Nhorton, right on! I just finished building some stands for Sonus Faber Concertos. Mine are a touch more stylish than straight blocks, but the exact same idea; mass, mass, mass. I started with 1 standard block (8x8x16), two half-blocks (8x8x8) stacked in the center of the bottom block, with a cap block (2x8x16) on the top. I set the cap block back such that the front edge of the cap block does not extend beyond the front edge of the speaker base. This set it back about 1.5 inches of front to back center. As to finish, I used 2 coats of Dry-lok concrete sealer. This closed the finish on the block and gave me a nice surface to baint with black acrylic. I topped the cap block off with a 1/4 inch piece of industrial linoleum tile (very inert). All items available at Home Depot for about $30 and 3 hours of my time. Sound is better than any stand (including the fixed SF stands deadened with shot and sand) I have tried. I joined all my block together with Liquid Nail. I like your suggestion for the base, but you're going to drive my cost up to over $40!
DIY Equipment and Speaker Stands
Has any body got any suggestions for DIY speaker or equipment stands? Are any plans posted anywhere. I am looking for speaker stands for Dick Olsher's Black Dahlia's which should be about 22" high. The equipment stand needs to be low and wide. Looking for something with high Spousal Approval Factor.