Reducing Resonance Between Speakers and Stands – Need Advice


My Joseph Audio Pulsar speakers are currently placed on some basic stands, which themselves sit on spikes. When playing bass-heavy material, I feel the sound doesn’t quite detach cleanly from the speakers — instead it seems to vibrate and spread sideways, as if too much resonance is being transferred into the stands.

 

I’m looking for something to place between the speakers and the stands that would help reduce these resonances and improve bass clarity.

 

Any recommendations would be greatly appreciated!

gabriel123

@gabriel123 

Sorry it took so long to get back to you.  

Filling your stands to add mass will definitely help- something like cat litter works well.  

A while ago I had some Harbeth stand mount speakers and tested a variety of materials to use as "iso dots" between speaker and stand.  The stands were heavy and spiked through carpet to my concrete floor.  These tests included frequency response measurements as well as listening verification.  

Keep in mind that the Harbeths are lossy cabinets and the speaker dots greatly affected the sound but the results are real and should apply to most stand mount speakers. 

Generally speaking the softer the dot material the bass increased and with the softest material bass was bloated and peaky.  

I testes materials like blu-tack, sorbothane dots, medium silicone bumpers, hard silicone bumpers, KEF LS50 acoustic dots, cork pads, etc, all sourced from amazon or hardware stores.  

The worst sounding materials were the softer blu-tack and sorbothane dots.  The sorbothane dots came with the stands.  Bass was bloated and had noticeable peaks that were irritating, 

The harder materials like the hard clear silicone bumpers gave the clearest, most clean sound.  It was uncanny how clear these made the sound.  They did have the weakest bass response too but if clarity is your goal use some clear hard silicone dots or rectangles.  

By far the best sounding iso dot I used was the dots that came with the KEF LS50 speakers.  I accidently sold them without enclosing the iso dots.  

Bass was excellent, tight and non bloated or peaky.  Highs were clear with excellent clarity, almost as good as the hard silicone. 

Next best was the clear softer silicone dots.  

See if you can order the KEF LS50 dots from a dealer- next best is medium hardness silicone dots.  You can buy a bunch of them and give them a try.  Very inexpensive. 

Also FYI smaller thinner is better than large and thick.  The best ones were approx 1/8 inch thick.  

https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-300-Piece-Adhesive-Rubber-Bumpers/dp/B087MG3G76/ref=sr_1_16?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.8xYYQJM0KBKr6gQl460YMXoTKmuCBEALtpe0wOF0Mx99OUQQ_2iQADtfShcFuPy_vSFzm9LXBxam69ESdPtbgYHCfg8i5APEZMkjs73_wFygGbBSFB59Vk6vftrhDKsUBZ-0O5sQa9P5vVER_6kGof8wf3jsxs1uiStU7jeYNADsKwjMrSgZnc4bOHCTxxwTZbCtredMD8vU2KwUFCuLQt6ohSdT2TQHDQdTk0FJgsYwVY7KgPsGyPgSgucFqcP6QpBTFB48Xk6KBWX8fL5ApehTr85NfMlMdpj4HF1E6Bg.SetdLCt6lQGGArwDmJ2LbtUndHsTPIQscqlwz613sBA&dib_tag=se&keywords=silicone+bumpers&qid=1764430421&sr=8-16

https://www.amazon.com/Cabinet-Dampening-Adhesive-Cupboard-FATLODA/dp/B088HGQSZT/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1FIYHXRB7EZ93&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5ul4k5JZy1LFDdM2UGzpVQPG61TqSRAKde6GB-AGMegrCCh4Ylpa5OEqe7tkV-sXGeah9kNUychUn4ZXb6acLwuOfRyY8LPN5iZoNlGoHh-gGbBSFB59Vk6vftrhDKsUZ2Rs2ji7lBNLjphfdOC66NrQQ7D3NgYi98KE3XgcrxZ8pEvjH0GuZIBHcsGxT7Tla02sb6Mo08GiBw5laBdPe25ObeWK1UvPpNiPaeCE91pCEN5HrCTklLnfCRajFEpjcUuibOFuA0EwKI1Rslv2NGlMgQVfpJAACw4H9ozkZao.2crURMaNHnHzmtUEq30LR9R-9YDjg6o_hZO1OPtFB1Q&dib_tag=se&keywords=soft+silicone+dots&qid=1764430877&sprefix=soft+silicone+dots%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-6

 

 

@gabriel123 

Sorry it took so long to get back to you.  

