Wall mounts for RB81's

[caiazpa]

Hey guys,

I ordered a pair of RB81's for rear surrounds. I'd like to mount these to my rear wall. I haven't got the speaker's in hand yet but I'd like to get the wall mounts ordered soon so they arrive within a few days of the speakers. It looks like most/all of the wall mounts I've seen are for 20 lb speakers, while the RB81's are 30 pounds.

Does anyone have a recommendation on a quality speaker mount that will handle the RB81? Also, can you recommend a retailer?

Thanks in advance,

Paul

[Youthman]

If you don't need to angle them downward too much, these are fantastic wall mounts that will support up to 55 lbs. You can see in my build thread that I had a pair of RB-35's mounted with them.

[Yura]

I've got the same mounts - awesome stuff. Just make sure you go into a stud/brick/concrete and not just drywall

[jamesV]

If you need something that is a little more adjustable take a look at OmniMount 30.0 WB. I have the similar 30.0 WA for my RS-62 and I haven't had any problems.

You might have to search around for the best price on them but it shouldn't be hard at all to find a deal on them, from a good dealer. Good luck with your search.

James

[Youthman]

James, I used to have Omnimounts, they are great because you can angle them at almost any angle with the ball and socket mechanism. Very handy. My only concern would be mounting the RB-81's with it. The mount has four screws that will secure the speaker to the mount. The RB-81's are very tall and at an angle, would be top heavy. Thoughts?

[caiazpa]

Thanks for all of the replies guys.

I think I would like something with a bit more adjustability than 7 degrees, since the speakers will be mounted fairly high on an 11 foot wall. Now, that said, I would sacrifice a little adjustability if it meant my speakers didn't come crashing down off of the wall, if that is truly a concern.

Youthman, you seem to think the side-grabbing friction pads would be a more stable mount for the speakers. How does the mechanism work? Does it tighten to the width of the speaker via some kind of threaded adjustment? Is there any chance of it marring the speaker's finish?

Are there threaded inserts in the bottoms of the speakers for mounting purposes? With respect top-heaviness, with the 8" driver at the bottom I would think this effect is mitigated, but again I don't have the speaker in hand yet, so I can't hold it and feel whether or not this would be a problem. At 19" tall, it is definitely not a small speaker so I can see where that might be a problem.

Is your concern that the OmniMount mentioned will fail completely, or that it will be difficult to keep the speaker in the position I want because the ball joint will be overwhelmed by the weight of the speaker sitting out an angle?

Thanks again for your replies.

Paul

[Youthman]

I think I would like something with a bit more adjustability than 7 degrees, since the speakers will be mounted fairly high on an 11 foot wall.

I understand. I had my speakers mounted high in my room and the mounts did not offer enough angle for my setup so I sold the speakers and mounts and just went with a 5.1 system for now.

Youthman, you seem to think the side-grabbing friction pads would be a more stable mount for the speakers. How does the mechanism work? Does it tighten to the width of the speaker via some kind of threaded adjustment? Is there any chance of it marring the speaker's finish?

Great questions Paul. Yes, the mount has two screws that tighten down the "clamp". The clamp has a thin pad on the sides to prevent marring. I was sure when I sold them that I was going to find scuff marks or indentions but they were perfect, no marks whatsoever. If you angle them downward, they highly encourage to insert small screws into the bottom of the mount. You can see my for sale thread with some pics of them here.

Are there threaded inserts in the bottoms of the speakers for mounting purposes?

I would not think that a bookshelf would have a threaded insert in the bottom, if any, it would likely be on the backside.

Is your concern that the OmniMount mentioned will fail completely, or that it will be difficult to keep the speaker in the position I want because the ball joint will be overwhelmed by the weight of the speaker sitting out an angle?

My concern is that a few tiny screws would not be able to properly secure the large RB-81 speakers to the small flat plate that the Omnimount offers.

[jamesV]

Are there threaded inserts in the bottoms of the speakers for mounting purposes?

I would not think that a bookshelf would have a threaded insert in the bottom, if any, it would likely be on the backside.

Per the Spec page on the RB-81 it does say that it has a bottom mount: Dual 1/4"-20 threaded inserts for stand attachment.

Now that is the same description as my RS-62 in which I have (4) threaded inserts in the back that the OmniMount WA-30.0 attach to.

If you are worried about the weight of the RB-81 and the OmniMount both being 30 lbs. you can always get the WB-60.0 and that shouldn't have any problems supporting the 30 lbs. of the RB-81's.

James

[jamesV]

The RB-81's are very tall and at an angle, would be top heavy. Thoughts?

Don't really know. My only experience is with the WA-30.0 which mounts toward the bottom of my RS-62's and I have them angled down a bit and no problems. I think that if that is the only concern then maybe getting the next model up that supports 60# and then you really wouldn't have to worry about them crashing down.

James

[Rivernuggets]

Per the Spec page on the RB-81 it does say that it has a bottom mount: Dual 1/4"-20 threaded inserts for stand attachment.

2nd that. My 81s have the threaded inserts as described.

[caiazpa]

Hmm...so it sounds like two or at most four 1/4 20 machine screws securing the speaker to the mount. Given the size of the fastener, that doesn't engender a whole lot of confidence. The engineer in me thinks those are more likely than not intended to secure the speaker to a level speaker stand, and not intended to be laterally loaded by tilting the mount. It would probably be ok, but I doubt it would take much load to shear the machine screws and I doubt there would be much warning if they were failing.

So, it sounds like the friction pad mounting mechanism may be the better way to go, but given the indecision I think it will be best to wait until I actually have the speakers in hand before making a final decision. If there are 4 threaded inserts, I will consider the Omnimount 60 WB. If there are just two, I will almost certainly go for the Pinpoint.

Thanks for your help guys.

Now, what do you think of these for my side surrounds? They seem like quality stands and are relatively inexpensive.

http://www.racksandstands.com/VTI-VSP-VI1044.html