FYI: Great deal on thick Maple platforms

eichlerera1 · « **Reply #40 on:** 17 Dec 2003, 07:09 pm »

IMHO. If the prices are the same, go with Mapleshade.
Paul G

zybar · « **Reply #41 on:** 17 Dec 2003, 07:14 pm »

Josh,

I am not here to defend Mapleshade or Timbernation or anybody else.

At first glance I thought Timbernation was much cheaper than Mapleshade...once I actually made a fair comparison, I realized that they were pretty close in price (for how I was going to use it - as amps stands instead of shelves).

Who knows...maybe I will go with the suggestion of Gary from Panda Thumb Audio and go with innertubes under granite platforms

GW

byteme · « **Reply #42 on:** 17 Dec 2003, 07:33 pm »

Maybe it's the accountant in me but here's why I went with timbernation

1 - 21" x 17.5" = 367.5 sqft
1 - 9" x 12" = 108 sqft
Total = 475.5

I paid $95 shipped so $95/475.5 = $0.20 per sqin

Mapleshade
1 - 18 x 15 = 270
1 - 9 x 12 = 180
Total = 450

$75 + $50 + $20 shipping (assumed)= $145/450 = $0.32 per sqin

That was the long and short of it for me.

zybar · « **Reply #43 on:** 17 Dec 2003, 07:37 pm »

Was everything the same thickness?

In my analysis, Timbernation is 3" thick and Mapleshade 4".

GW

JoshK · « **Reply #44 on:** 17 Dec 2003, 07:53 pm »

I've heard it said that any maple platform over 2" thick colors the sound.

byteme · « **Reply #45 on:** 17 Dec 2003, 09:12 pm »

Quote from: zybar

Was everything the same thickness?

In my analysis, Timbernation is 3" thick and Mapleshade 4".

GW

Everything was the same 2" thickness. This is the mapleshade link that I used for the calculation - http://www.mapleshaderecords.com/tweaks/platforms.php - Ready to be finished platforms.

zybar · « **Reply #46 on:** 18 Dec 2003, 01:52 pm »

Ok, I just order a few sets of the VersStar cones/spikes.

Josh, did you get your yet?

From the picture, they look a lot like the cones/spikes that came with my BPT 3.5 Sig...

GW

JackStraw · « **Reply #47 on:** 18 Dec 2003, 02:48 pm »

Quote from: maxwalrath

"18x15x3 maple stand in standard finish with no spikes is $180 shipped. I would need to add the carpet piercing spikes which are $140 for a set of four. Bringing the total to $320. "

can't capet piercing spikes be had for less than $140? That price seems really high.

See the link below -- ACI Extra Points. They don't look as massive as the Mapleshade cones, but @ $30/set of 8 for threaded solid brass cones it might be worth trying.

http://www.audioc.com/accessories/MountsSpikes.htm

I was looking at them to make a low budget DIY version of Mapleshade Bedrock speaker stands. The part that has me scratching my head is the rear support that the speaker rests on.

JoshK · « **Reply #48 on:** 18 Dec 2003, 02:53 pm »

jackstraw,

check out cabinet hardware isle at home depot and i'll bet you'll find what your looking for.

JoshK · « **Reply #49 on:** 18 Dec 2003, 02:58 pm »

I got mine just the other day and last night I did some listening. Much sharper imaging to make it brief! I was able to toe out my RM40's quite a bit more for wider soundstage while still maintaining the snapped into focus imaging I had before, maybe even better than before. Definitely one of the best upgrades for the money.

JackStraw · « **Reply #50 on:** 18 Dec 2003, 05:44 pm »

Quote from: VeraStarr

We have some Brass cones/spikes available for $35 per 4 piece set, that most people use for these platforms. They include discs for placing the tips on furniture or wood floors and the kits also include mounting parts to mount threaded studs into the wood, an then thread the cones onto the studs....Personally we like Granite, but you can't beat the price of wood!!
Here's the link. http://www.verastarr.com/pages/661947/index.htm

Paypal is accepted with no fee, and we include free shipping by Priority Mail..
Cheers!
Mike at Verastarr

What do these threaded stud mounting parts look like? Are they like the ACI points that I posted above? They aren't shown on your web site.

zybar · « **Reply #51 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 02:31 am »

Ok, I messed up the price comparison I did earlier

The Timbernation 18x15x3 platform is $110 finished, not $180 I previously posted. The $180 price was for the 24x18x3 platform. I am not sure what Mapleshade would sell that size for.

I did talk to Chris at Timbernation (very nice guy) and he said he could do a 4" thick platform if asked.

The price for the 18x15x4 is $140 finished ($30 extra).
The price for the 24x18x4 is $180 finished (no extra charge).

Chris also will offer a discount for a large purchase.

So here is the revised tale of the tape:

Timbernation - $140 (18x15x4) + $140 (4 Carpet Piercing Feet) = $280 shipped.

Mapleshade - $335 + shipping = $360 or so.

So you are looking at around an $80 difference between the two...

Sorry for my earlier mistake and any trouble that might have caused.

