Stands for R200's

I'm thinking of buying and using R200's in lieu of my Fxi-A4's. Those of you who are have the R200's on stand mounts, what are you using? I can't find a speaker stand that supports the base of the R200 exactly. Perhaps I can mount them on the walls with something?

Comments

  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,346
    If you're using them as surrounds in an Atmos based system they should be placed somewhere at or a bit above ear height but not high up as the FX speakers were designed for. I like them to be a foot above seated position behind me so the speakers can clear the back of the couch. I bought one set of these stands a few years ago and bought another recently when I went to a 7.2.2 system because I like them a lot. They're solid. I think another forum member uses them too...

    https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B005QM6UE2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

    They are not an exact fit but I don't mind that.
  • @Emlyn, thank you so much for providing the link. Yes I am going to move the FXi-A4's down to above ear level. I'd been looking for stands on Amazon and the only ones I found (Rockville) are not in stock. These seem to be so , I'll look into them.
    I'd like your comments/advice on my setup:....

    My room is above the garage so about 50" straight at the sides and then sloping up to a flat ceiling about 8-10' in width. Room is 14'x23'. 77" TV with R700 mains, R400 center and R900's on wall (under the flat portion of the ceiling). The FX's will be rear surrounds. No sub at present so it's a 5.0.2.
    Couch is about 13' from TV. I am waiting for a 7 channel receiver - Yamaha Aventage RX-A4a. If I were to add side surrounds that would increase the cost considerably to a A6a and if I did that I'm just going to press into service some bookshelf speakers lying around, I have OWM3's(2 pairs) and a much older RM-3 bookshelves. How critical is it for the surrounds to match the others and for my listening area do you think 4 surrounds are needed?
    Also I see that you have those Maggies which I would love to have someday. I'm wondering if they would work well on the long side of the room. I can carve out a separate listening area for just stereo. I have 50" straight up and can bring them forward, but there will be a sloping wall above and that long wall.
    Thanks
  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,346
    I wouldn't be all that concerned with the surrounds matching. The main thing with Atmos though is it is aimed at being fully enveloping. Two rear surround speakers would be ok. Four would be better in most circumstances. The Atmos modules Polk now sells can be used front and rear.

    I would not recommend Magnepan speakers for home theater. They are low sensitivity and have limited dynamics. They only came to life once I was putting 350 watts per channel into them from a separate Parasound amp. For stereo music listening they're fantastic. Because they are dipole (front and rear) radiating they need a lot of room to sound best. To me in a 20 x 24 foot space they are even more enveloping than the Legend L800 speakers I have. You may find they work in your space well though.
  • I would be forced to put the Magnepans on the long side of the wall and sit opposite. Don't think that will work too well.
  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,708
    edited September 2021
    There are plenty of speaker stands out there, some good, some not. What height do you need?

    As for an exact top plate fit, that's not entirely necessary. As long as it's not a huge mismatch it'll be fine. Something important to keep in mind when looking at stands, they should be capable of being mass loaded and of either coming with spikes or capable of having them added.

    Stands should not be an afterthought as they are an integral part of the speaker's performance.
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."


    President of Club Polk

  • The Ultimate 45 inch stands that Emlyn linked to would be just above ear height. The base is 10 1/4" . The triangular shape of the FXi-a4 has 11 1/16 as its lonest dimension so that should be a good fit. They are capable of being mass loaded. Haven't done this before but I guess I should get a bag of play sand?
    You are right about the importance of picking the correct stands at the beginning. I have lost count on how many camera bags I have.
  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,346
    Camera bags! Same here.

    The stands I linked to have a split column. One side is for wires to go up and the other is for mass loading. I don't find them to be unstable and they are fairly heavy so I haven't bothered bother to mass load them. Play sand would be fine.

    These stands are really designed for use with studio monitors but I found the first pair I got to be high quality and just right for surround speaker duty. I have had LSiM702 and LSiM703 on them with no problems.

    The price seems to vary quite a bit. Check out Ebay too if you decide to go that route. I got my second pair from a musical supply vendor there.
  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,708
    edited September 2021
    A 45 inch tall stand will place the tweeters well above ear height. Typical ear height is 40" to 45".
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."


