Improve Your Loudspeakers Sound with this Tweak?

[gene]

I never thought that decoupling my loudspeakers from the floor would have such a profound impact on their sound. IsoAcoustics GAIA Isolators showed me otherwise and there is real science behind them which we will explore in this review. I tried the GAIA isolators on both of my reference systems featuring Revel Salon 2s and RBH Sound SVTR speakers. What I heard was nothing short of marvelous. Read on to find out why.

Read: IsoAcoustics GAIA Isolators Review

 

[Hetfield]

I do this with my bookshelf surround speakers and my SVS subs have isolation feet. When I had bookshelf speakers for main speakers I also decoupled. I swear by it but others says it's the "placebo effect". I gave up trying to convince anyone.

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[highfigh]

I never thought that decoupling my loudspeakers from the floor would have such a profound impact on their sound. IsoAcoustics GAIA Isolators showed me otherwise and there is real science behind them which we will explore in this review. I tried the GAIA isolators on both of my reference systems featuring Revel Salon 2s and RBH Sound SVTR speakers. What I heard was nothing short of marvelous. Read on to find out why.

View attachment 51609

Read: IsoAcoustics GAIA Isolators Review

Isn't your floor on a concrete slab?

 

[Replicant 7]

I've always isolated my speakers from the floor. A good isolation pad works great.

 

[AcuDefTechGuy]

I've always isolated my speakers from the floor. A good isolation pad works great.

Nice thick carpets over concrete/tiles are good enough for my seven RBH towers.

No way I would spend another $1K+ for that last bit of 1% sound.

Now if people have creaky wooden floors that are very prone to vibrations (instead of concrete + tile + thick carpet), I could maybe see the use of these.

 

[Replicant 7]

Nice thick carpets over concrete/tiles are good enough for my seven RBH towers.

No way I would spend another $1K+ for that last bit of 1% sound.

Now if people have creaky wooden floors that are very prone to vibrations (instead of concrete + tile + thick carpet), I could maybe see the use of these.

Same here, I live where the building is on 18-in concrete pillars. Wood floors, now haven't put the tower speakers I have now on an isolation platform. Only because of the way my speakers are designed, they're pretty much sitting on a platform of their own built in kind of. My Polk S60's have this power port thingy built-in at the bottom of the tower so they sit on top of a platform like, already. The feet that support the tower's have a nice rubber pad under each one, that keeps the tower's from sliding on the floor during high levels of volume which I rarely go to anymore anyways.

So, the actual speaker box is sitting on that built-in isolator, which in itself raises the speaker box 4 1/2 in off the floor also a 1/2 between the floor and the base of the platform thingy for a total of 5" off the floor. No boomy Bass!

 

[Pogre]

Price of entry is a thousand dollars? I dunno man, that seems like a lot of money for what they are.

 

[Hetfield]

Price of entry is a thousand dollars? I dunno man, that seems like a lot of money for what they are.

Yeah zero chance on that. I didn't see the price. I use the cheap stuff to isolate speakers. I thought Auralex was expensive but this is nuts.

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[Replicant 7]

Price of entry is a thousand dollars? I dunno man, that seems like a lot of money for what they are.

@Pogre hey you got those Umm speakers built by Dennis right? You have yours on pads or not? Just asking is all, have your ever post up photos of them?

 

[Pogre]

@Pogre hey you got those Umm speakers built by Dennis right? You have yours on pads or not? Just asking is all, have your ever post up photos of them?

Speakers built by Dave at Ascend Acoustics actually. Sierra ribbon towers and the Horizon center channel. I do have some pics floating around here somewhere...

And my newest nearfield toy.

I do have the center sitting on isolation pads now, but it's more to raise it up another 2" to get the tweet level with my towers than it is for isolation.

Stage Right by Monoprice Studio Monitor Speaker Isolation Pads (pair) - Monoprice.com

Acoustic treatment can be costly and intimidating, often leading to making rooms more "dead" without creating a good mixing environment. Studio monitor isolation pads are a different story.

www.monoprice.com

 

[Replicant 7]

Speakers built by Dave at Ascend Acoustics actually. Sierra ribbon towers and the Horizon center channel. I do have some pics floating around here somewhere...
View attachment 51613View attachment 51614

And my newest nearfield toy.

