Vibration Control Systems
From source to speaker, the signal currents flowing though each one of your A/V components inevitably create internal vibrations. By getting rid of those distortion-causing vibrations, you will significantly improve both the sound and picture quality of your system. Originally created to drain vibration from the electronics in Mapleshade's acclaimed recording studio, our Vibration Control Systems (VCS) are designed for exactly this purpose. Our VCS for stereo electronics and turntables is comprised of three carefully optimized elements:
• Our solid brass footers are designed to cleanly drain as much internal vibrational energy as possible from every component. We have optimized our footers' shapes, contact points, material, alloy, and mass to maximize the vibrational energy transferred out of the gear and to minimize the resonances and energy reflected back. Our footers do so more effectively and yield better sound than any competing high end footer, even the most highly touted $600 ones.
• Via the footers, the component's vibrations transfer into a 2" or 4" solid air-dried maple “sink”—that is, into a base that receives and dissipates these vibrations thoroughly without reflecting any back. Our painstaking listening panel R&D tests proved that using air-dried red maple as a sink material sounds warmer, clearer, punchier and more detailed than granite, slate or glass (all are edgy and bass-dulling), hi-tech damped composites (very dead sounding, as are plywood, butcher block and MDF) or other domestic and tropical hardwoods (invariably more colored and less detailed).
• Lastly, maple bases need supports under each corner. Our experiments prove that Isoblocks sound best under bases that mount directly on uncarpeted floors, shelves or tabletops. When mounting bases on a rug or carpet, thread-on brass footers under each corner are essential to penetrate through the pile and stably anchor the maple base to the subfloor. (Isoblock suspension must not be used with speakers, see our Speaker Stand section for vibration control systems uniquely optimized for small and large speakers.)
For sizing, we recommend choosing a base that is about 2" wider and deeper than the component it will support. Even more margin improves sound further. We exclusively use air-dried Ambrosia maple as the sink for our Vibration Control Systems and offer four handsome finishes to suit a wide range of decors. Our stock Platforms and Component Stands are hand finished with Clear Satin that beautifully enhances the striking natural grain character of our air-dried maple. We also offer three made-to-order toned finishes: Natural Cherry, Deep Rosewood, and Satin Black.