GW

satfrat · « **Reply #52 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 03:16 am »

George, Mapleshade has a finished 15" x 18" x 2" board for $155 and a 4" for $230. And we're talking solid wood here, not laminated. This makes a big difference I've been told by Pierre. I do use the Mapleshade board/cone/isoblock combo under my BP2.5. Regards, Robin

zybar · « **Reply #53 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 03:23 am »

Robin,

I talked with Pierre and Alvin and know what they think. I have no idea if their product is any better than Timbernation's or other vendors.

My only experience with maple was a couple of cutting boards and that wasn't too positive.

Will see what happens.

GW

bubba966 · « **Reply #54 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 04:31 am »

Quote from: PhilNYC

I think the Mapleshade board is one solid piece of maple, whereas this (and most cutting boards) are made of a number of pieces bonded together.

Well, looking at the page for the Mapleshade board it appears that it's not a single solid piece of maple. It's still a glue lam board. But, it looks to be using much larger pieces than most cutting board glue lams.

This pic on the Mapleshade site

Looks to be a top view pic. And in it I clearly see 5 different pieces of wood. But as they're very large pieces, we're looking at the face of the lumber, not the edge.

You can lam up boards in a variety of ways. The cheapest way involves what's been previously referred to as an "edge grain" lam. The hardest (& most expensive) would be an "end grain" lam. And a "face grain" lam would be between the two, though much closer to an edge grain lam in terms of ease of build & cost.

When doing edge or face grain lams, you NEED to alternate the growth rings on the end of the boards so as to prevent warping. Fairly easy to do with a face grain lam, a bit more difficult with an edge grain lam.

It would be damn near impossible to make 4"x15"x18" slab out of a single piece of wood w/out it cracking or warping.

I find it interesting that Mapleshade goes with minimal pieces in their boards.

If done properly, a glue lam will be stronger at the glue joints than the wood is. The wood will break before the glue in the joint will give.

So more (proper) glue joints make a lam stronger than a lam with fewer joints.

But maybe stronger (more glue joints) boards don't sound as good as boards with less pieces in them. I couldn't tell you. I took 6 years of fine woodworking in school and learned many, many things about wood & woodworking. But none of that relates to how any of it sounds. It was all about appearance & strength...

satfrat · « **Reply #55 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 04:59 am »

When I said solid, I was going by my 12" x 14" x 2" board, it was not laminated that I could tell. I can't say anything about the 4", but then I don't have to. You already have Bubba.

Regards, Robin

bubba966 · « **Reply #56 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 05:15 am »

One single piece of lumber in your 2"x12"x14" board huh?

Certainly do-able in maple in my experience. But it does take great care to properly dry a piece of 8/4 maple to make sure it doesn't crack. Not that it's terribly common for 8/4 dimensional maple to crack. But more than easy to do if it wasn't dried properly.

But I'm sure that Mapleshade knows how to properly dry maple. It's not any big secret or anything. It just requires more time & care than some people care to do.

I find it interesting that Mapleshade finds air dried maple to sound better than kiln dried.

From an absolute stability point of view, kiln drying is the better of the two. Once wood is dried out, it will only re-absorb so much moisture. Air dried lumber doesn't get as dry as kiln dried lumber does.

As maple doesn't move much (compared to other woods) the small percentage of added moisture that air drying would leave shouldn't be a problem.

Maybe that little bit of extra moisture is beneficial in audio?...

satfrat · « **Reply #57 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 05:22 am »

I've had the board for a little over a year now and it HAS warped on me. Mapleshade admits that they will tho, it's no secret. I just ended up shimming up one end of the isoblocks. I would still favor blocks of maple being laminated together over multiple slices as are the cutting boards. Less glue,,,,, brings back bad memories of the 70's.

Regards, Robin

satfrat · « **Reply #58 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 05:51 am »

Quote from: bubba966

One single piece of lumber in your 2"x12"x14" board huh?

Certainly do-able in maple in my experience. But it does take great care to properly dry a piece of 8/4 maple to make sure it doesn't crack. Not that it's terribly common for 8/4 dimensional maple to crack. But more than easy to do if it wasn't dried properly.

But I'm sure that Mapleshade knows how to properly dry maple. It's not any big secret or anything. It just requires more time & care than some people care to do.

I find it interesting t ...

Oops, my bad!

Looks like I didn't look at my board all that closely after all. Your right Bubba, my board is actually 2 large 2" thick board laminated lengthwise. I just took it for granted that it was one large board cuz of the unlaminated thickness. The 70's are still haunting me,,,

Regards, Robin

bubba966 · « **Reply #59 on:** 19 Dec 2003, 06:04 am »

Quote from: satfrat

Oops, my bad! Looks like I didn't look at my board all that closely after all. Your right Bubba, my board is actually 2 large 2" thick board laminated lengthwise. I just took it for granted that it was one large board cuz of the unlaminated thickness. The 70's are still haunting me,,, Regards, Robin

So, you've been lying to me huh?

I thought it weird that such a chunk of wood would be a single piece. Are you SURE it's only 2 pieces lammed up?

Only 2 pieces used to make such a sized lam would still lend itself to warping. If it was me, I'd want to use 4 (or more) pieces to make a 2"x12"x14" board if using air dried maple. But then again, that'd be for stability reasons. Couldn't say what it'd do the "the sound"...