JANUARY 2010
A company in England is selling granite stands for the original Quad ESL
loudspeaker. The stands cost £3,800 per pair, about $6,000, and weigh
just over 100 pounds apiece. I guess if you have the Quad speakers, the
money, an adequate floor, friends with good backs, and don’t plan on
moving your speakers around a lot, why not buy a pair? Life is short.
I was in Denver for Thanksgiving, which was also my mother’s 90th
birthday. We—my younger sister, wife, daughter, and myself—held a
reception for her the Saturday after Thanksgiving at my parent’s condo.
My father, benefiting from 62 years’ experience living with my mother,
stayed out of the way.
As we were setting things up, the women decided that they needed some
different flower vases. My sister suggested a local ROSS Dress for Less
store as a good place to find something inexpensive. While the women
looked at vases, I wandered around and stumbled on some very nice,
very heavy, wooden cutting boards.
Each cutting board measures 16 inches square, 2.5 inches thick, and
weighs about 16 pounds, exactly the sort of item that is ideal for
experimenting with as a speaker, amp, or other stand/support.
And, they only cost $29.99 each.
We ended up going to two different ROSS stores while we were out and I
came home with three cutting boards. Two have feet and one does not.
I have put the two with feet under my Quad 21L2 speakers in the living
room system where they have added a lot of stability.
Each cutting board’s weight really helps to press down the carpeting and
also compensates very nicely for the fact that the floor is not perfectly
level. For now, I have the 21L2’s own spikes sitting in the brass cups
that came with the speakers. Once I am certain that I have the Quads
precisely where I want them, I will remove the cups and spike the
speakers directly into the cutting boards. I am expecting this to further
improve their stability.
The cutting boards have also raised the speakers about three inches
higher. This places the tweeter about 34 inches above the floor. The
increased height has allowed me to reduce the amount of tilt I have been
using with the 21L2s. For the moment, the front of each speaker is only
about 1/8th of an inch higher than the rear. This seems to be working
well but I need to do some further experimenting here as well.
As far as sound quality is concerned, the Quads do seem to image even
more solidly. Again, I am still in the process of dialing things in.
I have tried a number of different items over the years as homemade
speaker/amplifier supports and these are by far the best things I have
ever come across. There are a lot of potential uses.
And these are the drawbacks:
ROSS sells closeout items. Their stock varies store to store. They do
not sell through, or list items for sale, on their website. They do not
have stores in every state.
It was my intention to check a local ROSS store when I got home and see
if I could find a fourth cutting board so that I would have a second pair to
play with. It turns out there are no ROSS stores in Kansas, Missouri,
Illinois, or Indiana. I had no idea that was the case; it is not a store that
I have ever shopped in before. It does turn out that they have some
stores in South Carolina, so I have asked my sister who lives there to see
if she can find one more cutting board for me. At the price, it is worth
the cost of shipping it to Missouri.
True, these boards are not made of granite, although the wood is very
hard, and will not fit your ESL’s, but for the financially strapped
experimenters among us, they definitely have potential.
If you do not have any ROSS stores where you live, check out other
closeout sellers such as TJ Maxx and Marshall’s. If anyone comes across
a similar or better item, please let me know, I will put that information on
the web site.
Rack Sale
I got a catalog from Audio Advisor on December 28th, and they have
Sanus Euro Foundations Series II audio racks on sale. According to Joe,
of AA, they got a great deal on racks with silver columns and black
shelves. Most of the racks are around 2/3rds-off the regular price.
The best deal, by a small amount, is the four-shelf rack for $99; it lists
for $310. (EFAB4-II)
I decided to get a six-shelf rack (EFAB6-II). It lists for $450 but is on
sale for $159.97 plus $29.95 FedEx ground shipping. I don’t need this
many shelves, but since the rack is modular, I figured that I might as well
get them. I can make a three, four, or five-shelf rack for now and save
the extra shelf or shelves for later use. At the moment, that seems like a
good plan.
At these prices, a rack could be bought for the shelves alone.
I thought I would pass this information along to any others of you that
might still be using something homemade or left over from a mid-fi rack
system. I have been using my homemade rack for at least twelve years
now. I think it is time to try something new. Contact Audio Advisor at
800-942-0220 or www.audioadvisor.com
A True Story
My wife has a nephew, who for the sake of anonymity, I will refer to only
as “David.”
