Author Topic: Footers  (Read 11168 times)

Offline BobM

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Re: Footers
« Reply #15 on: January 26, 2019, 07:41:47 AM »
I found that not all footers of a type (squishy, roller, rubber-like, hard, wood, spikes, etc.) work equally effectively in all spots. It seems that some types of equipment react better to one type than another.

In my experience I found squishy things under tubes and roller things under solid state and power supplies. Spikes under speakers. As for my CD player I have an Ayre and use the Ayre myrtle blocks, which are no more than small blocks of wood. For the turntable nothing beats mass and more mass, but I do have it sitting on a butcher block and have found putting about a dozen squash balls between that butcher block and the shelf helped quite a bit to reduce any kind of taps on the rack or footfalls.

But then, that got me the sound I wanted from each. If you want to tighten things up maybe you want spiky things under everything. If you want to soften, use squishy things. It's all to taste.
« Last Edit: January 26, 2019, 07:43:21 AM by BobM »
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Offline mdconnelly

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Re: Footers
« Reply #16 on: January 26, 2019, 11:15:09 AM »
Isolation vs coupling.   It's never as simple or straightforward as you'd think.   My experience with squishy things such as Vibrapods has not been very good.    On the other hand, heavy cones under speakers to couple them to flooring work better (for me) than vibration absorbing pads.   I suspect components such as my Devialet Expert Pros would do better with isolation footers which is why I'm looking at the IsoAcoustics OREAs.   I've ordered some to try from The Cable Company since they'll give me 30 days to try them.   I'll post results in a few weeks.

Still toying with the idea of similar footers (the IsoAcoustic GAIAs) under my speakers, but they are a bit pricier so I'll wait to see how the OREAs turn out first.

Offline rollo

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Re: Footers
« Reply #17 on: January 28, 2019, 08:14:48 AM »
  Footers react to what is underneath them as well. The shelf,plinth,etc counts. Usually the rule of thumb is similar but dissimilar materials. Hard to soft or visa versa.
  The rack is important. If the rack omits vibration from floor and the shelf absorbs then the goal is either drain the component OR isolate further.
  Components that have moving parts such as TT and transport like more decoulping. They must be dead on level as well. With a quality rack I have found that footers are mostly not required. Dampening the chassis in that case is more affective. 3M has some VG options.
  Draining resonance can be best by using Alum blocks. They transfer energy quite well. Using roller blocks or ball bearing type footers will dissipate the resonance by friction.
  For TT so far the BEST solution is a wood plinth set in a box of sand. The sandbox isolated by decoulping from rack. One size does not fit ALL for every application. Have fun trying.


charles
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Offline S Clark

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Re: Footers
« Reply #18 on: January 28, 2019, 11:58:58 AM »
Any suggestions for footer for a couple of turntables?  I'm redoing a plinth for my Technics SP-10 MKII, adding about 15lbs of lead shot to a baltic birch plinth.  It's been sitting on 4 Herbies Tenderfeet.  A Victor TT-81 is sitting on three wine corks arranged so they won't roll.  I've found that the sound improved after the first bottle, but it's hard to concentrate after the second.  I can't read my listening notes after the third, so I can't comment on the sound. 
By the way, Scotty's three ball bearings sitting in divots drilled in three pieces of flat stock looks pretty easy to DIY.  I like easy, almost as much as I like cheap.
« Last Edit: January 28, 2019, 12:20:55 PM by S Clark »
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Offline rollo

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Re: Footers
« Reply #19 on: January 28, 2019, 12:58:16 PM »
  If you like cheap make a sandbox and don't look back. Make it large enough to be 1/2" larger than the plinth in both width and length. Then you will need NO footers at all.
 Either mount box on a speaker stand decoulped from floor or on rack decoulped from rack easy as pie and extremely affective.



charles
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Offline S Clark

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Re: Footers
« Reply #20 on: January 28, 2019, 01:18:00 PM »
I've often thought of making a sandbox.  So you build a box, filled with sand, add a plywood floating cap to set the table on, leave 1/4" of space between the cap and the box.  Would dust be an issue?  With the arrangement of the ventilation of the Victor, I'd think sand/dust could be fatal. 
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Offline rollo

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Re: Footers
« Reply #21 on: January 28, 2019, 01:27:23 PM »
  Never a dust problem for me as I put felt strips in gap. That TT is odd looking. I would make a base with outriggers and spike to plinth. Does that ventilation system move air ?


charles
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Offline S Clark

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Re: Footers
« Reply #22 on: January 28, 2019, 01:48:12 PM »
  Never a dust problem for me as I put felt strips in gap. That TT is odd looking. I would make a base with outriggers and spike to plinth. Does that ventilation system move air ?


charles
Nope, the ventilation is passive.  I hadn't thought about felt  :duh
I've got some bird mouth router bits coming to make a box like below.  Think it can look pretty spiffy, and a sandbox might be just the thing.  Thanks, Charles.

