good stuff here guys, thank you. Interesting to see the different experiences people have. I thought of granite originally after seeing a few systems on A'gon with it - thinking it might be a solution to my somewhat uneven squeaky wood floor. Seems like something (whether stone, granite or whatever) that has some weight to it to help counteract the vibrations that could be occuring through the old floors, and to help keep the drivers firing at a equal angles by being more level would be worth looking into for me when I get setup with the new speakers. We have a few granite and poured-stone formation shops around here, so I should be able to find something reasonable from their scraps.