It seems that “David” occasionally works as a roadie for bands that pass
through the city where he lives. He was contacted this fall and asked to
work a rock concert for an evening. His duties are fairly simple. He gets
there to help set up and stays to tear down.
So “David” showed up at the appropriate time and place and worked the
concert. He got a free t-shirt and the guy appearing at the concert
shook his hand and thanked him for helping out. This information was
related by “David’s” mother, “Linda” to my wife, “Pam.”
“Pam” asked “Linda” whose concert it actually was. “David” wasn’t
actually sure, so “Linda” asked “David” to check what his t-shirt said.
“David” said it read: “Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Local
Crew.”
The scream from my wife probably was heard all the way to Kansas City.
“How,” “Pam” asked, “could “David” shake Bruce’s hand and not think to
get him to autograph the t-shirt, or take a photo with him, or get him to
autograph a program, poster or CD, or ask for the shirt off his back, or
cut off a lock of his hair, or any other of the simple sorts of things a
long-time female Bruce fan wouldn’t hesitate to request?
Now “David” is probably not going to win a Nobel Prize for advancing
String Theory research but he is sharp enough to realize that somehow,
however inadvertently, he had made a major blunder. Maybe he should
have checked to see whose concert he was actually working.
So, for Christmas, he gave my wife the bright orange, worn-only-once
t-shirt that had been worn by him when he shook Bruce’s hand—the
closest yet that “Pam” has been able to get to the Boss himself.
It made her Christmas.
I hope yours was as good. Best Wishes for the New Year.
Kent Johnson
December 29, 2009
Update
I was able to get another cutting board. My sister in South Carolina
found one and sent it to me. I am not sure what I will do with them but
having a pair definitely makes them more potentially useful. I have also
reduced the backward tilt of my Quad 21L2 speakers to zero now that
they are on these boards. This seems to sound better than the slight tilt
I had previously. I have also done some minor repositioning and I am
happy with the results.
The Sanus equipment rack is now in my main system. It is lighter than
my home made rack but, with its spiked feet, is actually more solid. I
have not noticed any difference in the sound of my system good or bad,
which I consider to be good.
KJ
January 28, 2010
A company in England is selling granite stands for the original Quad ESL
loudspeaker. The stands cost £3,800 per pair, about $6,000, and weigh
just over 100 pounds apiece. I guess if you have the Quad speakers, the
money, an adequate floor, friends with good backs, and don’t plan on
moving your speakers around a lot, why not buy a pair? Life is short.
I was in Denver for Thanksgiving, which was also my mother’s 90th
birthday. We—my younger sister, wife, daughter, and myself—held a
reception for her the Saturday after Thanksgiving at my parent’s condo.
My father, benefiting from 62 years’ experience living with my mother,
stayed out of the way.
As we were setting things up, the women decided that they needed some
different flower vases. My sister suggested a local ROSS Dress for Less
store as a good place to find something inexpensive. While the women
looked at vases, I wandered around and stumbled on some very nice,
very heavy, wooden cutting boards.
Each cutting board measures 16 inches square, 2.5 inches thick, and
weighs about 16 pounds, exactly the sort of item that is ideal for
experimenting with as a speaker, amp, or other stand/support.
And, they only cost $29.99 each.
We ended up going to two different ROSS stores while we were out and I
came home with three cutting boards. Two have feet and one does not.
I have put the two with feet under my Quad 21L2 speakers in the living
room system where they have added a lot of stability.
Each cutting board’s weight really helps to press down the carpeting and
also compensates very nicely for the fact that the floor is not perfectly
level. For now, I have the 21L2’s own spikes sitting in the brass cups
that came with the speakers. Once I am certain that I have the Quads
precisely where I want them, I will remove the cups and spike the
speakers directly into the cutting boards. I am expecting this to further
improve their stability.
The cutting boards have also raised the speakers about three inches
higher. This places the tweeter about 34 inches above the floor. The
increased height has allowed me to reduce the amount of tilt I have been
using with the 21L2s. For the moment, the front of each speaker is only
about 1/8th of an inch higher than the rear. This seems to be working
well but I need to do some further experimenting here as well.
As far as sound quality is concerned, the Quads do seem to image even
more solidly. Again, I am still in the process of dialing things in.
