HornEd Posted February 8, 2002 Share Posted February 8, 2002 As requested by Caddymania and others, here are photos and details on building sturdy inexpensive Front Effects speaker stands. I walked into Home Depot looking for inspiration and unsure of what I would find. I had some design constraints in mind. The finished product had to look professionally made, had to swivel to aim the SB-2 at the heart of the sweetspot, had to be finished in black to match the other sound equipment, and had to be quick and easy to assemble. I like a bargain, even more than most, but cost was not a primary consideration. The adventure really started cooking when I spied some 4" i.d. black ABS pipe... which comes in 10 ft. lengths. I had a friendly Home Depot person cut it in two (I was in the smaller car) and then added a couple of black PVC endcaps that matched and provided a finished look that hid the unevenness of the cut. Industrial strength 3" Velcro was chosen as the method of attachment for the SP-2's to the finished columns. Next in line were two blue 4" rotating metal pipe flanges (the most expensive pieces) that were built to fit the PVC and offered a strong metal joint to attach the bottom of the column to a base plate with bolts or screws. For baseplates, I picked up a couple of 12" Formica sink cutouts (3/4 inch thick) for which plastic edging is available. Next was the smallest bag of sanitized "Play Sand" they had. The last thing were a box of large, heavy-duty Ziplock freezer bags. Speaker wire I had aplenty at home. For clarity and brevity, I will describe the building of one stand... although two are required. I used short, large wood screws to attach the pipe flange to the center of the Formica cut out. I sealed the inside of the flange to the Formica with Silicone (probably an unneeded step). If you choose to paint these, the only parts that are not black, now is the time. Next the Velcro was attached to the top of the flange and edge trimmed. The sticky part was exposed as I centered it onto the inverted SB-2 speaker. SB-2's are approximately 7' across and 8.5" deep so the slightly larger than 4" column not only is sufficient... but looks it! I separated the Velcroed SB-2 from the endcap and put it aside. Two holes were drilled into the PVC tube, on the same line, a few inches from the top and the bottom. Speaker wire was then run through the holes with plenty of wire available for connecting the SB-2. The end cap was then press fit onto the top of the column. By not gluing it, I was able to use the endcap to match the height of the columns with precision. I had intended to glue it later but later didn't seem necessary after all. Next came the "Play Sand" and Ziplock bags. I slit the Ziploc bags in half vertically and sealed the edges to make two long and narrow bags out of each bag. I filled the bags (as I remember it was two or three "half bags" for each column) with just enough sand to be a tight fit in the column and rammed them in. I used a total of about ten lbs of sand per column. Next, I glued the bottom of the column into the flange mounted on the Formica round. Stood it up and placed the SB-2 on top, wired it up and stood it in the corner of the room aimed at the sweetspot. It helps to sit in your favorite position and have someone else swivel the stands to precisely the correct angle. You will be surprised at how important it is to aim horns with precision... they do not have as wide a margin of error as cones do. The stands have been in place for about a year or so... Perhaps this adventure will inspire you to bang out a bigger and better Home Theater... I hope so. HornEd =========================================== This message has been edited by HornEd on 03-25-2002 at 08:07 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted February 8, 2002 Share Posted February 8, 2002 Have you thought about installing a p trap? (Thanks, mobile...) fini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornEd Posted February 9, 2002 Author Share Posted February 9, 2002 Hmmm, fini, a p-trap seems rather "sewercidal"... I think your Ikea solution sounded better on your last "stand" post. Do you think Ikea would have something tasteful and do just as good a job in a Front Effects column? Thanks for your interest. HornEd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted February 9, 2002 Share Posted February 9, 2002 Ed, let me know next time you're up here in Sonoma County. I'll take you over to Bataeff Salvage, where we can find some really fun stuff out of which to make really fun stuff! Have you been over to Ikea? I doubt they carry anything that would serve the same purpose as your speaker stands. Lots of Euro-style cabinetry, though. Not much in Medieval Euro, I'm afraid... Take care, fini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornEd Posted February 9, 2002 Author Share Posted February 9, 2002 Fini, Sonoma County is where we were coming from when the Japanese bombed Pearl Harbor... I still remember my father pulling off the road just short of the Golden Gate(with just about everyone else) to hear the details over the radio. The sudden feeling that there was nothing between you and the an invading force but empty ocean sort of left you with that "I forgot to put on my pants" feeling. The mainland invasion finally came... but fortunately in the form of stuff that helps me enjoy Klipsch speakers... and to take 5 megapixel photos of them. My grandparents, immigrants from Germany who disagreed with Kaiser Wilhelm before 1800 had a chicken ranch in Liberty District (Petaluma) and upgraded to a much larger ranch on the Two Rock Road that is still in the family today. On that ranch, my grandfather developed the modern milking barn and was named the most modern dairy farm in America in the 50's. Of course, my wine cellar has a special area of tribute for Sonoma County. The ABS stands gave me an opportunity to get it right before I got it fancy. Well, I am off to see about getting some parts to put together a stand that will allow me to put both of my Ultras into a single column. I want to see if the theoretical benefits will work out in practice. Thanks for the reply, I shall now look to "fini" as being a higher end avatar. HornEd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
