Let's discuss nice racks

I've been Googlin' racks & have seen all the brands mentioned so far. Box Furniture Company's have my attention. Custom-built to save $ (local finish carpenter @ $100/hr)?

The Quadraspire Sunoko Vent T | Hi-Fi Rack/Stand Model : SV2T (aka "doublewide") has been mentioned:

http://www.quadraspire.com/hifi-rac...s-hifi-stands-hifi-furniture.html#sunokoventt

IMHO, having once upon a time been certified to teach physics, the SV2T in bamboo is on the cutting edge of what's to come:

"For audio applications, bamboo’s appeal lies both in its own structure and the way in which it is processed into useable sheet form. The plant grows as long, closely knit fibers, with a micro-porous structure, an inherently random formation that makes it an excellent broadband dissipater. But in order to create sheets of useable size, the bamboo poles that are harvested must be cut into narrow strips, maybe 20mm (7/8") wide and 4mm (1/4") thick, that are then laminated together into large, flat sheets. This randomizes the structure even more, as well as introducing a further lossy element in the shape of the glue holding the whole shooting match together. "

http://www.theaudiobeat.com/equipment/atacama_quadraspire_racks.htm

Living in the sticks, I would need a passport to see the nearest Atacama dealer (in Canada). The US Quadraspire distributor could not provide a dealer within a day's drive. The SV2T was used by a least one exhibitor @ RMAF 2013, but Quadraspire as a exhibitor is not listed for 2014.

The use of bamboo strands in a matrix of formaldehyde-free glue is pushing the envelope. The majority of US firms bringing bamboo flooring from China is a case in point. Imagine your entire house offgassing. That flooring firm, LL, has a lot of unhappy customers & installers. There's 250 sqft ripped up on Craigslist for $100.

I've contacted the local flooring sources, and two have brands condemned for formaldehyde content, 2 of those brands have been pulled from the market. Another has a brand composed of 3 bamboo layers (clic-lock style), but as only the top surface is finished, the bamboo is free to warp as it acclimates once the package is opened = "cupping" of all the samples not nailed/glued down. There are some sources for solid bamboo flooring & countertops on the W Coast

http://www.higuerahardwoods.com/subcategory-bamboo-countertops-fsc-approved-

http://www.plyboo.com/plyboodirect/plyboo-neopolitan-rustic-prefinished-3-8-bamboo-flooring.html

As I'm retired & my wife is a former USF&WS contaminants biologist, my quest for a DIY bamboo solution led me to purchase 3 Craftsman 8' Bamboo Work Surface, 24" deep X 1.5" thick. The finish will need to be sanded off & redone, but $11.50/sqft is the lowest price point I could find; & eliminates laminating flooring to get to 1.5".

I will likely use 8020 aluminum extrusions for uprights, inspiration from this DIY thread

http://www.audiocircle.com/index.php?topic=63111.0

Although I have a section of conveyor track SS rollers (Ft. Riley military surplus); aluminum rollers would also make uprights. Urethane bushings inset into bamboo shelves to accept rollers.

http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/m...-18-ga-aluminum-roller-for-12-o-a-w-conveyors

I will likely shorten the workbench tops to 6', & use 1' widths as speaker platforms.

Speaking of Ft. Riley, the firing ranges' tremors have been near constant since '03. So my house may make a suitable test site of bamboo's vibration damping qualities.

Sorry IF this is perceived as a hijack, the OP did mention his dealer has the Quadraspire Sunuko Vent T in bamboo.

 

addendum

I did find one source for bamboo media cabinets & seriously considered until I realized all designs are 17" deep, less depth of sliding doors/track:

http://www.enerchilivingspaces.com/home/chi/page_479_17/magnolia_modular_cabinet.html

Back to contemplating how to slot 1.5" thick benchtop, &/or route artistic look of Sunuko Vent T's underbelly . . . .

 

I found a nice audiophile quality rack locally on Craigslist. It's a long drive to pickup, but might be worth it. The rack is apparently only 15" deep. That seems way too shallow. Aren't most audio components around 18"?