I have tried a number of different items over the years as homemade
speaker/amplifier supports and these are by far the best things I have
ever come across. There are a lot of potential uses.
And these are the drawbacks:
ROSS sells closeout items. Their stock varies store to store. They do
not sell through, or list items for sale, on their website. They do not
have stores in every state.
It was my intention to check a local ROSS store when I got home and see
if I could find a fourth cutting board so that I would have a second pair to
play with. It turns out there are no ROSS stores in Kansas, Missouri,
Illinois, or Indiana. I had no idea that was the case; it is not a store that
I have ever shopped in before. It does turn out that they have some
stores in South Carolina, so I have asked my sister who lives there to see
if she can find one more cutting board for me. At the price, it is worth
the cost of shipping it to Missouri.
True, these boards are not made of granite, although the wood is very
hard, and will not fit your ESL’s, but for the financially strapped
experimenters among us, they definitely have potential.
If you do not have any ROSS stores where you live, check out other
closeout sellers such as TJ Maxx and Marshall’s. If anyone comes across
a similar or better item, please let me know, I will put that information on
the web site.
Rack Sale
I got a catalog from Audio Advisor on December 28th, and they have
Sanus Euro Foundations Series II audio racks on sale. According to Joe,
of AA, they got a great deal on racks with silver columns and black
shelves. Most of the racks are around 2/3rds-off the regular price.
The best deal, by a small amount, is the four-shelf rack for $99; it lists
for $310. (EFAB4-II)
I decided to get a six-shelf rack (EFAB6-II). It lists for $450 but is on
sale for $159.97 plus $29.95 FedEx ground shipping. I don’t need this
many shelves, but since the rack is modular, I figured that I might as well
get them. I can make a three, four, or five-shelf rack for now and save
the extra shelf or shelves for later use. At the moment, that seems like a
good plan.
At these prices, a rack could be bought for the shelves alone.
I thought I would pass this information along to any others of you that
might still be using something homemade or left over from a mid-fi rack
system. I have been using my homemade rack for at least twelve years
now. I think it is time to try something new. Contact Audio Advisor at
800-942-0220 or www.audioadvisor.com
A True Story
My wife has a nephew, who for the sake of anonymity, I will refer to only
as “David.”
It seems that “David” occasionally works as a roadie for bands that pass
through the city where he lives. He was contacted this fall and asked to
work a rock concert for an evening. His duties are fairly simple. He gets
there to help set up and stays to tear down.
So “David” showed up at the appropriate time and place and worked the
concert. He got a free t-shirt and the guy appearing at the concert
shook his hand and thanked him for helping out. This information was
related by “David’s” mother, “Linda” to my wife, “Pam.”
“Pam” asked “Linda” whose concert it actually was. “David” wasn’t
actually sure, so “Linda” asked “David” to check what his t-shirt said.
“David” said it read: “Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band, Local
Crew.”
The scream from my wife probably was heard all the way to Kansas City.
“How,” “Pam” asked, “could “David” shake Bruce’s hand and not think to
get him to autograph the t-shirt, or take a photo with him, or get him to
autograph a program, poster or CD, or ask for the shirt off his back, or
cut off a lock of his hair, or any other of the simple sorts of things a
long-time female Bruce fan wouldn’t hesitate to request?
Now “David” is probably not going to win a Nobel Prize for advancing
String Theory research but he is sharp enough to realize that somehow,
however inadvertently, he had made a major blunder. Maybe he should
have checked to see whose concert he was actually working.
So, for Christmas, he gave my wife the bright orange, worn-only-once
t-shirt that had been worn by him when he shook Bruce’s hand—the
closest yet that “Pam” has been able to get to the Boss himself.
It made her Christmas.
I hope yours was as good. Best Wishes for the New Year.
Kent Johnson
December 29, 2009
Update
I was able to get another cutting board. My sister in South Carolina
found one and sent it to me. I am not sure what I will do with them but
having a pair definitely makes them more potentially useful. I have also
reduced the backward tilt of my Quad 21L2 speakers to zero now that
they are on these boards. This seems to sound better than the slight tilt
I had previously. I have also done some minor repositioning and I am
happy with the results.
The Sanus equipment rack is now in my main system. It is lighter than
my home made rack but, with its spiked feet, is actually more solid. I
have not noticed any difference in the sound of my system good or bad,
which I consider to be good.
KJ
January 28, 2010
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