Foam for monitors

[Progger]

Should I have isolation foam for my monitors?

 

[c7sus]

What are you trying to isolate your mons from?

 

[Blue Bear Sound]

If you're trying to decouple your monitos from either the top of a console or from the stands/floor, then foam itself is useless.... what you need is at least 3/4" open-cell neoprene (typically available from gasket manufacturers - Home Depot and the like will have no clue what you're tyalking about if you ask them for it!)

 

[c7sus]

Oh, I get it now.

How about 1" closed cell rubber "foam"?

The open cell stuff is what they use for floor mats around industrial tools, right? They use it so you're not standing on concrete all day.

Which raises another question.

I'm using Event Tria monitors, and my room is carpeted. So I cut a pice of 3/4 plywood to put under the down-firing subwoofer for reflection. Would something with a little more mass, like say a piece of slate or a marble meat/veggie cutting slab be of any use?

 

[Progger]

If you're trying to decouple your monitos from either the top of a console or from the stands/floor, then foam itself is useless.... what you need is at least 3/4" open-cell neoprene (typically available from gasket manufacturers - Home Depot and the like will have no clue what you're tyalking about if you ask them for it!)

Okay, thanks. Looks like mouse pads are made of the stuff, so I'll just get some from the A/V room at school. Lucky for me the sysadmin doesn't give a damn about geeks screwing around in there!

 

[Blue Bear Sound]

How about 1" closed cell rubber "foam"?

Foam doesn't have the density -- if you get your hands on a piece of 3/4" open-cell neoprene, you understand immediately why foam won't cut it... that shit is DENSE! Less than 3/4" won't work either - not enough density to absorb the vibration.

 

[HangDawg]

I would think that horse mat/shit you stand on at work would do the job. That's some pretty dense shit and the wife has 4 horses. We got alot of this shit

 

[Ethan Winer]

Folks,

> Should I have isolation foam for my monitors? <

If you get EQ Magazine, my article in the current (February) issue explains why speaker isolation can be useful. But you don't need fancy materials. If you're on a budget, use a large dried up kitchen sponge, or even a thin empty cardboard box. For example, you could use a cardboard CD mailer box if your speakers aren't too heavy.

--Ethan

 

[HangDawg]

But fancy materials make us cool.

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

This is amazing. I did a search for speaker PLACEMENT this weekend. Most sites were dedicated high end LISTENING forums and ....ahem...products. Ha! How bout this one. These companys sell dense hardwood BLOCKS to set your speakers on. Some of these are described like you would specify a space shuttle and are as expensive. Hahahahaha! Talk about the emporers new INVISABLE clothing. And placement....I won't even go there. Net fact is rampant. And cables.....what a shear joke....would you pay $1500 for your speaker cables...you know that old saying..."theres a sucker born every minute"? I'm finally convinced its true! Snake oil sales are on the rise...think I'll buy stock in one of these companys.
fitZ

 

[Blue Bear Sound]

My fave was the isolation gizmo's the float your cable off the floor ('cos we all know that floor vibration has a negative impact on your sound!)

Yikes............

 

[Ethan Winer]

Bear,

> My fave was the isolation gizmo's the float your cable off the floor <

Yes, it's amazing how anti-scientific some of these "audiophoole" gadgets are. Cable elevators are indeed all the rage these days. In one of the forums I visit someone claimed he could hear the effect of raising and lowering his loudspeaker cable off the floor. He said by cable height alone he can make an instrument appear to pan from center to hard right. Clearly this dude is on drugs.

Equally silly is the notion that cables and electronic devices need to be "burned in" before they achieve their full audible potential.

--Ethan

 

[RaGe]

I'm using Auralex MoPads. I was skeptical at first when I ordered them bt I have to admit they work very well.

 

[RICK FITZPATRICK]

My fave was the isolation gizmo's the float your cable off the floor ('cos we all know that floor vibration has a negative impact on your

Hahahahahahahahahaha! I rolled on the floor laughing my ass off when I read that one. What planet are these people on Bruce? BTW, hows the studio doin? I'd love to see it someday. Never seen Johns work in person.

Hey Ethan, I have to admit, you are in a minority, and really go out of your way to tell people the truth. I admire that. I see your posts on some of these forums. Good for you. If people didn't have someone countering some of this bullshit out there, the industry would be selling surround 9.5 on a mono speaker. Well...maybe not that bad. Hmmmm.....that gives me an idea Ethan. How bout STEREO bass traps! Better yet...SURROUND TRAPS! (just teasin Ethan, so don't get any ideas ha!)

Hey, on second thought, lets design a "BURN IN" device. Lets see, what can we call it.
Something really catchy. Scientific too. We'll get some high profile people to "endorse" it. Somekinda home theater guru. If we can convince them it comes from "recording studio technology", we'll make a killing!!

fitZ

 

[Ethan Winer]

Rick,

> you are in a minority, and really go out of your way to tell people the truth. <

And not just with audiophile nonsense and the importance of acoustics over gear. If you get a chance, check out some of the skeptical articles on my web site.

There's no shame in holding a minority opinion if you know you're right!

> How bout STEREO bass traps! Better yet...SURROUND TRAPS! <

Done.

--Ethan

 

[Giganova]

Did you consider getting the MoPads? They are rather cheap ($29 two pairs or so, I think) and will do the trick.

 

[wimat]

I just got the MoPads a couple of days ago. The bass doesn't shake my desk as much and best of all, they're aimed more down towards my ears rather than across the room. Definitely worth the investment, in my opinion.

 

[vestast]

But if they aim down instead of across, do you now have to deal with reflections from your desk/console ?

Just curious because I'm considering buying a pair.

Dave