A couple of months ago I fitted Atacama pads between my speakers and stands, which are themselves spiked though carpet and rest on X-heads screwed into wooden floorboards.
I wanted to hear for myself the affect of replacing spikes with compliant material.
Initial reaction, to my ears and with my setup, was “I’m hearing detail not heard before”, yet there was something missing. Although pace was much the same, life seemed to have been taken out of performances.
I’ve been around long enough not to judge on first impressions so persevered, but ended up with the feeling that I actually wanted the life that spikes gave AND the detail that pads gave.
The happy compromise (if that’s the word) that works for me is spikes at the back corners and pads at the front.
This, for me, is definitely better than spikes or pads all-round, and something I’m happy to stay with.
Why it works I’ll leave to somebody else to explain!