Stands for your Harbeths

[A.S.]

I have some metal stands which I'd like to fill for stability. Noel (of Skylan) has mentioned "Kitty Litter" which he showed me at the Montreal show 2008 and has been mentioned here before. Not being a pet owner, I thought it would be easier to go to a builders warehouse and purchase a large polythene sealed-bag of 'coarse sand'. I then bought a cooking funnel from the supermarket and that's when the problems started ..... so here is my experience ....

1) The sand had sweated inside the polythene bag. That means it is damp. The consequence is that is cannot be poured down the funnel; it just sits as a clump.

2) It would have been better to buy 'silver sand' sold for children's playgrounds. Even though it too was sold in sealed polythene bags, you could see through the bag that it flowed freely and was not clumped together. Perhaps this sand is cleaner or treated to be more resistant to moisture.

3) I passed an out-of-town pet store and enquired about "Kitty Litter". From memory, "Kitty Litter" comprised small, baked-bean sized round smooth balls of some odourless chalk-coated material. The pet store had never heard of it. I asked to be shown all the cat litter products that they had. The normal product sold for the purpose is an irregular sized and shaped, white, chipped material. I bought that.

It seems to me that Noel is correct and that the most elegant, simple and clean stand filling material is indeed "Kittly Litter" - but it does not seem to be available here in the UK. I'm sure that the white chipped material (or dry silver sand) has similar or interchangeable acoustic properties but none beat "Kittly Litter" for simplicity.

I will take some pictures.

[Geoff]

You can, at least here in Canada, buy "construction grade" sand which is kiln dried, no mioisture whatsoever. Try a building supply outlet.

/Geoff

[T.W.]

Currently I have some selfmade stands for my M40s. About 45cm high.

Now I want to design lower ones that move the tweeter more to ear height. I know that there is minimum height to have a good bass, but I use DSP, so the bass is not an issue.

If I sit on my sofa then the tweeters are above ears height. Do you have any idea where the ideal spot is? It seems to me that the best ear position is above the mid speaker and below the tweeter? Any recommendations?

Are the M40s designed for a specific position? Where is this position?

Thanks.
T.W.

[canU.K.]

Very happy with SKYLAN 4 post 18" stands for my C7ES3's.I used the kitty litter it was easy and effective.I bought the Purina Maxx 99%dust free in 10kg bags,2 bags did the trick.
Noel is a great guy, his stands are affordable and they perform and look great.

[ebenai]

Hi guys: I'm wait for a pair of monitors 30 to arrive. Could anybody tell me the distance beween the bottom and the tweeter? I'm trying to figure what stand to buy. I attached a little diagram so you know what I'm referring to.

[skylan]

Hi Ebenai,

The M-30 speakers normally go on 24" stands. (Which includes feet).

Also:
Compact 7 ..... 20"

HL-5 ..... 18"

M-40.1 ...... 14"

P-3...... 26"

Noel.

[tricka]

Hi Ebenai
I certainly encourage you to consider Noel's stands. I am very happy with mine and Noel is an absolute gentlemen.
Kind Regards
Andrew

[chas67]

Hi Ebenai,

The M-30 speakers normally go on 24" stands. (Which includes feet).

Also:
Compact 7 ..... 20"

HL-5 ..... 18"

M-40.1 ...... 14"

P-3...... 26"

Noel.

Hi Noel,
I recently sent you an email ordering the 14" stands for my HL5's, I didn't realise that they were designed specifically for the M-40. Would it be better to get the 18'stand s?

[codel]

If I use wooden stands for my HSL5s (ie. the Resonant Woods speaker stands for the HARBETHS), will there be any difference between such stands and the metall ones.

[kenneth]

Dear all,

I'm live in Hong Kong, and I would like to buy a pair of Skyland for my SHL-5. Actually I've sent two e-mails to Skyland claiming about order but I can't got any reply from Skyland till now. Anyway any other ways to contact with the Skyland?

Kenneth

[Vlado]

Dear all,

...........Actually I've sent two e-mails to Skyland claiming about order but I can't got any reply from Skyland till now.
Anyway any other ways to contact with the Skyland?

Kenneth

Kenneth,
I sent an email to Skylan in December, also without answer.....

[A.S.]

I'll call Skylan in Canada from the UK.

Please do remember that Noel not only makes these stands by hand but he handles all office matters and packing and despatch - truly a one man army. I'll see if we can get him to make a comment here about what is a reasonable time to wait for him.

[skylan]

Hi folks,

My sincere apologizes for lack of response to your e.mails. I have had a few issues with my inbox and have double messages showing not read. I am getting through them at present.

Kenneth, I am sending you a reply this afternoon. (It is usually quicker to get me on the phone as I have an ear- bud connection under my hearing protection muffs when running the saws and routers).

I appreciate your patience.
Thanks,
Noel.

[kenneth]

Hi Noel,

Thanks a lot!
My e-mail address is lauck1@netvigator.com

Regards
Kenneth

[kenneth]

Thanks A.S. and Noel!!
I've recevied Noel's e-mail this afternoon and also ordered stands for my SHL-5!

