I recently bought new speakers (Paradigm Studio 40s) and got stands for them. I love the speakers but haven't gotten around to filling the stands yet. Partly, that's because I had heard that lead shot is the best thing to use but I've learned that it's hard to find. It also seems like the weight of the speakers combined with all that lead would get awfully heavy - possibly to the point of over-stressing the floor joists. (There's a fairly heavy bookcase between the two speakers.
What are the pro and cons of different materials? I've heard of using sand, lead, kitty litter and combinations thereof. Does it make that much difference? These particular stands (Premier S-series) are 22" tall and there's two fillable stantions on each one. The salesperson spoke in terms of only filling the front stantions, seemingly because the speaker cables are running up through the rear stantion. But I'm thinking I should fill both stantions on both stands - seems like the whole point of this is dampen any potential resonance in the hollow metal tubes. Sure, it will make ir more of an effort to re-wire the speakers, but I don't expect to have to do that anytime soon.
I'd appreciate any thoughts anyone wants to share.
For all practical purposes, you can fill your stands with any of the above materials and get good sonic results. I would go with sand because it is inexpensive, and easy to find. If you want to go with lead shot, your best source to find it would be a sporting goods store, or firearms dealer. Yes, fill both tubes on each stand. Just as important is the base of the stands. Hopefully they came with adjustable spikes or cones. Use them for both hardwood or carpeted floors. The rest is just optimal placement for your room/listening area. Take your time and experiment. Happy listening.
Thanks for your help, Rick. Yes, I did get spikes and have them in place (on carpet). I think the placement is good...so I'll just go ahead and fill 'em up.
One method of dampening stands is to use a layer of shot (medium gauge), a layer of sand and then a layer of kitty litter. It means you have to buy less shot and provides different materials to damp different frequencies. As Rick said a sporting goods dealer who deals in reloading cartridges or a gun dealer will have shot. Fill the bases and the uprights and use a bit of BluTak or PlastiTak between the speaker and the top plate.
There was a discussion of speaker set up on the "Old Dogs" thread not too long ago if you are interested in doing some reading on the topic.