Babyproofing Stand-mounted speakers

Rives - If the lead were truly "sealed" inside of the stands, I would agree. Duct tape, on the other hand, is hardly a reasonable option. I'd rather risk a broken speaker or a physical injury than brain damage from a known toxic substance. I have 14 month old twins and a 4 year old and have used monitors almost exclusively since my first child was an infant. If you have heavy solid stands that can be filled (sand is nice and safe...cheap, too!) and have your speakers mounted (blu tack, screws, bolts, epoxy resin, whatever) they will be incredibly stable. I would recommend a pair of the Osiris stands that are being blown out by a couple of vendors here on AudiogoN. These are 42lbs each unfilled. Put some sand in them and you're up to about 65lbs. If you want more weight, you can buy some "Micro-Bearing" which is very fine steel pellets from Star Sound (http://www.audiopoints.com) and make them even heavier. Also, these stands have enormous brass cone feet which aren't the greatest for piercing carpet, but would be absolutely perfect on hardwood floors. Finally, I agree with what others have said about setting boundaries for your children and using the art of distraction to minimize temptations.

I don't mean to bring into question anybody's parenting skills, but Unsound seems to have the perspective that kids are incapable of being taught restraint, respect and just plain good behavior.

As I said, I have a four-year-old who grew up with my system and now have twins who are going through toddler-hood and there's never been an issue. Granted, I would not want my system to be a hazard to them - so the tube cage stays on, the speakers are bolted to their dedicated stands which are filled with sand, etc. To think that you'd have to "tether" everything to the walls as Unsound suggests would indicate that you've got some bigger issues to contend with than top-heavy speakers.

Furthermore, I'd really hate to think that it'll take "luck...and...a couple of years before they can be reliably taught to respect adult toys." Parenting should be more than protecting children from themselves and accomodating them to the point of allowing them to run our lives. There's a hierarchy in a family and children need to be lovingly taught where they fit in the family structure. And here's a hint...It's not at the top of the pyramid.

As I said, I don't mean to offend anyone, nor bring into question their parenting skills. I'm just trying to offer a bit of perspective based on my real-life experience(s).

You can have your system and responsibly raise your children, too. Now...whether or not you'll have the time to listen to it is another matter altogether ;>)