Hi fi stands.

[mr Mag00]

guffaw i have mine temporarily on a lack table hahahaha

 

[User482]

You'll never see one of those reported in a hi-fi magazine - it might show up the Emperor's new clothes for what they are

The Ikea "Lack" table has been widely recommended as a sensibly-priced stand for hi-fi equipment (if you can put up with chipboard in your living-room). But I believe it has been discontinued for some time, so it probably fetches £200 on eBay by now

Funnily enough, I do have a proper Atacama hifi stand. I bought it because it looks nice and fits in the corner, not because I think it makes the slightest bit of difference to the sound quality. The one thing I do think makes a difference is an offcut of solid oak under the turntable.

As a general point, it seems unlikely that anyone who has invested hundreds or even thousands in cables and stands is going to turn round and say "nah, it makes no difference at all".

The hifi industry is full of snake oil salesmen. And the mags need their advertising revenues.

 

[beancounter]

As a general point, it seems unlikely that anyone who has invested hundreds or even thousands in cables and stands is going to turn round and say "nah, it makes no difference at all".

I would hope that anyone making a serious investment in stands and cables would at least audition them first. If they don't then (I agree) they only have themselves to blame.

I'm not nearly as interested in hi-fi as I used to be, but my experience was that you needed a pretty impressive system before stands and cables start making a difference. In my own system which I bought 20 years ago (Roksan / DNM / Epos) yes, stands and cables made a noticeable difference (ironically though, the solid core DNM cables were relatively cheap, compared to others).

If you can't hear a difference then either your ears or your system aren't up to it. In either case, keep your money in your pocket and think yourself lucky.

bc

 

[User482]

If you can't hear a difference then either your ears or your system aren't up to it. In either case, keep your money in your pocket and think yourself lucky.

bc

If you think you can tell the difference, a million dollars awaits you.

I repeat: no-one has ever produced a double-blind study that demonstrates an audible difference. Why do you suppose that is?

 

[beancounter]

If you think you can tell the difference, a million dollars awaits you.

I repeat: no-one has ever produced a double-blind study that demonstrates an audible difference. Why do you suppose that is?

I couldn't care less. All I care about are my ears, my hi-fi, my musical enjoyment and my money. You can waffle on all you like (and boy, do you) but it's of zero interest.

bc

 

[User482]

One of the worst things is the hyper-expensive digital cable. It's complete crap. It's digital and the signal is either completely correct or not (there is error correction built in to ensure this as well). Gold connectors and cables make bugger all difference.

What Hi-Fi, reliant on expensive advertising for much of its income, is one of the wost culprits. I have seen reviews of mains electricity purifiers and cables costing hundreds, claiming that the sound is more realistic when using them. Bollocks it is.

+1.

It's notable that recording-studios don't bother with any of this nonsense. So we have people spending thousands on cabling and stands, to listen to music recorded using bog-standard copper.

 

[User482]

I couldn't care less. All I care about are my ears, my hi-fi, my musical enjoyment and my money. You can waffle on all you like (and boy, do you) but it's of zero interest.

bc

If you care about your money, why don't you want to win a million dollars?

It's a pity you're so easily sucked in, but if you've convinced yourself that you can hear a difference, good for you.

 

[NickM]

What Hi-Fi, reliant on expensive advertising for much of its income, is one of the wost culprits. I have seen reviews of mains electricity purifiers and cables costing hundreds, claiming that the sound is more realistic when using them. Bollocks it is.

I see that Hi-fi Plus, another den of reality-deniers*, has gone for a burton. Maybe the days of people (other than obsessives with a psychological need for such stuff and a fat wallet, who will always be taken for suckers) spending lots of money on things they are just as well off without have finally passed. About bloody time, if so.



