Any ideas for some pretty DIY speaker stands?

[JonW]

I'm looking for some ideas or inspiration for making speaker stands. I've got basic woodworking skills and tools. And I've got a few ideas for speaker stands in mind. But stands might be an easy place to experiment and try to make something a little nicer that just some wood slapped together at right angles. Something a little pretty. So if any of you have any pics or ideas of speaker stands that are a little nice, it would be good to see. Thanks.

[dlneubec]

How about something with some angles?

Maybe a Z shape with a Z on each side and cross braces at the bottom and top of the Z leg. You might make it out of something like a carefully selected 2"x4" stock, ripped down to maybe 1-1/4" x 3-1/4" to make it some for some nice sharp edges.

I think you'd have to take some time planning how to do the joints so they are strong, sqaure and need glue only, but with 1-1/4" x 3-1/4" stock to work with that should not be too difficult.

[FlashJim]

You could always take a basic design and go nuts with the joinery. I have a new dovetail jig that I'm dying to use.

Some interesting links:

http://www.rd.com/americanwoodworker/article.do?siteId=2222&categoryId=7002&contentId=484

http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/stubby_e.html

http://www.angelfire.com/alt/tryrrthg/DIY/DIYstands.html

http://www.canadianhomeworkshop.com/weekend/speaker_stand.shtml

[dawaro]

The stands I built are similar to the TNT stands. 4" PVC filled with sand on a 1-1/2" thick base. On mine there are integrated to the speakers though. I cut a 1-1/2" plug with a couple of threaded inserts to fit the inside of the PVC pipe. The speaker is then bolted through the bottom of the cabinet into the threaded inserts. I needed something a little more stable with kids and pets.

If you want something different how about this?
EMJ Speakers

[FlashJim]

Your stands came out nice. I think I'll go that route if I need stands. I still haven't decided on my mains yet.

Those EMJ speakers and stands are pretty cool.

[cjd]

oh yeah... ideas. yup.

um...

why you need stands? I mean, you got room for stands, you should be buildin towers. :P

C

[SteveCallas]

why you need stands? I mean, you got room for stands, you should be buildin towers.

That's what I told him :T

[joecarrow]

One thing that I think is pretty unique is hanging the speakers from the ceiling.

I see the main speakers at most concerts hung from rigging- you can argue about sonic advantages or disadvantages, but it cant be that bad or the professionals wouldnt do it.

[JonW]

Thanks, fellas.

dlneubec-
Yeah, I was thinking about something with angles- or even better, maybe some curves. I’ve been sketching out a few things, but have not yet come up with a design I like.

FlashJim-
Thanks for the interesting links.

dawaro-
I’m not into the PVC stands, but that EMJ speaker is quite interesting. Is that a DIY or commercial speaker?

joe-
Can’t drillholes in the ceiling of my house- it’s too old and pretty. So no hanging speakers.

Chris and Steve-
Yeah, yeah, yeah- build towers. I know. And in general, I agree 100%. But this will be my first adventure in speaker building. So I want to keep to a rather simple design. I’ll build the Modula MT’s owing to a relatively simple design and lots of photos of the crossovers, one even with some very nice labels. If I still want to do some more speaker building after that, then it will be 100% towers. Heck, I could even go for something as large as Jon Marsh’s rumored Wilson X1 clones (ahem).

[dawaro]

I am not sure on the EMJ. He has a website but I am not sure if he sells the designs.
EMJ Speakers
The speaker is just an Exodus 61 kit.

What you may not notice on the PVC stands I made is that the down tube is veneered in oak so that it looks like a solid piece of wood. It is hard to tell with the black dye. The president of housing affairs would never allow just a painted PVC tube. The tubes are also filled with sand to add weight for stability.

[Marzen]

I 'borrowed' the wrought iron legs from a table we had in storage, they were similar to these at this site Maidens of Iron
-Ward

[nox9colt45]

If you have the room, and the speaker boxes are right color (black works best imo) you can make them look like floorstanding speakers.

http://ascendacoustics.com/pages/products/access/accssintro.html

Their stands for their speakers to exactly that, with a backplate that attaches to the speaker and stand for a more stable speaker stand. You could also build the bottom of the stand heavier by putting sand in the stand, or whatever material you want.

They also have an angeled metal stand that looks good, simple to design, but a little bit off the "standard" looking stand.

[posix]

when I was a student I had found some spare ceramic tiles in storage and used those as stands. a few boxes stacked up - they couldn't be beaten for sheer mass and they looked kinda cool.

and I'm sure most of us have a spare box or two of ceramic tiles lying around waiting to be cleared out of the house the next spring.

[JonW]

Thanks guys. I'm still sketching out ideas. Got a few that might be OK. I'm leaning against anything too boring like a straight wood square post. In trying a curved leg, for example, I think I'll have to make a template out of scrap wood and have a look. Might like it or might not. For some shelves I'm building, I was all set to have curved front legs. When I make a template, it just didn't look nice, so I skipped it. Some other ideas I have are a square leg with 2 sides of wood and 2 sides of glass. Then fill the middle with sand or sand and marbles. Just trying to see what might be worth trying.

[moreants]

This is a custom stand I made for one of my projects. Used curved legs from old shelf unit. Faux painted everything.

[chasw98]

This is a custom stand I made for one of my projects. Used curved legs from old shelf unit. Faux painted everything.

Those are very nice! Excellent craftsmanship. How did you build those?

[moreants]

Those are very nice! Excellent craftsmanship. How did you build those?

I used existing curved boards from a shelf unit. Traced curve onto particle board to design base. Brass furniture bolts from Lowes with small pvc hiding them between the legs. Grill cloth used as a screen in back. Bottom brace hid by sectioned 4" pvc. The top has 2 thumbscrews to secure speaker.

The rear post is pvc pipe filled with sand and a threaded rod bolting top/bottom. Feet are pvc secured w/screws and poly adhesive, round wood cutout inside to hold spikes topped with rubber drain gasket and brass drawer knob.

All '"wood'" that you see is faux painted and coated w/poly.

[Dotay]

This is a custom stand I made for one of my projects. Used curved legs from old shelf unit. Faux painted everything.

Do you have any more high res photos of these stands perhaps at some different angles?

[moreants]

Do you have any more high res photos of these stands perhaps at some different angles?

Only this one.

[JonW]

moreants-
Nice work. I like the curves of the legs and the base. :T