1C's and speaker spikes

Pycroft
Pycroft Posts: 1,961
edited December 2009 in Vintage Speakers
Hi all...

I am picking up my SDA 1C's on Friday (So excited). The bottoms on some are missing, causing them to be unbalanced. Someone suggested getting speaker spikes. My question is, would I have to do any drilling to insert them, or are there pre-cut holes for adding spikes on the 1C's? If so, what size do I have to get? Any recommendations? The cheaper the better :)

James
2 Channel/HT:
Sony SS-M9 P's (ES version)
Sony SS-M1CN Center Channel
Polk RT800 Surround Speakers
Odyssey Stratos Dual Mono Amplifiers
TAD 150 Signature Tube Preamp
Harman Kardon HK354
Sony SACD Player
Post edited by Pycroft on
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  • thsmith
    thsmith Posts: 6,082
    edited December 2009
    Not the cheapest but probably the best are myesound.com myespikes.

    Here's a link on my install.

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/show...ght=sda+spikes
    Speakers: SDA-1C (most all the goodies)
    Preamp: Joule Electra LA-150 MKII SE
    Amp: Wright WPA 50-50 EAT KT88s
    Analog: Marantz TT-15S1 MBS Glider SL| Wright WPP100C Amperex BB 6er5 and 7316 & WPM-100 SUT
    Digital: Mac mini 2.3GHz dual-core i5 8g RAM 1.5 TB HDD Music Server Amarra (memory play) - USB - W4S DAC 2
    Cables: Mits S3 IC and Spk cables| PS Audio PCs
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  • Disc Jockey
    Disc Jockey Posts: 1,013
    edited December 2009
    There's also a thread over in the DIY section that might have a little info for you: http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=90327
    "The secret of happiness is freedom. The secret of freedom is courage." Thucydides
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  • kcoc321
    kcoc321 Posts: 1,788
    edited December 2009
    When you say "bottoms on some are missing" what exactly do you mean?
    If there are actual parts of the cabinet missing, I would replace them as well as 'beefing up'/ reinforcing the bottoms, before adding spikes.

    Some pics would be helpful...
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  • Conradicles
    Conradicles Posts: 6,343
    edited December 2009
    Pycroft wrote: »
    My question is, would I have to do any drilling to insert them, or are there pre-cut holes for adding spikes on the 1C's

    You will have to drill holes. Follow the thread thsmith referred to as he did a great job. You can use the cheap spikes from Parts Express for now (get the ones with 1/4-20 threads) and that way in the future your inserts will be in the speaker bases and you can upgrade to better spikes if you so desire.

    That is what I did, but I used Polk factory spikes given to me by a gracious forum member for free.
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  • thsmith
    thsmith Posts: 6,082
    edited December 2009
    This link should work better.

    http://www.polkaudio.com/forums/showthread.php?t=82792&highlight=spike
    Speakers: SDA-1C (most all the goodies)
    Preamp: Joule Electra LA-150 MKII SE
    Amp: Wright WPA 50-50 EAT KT88s
    Analog: Marantz TT-15S1 MBS Glider SL| Wright WPP100C Amperex BB 6er5 and 7316 & WPM-100 SUT
    Digital: Mac mini 2.3GHz dual-core i5 8g RAM 1.5 TB HDD Music Server Amarra (memory play) - USB - W4S DAC 2
    Cables: Mits S3 IC and Spk cables| PS Audio PCs
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  • billbillw
    billbillw Posts: 7,547
    edited December 2009
    I recommend calling Madisound or Parts Express to find out how big the hole has to be for the T-nut. The wood on those 1C bases is not very thick. I'm guessing its only 1/2" particle board. If the recommended hole is bigger than 3/8", you will probably not be able to use normal spike kits.

    My idea for the base of the 1C Studio was to remove off the square base and replace it with two pieces of flat 3/4" MDF that are sandwiched together (glued and screwed). Round the corners and bottom edges a bit, then Primer and spray pain them black, then screw to the bottom of the cabinet and mount the spikes into the new base.

    I had this idea, but haven't had time to implement it yet on mine. Two kids keep my audio projects subdued...
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  • thsmith
    thsmith Posts: 6,082
    edited December 2009
    Actually the bottems of mine were oak but studios probably are MDF.

    I was able to have 1/16" before drilling through on my oaks to fit the T-nuts. I used a drill that had 1/16" pilot point as described in the link above.

    Not sure which 1Cs the OP has.
    Speakers: SDA-1C (most all the goodies)
    Preamp: Joule Electra LA-150 MKII SE
    Amp: Wright WPA 50-50 EAT KT88s
    Analog: Marantz TT-15S1 MBS Glider SL| Wright WPP100C Amperex BB 6er5 and 7316 & WPM-100 SUT
    Digital: Mac mini 2.3GHz dual-core i5 8g RAM 1.5 TB HDD Music Server Amarra (memory play) - USB - W4S DAC 2
    Cables: Mits S3 IC and Spk cables| PS Audio PCs
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  • vlam
    vlam Posts: 282
    edited December 2009
    My idea for the base of the 1C Studio was to remove off the square base and replace it with two pieces of flat 3/4" MDF that are sandwiched together (glued and screwed). Round the corners and bottom edges a bit, then Primer and spray pain them black, then screw to the bottom of the cabinet and mount the spikes into the new base.