*although Paul Messenger and Jimmy Hughes contributed some insightful columns

 

[Ghost Donkey]

Our old uber expensive broadcast studio sound desk was mounted in wood which was build y ex-company employed carpenters who now had their own company. The ausi cables went under the floor and through a run one foot deep of othe rcables. The aluminium chassied crate which housed all the gubbins was rack mounted in a 60u unit. No silver oxide cables made by monkeys in a vacuum in space. Quality cables and racking used? Yes. A load of extra b0ll0cks used? No. By quality cables I mean a lot cheaper than the stuff you buy made upalready. Cable bought on a drum, connectors built in large quantities and a low paid technical oik to crimp or solder in together. No concerns about equipment being stacked up and down rahter than side by side, no reduction in all the other crap you see. The bad science website has some pretty good stuff on there.

 

[Ghost Donkey]

+1.

It's notable that recording-studios don't bother with any of this nonsense. So we have people spending thousands on cabling and stands, to listen to music recorded using bog-standard copper.

Recording studios, broadcasters (ITV from what I've worked with, BBC from what I've seen when visiting technical areas). The wiremen we use who kit out broadcast facilities all over the world laugh at this stuff. So do the sound engineers I've worked with.

 

[Mr Pig]

it seems unlikely that anyone who has invested hundreds or even thousands in cables and stands is going to turn round and say "nah, it makes no difference at all".

If you knew the history of my Hi-Fi system you'd know how wrong that idea is, in my case anyway. I've sold lots of expensive items of equipment because I found that I could get similar performance out of much cheaper kit. I sold a Naim CD player because I found an old Micromega one that sounded exactly the same. I sold a Linn Ittok arm because I preferred the sound of the much cheaper Rega RB300. I sold a Linn Troika cartridge and now use tweaked Denon DL103 carts that cost about a tenth of the price.

However I happily spent £450 on Mana speaker stands for my Isobariks and they were worth every penny. My system is prety settled but I would always welcome more Mana.

It's notable that recording-studios don't bother with any of this nonsense

Yes they do. One of the racks I own was originally used in a recording studio and I assume you didn't read my last post? Kate Bush and Queen's Brian May also use it, there are lots of others but I can't remember them.

Maybe your Hi-Fi is just rubbish and you can't hear anything much through it.

 

[swee'pea99]

I like good hi fi and I have a system that's pretty sound - NAD + some well-rated Gale speakers - but I'm sure audio-snobs would sneer. I did once hear a £20,000 system. It sounded good. But better than mine? I wouldn't have said so. I suspect hi fi's just one of those billy-no-mates hobbies that train-spotters take up when they get jobs and have cash to spend. Bit like cycling really. I mean, there are people out there who spend £700 on a wheel - can you believe that?

 

[User482]

If you knew the history of my Hi-Fi system you'd know how wrong that idea is, in my case anyway. I've sold lots of expensive items of equipment because I found that I could get similar performance out of much cheaper kit. I sold a Naim CD player because I found an old Micromega one that sounded exactly the same. I sold a Linn Ittok arm because I preferred the sound of the much cheaper Rega RB300. I sold a Linn Troika cartridge and now use tweaked Denon DL103 carts that cost about a tenth of the price.

However I happily spent £450 on Mana speaker stands for my Isobariks and they were worth every penny. My system is prety settled but I would always welcome more Mana.



Yes they do. One of the racks I own was originally used in a recording studio and I assume you didn't read my last post? Kate Bush and Queen's Brian May also use it, there are lots of others but I can't remember them.

Maybe your Hi-Fi is just rubbish and you can't hear anything much through it.

No, you think that you can hear a difference. Not the same thing at all. If you're happy with it, good for you, but the only genuine way to test for audible differences is a proper double-blind study. Now, why do you suppose snake oil cable & stand manufacturers haven't done so?

As I said before, if you're so sure of yourself, a million dollars awaits.

 

[beancounter]

yes, your system's crap

 

[User482]

The hifi magazines must love people like BC and Mr Pig - the only way to tell the difference between cheap and expensive cables is to buy a more expensive hifi.

You couldn't make it up.