The final rush to the end of the year has begun and that includes coverage of CanJam SoCal, Record Store Day Black Friday Edition, CAF 2024, and Black Friday.
Some of us will be standing in line after the Thanksgiving feast for limited runs of specific records, whilst others will be abroad dealing with changes that will impact 2025 and beyond.
The expanded eCoustics team (announcement coming soon) has been working on a myriad of year-end reviews and features covering every possible category including a travel guide to some of the best Jazz Kissas in Tohoku, Japan.
There is more to come from Eric Pye’s recent trip to Japan, including a look at the best Jazz Kissas in Tokyo and Sendai.
Where to begin?
Audio accessories such as cables, vibration cones and platforms, and expensive phono cartridges can be a trigger for some people.
Some products are utterly ridiculous and we understand when some roll their eyes at $1,000 Ethernet cables or $5,000 power cables. Raise your hand if you ever rubbed car cleaning compounds on CDs or plugged clocks into your system thinking they make it all sound so much better?
Putting aside the cynicism for a moment, some manufacturers actually offer accessories that make a rather significant difference when inserted into your system and we wanted to discuss our initial impressions with some of their products.
IsoAcoustics GAIA III Speaker Isolation Feet
Vibration is the enemy; both in the recording studio and in your home when it comes to sound quality. Put your hand on your loudspeaker while listening to music and you’ll immediately feel how the energy produced by the drivers causes the cabinet to resonate.
That level of resonance affects how your loudspeaker sounds. External vibration from your room, equipment stand, or loudspeaker stands impacts how your loudspeakers sound as well.
We have written rather extensively about IsoAcoustics’ range of isolation stands and platforms and many of us use them in our own systems. I currently use one set of Aperta stands on the desktop with bookshelf loudspeakers and three of their isolation platforms underneath 2 turntables and the Cambridge Audio Edge A Integrated Amplifier.
Removing the GAIA III from their packaging, one can’t help but be impressed by their construction and build quality.
Tested at the National Research Council of Canada (NRC), the IsoAcoustics isolators manage the energy of the speaker to reduce vibrations resonating through the supporting surface and reduce internal reflections to eliminate smear.
IsoAcoustics has already created a database of loudspeakers that work with the GAIA Speaker Isolation Feet and it continues to grow. If you don’t see a specific loudspeaker on the list — you can ask them and they will direct you to the model that works best.
Technology
The GAIA Series consists of 3 models which range in size to suit speakers up to 220 lbs (100 KG), and include thread adapters for the 3 most common sizes (more sizes available on request).
The GAIA III isolators are finished in an elegant machined dark chrome metal housing.
The “thread” part is very critical. Your loudspeakers need to have that capability — sorry Magnepan users.
The GAIA’s are threaded into the base of the speaker or subwoofer to replace the existing spikes or feet. Threading the GAIA’s into the base of the speaker creates a strong connection with the speaker.
IsoAcoustics were very kind and sent me GAIA III for the Q Acoustics 5050, 5040, 3050i, and M40 wireless loudspeakers.
Some will point to the cost of the GAIA III and consider it a deal breaker — that might be a huge mistake because what they cost is definitely less than the price of a new pair of loudspeakers.
There is one quirky set-up concept that needs to be shared.
According to IsoAcoustics, the best results are achieved by installing the GAIA isolators with the logo facing forward, in line with the speaker’s drivers. Alternatively, they can be rotated 180 degrees to face the rear.
The isolators are directional and are designed to be aligned with the speaker’s motive forces.
If there is carpeting underneath your loudspeakers, you are not out of luck.
For thicker carpet, you can order the optional GAIA carpet discs for best results so that that the GAIA’s connect to a solid surface.
Installing the GAIA III was straight forward and make sure to hold onto the supplied wrench.
Listening
My comments are going to focus on the M40, 5040, and 3050i because they are the least expensive and there are a few areas where we wanted to see if the GAIA III would be a genuine improvement for the money — and not just a subtle one.