Is this too shallow to be useful longterm? Anyone using a 15" deep rack successfully?

 

My deepest component is 15" - the amp. The others are 14" or less.

My rack is bigger then that and I support the power cables coming out of the back of the CD Player and DAC on wooden blocks. Turntables are a minimum of 14" I think.

Depends also on what you have in mind for the future of course.

 

Improved sound. As I stated earlier my dealer brought one to my home for a demo. I was skeptical and he put on the most impressive demo, almost by accident, I was hooked! Still at that price it took me along time to actually pony up the dough. Now that I have I couldn't be happier with it. I have pics of the demo. Much fun was had that day!

 

I have a Steve Blinn rack that is great. They can be custom configured. www.steveblinndesigns.com

 

Solidsteel is Nice!

 

So I picked up that Mapleshade rack last weekend in anticipation of the new analog front end being delivered today (yay!). Finally had time to install the rack last night. I've only been able to listen to 4 or 5 albums, so can't report anything definitive yet, but here are my immediate takeaways (subject to change upon further listening):

• Sound did not noticeably improve. This was my big concern spending bug money on a rack. Nothing's really jumping out at me as "Wow, big improvement" over my cheap MDF rack.
• The Mapleshade was harder to balance on my concrete floors than I expected. Even after having the rack shelves totally dialed in and level, I still had to adjust the turn table feet on my VPI to make it level. I now suspect that the turntable itself may not be level since I'm adjusting the same feet I had to adjust on my other rack. Again, it's sitting on level shelves. I guess I will know when the new table arrives today.
• I am noticing a bit less distortion, but way too early to know if this is real. Perhaps because the table is sitting MUCH higher now, it is being effected less by airborne vibrations. Not sure.
• I do feel that the sound stage has collapsed a bit since I moved from a two shelf tall setup to one where that turntable is now a solid 5 feet off the ground. This may very well be my imagination since I was concerned about this before installing. I may just be listening too hard for this.
• Pretty sure I will need to reposition my speakers now. Just doesn't sound quite right, even though I'm pretty much in near-field.
• I have no idea how to manage all these power cables.
• My camera takes crappy pictures.

 

Well, you've got to put your gear on something, and at least the mapleshade racks look nice (if you're in the right frame of mind anyway).

I've been on the hunt for a good, reasonably-priced rack for ages myself. The Box stuff is lovely, but a bit beyond my price range. I'm looking at 'furniture' as opposed to 'racks' now, for aesthetic reasons and to avoid the hi-fi tax. But today, I came across mention of Codia racks. Has anyone had any experience with these?

 

Yeah, your speakers are way too close together! You collapse your own soundstage when you do that.

 

x2

 

The side walls are maybe 2.5 feet from the speakers, so I'd have to have them pretty close to the wall if I spread them apart. I used the Cardas triangle ratio based on my room measurements to get this. Pretty much puts me near-field, but I had more of a soundstage before adding this rack (it feels like anyway so far with very limited listening).

 

You may need to reposition something after post 85.

I still can't help wondering if having the amp near the floor/wall corner, where bass build probably occurs, is not harming the sound.

I put my solid state amp two shelves higher and I thought it made a difference but that may have been just attaching/reattaching cables. When I put the amp back on the lowest shelf I wasn't so sure I could detect any difference. My gear is on the side wall.

 

Which one??

I have a Target, which is pretty old now, but I'v enever felt the need to change.

 

Did you really think a rack was going to *significantly* improve your audio?

 

Nope, which is exactly what I said from the beginning. Dealers, of course, all disagreed and made it sound like it was going to be this huge improvement. That's why I bought used and had low expectations.

 

Good thinking there.

 

I have this one too, its awesome.

 

I bought a used demo Box Furniture 3 shelf wide rack and it really does look beautiful. I just think of it as a work of art / custom furniture.
I couldn't detect a big difference in sound over my old set up w/ an Ikea Expedit for the electronics and Target Wall mount w/ Mapleshade maple block for the TT. Of course it's pretty much impossible to A/B a rack.