    President of Club Polk

  • Emlyn
    Emlyn Posts: 4,346
    There’s also a 36 inch height model if I remember right.
  • Yes there was a 36" and a 45". Their next higher series is about $120 more and features a customizable tilt top plate
    https://www.amazon.com/Ultimate-Support-MS-100B-Professional-Adjustable/dp/B005OWHATS/ref=dp_fod_3?pd_rd_i=B005OWHATS&th=1
  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,708
    You were looking for 36" Rockville stands? Well, here you go, in 3 different color choices.
    https://www.rockvilleaudio.com/rhtsc/

    The same or very similar stands are available from a number of sources. They're made by one company in China that makes slight appearance changes for their clients. All MDF construction with vinyl skin and with a hollow center for mass loading. Not the highest quality, but decent enough.
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."


    President of Club Polk

  • Hermitism
    Hermitism Posts: 4,192
    I was given a set of 36" Rockville stands with a set of F/XiA6 surrounds that I purchased. The seller was using them for his surrounds. They are MDF and can be mass loaded, BUT the top and bottom plates are held on by 4 wood screws. Just four wood screws that go into pre-drilled holes in MDF. I would not be comfortable loading them with anything heavier than sand. If you put shot inside of them, my fear would be that when you lift up the stands to move them, the screws could pull out of the MDF. Second problem with them is the spikes have tiny round balls on the ends of the spike tips, preventing them from penetrating the carpet. But other than that, they seem very stable and solid. I'd use them for surrounds, but not a 2-channel system. JMO.

    A picture from the ad when I purchased the speakers.
    80yi4xhoy58z.jpg
  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,708
    That's too much column to fill with shot. Sand would be plenty or you could do a mix with a little shot. Worried about the the base ripping off? It would be easy to reinforce the base with some glue blocks. Glue is always better than screws or nails. Agree about those faux spikes. Thankfully, there are plenty of real spikes available.
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."


    President of Club Polk

  • The Rockville's are back in stock at Amazon. They will stand on a laminate floor at present behind the couch. I may get a rug later to cover the speaker wire that will run to them. For the two tone 36" with my rewards credit it's 75 bucks delivered! The Ultimate stands will be nearly 5 times that.
  • Hermitism
    Hermitism Posts: 4,192
    I like the glue block idea.
  • Well I have the 36 inch Rockvilles now ,
    (1) I think it needs some loading in the central hollow column. I don't think one dumps sand in without enclosing it in something like a zip loc bag. Also I have read that you have to be wary of mold issues with what you load.
    Can anyone recommend a product they've bought and used? I could put some weight bags on the base (tacky)
    (2) the stands are great value but are missing appearance features such as an internal channel for wiring. Little foam pads with adhesive are provided for isolation for the top with the recommendation to stick them in the corners. That does not take into the fact that speaker base sizes vary.
    (3) OK for light surrounds which is what I'm using
  • pitdogg2
    pitdogg2 Posts: 24,475
    edited September 2021
    Well I poured my sand directly into my stands and tapped on the tube to settle until full. I'm not sure how you would get mold in there with desert dry sand? Honestly mine have had sand in them for going on 20+ years, I do not plan on dumping them out to check.

    My sand was out of a tube you would buy for a vehicle, play sand at the building materials stores are also available.
  • F1nut
    F1nut Posts: 49,708
    Dry sand = no mold.
    Internal channels are for those embarrassed by their speaker cables.
    Put the pads wherever the F you want.
    60 lbs. load capacity means you can put some heavy a$$ bookies on them.
    Political Correctness'.........defined

    "A doctrine fostered by a delusional, illogical minority and rabidly promoted by an unscrupulous mainstream media, which holds forth the proposition that it is entirely possible to pick up a t-u-r-d by the clean end."


    President of Club Polk

  • Thanks everyone, I really do appreciate this forum, nowhere else did I get such useful answers fast.
    I'll get play sand.
    I'm really not embarassed by speaker cables and mine are the no-name or monoprice name brand. My media room right now is a snakes nest of wires with cables running up the wall. I need to fix that.
  • Hermitism
    Hermitism Posts: 4,192
    If you are worried about mold due to moist sand, you can bake the sand in the oven on cookie sheets. This is done more so for metal stands and potential rust.
  • I am getting some dry sand so thanks for the comments.