klipguy Posted February 9, 2002 Share Posted February 9, 2002 stands look good , i actually thought when i looked at the stands first , the base was blue i seen i thought it was a blue light that would shine up, that would be a cool idea mabe ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted February 9, 2002 Share Posted February 9, 2002 Ed- Wonderful to hear about your connections to So. Co. I'm born and raised here (46 y.o.). Mom walked across that span that connects you 'n' I on opening day! Mom lives on King Road in Petaluma, probably a stone's throw from your family farm. I won't try throwing the rock, though... don't wanna chance breakin' an egg... Heck, my buddy Clipped and Shorn owns an old chicken ranch in Penngrove! The chickens are long-gone, but maybe his impending "sexy" tube gear purchase might lure a few back! fini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornEd Posted February 10, 2002 Author Share Posted February 10, 2002 Hey, fini, I have an interesting piece of memorabilia of the Golden Gate Bridge. An old family friend was the first person to walk across the bridge on the cable bundles that support it... before the roadbed was in place. I have a letter opener fashioned from a piece of the cable than went into that bundle. I also have a 56 lb. siege cannon ball from the big cannon that Sherman used in taking Atlanta. It came from a piece of property I had that was in the direct line of fire. Currently it is being shown by my friend in Davey, Florida, Erik the Flutemaker, to local school children and Civil War buffs. Erik has become about the staightest straight arrow I've known. He really sweated carrying a 56 lb. Civil War cannon ball onto the commercial airplane... I doubt he could get by with it after Sept. 11th. Somehow the cable turned letter opener seemed friendlier. HornEd This message has been edited by HornEd on 02-10-2002 at 04:31 AM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Colin Posted February 10, 2002 Share Posted February 10, 2002 nice work, good looking, love that Home Depot! ------------------ Colin's Music System Cornwall 1s & Klipsch subs; lights out & tubes glowing! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DLUngurait Posted February 10, 2002 Share Posted February 10, 2002 Hey Ed! To us rednecks down here in S.W. Broward County...that's Davie, FL I'm actually in Cooper City which is bordered by Davie on three sides...our motto "Cooper City...just like Davie...minus the horse shite" And what does all of this have to to w/ anything?...Well it's Sunday and there's no football...sigh... Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornEd Posted February 10, 2002 Author Share Posted February 10, 2002 Wow, Dave, I can't believe I screwed up the name... been away too long! My friend, Erik, is more like Cooper City folks than Davie dudes... he just got a very good deal on a piece of ground and built a home and family on it. I am a native San Franciscan, who spent years in Europe... but most of my adult life was spent in the South... by choice. Maybe if I can get off some of this medication I can get my head clear... and point the motorhome to Dixie. Thanks for the help, Dave. Yeah, yeah, I'm O.K. but why is the world upside down? HornEd Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phishken Posted March 12, 2002 Share Posted March 12, 2002 I wish pictures didnt disappear so fast around here, surely bandwidth cant be that bad. Sounds like an interesting project. ~phish~ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HornEd Posted March 12, 2002 Author Share Posted March 12, 2002 phishken... since only six photos are allowed at a time on the Klipsch system, I have had to use up the stand slots to answer other questions. Here is a photo to show the before and after photos of stacking my Twin SVS Ultras. This also gives you a full view of the 4" ABS pipe stands. I have also made 6" ABS pipe stands using floor drains as the base and top... actually looks much better than it sounds. I use them as small tables next to the LazyBoy leather recliners. Leather, as you may know, transfers bass energy better than any other covering. The SB-2's were replaced by much larger (and heavier) KLF-C7's on specially contracted foot wide bookcases to hold nearly 200 DVD's from my expanding collection. I bought the bookcases at Kmart on special and then modified them as HT speaker stands. I have three solid wood tables similar to the one in front of the 65" HDTV and they open to hold the rest of my DVD's and Videos. Most of the CD's are in the downstairs music room with the K-horns. The KLF-C30 is my pride and joy. I designed and constructed a new motorboard so it could be placed above the TV. Having six speakers the same in a 6.1 configuration seems to be as good as it gets. Hope this answers some of your questions. -HornEd ------------------ This message has been edited by HornEd on 03-25-2002 at 08:11 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terry N. Cruse Posted March 16, 2002 Share Posted March 16, 2002 Ed, Im just the FNG on this page;but the "channeling the exp.".... stuff.....now thats what Im talkin bout.... PWK in the 60s TNC ------------------ TNC Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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