I've pondered the same question. Really prefer a nice double-wide wood rack (this is my present setup) to the steel framed alternatives. I'm isolating the rack's shelving from the equipment with Vibrapods, topped with Black Diamond shelves. I use cones to couple the equipment to the isolated dead-mass BD shelves. This sandwhich method seems to work well enough, but I can't say that I've compared this to an open frame rack with Neuance shelving, which seems to be a recommended approach. I really wondered how a Neuance would work in place of, or coupled to a Black Diamond, but I never received a reply from Ken Lyon so although I'd like to try it, I have no idea.
Racks vs. furniture w/pods, points, aurios, etc?
Finding a rack I love is not hard to do if I want to spend $6,000. I just saw a double wide rix rax with inlaid wood and it is exactly what I want, but 6K is just a bit much for me.
My question is this - Am I wasting my time and money if I buy or make a beautiful piece of furniture and utilize every expensive pod, spike, roller block, platform, etc. to isolate my equipment? My system consists of Well tempered turntable, CAT Ultimate, Gamut amp, Offrande speakers and an AudioMeca cd.
Thanks for your help.