Do stands make a difference for equipment?

The British and American approach to audio stands is very different. The Brits favour a "lighter is better" approach to manage and channel away vibration and jitter. The US approach is a "heavier mass" isolation approach.

Not true. Sistrum, a US company, favors the former approach as does Stillpoints. I guess it may depend on how you define "stand."

Interestingly, the article which I forgot to post (http://www.stereophile.com/features/806/index.html) references some of these issues.... Enjoy.

A stand is at the 0.1% difference level.

Empirical evidence to support that statement? Current system or systems in which you have experimented with stands? That philosophy is a vestige of yesteryear when everyone had their gear sitting on the carpet.

I found this old article from 1992 documenting the speaker stand "debate." An interesting read. I do wish there was a little more data to substantiate the claims of current isolation technologies.. This is a little surprising since several companies have engineers involved.

Stands can make a significant difference in my experience. My non-audiophile wife could hear the difference in blinded tests. It is readily discernible and obvious. The degree of change can vary based on equipment type and design elements and degree of system resolution.

Start with your speakers and work backwards. I am a Sistrum fan and they offer a trial period. Stillpoints and Equarack are also good products that I have used. Try them and see for yourself. Don't be swayed by vague, prosaic statements by "Elizabeth" or me or anyone else.

Ivan, you bring up another important point regarding your Maher stands: electrical isolation. How is this implemented in that stand? I presume you mean some grounding scheme using leads, etc. I am a big fan of electrical grounding schemes, and rather than run leads from my equipment chassis, I actually incorporate my sistrum stand instead. This was suggested to my by Starsound. It theoretically creates a larger grounding plane from what I was told.

Elizabeth, your position is a little contrarian in light of what most of us spend over an audio lifetime. However, I do agree with the allocating money wisely and according to scale. A $250 CDP does not necessarily warrant megabuck stands, but there are many good options out there. In terms of performance, you would be shocked by what a good stand like a Sistrum sp101 can do under a relatively modest set of speakers. It becomes a whole new entity and it is not simply 7.5% better....

When your doodads cost as much as your basic electronic equipment, you are in lala land. Even spending 25% on doodads is insane.

Conjecture is not germane to the discussion. I will ask you for the second time: what stands have you yourself tried and what does your current system consist of?

Investment in better brain (Design) is the way to go.

Yes and no. What constitutes better design? A lot of us get suckered into paying gobs of cash for "better design" only to find out its slick window dressing. Syntax, what is your experience with dedicated stands, etc?

This is also about the best way I'm aware of to take a direct shot at reducing digital "self noise" inside a component.

Bravo. Someone is taking the "discipline" forward through innovation. The whole concept of self-noise is integral to this discussion. It is akin to what Nordost demonstrated with jitter and cabling changes using software measurements. I know Starsound has provisions for formal testing in the works.

Total cost, about $500. How much better can a expensive stand improve on this?

There is only one way to find out! I have used Herbie's stuff in the past and it is a very good value. One thing to remember is that a lot of this comes down to system voicing. Herbie dots or Sorbethane or possibly Equarack can soften a front end that is prone to brightness. I have heard that....

...at the end of day most stands should be seen as a design element.

Au contraire. It is not decorative but is an engineered, holistic extension of your equipment. Again, that thought is a vestige of yesteryear. By way of analogy, look at how speaker manufacturers are pursuing mechanical grounding and isolation. Gone are the days of hollow, MDF boxes along with sideburns, tweed coats and crooked, yellow teeth...

Miguel, what stands have you used and what grounding schemes have you employed with them ala Maher? Results?

Miguel, can you comment on your experience with grounding Sistrum stands since that dovetails with what Maher appears to be doing....

Miguel, I have all my Sistrum racks grounded to a binding post that connects to a dedicated ionic grounding rod for the room but hope to one day use one of your boxes....

Yeah, the rod is encased in a proprietary Bentonite slurry developed by Lyncole, the designer of the rod.