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Decoupling monitors from a dresser?


What's up, ever-helpful Sages of Sound? I was hoping I could get some advice.

Back-story: I recently moved into a new place, and am shuffling around components. I used to have a 5.1 setup in a room at my fraternity, with the main transport being my computer. Now I'm in an apartment, with the theater in the living room plus a DVD player, and my computer in my bedroom. I've decided to take the rear channels (a pair of Paradigm Titans) and make them into a two-channel setup in the bedroom by hooking them to the computer via an old-but-new NAD receiver. The only practical place to put the speakers in the room is on top of a dresser. While this will be full of clothes to muffle any effects, I'm still worried there will be some resonances induced in the dresser by the Titans.

Real Question: If resonances are noticeable, what's the best way to decouple the titans from the dresser, without lifting them too high off the surface? Cheaper is better, since being a grad student in NYC isn't conducive to writing large checks.

Thanks!
afranke

Showing 1 response by shadorne

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shadorne
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You can buy movers pads (plastic tray with a quarter inch rubber pad). Basically any soft rubber material will help....provided that the monitors are heavy and well braced. Light weight cabinets tend to waffle easily and will color the sound even more when in contact with a surface that can vibrate.

If your monitors are light weight then I suggest putting something heavy (like a piece of granite counter top) underneath to dampen resonance. Place rubber pads below the granite and above the granite and you will effectively decouple the waffling cabinet from the dresser.

One extra point....bear in mind that any surfaces close to the front baffle of the speaker will cause serious edge diffraction - so positioning on the back of a dresser is bad news...
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