PDA

View Full Version : My new stands!!



mattepntr
11-26-2003, 11:23 AM
COOL!!

ZeN
11-26-2003, 01:04 PM
Those look fantastic!!! Cant wait to see them in person! :)

-Kolbe

ZeN

Bighitter
11-26-2003, 10:14 PM
They look great.

BTW what are the speakers on the shelf behind the ascends?

frank
11-27-2003, 12:03 AM
hi curtis your new speaker stands look great!! did you have the guy design the back of the stand so you could run your speaker wire/cable down the back so it could be hidden from sight. Also does the guy have a website so all of us could check it out. thanks

frank
11-27-2003, 12:06 AM
curtis I forgot to post this question on my last post with the speakers being so tall aren't they also top heavy does the new stands have a strap to told them down

curtis
11-27-2003, 01:23 AM
Thanks guys.

The speakers you see on the bookshelf are ACI Sapphires that I am demoing to satisfy my curiosity. They are very nice. When they are fully broken in, I will post my thoughts. Mike Dzurko of ACI was very kind in sending me a pair....they start at $1300/pr.

The stands do not hide the speaker cable, but they are fillable, which I intend to use cat litter. I will fasten the speaker cable to the underside of the top plate. No strap, but Brian did make a back plate that uses the threaded insert on the CMT-340 so the speaker can be locked to the stand....right now with nothing holding it down it is more stable than I thought it would be. I might just end up using Blu-tac instead.

Brian's website is http://www.rutledgeaudiodesign.com

Happy Thanksgiving!



-curtis

Derek
11-29-2003, 04:17 AM
Curtis,

Those stands look really great! I really like the contrast between the black and lighter maple.

Brian is a great craftsman and really easy to work with. He will work with you to build exactly what you want, so I don't see why he couldn't hide the wires in the column. Just give him a call.

Derek

curtis
11-29-2003, 05:27 AM
Thanks Derek!

Your experience with Brian gave me more reason to use him.

The stands could easily hide wire in the columns, just needed a hole for entry and one for exit. But since I wanted mine fillable, I really do not any more holes.

-curtis

Derek
11-30-2003, 12:01 AM
Gotcha.

However, I bet he could get creative with some tubing that the wire could run through. Or he could build two internal chambers: one for the sand and another smaller one for the wire.

Either way, your stands look great. You got me thinking about having him build cherry stands for my 170s for my next house... :-)

Derek

curtis
11-30-2003, 02:16 AM
<blockquote id="quote"><font size="1" face="Arial, Verdana, Helvetica" id="quote">quote:<hr height="1" noshade id="quote">Originally posted by Derek

However, I bet he could get creative with some tubing that the wire could run through.<hr height="1" noshade id="quote"></blockquote id="quote"></font id="quote">

Hmmmmmmm.....

-curtis

Brian Bunge
11-30-2003, 12:01 PM
Guys,

Thanks for the kind words. I'm glad that Curtis is happy with his stands, and I know Derek has loved his sub! :)

I'm about to start some cherry stands for a customer very shortly. I'll try to remember to get some pics of them before I ship them out. I am sure I could come up with some type of wire management but am not sure how I'd do it. I'd have to figure out how to get the wire up through the top plate and out from under the bottom of the speaker so it could be tricky. I've had stands before that simply had what looks like one of those wire track looking things that has adhesive holding it onto the back of the column but I don't know if anyone would want to stick that on the back of a nicely veneered column. It would cover the seam in the back, however.

I've also got some ideas for some more simple, less expensive stands for speakers such as my new Metals. I should come up with something slick for the Micros too. The inexpensive stands I've seen that work well for them really don't seem to be sturdy enough for a 5lbs. speaker.

If any of you guys have any ideas I'm all ears! :)

Brian Bunge
Rutledge Audio Design

Derek
11-30-2003, 10:09 PM
Hi Brian,

The wire management track is a good idea. You could also use a small piece attached to the underside of the top plate to run the wire from the inside of the column to the back edge.

Or, you could get really fancy and route a groove in the top of the plate, but I'm not sure if the plate would be thick enough for this.

Derek

P.S. I still love my sub! I finally got a chance to watch lotr:fotr extended edition this weekend. Wow!

Brian Bunge
11-30-2003, 10:55 PM
Derek,

For something like 16 gauge wire the groove would probably work very well. It would get a bit tricky for something thicker like 12 gauge though. Sometimes I think 12 gauge is a bit overkill for mains though.

