Are equipment racks oddly the most difficult audio purchase?

For something different.....

Two years ago, I lamented that few firms made a performance audio rack offering the build quality and appearance of fine furniture and a level of performance commensurate with the finest audio components. I am a fan of racks from HRS, Finite Elemente, Grand Prix Audio, and others; however, they do not appear as fine furniture.

That led to collaborating with my long-term partner, a top industrial designer, and a young second-generation European cabinet maker located on the front range of Colorado. Today, the product has come to life as a new enterprise - Folgenhaus Audio Furniture. Each rack is made and finished to client specifications—height, depth, number of shelves, you name it.

The constrained-layer vertical uprights are 2.5" thick and accept solid brass or aluminum inlays. Shelves are made from 1.5" or 2" thick hand-selected rock maple, then hand-stained to meet clients' tastes. Brass and compression-damping layers are used throughout. The feet are adjustable solid brass. Folgenhaus racks comfortably support up to 6000 pounds.

Further information can be found on our website, www.folgenhaus.com.
How much are these?
 
This is my shelf built using Japanese joinery and solid wood. I use Wilson Pedestals under key components and IsoAcoustics and Nordost SortKones under the rest.IMG_1694.jpeg
 
This is my shelf built using Japanese joinery and solid wood. I use Wilson Pedestals under key components and IsoAcoustics and Nordost SortKones under the rest.


Looks really good, Lee.
 
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How much are these?
Lee, thanks for asking. Prices vary depending on the configuration. A standard double-wide three-shelf rack is $16-18,000, depending on material/finish. W 48" x D 22.5" x H 32". Lead time is 10-12 weeks.
 
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Lee, thanks for asking. Prices vary depending on the configuration. A standard double-wide three-shelf rack is $16-18,000, depending on material/finish. W 48" x D 22.5" x H 32". Lead time is 10-12 weeks.
That’s very expensive. Mine cost under $4k for similar build quality.
 
For something different.....

Two years ago, I lamented that few firms made a performance audio rack offering the build quality and appearance of fine furniture and a level of performance commensurate with the finest audio components. I am a fan of racks from HRS, Finite Elemente, Grand Prix Audio, and others; however, they do not appear as fine furniture.

That led to collaborating with my long-term partner, a top industrial designer, and a young second-generation European cabinet maker located on the front range of Colorado. Today, the product has come to life as a new enterprise - Folgenhaus Audio Furniture. Each rack is made and finished to client specifications—height, depth, number of shelves, you name it.

The constrained-layer vertical uprights are 2.5" thick and accept solid brass or aluminum inlays. Shelves are made from 1.5" or 2" thick hand-selected rock maple, then hand-stained to meet clients' tastes. Brass and compression-damping layers are used throughout. The feet are adjustable solid brass. Folgenhaus racks comfortably support up to 6000 pounds.

Further information can be found on our website, www.folgenhaus.com.
FYI: https://www.falkenohr.at/en/

 
That’s very expensive. Mine cost under $4k for similar build quality.
Lee, please consider this a more thoughtful reply to my post and the reply regarding the cost.

"Your designs look terrific. Mine cost me $4k to build, so I am curious about what went into producing the Folgenhaus and its features, technology, and premium market positioning."

If you had examined our product more closely or asked questions, you would know our product would not be offered near the price of a DIY or even excellent commercial equipment rack such as those provided by Core or Box Furniture. I won't comment on your rack other than to say it looks well thought out, and I am sure it serves your needs nicely.

PS Nice to see you back on YouTube with TAS as a reviewer.
 
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Cellcbern, I own custom Folgenhaus amplifier stands and have used their racks at several trade shows. They exhibit excellent engineering and heroic Austrian build quality. They are little known in the US but highly respected in Europe.

PS I noticed your Hanson Hsu, ZR Design acoustic panels. I have used a full suite of them in my listening room for over a decade. (The picture below is from my audio salon in Ketchum, Idaho.)

Besides doing a great job with room acoustics, my wife, an interior designer, loves how they look. I'm surprised more audiophiles do not use them, albeit they are somewhat fragile and cost considerably more than typical diffuser and absorber panels.

leedslooklistenSVPN.jpeg
 
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That’s very expensive. Mine cost under $4k for similar build quality.
Lee et al. Below is a custom equipment stand we built for a customer in South Florida a decade ago. Lee, it is reminiscent of your design with an Asian-inspired influence. Our workshop also built the free-floating record storage consoles on either side of the equipment stand. Again, this build included premium quality, materials, and damping technology called "sand cell."

The speakers were also custom-designed and built in our facility by a noted speaker designer. In a tri-amplified configuration, the front end uses a DEQX electronic crossover/processor. The mids and highs used a dartZeel 108, while two Sanders Magtech amplifiers separately powered the woofers and subs. A Wave Kinetics NVS table with Durand Telos arm, Artisan Fidelity modified Gerrard 401, UHA r2r, and Playback Designs
MP-D 5 SACD/CD/DAC were the sources.

Building and designing this rack all those years ago brought me back to the idea of creating Folgenhaus Audio Furniture with my talented design partner, John Heins.

Gambee System-1 (1).jpg
 
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Excellent sound and also visually beautiful rack. Various woods and anodized metals. Performed excellently against my string suspension rack.
I would recommend it immediately.;)

beaudioful-STUDIO---Setup-klein.jpeg
 
In my humble opinion racks do make a profound difference.
A few decades ago I bought a stillpoints rack after very positive experiences with their cones.
This rack easily beat all my diy things I had tried before.
This rack remained in my system many years.
Some two years ago I tried more other footers under this vintage rack.
It had rested on the simple Delrin cups.
I took 4 unused vintage stillpoints cones, ball down, in metal inverse riser cups.
The sound immediately improved - better bass, clarity, extension and more.
I was surprised.

Relocation imminent, I lucked into a very recent stillpoints rack, bigger, got rail grids and lots of their recent puck thingies.
Remembering the effect of measly stillpoints cones etc under my old rack, I put Ultra 5 v2 under the rack.

Relocation means a different room(still fighting acoustics), different mains situation (to be improved), so no comparison is possible.

While this stillpoints orgy was a good match with my suave vintage JRDG amps, I do hope it will also work well with my recent acquisitions:
CH P L1, X1, A1.5.
We will see.
 

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I like the modular design of the Solidsteel racks. As the name of the brand suggests, the columns are made of solid steel. This means that the basic weight is already very high. Shocks are dissipated via the spikes. Each platform stands on its own.

20240330-L1000212-Enhanced-NR.jpg
 
I like the modular design of the Solidsteel racks. As the name of the brand suggests, the columns are made of solid steel. This means that the basic weight is already very high. Shocks are dissipated via the spikes. Each platform stands on its own.
I like the SolidSteel racks quite a bit.

But I have to go up in their line to get the size platforms I need which pushes it into a price point I don't want to be at for a rack.
 
Is that your system in the picture with the WVL Sons?
No..its from webpage fastaudio a audio dealer, I had beaudioful rack at home for short time. I picked it up from the seller for a friend.
 

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