Make sure your speakers spikes are coupled


I have thick carpet and pad. I have always leaned on my speakers or stood on the plinths to seat the spikes into the subfloor through the carpet. I just built some 2" thick maple plinths but found no improvement in sound quality over the speakers with spikes and no plinths. I took a hammer and a block of wood and set the plinths with a cpl of good whacks over each spike. The difference is night and day. Focus, imaging, soundstage depth and width all tremendously improved. Tones are more realistic bass is much more solid and image density is also better. I sat down in my chair after setting the speakers back on the plinths and I just sat there grinning, I would have never believed this much of a difference from better contact with the subfloor. Just thought I would pass this on.
Russ
leatherneck1812
I noticed the same improvement with my speakers when I replaced the factory spikes with longer ones. The factory spikes did not penetrate all the way to the concrete slab. The speakers were floating on the carpet and I could turn them slightly. After switching to longer spikes the speakers are firmly anchored as is the bass response.

Leatherneck1812, Are your speakers on spikes on top of the maple? What is between your speakers and the maple?
Welcome to the party guys -- but I'm really glad someone brought this issue up AGAIN! It's important that new audiofiles be exposed to these basic concepts, and too often people (meaning us OLD audiophiles) just assume everyone knows these things. Never assume!
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Don,

I am using the hardwood floor spikes with the rounded ends that came with the speakers on the maple plinths.

Russ