BTW, I posted in your thread about the in-wall surrounds. The ACI in-walls are an excellent choice. I've had them for 3-4 years now and they work great.

Brian Bunge
Rutledge Audio Design

davef
12-01-2003, 12:28 PM
Brian,

Nice work!

We should talk... Give me a call or send me an email sometime.




Good Sound To You!

David Fabrikant
www.ascendacoustics.com

delling001
12-01-2003, 01:07 PM
Hey Curtis,

How tall are those stands, and what is the normal recommended height for the 340 stands? They are pretty sweet looking and I showed the wife the pictures. She was the one who asked how tall they are? I told her that was an extremely insightful audiophile question [:D]. She said that was a "wife" type question. Anyway, her response didn't disappoint....

I hope Brian Bunge keeps us posted on his creative thoughts about designing a hidden pathway for wire. Stands look great as is though, and you should be proud!

Thanks! Dave.

curtis
12-01-2003, 02:07 PM
Hi Dave,

These stands are 31". The recommended height for 340 stands is 24", just like the custom 340 stands that Ascend sells. Brian can make them any height. I chose 31" so the speaker would clear a section of the sofa. It is much lower and more desireable than the shelf that is 45" high.

-curtis

delling001
12-01-2003, 09:59 PM
Curtis,

Thanks for the reply.

Just curious... Do you sense a "noticable" difference in sound quality from your listening position now that the speakers have been brought down from 45" to 31"? I believe I have read other posts where some individuals have asked about placing the speakers on shelves at less than optimal height. Wondering what your real life recent experience in this regard may be..?? I also think I recall Dave F. @ Ascend recommending to someone on this forum to try turning the speaker upside down to place tweeter at the bottom of the speaker in the "high" shelf type situation (however, I do believe he was referring to the 170s at the time?). Were yours positioned like that when they were on shelves?

Thanks Curtis!

Dave.

Brian Bunge
12-01-2003, 11:45 PM
David,

If I have time today I'll try to give you a call.

Dave,

I'll see what I can come up with as far as wire management. While not very elegant, the wire track down the back is the easiest/most cost effective approach. Anything fancy I come up with will surely cause the prices to go up. They're probably a little on the cheap side as it is. For instance, in the future, anything over about 25" or so will probably cost another $50 or so. If you have any specific ideas let me know.

Brian Bunge
Rutledge Audio Design

curtis
12-02-2003, 02:00 AM
Dave,

I have not actually listen to the speakers on the stands yet...I hope to do so this week. Been extremely busy.

I think the recommedation to have the speakers upside down is when they are close to the ceiling to help prevent the higher frequencies from reflecting off of the ceiling. My surrounds, the CBM-170's, are mounted upside down for this very reason...they are very close to ceiling.

I will let you know how things sound when I have the stands hooked up.

-curtis

SomeDood
12-05-2003, 06:32 AM
Nice....

curtis
12-07-2003, 06:01 AM
Just a quick update.

Two nights ago I went to Home Depot and bought some sand to fill the stands. Each stand took about 25lbs of sand. A 50lbs. bag of filter, washed, and dried sand for sandboxes is about $4. My guess is the stands way between 40-50lbs. each now. The shipping weight of the stands, which came in three boxes, was 63lbs.

I then took the speakers off of the bookshelves, moved the bookshelves into the kids' room, and placed the speakers and stands into position.

The biggest difference is in the soundstage, it is now bigger. Everything else has been "cleaned" up a bit. Lower-mids and bass seemed to have benefited the most. I expected a bit of a difference, but overall, the difference is a little more than I expected.

When everything is setup in a week or two (a new rack/AV stand is a Christmas present to myself), I will post more pictures.

-curtis

delling001
12-07-2003, 09:17 AM
Curtis,

Do you still have the ACI Sapphires as well? I'm curious now if the improved mids/bass of the 340s alters your opinion of the 340s vs. Sapphires at all? I wonder if you would notice the same differences if the Sapphires were put on those stands in the same position as well? Anyway, don't feel like you have to mess with your set-up for this question... just wondering if a thought had popped into your mind in that regard?

Dave.

curtis
12-07-2003, 10:16 AM
I will do more with the Sapphires this week. I would think the some of what you heard will be cleaned up...and the drivers have more time on them now as well. I will report to you when I try them on the stands.

-curtis