[Dakotaconcrete]

Drudging up an old topic. But I'm hoping to get insight from those that have paired Spatials with the Isoacoustic Gaias. I'm thinking of adding the Gaia IIIs to my Spatial M4 Turbos but I'm apprehensive about spending the money. I already have the SVS, and I like them. Not sure I noticed much of a difference using them versus the stock feet. They do look cool, though.

Anyway, for those with experience with the Gaia, is the difference worth it? I'm trying to get a handle on what to expect, so many tweaks have just seemed like a waste for me in the past. One other option I was considering...would it just be better to put the money toward a good set of tubes for my preamplifier?

[Nsm1979]

I have M4 Turbo S with Gaia feet.  I like them and I thought I read somewhere that Clayton is putting them on the X series.  Maybe someone can validate that.  If it is true, I would think that Clayton would not add the cost to his product for aesthetics only.

Your statement leads me to believe you have tried other tweaks, some with failing success.  I believe your room holds the greatest gains to be had.  Without treating your room and cleaning up the havoc it is having on your sound, many of the tweaks cannot be realized because your room is over powering what gains the tweak is advertised to provide.

My room is not perfect, it is smallish 15x13x8.  But, greatly improved the sound by diffusing the front half of the room and absorbing the rear wall.  Also absorption at first side reflection points.  Since I did this, I can now more easily hear differences in my system when I make changes.

So, if your room and your system are in good shape, I think the Gaia feet would be worth the change.  (My M4s did not have spikes, just the basic plastic feet). YMMV.

[geerock]

Drudging up an old topic. But I'm hoping to get insight from those that have paired Spatials with the Isoacoustic Gaias. I'm thinking of adding the Gaia IIIs to my Spatial M4 Turbos but I'm apprehensive about spending the money. I already have the SVS, and I like them. Not sure I noticed much of a difference using them versus the stock feet. They do look cool, though.








 One other option I was considering...would it just be better to put the money toward a good set of tubes for my preamplifier?

Check out Herbies Audio Labs.  I tried GAIA and Herbies and couldn't tell the difference between the two.  NOS tubes almost always make a nice addition when changing out the signal tubes.  They simply don't make them like they used too. Although the latest Shuguang Dawning series WE PLUS tubes are real good new production tubes.

[Audiosaurusrex]

Haven’t tried Herbies. I have the Gaia’s on my M3 Sapphires. They made a huge difference on my wooden floors. Tightened up the bass which in turn improved entire delivery of all frequencies and enhanced the dynamics. I would think there is a dealer that you could buy and try them out.

[ric]

One thing to consider is that some people have more sensitive hearing than others. If you find yourself NOT hearing tweaks than stick to bigger changes like amp, dac, speakers. If you hear changes in speaker cable then you should hear tweaks that work. I have use Herbie's and Gaia's (IsoAcoustics) and IMO IsoAcoustic products are the best. I use them under my amp, TT, TTmotor, speakers, dac--all with sound improvement. I also switched out to Sophia Electric EL34's--huge difference, BUT, big problem with reliability.
I can't say what would work for you, footers vs tubes, but if you plan to keep your speakers I highly recommend the Gaia's.
As someone else said, speaker placement, and room interaction is very important, BUT, I just did some DIY bass traps and the sound is improved, but it won't tame a (50Hz?) bass problem enough, but does help. I ended up moving my speakers back 6" because Clayton says moving TOWARD the back wall DECREASES bass, and it did.
Good luck!

[Dakotaconcrete]

Thanks for the thoughtful responses!

I've got the room treated, so I'm covered there.

I forgot about Herbies, I'll definitely take a look.

I do have the speakers on laminate flooring with a crawl space, below. I imagine the flooring has some role in how well the Gaia's perform, but unsure which is preferable.

The tube option is such a different route but I've had good results by going with NOS in the past, that's why it's so tempting to see if further gains could be made.

One real plus that I like about Gaia's is that they're likely a one-time buy and they'll last a lifetime...so long as I don't buy heavier speakers. Additionally, I know that many retailers offer a return if unsatisfied. I prefer to approach a sale as a final commitment rather than buy with a return in mind, though.

Maybe the one reason why I hesitated with a purchase of the Gaia's was a review that mentioned their result with the M3 wasn't as impressive as with another speaker brand. I know that every experience and setup is different though, hence my asking you all. It sounds like they do have a positive impact though.

Again, thanks for the input.

[markmuse]

Here is my solution for the X5's on thick carpeting. Simple, cheap, effective.







I have four of these grippy vibration absorbing pads under each board. The little 2 x 2 inch pads cost about $20 on eBay for a box of about 20, so about $1 each.