Anyone ever put their speakers on Gramma?

[mfsoa]

I was thinking of DIYing a speaker isolation platform and came across this:
http://www.auralex.com/sound_isolation_gramma/sound_isolation_gramma.asp Apparently Jeff Hedbeck designed it, and from what I hear he knows his stuff.

Better pics on Amazon: http://www.amazon.com/Auralex-GRAMMA-Monitor-Isolation-Charcoal/dp/B0002D0B4U/ref=sr_1_1?s=musical-instruments&ie=UTF8&qid=1330277316&sr=1-1

Although my suspended wood floor has thick wall-to-wall carpet and is heroically braced, my currently-spiked speakers do send some frequencies into the floor. While this isn't always unpleasant, at loud volumes it does create a peaky, resonant bass character on some bass notes.

Anyone ever tried this device? I've looked at Herbies stuff but it's pretty pricey for the good stuff (~$300) and my problem isn't too bad and is only objectionable at volume.

I know, there are a bunch of DIY options - marble/granite slabs.  Maybe I'll try some wood 2x4s to see if what I'm hearing is actually a floor-coupling effect.

-Mike

[satfrat]

Some nice positive Amazon reviews from subwoofer owners and there are no poor reviews, maybe you should give them a try Mike. 

Cheers,
Robin

[Barry (NJ)]

Anthony left a 12"x12" piece of silicone sheet here last week and said I could do with it as I saw fit. I cut it into strips, and now have my Ref 3.5 speakers each sitting on 2, 12"x1.5" strips. It really made a nice improvement in the sound. Remember, my 3.5s are more like a 3.4s, as the base is not the current 3.5 production base. The production 3.5 has the silicone bonded to the bottom of a phenolic base, and the base on my speakers is just the maple of the 3.1. Anyway, I could bring the strips with me on 3/17 if you're interested.

[rollo]

   Mike I'm using one for my sub cannot recco enough. Extremely affective.


charles

[tmazz]

  Mike I'm using one for my sub cannot recco enough. Extremely affective.


charles

Are you sitting right on the concrete in your room or if there a wood floor under the carpet?

I always thought that since my speaker spikes go right through the carpet into the concrete I wouldn't have to worry about anything like this.

[mfsoa]

Wood floor under the carpet.

Carpet > pad > extra-thick plywood (forget the width) which is screwed down w/ tons of screws > green glue > existing wood subfloor > joists over basement.

These joists run across the room side to side (parallel to 17' long wall upon which the speakers live). The joists are braced by two 12' 4x4s running perpendicular to the joists, supported by 4 adjustable support columns. Each joist is tied to the 4x4 at each intersection, with heavy duty L brackets, for a total of 18 L brackets per 4x4. All along the intersection of the joists and the subfloor above, I caulked with silicone caulk which significantly reduced the ringing of the joists when subjected to the "knuckle test".

I'll take pics and post if anyone is interested in more detail. I went to town with this and it made a tremendous difference in SQ to my system and allowed for footfall-free turntable performance.


BTW Gramma(s) are on the way to visit.

Thanks for the replies.

-Mike

[richidoo]

These rubber feet have some info that is interesting reading.

http://www.sonicdesign.se/sdfeet.html

[mgalusha]

The "recoil stabilizer" from Primeacoustic look interesting as well.

http://www.primacoustic.com/recoil.htm

[mdconnelly]

These rubber feet have some info that is interesting reading.

http://www.sonicdesign.se/sdfeet.html

Interesting read, Rich.  But it does not appear that these are even available in the US.   I wonder what the material is. 

[Barry (NJ)]

These rubber feet have some info that is interesting reading.

http://www.sonicdesign.se/sdfeet.html

Interesting read, Rich.  But it does not appear that these are even available in the US.   I wonder what the material is. 

Gallo supplies something similar to those with the Classico line of speakers. They are a squishy silicone or sorbothane, I'm not sure of the durometer they supply though.

They look like these...

http://www.buy.com/prod/sorbothane-vibration-isolation-circular-pad-25-thick-2-25-dia-50/219501881.html

[gopher]

I have a couple Grammas I tried under my old speakers, Zu Soul Superflys and they didn't work well there.  Haven't tried them under my current speakers (VR-33s) but I'm willing to bet the Herbies decoupling gilders I'm using under there would be a much better bet.

[mdconnelly]

Gopher... so you're not using the spikes for your VR33s?  I've been curious to try something like Herbie's Big Fat Dots or perhaps his Hush Puckies under the supplied spikes for my VR-35s.   

So have you compared the spikes to the Decoupling Gliders? 

[mdconnelly]

I had an interesting email exchange with Steve Herbelin (Herbie's) about his decoupling gliders and the dBNeutralizer material he is using in the gliders and a number of other isolation/decoupling footers.  Pretty interesting stuff and very reasonable prices.

Worth checking out... http://herbiesaudiolab.net/spkrfeet.htm

[mfsoa]

Thanks for the tip - I have been looking at Herbie and may have to give them a try.

[StereoNut]

I've used Herbie's gliders under my Von Schweikert VR-4 Gen.III's with pretty good results.

Sonically, the change (a wee bit tighter bass) was small, but they make moving 140lbs. of speaker around the room a helluva lot easier!

If you have big, heavy speakers (like my Von's) Herbie's gliders are worth a try.  Even if the direct sonic improvement from the gliders themselves is small (YMMV) the new ease in moving your speakers around to work on speaker placement in your room may yield even more worthwhile results.

Just my 2¢