The M40 wireless speakers are my pick for “Best Wireless Speaker of 2024,” but there are a few areas where they could be improved; midrange and mid bass clarity, and soundstage dimensions.
Substituting the GAIA III for their stock threaded feet made them more stable on my hardware floor, and there is no question that they look better and do less damage.
Listening to vocal tracks from Nick Cave, Sia, Johnny Cash, and Richard and Linda Thompson, it was apparent that the M40 sounded like a much larger speaker with improved clarity, greater presence, tighter bass, and a much wider sounding soundstage.
The change in soundstage width (and depth) was the most surprising aspect of the GAIA III — and that applies to all of the loudspeakers thus far.
The 5040 already excel in that department, but the GAIA III made everything extend even further and to the edge of the walls in my listening space (16′ x 13′ x 9′).
Weird.
At first, I wasn’t sure if the GAIA III were thinning out the sound somewhat (which is something that I have experienced with the Aperta stands with bookshelf loudspeakers), but we experimented with 3 different amplifiers and that wasn’t the situation.
You are just hearing more detail, greater clarity, and an enlarged soundstage.
Bass notes are most certainly cleaner and tighter sounding. You might lose some weight in that regard but it’s not significant.
The changes to the overall tonal balance of the aforementioned loudspeakers were minimal.
The 3050i have been a part of my home system for years and I consider them to be a great platform for testing all kinds of amplifiers.
The treble range is polite; some might even call it dull sounding. Experimentation with amplification has taught me what works best. And it was not the most expensive amplifiers that have come through.
The soundstage feels somewhat constricted between the loudspeakers and the bass range can be a tad loose with the wrong amplifier; it’s amazing how a $6,000 amplifier can struggle to get the most out of a pair of $800 loudspeakers.
Inserting the GAIA III changed a few things.
The soundstage certainly felt wider and the overall sense of spaciousness improved as well.
The polite sounding treble did not suddenly experience a personality transplant, but the 3050i were more open sounding overall.
The bass range tightened up somewhat and I did discern a slight reduction in overall impact; the 3050i can overload my room because of the placement and everything felt more coherent and spacious.
These things work.
The Bottom Line
Does it make sense to spend $400 on a set of eight isolation feet for your loudspeakers?
Based on my experience, the IsoAcoustics GAIA III will make a more significant impact on the sound of your loudspeakers than even a pair of $1,000 or even $2,000 loudspeaker cables — and I used a mix of loudspeaker cables between $100 and $2,000 to discern if that was true.
The build quality for $200 is excellent and installation took less than 15 minutes for each loudspeaker.
Placing each loudspeaker in the same position and listening to the same music through the same amplifier and set of sources confirmed a few things.
Each of the aforementioned loudspeakers sounded larger, more coherent, and the soundstage dimensions increased rather significantly; soundstage width was the biggest change and it was rather surprising to hear the rather inexpensive M40 and 3050i improve that much.
Had the GAIA III altered the tonal balance of the loudspeakers, I would have a very hard time recommending them.
The changes are impossible to ignore.
Consider these a mandatory listen before you decide to invest in more expensive loudspeakers — you might save yourself a lot of money.
Pity the Bowers and Wilkins 703 S3 have already gone back because these GAIA III speaker isolation feet are very effective. IsoAcoustics offer custom versions of the GAIA series for select Bowers and Wilkins models.
Pros:
- Effective isolation that impacts soundstage width, height, and depth
- Improved clarity
- Tightened up bass response
- Does not change the fundamental tonal balance of your loudspeakers
- Easy to install
- Very high level of construction quality
Cons:
- Expensive, but excellent value for the money
- Requires adapters to work on carpeting
- Need loudspeakers with threaded feet to work
Where to buy:
For more information: isoacoustics.com
Demo at Capital Audiofest 2024
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