Filling your stands to add mass will definitely help- something like cat litter works well.  

A while ago I had some Harbeth stand mount speakers and tested a variety of materials to use as "iso dots" between speaker and stand.  The stands were heavy and spiked through carpet to my concrete floor.  These tests included frequency response measurements as well as listening verification.  

Keep in mind that the Harbeths are lossy cabinets and the speaker dots greatly affected the sound but the results are real and should apply to most stand mount speakers. 

Generally speaking the softer the dot material the bass increased and with the softest material bass was bloated and peaky.  

I testes materials like blu-tack, sorbothane dots, medium silicone bumpers, hard silicone bumpers, KEF LS50 acoustic dots, cork pads, etc, all sourced from amazon or hardware stores.  

The worst sounding materials were the softer blu-tack and sorbothane dots.  The sorbothane dots came with the stands.  Bass was bloated and had noticeable peaks that were irritating, 

The harder materials like the hard clear silicone bumpers gave the clearest, most clean sound.  It was uncanny how clear these made the sound.  They did have the weakest bass response too but if clarity is your goal use some clear hard silicone dots or rectangles.  

By far the best sounding iso dot I used was the dots that came with the KEF LS50 speakers.  I accidently sold them without enclosing the iso dots.  

Bass was excellent, tight and non bloated or peaky.  Highs were clear with excellent clarity, almost as good as the hard silicone. 

Next best was the clear softer silicone dots.  

See if you can order the KEF LS50 dots from a dealer- next best is medium hardness silicone dots.  You can buy a bunch of them and give them a try.  Very inexpensive. 

Also FYI smaller thinner is better than large and thick.  The best ones were approx 1/8 inch thick.  

https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-300-Piece-Adhesive-Rubber-Bumpers/dp/B087MG3G76/ref=sr_1_16?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.8xYYQJM0KBKr6gQl460YMXoTKmuCBEALtpe0wOF0Mx99OUQQ_2iQADtfShcFuPy_vSFzm9LXBxam69ESdPtbgYHCfg8i5APEZMkjs73_wFygGbBSFB59Vk6vftrhDKsUBZ-0O5sQa9P5vVER_6kGof8wf3jsxs1uiStU7jeYNADsKwjMrSgZnc4bOHCTxxwTZbCtredMD8vU2KwUFCuLQt6ohSdT2TQHDQdTk0FJgsYwVY7KgPsGyPgSgucFqcP6QpBTFB48Xk6KBWX8fL5ApehTr85NfMlMdpj4HF1E6Bg.SetdLCt6lQGGArwDmJ2LbtUndHsTPIQscqlwz613sBA&dib_tag=se&keywords=silicone+bumpers&qid=1764430421&sr=8-16

https://www.amazon.com/Cabinet-Dampening-Adhesive-Cupboard-FATLODA/dp/B088HGQSZT/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1FIYHXRB7EZ93&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5ul4k5JZy1LFDdM2UGzpVQPG61TqSRAKde6GB-AGMegrCCh4Ylpa5OEqe7tkV-sXGeah9kNUychUn4ZXb6acLwuOfRyY8LPN5iZoNlGoHh-gGbBSFB59Vk6vftrhDKsUZ2Rs2ji7lBNLjphfdOC66NrQQ7D3NgYi98KE3XgcrxZ8pEvjH0GuZIBHcsGxT7Tla02sb6Mo08GiBw5laBdPe25ObeWK1UvPpNiPaeCE91pCEN5HrCTklLnfCRajFEpjcUuibOFuA0EwKI1Rslv2NGlMgQVfpJAACw4H9ozkZao.2crURMaNHnHzmtUEq30LR9R-9YDjg6o_hZO1OPtFB1Q&dib_tag=se&keywords=soft+silicone+dots&qid=1764430877&sprefix=soft+silicone+dots%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-6

 

 

@gabriel123 

Sorry it took so long to get back to you.  

Filling your stands to add mass will definitely help- something like cat litter works well.  