View attachment 51616

I do have the center sitting on isolation pads now, but it's more to raise it up another 2" to get the tweet level with my towers than it is for isolation.

Stage Right by Monoprice Studio Monitor Speaker Isolation Pads (pair) - Monoprice.com

Acoustic treatment can be costly and intimidating, often leading to making rooms more "dead" without creating a good mixing environment. Studio monitor isolation pads are a different story.

www.monoprice.com

Absolutely beautiful! Wish I was your friend and lived close. I would love to have a sit-down with your setup and watch Mad Max Fury Road on that setup with that Sub you got, gotta be phenomenal! Thanks brother for the pics very nice indeed!

PS, So you do have a built-in isolator, plus carpets, so no crazy bass booming cancellation thingy's.

 

[Hetfield]

Speakers built by Dave at Ascend Acoustics actually. Sierra ribbon towers and the Horizon center channel. I do have some pics floating around here somewhere...

View attachment 51613View attachment 51614

And my newest nearfield toy.

View attachment 51616

I do have the center sitting on isolation pads now, but it's more to raise it up another 2" to get the tweet level with my towers than it is for isolation.

Stage Right by Monoprice Studio Monitor Speaker Isolation Pads (pair) - Monoprice.com

Acoustic treatment can be costly and intimidating, often leading to making rooms more "dead" without creating a good mixing environment. Studio monitor isolation pads are a different story.

www.monoprice.com

I like that room, looks very spacious and good for a home theater. Ascend acoustics I have wanted for a very long time, Dave is a great guy.

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[Replicant 7]

I like that room, looks very spacious and good for a home theater. Ascend acoustics I have wanted for a very long time, Dave is a great guy.

Sent from my Pixel 4 XL using Tapatalk

Yeah, he does have it set-up nice, room for his L/R mains to breathe nothing jammed up. I've been eye-balling a pair of those for a long time. Anyone who knows anything of what a high-end set-up looks like can tell he's put a lot of time into setting it up right

 

[shadyJ]

Isn't your floor on a concrete slab?

Gene isn't the author of this article, he is just making a link to the article for the forum.

 

[Pogre]

Gene isn't the author of this article, he is just making a link to the article for the forum.

I figured that out but the SVTR towers and pics threw me a little bit. At first I thought it was Gene.

 

[beaRA]

I could see how zero impact on the anechoic response could be spun as a benefit. You'd have to show some impact on the in-room response for me to believe these do anything audible at all.

 

[Mark E. Long]

I use the SVS isolation feet on my subs and decent Dayton audio feet on my towers all this sits on there own independent sand filled custom risers. Overkill with out question dose it work for my rig yea it does . Sub risers weigh 80 lbs and set on there own isolation feet , the tower risers weigh 30 lbs and are on there own feet .side surrounds sit on sand filled 4 inch risers .

 

[Pogre]

Yeah, he does have it set-up nice, room for his L/R mains to breathe nothing jammed up. I've been eye-balling a pair of those for a long time. Anyone who knows anything of what a high-end set-up looks like can tell he's put a lot of time into setting it up right

I appreciate you noticing that. I really do put thought and effort into placement and positioning. Good speakers are only a part of the puzzle. I'm a firm believer that you have to optimize your room acoustics with good placement to get the most from your system.

I also have carpet over concrete so isolation never really even entered the equation for me.

 

[Mark E. Long]

I appreciate you noticing that. I really do put thought and effort into placement and positioning. Good speakers are only a part of the puzzle. I'm a firm believer that you have to optimize your room acoustics with good placement to get the most from your system.

I also have carpet over concrete so isolation never really even entered the equation for me.

It’s a well thought out killer system for sure we’ll done .

 

[bombadil]

I call BS and shame on Audioholics. Where are the blind listening tests? Any conflict of interest?