« Last Edit: January 28, 2019, 01:50:39 PM by S Clark »
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Offline BobM

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Re: Footers
« Reply #23 on: January 28, 2019, 02:38:39 PM »
Maybe not felt, but Home Dopey sells different thicknesses of door damping/insulating foam, with adhesive on one side. Grey or white, your choice. Perfect
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Offline rollo

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Re: Footers
« Reply #24 on: February 06, 2019, 08:09:16 AM »
  Looking good there. You may also consider some viscoelastic dampening material between plinth and TT. keep us posted.

charles
contact me  at rollo14@verizon.net or visit us on Facebook
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Offline Nick B

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Re: Footers
« Reply #25 on: February 06, 2019, 01:33:24 PM »
  Never a dust problem for me as I put felt strips in gap. That TT is odd looking. I would make a base with outriggers and spike to plinth. Does that ventilation system move air ?


charles
Nope, the ventilation is passive.  I hadn't thought about felt  :duh
I've got some bird mouth router bits coming to make a box like below.  Think it can look pretty spiffy, and a sandbox might be just the thing.  Thanks, Charles.



Any more progress?
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Offline _Scotty_

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Re: Footers
« Reply #26 on: February 06, 2019, 02:40:19 PM »
Hi Paul, sorry I haven't replied sooner. My speakers have ball bearing material handling assemblies under them. See link  https://www.amazon.com/Dorhea-Transfer-Universal-Rotation-Bearings/dp/B07BLVBC91/ref=lp_16411111_1_13?s=industrial&ie=UTF8&qid=1549491728&sr=1-13
 The cups were  custom made by a machinist to Rick  Reimers specs. Apparently a ball cutter? was used to  make a 1.5inch diameter indentation about 0.25inch deep in a piece of 2 inch diameter 7075 bar stock cut to 3/8 inch thickness.
http://prairieaudiomancave.com/reviews--reports/cheap-tweaks-do-it-yourself-ball-bearing-vibration-isolation-pucks
 According to the author of blog in the above link a Shepherd’s plastic 1 ¾” I.D. non-slip furniture cup can work with smaller balls and source equipment. For loudspeakers, I can't swear that the plastic cups will have a low enough coefficient of friction to work properly when a high mass loudspeaker is placed on them. A steel or aluminum cup maybe required for the speaker to be able to move freely.
 Scotty

Offline S Clark

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Re: Footers
« Reply #27 on: February 06, 2019, 03:48:24 PM »



[/quote]

Any more progress?
[/quote]
Well, the bits arrived, and I've cut some practice pieces, been to the lumbar yard to pick up some maple... and then hurt my back lifting with my trainer.  Been laid up for a week, but will get back to it in the next couple of days. 
I've still got to find the right width of each piece- trail and error with scrap mdf.   If there is a formula, to calculate the opening, I don't know it.
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Offline Nick B

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Re: Footers
« Reply #28 on: February 07, 2019, 11:24:14 AM »




Any more progress?
[/quote]
Well, the bits arrived, and I've cut some practice pieces, been to the lumbar yard to pick up some maple... and then hurt my back lifting with my trainer.  Been laid up for a week, but will get back to it in the next couple of days. 
I've still got to find the right width of each piece- trail and error with scrap mdf.   If there is a formula, to calculate the opening, I don't know it.
[/quote]

The exercise stuff can occasionally be hazardous, but we’re hoping for a speedy recovery andcurious how the project turns out.
Orchard Starkrimson Ultra amp
Supratek Chardonnay preamp
JMR Voce Grande speakers
Border Patrol SEi dac
Holo Red streamer
Hapa Aero digital coax
WyWires Silver cables
TWL Digital American II p cord
Audio Envy p cords
Roon, Tidal, Qobuz
PI Audio UberBUSS

Offline S Clark

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Re: Footers
« Reply #29 on: February 13, 2019, 09:01:59 AM »
I am using Daruma bearing clones with tungsten carbide balls under my DAC, preamp,power amp,OPPO 103D,
and HAL MS-2 Music Server
...
This image from the web is representative of my Daruma clones.

Scotty
I'm got parts coming to build several sets of footers based on Scotty's clones.  Mine will be height adjustable.  When everything arrives and a prototype assembled, I'll get some photos up. 
Speaker-GR Research LS9-XStatik-AltecFlamenco
Amp-Moscode,Dodd,Folsom
Pre-Dodd
Turntable-Vyger,Victor,TechnicSP10MK2
Phonopre-Hagermann,Jolida,GSlee   
Cable-AudioSensibility Wywires TWL
Cartridge-Dynavector,Sumiko
Tonearm-PioneerP3,Jelco
Rythmic sub