A while ago I had some Harbeth stand mount speakers and tested a variety of materials to use as "iso dots" between speaker and stand.  The stands were heavy and spiked through carpet to my concrete floor.  These tests included frequency response measurements as well as listening verification.  

Keep in mind that the Harbeths are lossy cabinets and the speaker dots greatly affected the sound but the results are real and should apply to most stand mount speakers. 

Generally speaking the softer the dot material the bass increased and with the softest material bass was bloated and peaky.  

I testes materials like blu-tack, sorbothane dots, medium silicone bumpers, hard silicone bumpers, KEF LS50 acoustic dots, cork pads, etc, all sourced from amazon or hardware stores.  

The worst sounding materials were the softer blu-tack and sorbothane dots.  The sorbothane dots came with the stands.  Bass was bloated and had noticeable peaks that were irritating, 

The harder materials like the hard clear silicone bumpers gave the clearest, most clean sound.  It was uncanny how clear these made the sound.  They did have the weakest bass response too but if clarity is your goal use some clear hard silicone dots or rectangles.  

By far the best sounding iso dot I used was the dots that came with the KEF LS50 speakers.  I accidently sold them without enclosing the iso dots.  

Bass was excellent, tight and non bloated or peaky.  Highs were clear with excellent clarity, almost as good as the hard silicone. 

Next best was the clear softer silicone dots.  

See if you can order the KEF LS50 dots from a dealer- next best is medium hardness silicone dots.  You can buy a bunch of them and give them a try.  Very inexpensive. 

Also FYI smaller thinner is better than large and thick.  The best ones were approx 1/8 inch thick.  

https://www.amazon.com/AmazonBasics-300-Piece-Adhesive-Rubber-Bumpers/dp/B087MG3G76/ref=sr_1_16?dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.8xYYQJM0KBKr6gQl460YMXoTKmuCBEALtpe0wOF0Mx99OUQQ_2iQADtfShcFuPy_vSFzm9LXBxam69ESdPtbgYHCfg8i5APEZMkjs73_wFygGbBSFB59Vk6vftrhDKsUBZ-0O5sQa9P5vVER_6kGof8wf3jsxs1uiStU7jeYNADsKwjMrSgZnc4bOHCTxxwTZbCtredMD8vU2KwUFCuLQt6ohSdT2TQHDQdTk0FJgsYwVY7KgPsGyPgSgucFqcP6QpBTFB48Xk6KBWX8fL5ApehTr85NfMlMdpj4HF1E6Bg.SetdLCt6lQGGArwDmJ2LbtUndHsTPIQscqlwz613sBA&dib_tag=se&keywords=silicone+bumpers&qid=1764430421&sr=8-16

https://www.amazon.com/Cabinet-Dampening-Adhesive-Cupboard-FATLODA/dp/B088HGQSZT/ref=sr_1_6?crid=1FIYHXRB7EZ93&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.5ul4k5JZy1LFDdM2UGzpVQPG61TqSRAKde6GB-AGMegrCCh4Ylpa5OEqe7tkV-sXGeah9kNUychUn4ZXb6acLwuOfRyY8LPN5iZoNlGoHh-gGbBSFB59Vk6vftrhDKsUZ2Rs2ji7lBNLjphfdOC66NrQQ7D3NgYi98KE3XgcrxZ8pEvjH0GuZIBHcsGxT7Tla02sb6Mo08GiBw5laBdPe25ObeWK1UvPpNiPaeCE91pCEN5HrCTklLnfCRajFEpjcUuibOFuA0EwKI1Rslv2NGlMgQVfpJAACw4H9ozkZao.2crURMaNHnHzmtUEq30LR9R-9YDjg6o_hZO1OPtFB1Q&dib_tag=se&keywords=soft+silicone+dots&qid=1764430877&sprefix=soft+silicone+dots%2Caps%2C124&sr=8-6

 

 

I am emoing a large speakere (ATC PRO SCM150A) on top of a large subwoofer (ATC's new 15 inch sub).  After some research, I want to try Stuart Varney's EVP pads, as they are capable of major weight support. I am going to order some and try them.  

I dealt with this. Is the top of your stands one solid surface? If it is, get rid of them. No blue tack or filling them with kitty litter is going to fix it. The top of the stand needs to be open so when you look down from above with no speaker on it, you can see the floor. It’s the most noticeable upgrade I’ve ever made.