Townshend Audio Podiums - current owners opinion on the merits of this product

I believe that the Townshend podiums will outperform the CMS LS footers because they isolate down to three Hertz and the speaker is floating on the podiums as opposed to rigid footers.

https://stackaudio.co.uk/auvaisolator/

just wanted to add that the price of The CMS LS footers is ridiculous even the cheapest ones for eight of them would be $5,000 what a joke.

one reviewer named Greg Weaver said that the CMS loudspeaker footers are better than the podiums and all they do is put a spike in a cup in a round cylinder I looked at them and I thought not a chance is like going to mitigate the vibration down to three Hertz like the podiums anybody have any experience with the CMS LS footers?

Yes. Essential.  I would have started with the Podiums and worked backwards when  putting my system together if I would have known. The Podiums will show the best from your whole system. No add on peripheral can match this 
Each component in your system will benefit.   

Plus one for millercarbon's comment.  I contacted John directly.  My speakers are about 100 lbs. on a wooden suspended floor.  They are an essential component.
  

cantorgale, call John Hannant at Townshend. Gaia are slightly better than Nobsound springs for 10X the cost. Those who have directly compared Gaia with Podiums have said the Podiums are so much better they are well worth the extra. Podiums are quite frankly transformative. 

@cantorgale,
You can go to the Townshend website and see the chart listing the various weight loads each Podium will carry.
You can also email them.
I got mine from a dealer in England. PM me if  you want to contact him.
His prices and shipping, as well as service, are very good.
Bob

@garebear 
I have Atria ii’s as well and am considering Seismic Podium.  Which size podium is correct for the Atria ii’s?  Any experience or comparison with Isoacoustic GAIA’s?

@garebear  - where are you on your search? 

I recently got a pair of Townshend Podiums for my Rockport Atria speakers - directly from England, so I wanted to provide you my experience/thoughts. What the owners have said in their posts above is what I'm experiencing.  My 150 lb speakers were on their original spikes w/ hats to protect my suspended wood floors.  I personally noticed a drastic improvement in sound. Crisp and detailed is how I would describe it - the boominess that  used to come from the floor went away and it was a more controlled/tighter bass.  To say that the bass disappears is completely false. The vocals are now dead-on coming from the center of my system.  Just based on the engineering of the podiums - the fact that it's floated, I would be skeptical of other footers that just act as barrier to vibration.  To me - this is the best isolation for speakers. I was also able to maneuver the speakers onto the platform by myself with the aid of two air-wedges that had the capability to lift up to 300 lbs - without those, it would have been a two person task. This was a suggestion provided by an owner who had posted a very detailed review here on A'gon.  

@goose ,
+1, exactly what I heard when I used the Podium under my preamp.
B

I installed the Townshend podiums in my system yesterday.  My brother who is musician / recording engineer thought the bass had tightened up and you could hear the plucking of the bass more distinctly, any haze was cleared up, the instrument placement was more defined and the sound stage increased.  He heard the same things I did.  So the system was improved and is sounding the best it has. 

And pucks aren’t decouplers. Cut us a little slack. Decoupling type substances? Oh,you mean like Spam? The miracle in a can.

Piece of wood isn't going to change bass. Placing the speaker higher off the floor will obviously raise the woofer off the floor as well and that can certainly change tonality of the speaker sound. You don't need over priced piece of wood to do that. Buy a butcher board from IKEA.

I'm bit of a hypocrite I suppose since I am in the market for a pair of kenrick sounds stands for my JBL but they don't market them as anything but nice stands. I do not buy any of this reduce resonance stuff the marketing for Townshend claims. Sorry!

rosami,

I just read your review of using the Townshend pods under your Thiels.(I own Thiel 2.7s as you may know from the Thiel thread).

It was very interesting and was a fuller description of what my own experience hinted at.

I tried some de-coupling type substances and pucks under a couple of my speakers.  It did change the sound a bit.  But one thing I noticed was less "floor feel" to the bass, and a change in tonal character in the bass, just as you noted.

I found I ended up preferring the speakers directly on the floor, even without spikes, as it gave more feel for the bass.