    That's something similiar I had in mind when I first saw the base. I was going to suggest something like this to James when he pick up the speaker. A piece of 1x3 pine board may work better than the particle board.
    Main Gear
    Panasonic 50" Plasma, Polk LSi15 (Front), LSiC, LSi7 (Rear), Sherwood Newcastle AVP-9080, AM-9080 bi-amp to LSi15, AM-9080 bi-amp to LSiC and LSi7.
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  • billbillw
    billbillw Posts: 7,547
    edited December 2009
    thsmith wrote: »
    Actually the bottems of mine were oak but studios probably are MDF.

    I was able to have 1/16" before drilling through on my oaks to fit the T-nuts. I used a drill that had 1/16" pilot point as described in the link above.

    Not sure which 1Cs the OP has.

    Yeah, the studios are totally different design. The base is not a slab, its an open box. The MDF is on 'edge' with little slider feet nailed in. Its not the depth, but the width of the MDF that is the problem. That is why I think most spike kits will be a problem to install without modifying the base to a slab type.
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  • thsmith
    thsmith Posts: 6,082
    edited December 2009
    billbillw wrote: »
    Yeah, the studios are totally different design. The base is not a slab, its an open box. The MDF is on 'edge' with little slider feet nailed in. Its not the depth, but the width of the MDF that is the problem. That is why I think most spike kits will be a problem to install without modifying the base to a slab type.

    Gotcha you, makes sense. I sold my studios and do not recall how the bottom was configured.
    Speakers: SDA-1C (most all the goodies)
    Preamp: Joule Electra LA-150 MKII SE
    Amp: Wright WPA 50-50 EAT KT88s
    Analog: Marantz TT-15S1 MBS Glider SL| Wright WPP100C Amperex BB 6er5 and 7316 & WPM-100 SUT
    Digital: Mac mini 2.3GHz dual-core i5 8g RAM 1.5 TB HDD Music Server Amarra (memory play) - USB - W4S DAC 2
    Cables: Mits S3 IC and Spk cables| PS Audio PCs
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  • Pycroft
    Pycroft Posts: 1,961
    edited December 2009
    I do NOT have the 1C's yet, but was told they are the studio version. I was told by the seller that there were some kind of feet (I thought he said rubber) and that some were missing. Vlam, who picked them up for me, awaiting payment, said the speakers are lopsided because of it.

    I guess I'll just wait until tomorrow evening when I get them, snap some pictures and post them.

    Thanks,

    James
    2 Channel/HT:
    Sony SS-M9 P's (ES version)
    Sony SS-M1CN Center Channel
    Polk RT800 Surround Speakers
    Odyssey Stratos Dual Mono Amplifiers
    TAD 150 Signature Tube Preamp
    Harman Kardon HK354
    Sony SACD Player
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  • kcoc321
    kcoc321 Posts: 1,788
    edited December 2009
    Here is a sketch on how to brace up the legs to put spikes in solidly. Pretty easy to do and you would never have to worry about them.
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  • billbillw
    billbillw Posts: 7,547
    edited December 2009
    kcoc321 wrote: »
    Here is a sketch on how to brace up the legs to put spikes in solidly. Pretty easy to do and you would never have to worry about them.

    That's a nice idea, but the studio bases are in-set about 1inch from the outer edges of the cabinet. I think having the spikes further toward the inside would make them even more tippy. The studios are not the most stable speakers to start with.

    Pycroft, the 1C studio don't really have feet. They have those little hard plastic slider pucks that you see on furniture sometimes. Very thin little suckers that are just there for placing on hard floors. If you put them on carpet, you might not even notice the absence of one or two.
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  • kcoc321
    kcoc321 Posts: 1,788
    edited December 2009
    Hmm, maybe there are different version of the SDA-IC studio?? Or the ones in the "polksda" pic has had the base removed already? From the pictures, they look pretty smooth to me, but I am just going via pictures on PolkSDA.
    http://www.polksda.com/sda1c-studio.shtml

    Maybe your's look more like the SDA-1B's? (from the Polk brochure)
    attachment.php?attachmentid=45162&stc=1&d=1261117749

    In which case I would do the MDF plates like suggested above ^^ or add some trim around the "kick-board" area to make them less 'tippy'

    We'll see what James's look like
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  • billbillw
    billbillw Posts: 7,547
    edited December 2009
    They are just like the 1B. If you look closely at the pix on polksda, you can see the edge of the base is smaller, but its hard to make out because of the angle.
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  • Pycroft
    Pycroft Posts: 1,961
    edited December 2009
    So...I got my 1C's on Friday but just brought them in and left for the weekend. Have them hooked up and WOW (Will post a thread tonight or tomorrow with pictures. Thanks for the tips, but I think the boards underneath will not support any kind of spikes...just too flimsy, and the cosmetic conditions of the speakers are not great by any stretch of the imagination (You will see). I may look into sitting them on something, like someone suggested they sit there's on a slab of marble and it helped their situation. Just thought I'd update.

    James
    2 Channel/HT:
    Sony SS-M9 P's (ES version)
    Sony SS-M1CN Center Channel
    Polk RT800 Surround Speakers
    Odyssey Stratos Dual Mono Amplifiers
    TAD 150 Signature Tube Preamp
    Harman Kardon HK354
    Sony SACD Player
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