DIY Speaker Stands

[DTRUTH]

Setting, WAF and appearance aside, what makes a good stand? That is, what are the must haves that you need to incorporate into the stand so as not to negatively affect the speaker's performance.

Obviously, it has to be able to support the weight of the speaker and from what I can tell, the least amount of contact with the floor the better. Is there anything else?

I have been looking for a pair of stands to elevate my M80s and so far I have found nothing acceptable on the net. I then started looking into the DIY arena and found some good ideas to work with. I noticed that most stands were either simple tripods or base platforms wtih PVC risers with a top platform. The latter would include spikes or pads as necessary with the riser filled with sand.

The temporary solution that I'm using right now is a pair of really old backless barstools. They have four legs with the base wider in diameter than the seat and are the perfect height. I covered the seat wtih a towel to protect the speaker and to provide a better contact patch. The more I thought about it, the more I wondered why I can't use these? To improve the appearance, I could simply throw a table skirt (hemmed appropriately), over the stools to mask their hideousness. The contact patch with the floor is minimized already with the four legs/feet. The only drawback that I can see is that the stool frame is made of metal and I have read that at certain frequencies the metal will resonate. Would this still be a concern?

Can anyone think of a reason why not to use these?

Thanks,
DTruth

 

[DTRUTH]

Anynone? Anyone? Bueller?

 

[edwelly]

if they work, I don't see any reason not to use them. I made my own as I couldn't find any I really liked for a price I could afford...

 

[DTRUTH]

Thanks Ed!

I really like what you did with yours. The bow on the front is cool.

It's kinda a funny. My wife is now encouraging me to make my own instead of hiding the stools. Go figure.

 

[edwelly]

thank you - sorry about the picture looking so crappy
I had a lot of fun building my own. The bow part was a lot easier than I thought it would be.
Here is a link that talks about building stands - might be more opf what you are looking for - http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/stubby_e.html

Please let me know if you decide to build your own. I would love to see pictures...

 

[Rip Van Woofer]

A speaker stand need merely be strong and stable, and hold the speaker at the correct height (usually, that means the tweeter at ear level). A stand will not otherwise affect the performance of a speaker. You need not worry about it "coupling" to the floor or about damping or any of that audiophile mythology. Spikes might make some sense on thick carpeting for stability but rubber feet will usually suffice for all floor surfaces.

If it looks good too, that's a big plus!

If you really want spikes, archery target points and their mating threaded inserts make good cheap ones.

That said, the PVC pipe stand shown on the TNT site is easy to build and effective. I don't buy the sand filling bit as far as having an audible effect but it does make it heavy and stable. I built a slight variation on it for my current speakers.

Ed, are those welded metal? I wish I'd learned welding. Very nice.

 

[edwelly]

Ed, are those welded metal? I wish I'd learned welding. Very nice.

No sir - just wood and glue... And I am with you, I would love to weild. I wish I had learned that skill as well.

 

[Reverberocket]

If the bar stools metal legs are hollow, I'd go to the trouble of filling them with sand. You can use epoxy glue to seal the legs up if you have to cut them to get inside. That should about eliminate any vibration problem as well as add a little stability.

Draping a cloth over them might pass WAF test. Another option might be to paint them.

 

[kay]

I built these a couple of weeks ago:





(Click for high res)

They are made from PVC tubes with diameter of ~3", height of about 30", sand-filled for stability. Cost me all of $40 in materials and a couple of hours in the garage

Inspired by this project:

http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/stubby_e.html

 

[edwelly]

Those looks really good!!!

 

[j_garcia]

The bottom base is too small, IMO.

These are $65/pr and are about as good as you are going to get under $100. They're steel with a nice wrinkle finish and hollow so they can easily be filled. Once in a while they go on sale for less than $50/pr.

I've designed dozens of stands; it's something I'd like to branch my small business out to include.

Check these out. A buddy of mine builds them for my speakers:

 

[Buckle-meister]

...what are the must haves that you need to incorporate into the stand...Obviously, it has to be able to support the weight of the speaker and from what I can tell, the least amount of contact with the floor the better. Is there anything else?

Yes; stability. Don't forget that most stands are tall and thin, and as a result easier to knock over. Make the stand's points of contact with the floor as far apart as you are prepared to accept. Having plinth supports orthogonal as opposed to triangular will be better from a stability point of view, though unlike the latter layout, 'rocking' of the plinth can occur if the supports are not levelled correctly.

Regards

 

[jaxvon]

I made my speaker stands with a large, square base (18" on a side). This helps them to be very stable. Add 4 spikes and you've got a great stand. While I don't have any pictures (yet), mine are made with 4" PVC pipe filled with sand. Each end is glued into a collar that is lag-screwed to a piece of 3/4" MDF. My original plan was to use 6" pipe, but I couldn't find any collars at Home Depot.

 

[DTRUTH]

Looks like I'll be building some stands and you guys have given me some great ideas. The more important thing though, is that this gives me an excuse to buy more power tools! (insert Tim 'The Toolman" Taylor growl here)

J_Garcia, you friend makes some nice stands!

 

[jaxvon]

If you're working with PVC pipe, a band saw is a GODSEND. Just be sure that you buy a big enough band saw to cut the pipe. It's really crappy when you have to turn it to get the whole thing to cut

 

[j_garcia]

J_Garcia, you friend makes some nice stands!

Yes, but they come with a nice price tag too though... Not cheap at around $300/pr, but they sure do look good, and they're hollow for sand filling as well and quite heavy even without filler. Those guys are MDF enclosures with nice, real wood veneer on the outside.

PVC with wood top & bottom, with the pipe about half filled with sand and some black or fleck spray should do nicely.