[sounddog]

For the WAF, I'm going to need to have a wood audio rack made for me. I'm thinking about five to six 1 1/2" - 2" hardwood shelves (dyed maple or maybe cherry) for my preamp, amp, cd player, tuner, DAC and line conditioner. My main question is whether adjustable shelves would have a negative effect on vibration control and sound quality. Any thoughts out there? Also I'd welcome any advice about shelf composition, wood thickness, vibration control, etc. Thanks. I don't want to spend bundles unecessarily, but I do want to get this right since I expect this rack to last a very long time. Thanks.

[srb]

With 1-1/2" - 2" hardwood I think you'll be just fine with adjustable shelves, but the frame will have to be well constructed to be sturdy without the benefit of the shelves permanently tied in as cross bracing.

I'm just trying to figure out what in the world five or six 1-1/2" - 2" hardwood shelves has to do with Cheap and Cheerful. 

Steve

[JLM]

Sound and rack questions boil down to transmission of vibrations.  Vibrations are typically from foot steps (old wooden floors) or system induced vibrations (mostly airborne).  In room open racks are convenient but horrible for airborne vibrations.  Best to simply "turn that damn thing down" or move equipment into an enclosed cabinet/closet/adjacent space.

Two rack theories: float or ground.

If the floors are "soft" (old wooden floors or wooden floors over crawl spaces that can resonant) then look to float the equipment (especially your pieces with moving parts).  In this case consider wall mounted options with various air bladder/levitation platforms.

If floors are "rigid" (concrete) look to ground airborne vibrations, by locking components/shelves with points/weights even clamps to couple them to the mass of the rack and other pieces.  Increased mass lowers the resonant frequency, thereby increasing the energy levels needed to create resonance.  Accordingly more mass in the rack the better.  In this scenario the last thing you'd want is lightweight pieces "floating" on rubber feet on lightweight shelves that simply rest on thin brackets from a flimsy metal frame with the frame, shelves, and pieces all vibrating at different frequencies.  Just add typical wooden floors (and a small cube shaped room) for highest possible WAF and a perfect audiophile storm.

[ZENTISH]

Hi Sounddog,   Take a look at the Yamamoto website and see their adjustable racks, doesn't look too hard to duplicate.
Good Luck, Tish