Regards
Kenneth

[Jeff Day]

Greetings fellow Harbethians!

A short while ago I bought a pair of the Monitor 40.1s in the US from Walter Swanbon, and then ordered a pair of stands from Noel Nolan (Skylan) in Canada. These are two great guys, so if you ever get the chance to say 'Hi!' to them be sure you do.

Anyways, back to the 40.1s: What a really nice combination in my system - I love them. I noticed after my initial setup that the bass response of the 40.1s was slightly elevated in my listening room. Not bad at all, mind you, but noticeable. A little tip you might find helpful: I made that little bit of elavated bass vanish instantly with a little inexpensive tweak. A while back my Hi-Fi friend Stepaen had another friend of mine into wood working make up quite a few sets of wood disks about an inch in diameter and a half inch thick. We made them out of all kinds of different woods. We had been putting them under the feet of the electronic componets in our Hi-Fi rigs with rather nice results.

On each of the Skylan stands I put three of the wood disks: one in the left & right front corners directly on the wood of the stand, and one in the very back in the middle. Instantly that little bit of bass elevation vanished and the nether regions became more articulate. It's a nice and inexpensive tweak to try if you're so inclined.

Best,

Jeff

[tricka]

Jeff
are you decoupling with the wood pucks?
have you moved up from SHL5's?
Cheers
andrew

[Jeff Day]

Jeff
are you decoupling with the wood pucks?
have you moved up from SHL5's?
Cheers
andrew

Hi Andrew,

Yes you are correct. I place three of the wood pucks on the Skylan stands as mentioned, then I sit the speakers down on top of them. The result is that the speakers are supported by the three wood pucks. For some reason, this hard 'decoupling' approach cleans up the lower end a bit and makes it more articulate. I suspect any home supply store would have various 'hard' materials one could experiment with: ceramics, wood, glass, etc. The wood is really nice though, so I'd try that first if you were in an experimenting mood.

I could never part with my SHL5s - they're a fantastic speaker. I have kept my SHL5s and use them in the 'Music Lovers' system with the Leben CS600 integrated amp I wrote about for 6Moons back when. Pure musical magic.

I don't really look at it as moving up from the SHL5 to M40.1. I look at Harbeth speakers more like I look at choosing which lens I want for my Leica MP. They all provide approximately the same level of performance, and the best on for the job is the one that works best for the size of listening room one has. For my Leica MP, for close up work I'd choose the Macro-M, but for most things I'd choose the 35 mm Summicron ASPH - it's a great all around lens. For longer shots I'd choose the 90 mm Summicron ASPH. By analogy the smaller Harbeths are what I'd choose for smaller spaces, the Super HL5 is the great all-arounder, and the M40.1 works great in my largish listening/living room. Equivalent quality and performance, different applications based on what is needed (or wanted).

My life probably will not be complete until I have a lense (Harbeth) for each application I have in mind. I see more Harbeths in my future!

Best,

Jeff

[Jmohd]

Greetings fellow Harbethians!

A short while ago I bought a pair of the Monitor 40.1s in the US from Walter Swanbon, and then ordered a pair of stands from Noel Nolan (Skylan) in Canada. These are two great guys, so if you ever get the chance to say 'Hi!' to them be sure you do.

Anyways, back to the 40.1s: What a really nice combination in my system - I love them. I noticed after my initial setup that the bass response of the 40.1s was slightly elevated in my listening room. Not bad at all, mind you, but noticeable. A little tip you might find helpful: I made that little bit of elavated bass vanish instantly with a little inexpensive tweak. A while back my Hi-Fi friend Stepaen had another friend of mine into wood working make up quite a few sets of wood disks about an inch in diameter and a half inch thick. We made them out of all kinds of different woods. We had been putting them under the feet of the electronic componets in our Hi-Fi rigs with rather nice results.

On each of the Skylan stands I put three of the wood disks: one in the left & right front corners directly on the wood of the stand, and one in the very back in the middle. Instantly that little bit of bass elevation vanished and the nether regions became more articulate. It's a nice and inexpensive tweak to try if you're so inclined.

Best,

Jeff

Hi Jeff,

Pls post some pictures of your set up with M40.1.
I enjoy reading your review on the SHL5.
BTW, will you be doing a review on the M40.1?

Rgds

[Jeff Day]

Hi Jeff,

Pls post some pictures of your set up with M40.1.
I enjoy reading your review on the SHL5.
BTW, will you be doing a review on the M40.1?

Rgds

Thanks for the kind words - appreciated. I will write up the M40.1 at some point, but not until I am sure I am getting everything from them they are capable of (and boy are they capable!).

The photo thing is a bit more tricky at the moment. I've sort of gotten fed up with digital cameras of late and put my Nikon on the shelf. I've gone back to shooting good old fashioned 35 mm film with a Leica MP body and a 35 mm Summicron-M lens. I just shot a bunch of Efke 25, 50, and 100 B&W film and am getting ready to send it to Cox B&W Lab to get it developed and some contact sheets made. After I review the contact sheets and pick out my favorite shots then I'll do the analogue to digiital conversion process and have some photos to post. But it may be a few weeks or so.

Kind regards,

Jeff