I am putting together a tube system and need a racking system for two turntables, and 5 tube components (pramp, 2 monoblocks, phono preamp, and cd player)and surge prtector. The only thing I know about racks is they come in a lot of flavors and can be very expensive. With tubes, they will more than likely have to be adjustable. I have two svelte shelves and two amp stands, 3 X 3 still points, 1 X 3 roller blocks and 1 X 3 roller block jr. that I am using with my current system on a wood entertainment system. Reading forums and threads has left me confused. I am open for comments and suggestions. Thank you.
I have a Salamander 2.0 with a tube amp on it off to the side, and a 5.0 with a tube preamp, tube tuner cd player power supply with a line conditioner. The shelves are infinitly adjustable and open all around to let your equipment stay cool. Get the one with the 5/8" rods instead of the 3/8". You can also get casters for them too.Google thesimpletvstandstore they have some on sale. Or Salamanderdesign.com Good luck
Mapleshade racks is what I want to own. I have one Mapleshade platform which I like. I love the looks and the solid construction. There are many favorable comments on the positive sonics of these racks. I would stay away from any rack that supposedly kills vibrations.
Another important consideration for your rack, especially with tubes involved, is that there is plenty of air circulation, so you should go with an open rack. I really like the Sanus Natural Foundations rack I bought, but it is not adjustable, if that is a requirement for you.
Check out AuidiAV, I have their Crystal rack and the thing is sick strong and solid as hell. I looked for a rack for a long time and these guys really outdo themselves! The customer support is off the charts and the product is to die for.
Best to keep the racks completely open. Also, make plans to use some laptop coolers to keep the tubes 'cool'. Laptops coolers are a very inexpensive way to do the cooling. Their fans are very quite. There are many UBS free standing hubs that can be used to power them, no actual laptop needed as they work on a wall wart. I use two Atlantis racks, with the TT's on the top shelve which is spiked. The tops are 46 inches off the floor, with three shelves in addition to the top shelve. The stands are on the side wall.
You want an open air rack, solid shelves, infinite adjustability, and good looks too. Look at Mapleshade before making a decision.
The only test on rack/sound is a comparison to the gear you are using now. I had a Sanus rack with adjustable MFD shelves in an enclosed structure with a door I didn't use. My Krell KSA 200S (about 112lbs) I had at the time broke the strongest bottom shelf pins. I'm sure the Natural Foundations rack is a good one. I bought the Mapleshade, installed the rack and gear and the sound was better. I feel like I received good value and a great product.
Find something that works for you that's really cheap! Then as time and money allow (if this is not an issue then disregard); spend the outrageous money on a "hi-fi" rack. Droppin' 1K-3K for a rack is redonkulous IMO.
Racks are the final touch(es)/tweak(s) for me. Wait until you're at that point in you system building process. I've had a few over the years I've put my gear on that made no difference to sound quality to my ears in my room etc....
11flat6, my current racks are a Polycrystal and Deluxe Roomtunes. I was all excited when I purchased the Polycrystal since it had received so many positive reviews in S-phile and were in many reviewers systems. I moved all the best gear over to my new rack and imagine my dismay when the result sucked. I had to switch everything back again. The Polycrystal sounds dull and sucks the life out of tube gear in particular. I cannot place any component on that rack without some additional interface. Otherwise the sound is degraded.
The roomtunes was a step up from the previous rack which was a Standesign rack which had a cantilevered metal frame with wood inserts. The sound gained solidity and structure and lost some of the brightness it had before. The Roomtunes rack is fairly neutral but does suppress harmonics.
I've done considerable long term experiments with different platform materials (MDF, oak, cherry, butcherblock, maple) plus different footers (spikes in brass, aluminum, ceramic, steel) soft footers like Herbies, vibrapods, and others. The best overall balance and life is with the Mapleshade platform with brass spikes.
My priorities may be different than yours. Based on my experiments and sonic preference, I wish to avoid a rack that is overdamped. The rack needs to have a natural sound to it.
It's funny when I see photos of an amp designer in his lab and his amp is on the "test bench" which usually looks like a formica covered slab of plywood/MDF with legs of unknown composition or structure. Maybe something like that is the ultimate rack.
I also have a lot of gear. I bought a VTI TV stand, with an extra shelf. It is double wide, so there are a total of four shelves (eight component spaces), plus the top. It is wide enough for a pair of turntables unless the plinths are very over-sized. There are two shelf hieghts, and you can pick which order to assemble them in. The taller shelf spaces should accomodate most tube gear. A really big amp with exterior tubes should probably have a dedicated stand anyway.
Here is a link to a 3-shelf version of what I bought: http://www.audio-video-furniture.com/nobot/VTI-AR503-07-Additional-7-in-Shelf-for-AR503.htm
Note the low price! Just look around for a retailer that will sell you the extra-shelf kit.
The VTI racks are not high tech isolation devices, but at these prices, you can afford to buy individual isolation doodads for your gear.
11flat6, I can only compare the Adona rack I own to the other rack that I used for many years which was a 4 shelf welded square tubular rack by Target with MDF shelves. That was a sonic improvement over my makeshift former rack, and the Adona is much better than the Target. Better meaning more stable imaging, quieter background, music seemingly more detached from the speakers. And I enjoy the much greater room for easy access, and the good looks and adjustability of the shelves. I would also like to respectfully disagree with Notec concerning the importance of a good rack. Chosse one and drop the bucks. You won't regret it.
I picked up a 3 wide 10 shelf audioav zirconia system here on AudiogoN. Now I need to deal with mounting my 52" Bravia on a stand of soe kind. The rack will run diag., so I am thinking the Sony must be on an av dual post stand or some thing. I son't know abount mounting a 100 lb + flatscreen on a swing arm. Thoughts on that?
I'd buy whatever looks good to your eye and matches your listening room. Make sure its solid and can support the weight of the gear you want to use. A rack should not have any effect on the sonic performance of your audio system whatsoever. If you have vibration issues, you either have a poorly assembled rack or gear.
I have an enclosed cabinet with mdf shelves. All gear is on Herbies Tenderfeet or Vibrapods. The back lower panel was removed to improve air flow. Would a high end rack really improve the sound over this setup ?
Blueskiespbd, I believe that most people in our hobby would disagree with captainoblivious, racks do make a difference. Enclosed cabinets can increase standing waves depending on the location and hardwood sounds better than mdf. Check out the thread Vibration theory: Isolate or Drain.
If you mean affecting as in 'an object in the room', then there may be some merit as everything in a room will reflect sound to a degree. But if you're meaning that vibrations in the rack are traveling through your solid state preamp/reciever and effecting your response, well then we'd part ways there.
Can you explain 'hardwood sounds better than MDF' when in the context of a rack please?
If you're looking to save cash VTI is about as inexpensive as it gets. They're kind of a design spin on the Lovan stands, which allow one to pyramid in various tier sizes. They're regularly advertised here by a seller.
Lovan stands are great, heavy duty, sand fillable, and not overly expensive. I'd not spend more.
I just ordered the "Rock" equipment platform from this German company: http://www.akustik-manufaktur.de/13.html (use google chrome to translate). Depending on your budget the products look like they might be a nice addition for almost any system. Do you have a budget range? If you want to spend some money then check out these racks: http://www.copulare.de/english/ausstellung.html I have the Copulare system rack and amp stands and have never thought about racks ever since. I had the Spectral racks beforehand: http://www.spectral.eu/en/tv-stands/high-end/680-mm/. They were nice and my wife loved them but they did not fit the dimensions of my new equipment.
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