Anyone try Isoacoustics Gaia’s and Townshend Seismic Podiums?

One thing about the Gaia performance... the manufacturer says the footers must be oriented with their logo facing forward (or backward) for maximum performance. Most users see footers with threads and think, just screw them in (like I did when I first installed them).
The twin knurled nuts are very fiddly to get properly tightened once the logo is facing forward. There's a very simple solution - ditch both the nuts and instead use a couple of wavy spring washers such as these


... some speakers don’t have fittings to accept threaded footers
Another simple solution, particularly for narrow speakers where stability may be a concern, is to fix these brackets to the base of the enclosure to which Gaias can easily be fitted once the supplied cones are removed. Also available in sets of 4


I use these brackets and spring washers with my heavy Avantgarde speakers.

IMG_5970.JPG
 
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Certainly a novel approach , most interesting.
Yes, those are cool. Most users live with one capacity model from IsoAcoustics or Townshend without moving up or down but accommodating all capacities in one product is the Gold Standard... then you only have to be concerned with the footprint dimensions.
 
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The twin knurled nuts are very fiddly to get properly tightened once the logo is facing forward. There's a very simple solution - ditch both the nuts and instead use a couple of wavy spring washers such as these



Another simple solution, particularly for narrow speakers where stability may be a concern, is to fix these brackets to the base of the enclosure to which Gaias can easily be fitted once the supplied cones are removed. Also available in sets of 4


I use these brackets and spring washers with my heavy Avantgarde speakers.

View attachment 100137
I ditched the locking nuts and added a hand tightener on top - works great when using the Gaia's with outriggers. .
 

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I ditched the locking nuts and added a hand tightener on top - works great when using the Gaia's with outriggers. .
That's a good solution too, but only if the outrigger is unthreaded and you have access to the upper surface. Anyone using existing spike threads could use my method. My own outriggers are threaded and I wanted to retain the top decorative covers so the wavy washers work best for me.

IMG_5969 - small.jpg
 
Stainless Steel Acorn nut also works well.
 
I have read many a review about the Podiums and many times they state that you can adjust the height or rake of the speakers with the outside knobs.

I don’t believe this to be true. Once you release the spring the speaker will float and just find its equilibrium, or am I missing something?

ozzy
 
I don't have either model right now, but the ISO As are just a bolt so they are easy to rake if you want. The Townshends as I recall have a black knob on top of the springs which are used to level the Platform. These could be turned up or down for raking, but I don't think you have as much range of movement available with the Townshend's. I bought Rockport Cygnus and recently noticed that Stillpoints makes a model that will fit mine. Anyone use Stillpoints on their Rockports?
 
Thanks for replying. I believe the knob is only used for freeing the pod to move with the spring. No matter how I turn the knob after that does the level change.

ozzy
 
I have the podiums. You need the wrench that Townshend supplies to adjust the springs. It is quite easy. The wrench fits on a large 1" nut underneath the platform footer.
 
I did adjust the large nut below for level prior to placing the speakers on the Podiums. But afterwards moving the knobs doesn't seem to raise or lower anything. The springs just re-adjusts to weight of the speakers.

I just sent an email to Townshend for clarification.

ozzy
 
From John at Towshend

"Yes turning the top handles adjusts the height of the Podiums"





I am always here and very happy to help…




John Hannant

Townshend Audio

+ 44 (0) 208 979 3787
 
I think what is screwing me up is, no matter how much I adjust the knobs my bubble level always shows as level.
Perhaps that is what the podiums are designed to do?

ozzy
 
Yes, I think you are correct. Have you thought of using Stillpoints Ultra 7s? I think they would be around 10K for my Cygnus. That's a big expense relative to other approaches. I am not planning any speaker swaps so maximizing the Cygnus makes sense to me. Any experience with them? They have been kind to offer to make a run that would fit and let me trial them. That sound like they are quite confident I will love them. .
 
Have there been any direct comparisons between the Seismic Podiums and the Arya Revopods yet?

The Revopods are much less visually obtrusive and as such would have my initial preference. The Positive Feedback review of the Revopods didn’t like them on speakers however (https://positive-feedback.com/reviews/hardware-reviews/arya-labs-revopod/) and the Hifi+ reviewer seemed to use them only on components ( https://hifiplus.com/articles/arya-audio-labs-revopod-vibration-reduction-feet/), which pulls me more towards the Podiums. Price wise they would be comparable for the size and weight required for my new speakers. I have experience with the Gaia‘s on my previous speakers, but have gotten the impression these or not on par SQ wise with the other two products, based on feedback from others. Thanks for any input.
 
LeBlanc, I was the first person on here to report them under spkrs, my Zu Definitions 4.
In summary, they clearly best the IsoAcoustic Gaias.
Whether it's relevant, my Zus have down firing subs with onboard amps, so the Revopods also isolating those amps.
And my floor is effectively 150 year old flexy suspended, 30x50 total span.
Anything specific you'd like to know about them?
 
Have there been any direct comparisons between the Seismic Podiums and the Arya Revopods yet?

The Revopods are much less visually obtrusive and as such would have my initial preference. The Positive Feedback review of the Revopods didn’t like them on speakers however (https://positive-feedback.com/reviews/hardware-reviews/arya-labs-revopod/) and the Hifi+ reviewer seemed to use them only on components ( https://hifiplus.com/articles/arya-audio-labs-revopod-vibration-reduction-feet/), which pulls me more towards the Podiums. Price wise they would be comparable for the size and weight required for my new speakers. I have experience with the Gaia‘s on my previous speakers, but have gotten the impression these or not on par SQ wise with the other two products, based on feedback from others. Thanks for any input.
Interesting how many photos at Audio Exotics show Revopods being used together with the Wellfloat Delta feet for speakers, and with other isolation platforms (e.g., SRA) for components (example below). My Wellfloat component isolation platform floats freely with just a soft touch. Haven't tried the Delta feet but would assume they do the same.
 

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