You just did recommend Fraim!
They did for the last shelf but all the intermediate shelves were laminated chipboard. And there might be several of these if you were using one of their top supports.
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The infamous Ikea bamboo butchers block?
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You should generally use materials with low mass and high rigidity. So I would certainly stick with MDF that’s not too thick, as the majority of dedicated racks do. Definitely avoid oak due to its high mass, and solid timber in general due to reduced stability compared to composite materials.
Naim use glass as part of the design of Fraim, but I certainly wouldn’t use it on any old rack that was designed with MDF. Perhaps consider using it on isolation points sitting on top of a shelf, but that’s different to using it as the shelf itself.
Go online and look for kitchen cabinet door suppliers. Most have doors of MDF 3/4 inch thickness primed or thermofoiled.
All my gear except for my LP12 sits on a pair of Sound Factory Tripods, a modular system developed in the early 90s and long discontinued. The isolation is rudimentary – spikes under each level, with laminated fibreboard shelves resting on small neoprene pads.
I’ve upgraded mine down the years by putting small ceramic balls below the shelves, and adding 10mm toughened (=tempered) glass shelves, separated from the fibreboard by tiny silicon carbide balls resting on dimpled shirt-button-sized brass discs (inspired by a thread on this forum from a few years ago).
Each of these upgrades has improved the sound to the point that I don’t hanker after a better system (although I’d welcome more space for cable dressing and general access, a separate issue). The somewhat coarse sound of the stock Tripod is completely gone. I’d say these tweaks are among the best value for money upgrades I’ve ever made.
Although fibreboard feels cheap (and is cheap), I’ve found it to be better sounding than MDF. Assuming your rack is decent to begin with, I think you’ll be pleasantly surprised by how much you can get out of it for not much outlay.
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I had these back in the 80’s. Bought from Sound Advice in Moseley Birmingham. (which were effectively the same company as The Sound factory). I thought they looked terrific in a puroseful industrial kind of way.
Can’t really comment on the sound as I never compared them directly to anything else. Had them for a few years after we got married then when we moved house/area I replaced them with an Ash Design wood/glass rack. Eventually replaced that with Fraim which was a very noticeable improvement.
Great to hear of some Tripods still doing service though!
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Fraim or higher level Quadraspire has always worked for me. Currently using 20 yr old acrylic reference and it’s very very good.
Is there a difference between Quadraspire acrylic and Quadraspire acrylic reference?
I used 10mm toughened glass shelves, separated from wooden shelves by small ceramic balls resting on dimpled brass discs, but in the end, I found that the system sounded better with my Naim components just sitting on the wooden shelves.
I think this was because that suspension system allowed the components to move and this introduced instability into the system of cables and Naim boxes.
Not sure. mine is the ‘acrylic reference’
If this rack has spikes at the bottom to connect with the floor, it could be worth taking them off and resting it on some cork mats (a picture paints a thousand words) unless you have a really uneven floor - in which case using a spirit level, using thinner and thicker cork mats.
Some metal racks back then were designed to have a “ding” when struck - that some hifi kit preferred.
Trying to add some compliant grounding might have a good result.
Can you show close-up of it in a photo?
I’ve got one or two Quadraspire acrylic shelves.
When I next disassemble the racks, I might try them.
Didn’t the reference have very wobbly connections? I remember a friend had one for years but it was wood not acrylic. It was a long time before he migrated to a Fraim. I still think the Quadraspire racks are very good. Not the last word in frequency extremes but midrange is beautifully rendered and they are very musical.
Yes, it has small collars that prevent the uprights tightening fully so the shelves float. it wobbles if you push it, but that’s the whole point…
I love my Fraim. It’s good for everything. Apart from turntable. I may go back to using my turntable wall mount. Not sure I am prepared to do massive subfloor work right with everything I have going on with my life. Love the look of it all. But it’s not quite right on Fraim.
Before I do that I will try turntable on far right stack in corner and move some boxes around in due course as experiment.
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Yes, our old floorboards necessitated a wall mount but apart from that, Fraim’s great…and my wife likes it, choosing it unhesitatingly when I showed her a photo. Result!
If you liked the sound before then use the same material and maybe try an isolating product for your amp something from isoacoustics maybe.
Quadraspire told me during a 'phone conversation that they discontinued the acrylic shelves years ago because they didn’t sound as good as bamboo.
You can’t make a silk purse out of a sow’s ear.
Isoblue.