Sometimes we audiophiles are on such a mission to "reduce resonance" and have ultra clean sound that it can in some cases produce a more distanced "sound for the intellect" than the type of blood and guts impact we often grew up enjoying.

I have a pair under Legacy Aeris speakers and think the Townshend's have many positive attributes. Most dramatically, they cleaned up boomy bass - or resonant bass, which had the audible effect of making the mids and highs clearer. I also feel due to the vibrations being dampened, it isn't transmitting all of that to the equipment, which can only help.

In overall perception, I can see where someone might feel there is less bass because bass is no longer generated into the floor and creating thick (but muddy) sound. However, bass is faster, more accurate, and less "one-note" sounding, so I highly recommend them.

Boomy bass is oft perceived as the way bass is supposed to sound. It’s always sounded like that so what’s the diff, McGriff? Oh, no! It’s not boomy any more! 😩

I believe Max Townshend addressed the perceived bass change.  He measured it at a .00 something change in db's.  I am getting a pair and will report out on my observations since I have a carpeted suspended wood floor situation.  Another friend is using another type of isolation with a suspended wood floor and I think there is a perception of less bass but it's really eliminating the drum effect of the floor and the bass tightened up and added clairity to space to the soundstage.  We shall see.  

@garebear Where did you read that the Podium sucks the life out of bass? I'm curious. Does it only happen for podium or the bars as well? Often times, isolation product causes the bass impact to diminish (which could be more neutral someone can argue). Spikes/coupling speaker on the other hand, increases the bass impact (and sharp transiets) in my experience.

...…..thank you for the responses as well as the updates and it would appear from the reviews and responses as well as comments from owners, that the Townshend Podiums are very well respected and enjoyed but the downfall ; if that is the correct wording,  is that they seem to suck the life out you speakers bass. I would not be a big fan of that result. My search continues.     

I've owned Townshend Speaker Podiums for a couple years and use them under my Thiel CS3.6s.
I recently posted a detailed evaluation of how the podiums affected the sound of my speakers in my room-as compared to spikes. 
If you're interested in my observations, you can visit Audiogon's Thiel Owners speaker forum; either search my user name or go to near-end of the posts. 

I've owned Townshend Speaker Podiums for a couple years and use them under my Thiel CS3.6s.
I recently posted a detailed evaluation of how the podiums affected the sound of my speakers in my room-as compared to spikes. 
If you're interested in my observations, you can visit Audiogon's Thiel Owners speaker forum; either search my user name or go to near-end of the posts. 

@garebear   Got it. Thanks.

In my case (due to my speakers) the application of and results from the Podiums is more complicated / difficult to transpose to what I'd expect from 'standard' speakers.

I believe this also applies to your speakers:

That ‘plinth’ it rests on is in fact a high-mass chamber for a down-firing, isobaric-loaded pair of 170mm Tactic drive units (WB’s own design).

Since the base of your speakers is of a 'specialized' design and they are down-firing, I recommend reaching out to Townshend and Wilson Benesch for guidance. 

Both companies are England based so there are bound to be local owners of the Square 5's that are using Townshend Podiums.

I bought the Podiums for my speakers, but, alas, the outriggers made them unusable (-think limited space).
So, with the blessing of Townshend, I put them under my preamp. There was a definite improvement in clarity-noticeable immediately.
I have a set of sound bars, but am waiting for my new subs to arrive. I hope that they will offer the same decoupling as the Podiums.
PM me if you want more.
Bob

Thank you guys and david_ten I was just looking for thoughts from members who currently have the Townshend Podiums or  looked and bought something ; or just sold them. Just an idea on the merits of these stands / podiums.      

garebear,

I own their seismic bars that use the pods under my subs on my suspended wood floor. These completely eliminated the feedback oscillation that I was getting up through my rack to my cartridge. I’m considering the individual pods under my monoblocks as feet.

Saved the day for my specific issue.
Kenny

@garebear  I have a pair of Townshend's Seismic Isolation Podiums.

I'm not sure how to interpret your sentence / request:

I ... would like to hear from current owners or members who looked at them and didn't buy or have sold them.

Can you clarify?