Why put speaker cables on foam?

Google "Peter Belt HiFi" and you'll find your answer.

Nick

If you think placing speaker cables on foam makes a difference you need to get out more.

Presumably to isolate the cable from mechanical vibrations the can be transmitted to the power amp and speakers.

As you say it is very cheap and I tried it by snipping up 2 cm lengths of foam pipe insulator and arranging these at points around the speaker cables so that their entire lengths are off the floor.

I believe I heard an improvement but can never be sure if this was a placebo effect or not. Anyway, it cost me 99p, a trip to the DIY store and an hour of fiddling around.

Try it, what have you got to lose? Just wait for a time when you are on your own so no one calls the men in white coats!

Consciousmess posted:

Hi all,

This question must be asked as it's an ultra cheap upgrade and I've seen it in many demonstration systems.  Having recently realised the benefit of using 2x 6m of cable and my system far from speakers, I've learned that is the optimal method.

So why do demonstration systems still do this as presumably the promoters already have optimised cable length.

6m is enough distance for fibration issues.  But that's my hypothesis I welcome being challenged.

Merci!

I always understood this was to reduce ever so slightly the coupling effect to the ground - by creating a greater distance between the conductors and ground - which will almost certainly modify albeit subtly the load and impedance the amplifier sees. I suspect the effects to the sound will be extremely off to the left and right of the Gaussian distribution .....

I tried it by cutting slices of 15 mm pipe insulation and ran the cables through this. No difference in sound quality and they looked awful on our oak floor so off they came to keep the lady of the house happy. Perhaps I should have gone for 22 or 28mm insulation and put a piece of paper under each ring?

Ravenswood10 posted:

I tried it by cutting slices of 15 mm pipe insulation and ran the cables through this. No difference in sound quality and they looked awful on our oak floor so off they came to keep the lady of the house happy. Perhaps I should have gone for 22 or 28mm insulation and put a piece of paper under each ring?

Don't forget the foam would have to be PTFE, and you need the right paper - flax bound and hand crafted, none of this machine made cartridge paper c**p!   

I also forgot the plumber's putty - a bob under each ring

Blob even and the paper should ideally be Yak velum not goat

Ooh, critical error that!

That's deep Adam, the OP only mentioned bits of foam ��

Adam that clearly can't be the case for lifting speaker cables off the floor, the clue is in the last sentence, and I quote

"however, it cannot be lifted, and thus the example cannot be a fibration in general."[sic]

Thus the entire argument falls.

I wish I'd had this equation at the time. I also failed to cut the foam rings to the same with

Actually, I have checked back and I paid £1.20 for my pipe insulation, not 99p as previously advised. I have clearly purchased premium pipe insulation which I recon has made all the difference. All you naysayers have obviously used second-rate pipe insulation which is why you have detected no difference.

Adam, can your equation be modified to include pipe insulation quality? I might take it more seriously if you were able.

HiFiman posted:

If you think placing speaker cables on foam makes a difference you need to get out more.

Bit harsh!

nigelb posted:

HiFiman posted:

If you think placing speaker cables on foam makes a difference you need to get out more.

Bit harsh!

Perfectly reasonable to me - you need to get out more to get some more foam.. simples

At the Naim factory listening room I have seen lengths of Super Lumina off the floor. I have for many years used custom made wooden blocks to keep my NACA5 off a hard floor. I also have no cable touching any other on my system (see profile), and also power lines off the floor. It's also all hidden from view. All cables are unstressed before sue.  It takes a bit of effort, but it's all to do with microphonics and coupling; it makes a worthwhile difference to ease and naturalness in my view. My system is so sensitive to change (or my ears are) that I can hear the difference that Fraim chips make under the Sonus Faber speakers vs the Sonus Faber ones. 

Good listening

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

nigelb posted:

HiFiman posted:

If you think placing speaker cables on foam makes a difference you need to get out more.

Bit harsh!

Perfectly reasonable to me - you need to get out more to get some more foam.. simples

Is that when the first batch of foam doesn't meet with your expectations, you go and purchase more, different brand perhaps.

Come on guys next the sunlight hitting one speaker more than the other has an effect, or Fraim glass the wrong way round mind you this has been covered before if memory serves

HiFiman posted:

Simon-in-Suffolk posted:

nigelb posted:

HiFiman posted:

If you think placing speaker cables on foam makes a difference you need to get out more.

Bit harsh!

Perfectly reasonable to me - you need to get out more to get some more foam.. simples

Is that when the first batch of foam doesn't meet with your expectations, you go and purchase more, different brand perhaps.

Come on guys next the sunlight hitting one speaker more than the other has an effect, or Fraim glass the wrong way round mind you this has been covered before if memory serves

 

Foam under SC is nonsense but Fraim glass the wrong way can wreck a system. The glass is made in the Naim lab to direct the vibrations a certain way. If this is not followed at initial setup it could void the warranty and make listening to these wonderful Naim systems unlistenable. Forget the foam and focus on the glass!

My Axminster carpet is vibrating so much I must put some foam between it and my cables. 

Theres a main road about 12 metres from my house. I am also considering jacking up my whole house and putting it on coil springs to "decouple" it from planet earth. Not sure if I'll hear a difference but it will be worth it.

Do I detect you guys are not taking the foam thing seriously?

Call yourselves audiophiles!

Following in the steps of David Blaine I can now levitate, struggling to stay upright though and I seem to spin forward but listening to music whilst performing the act is a whole new experience 

All this talk of cable vibration and Naim labs, I thought it would be great for the edification of the forum to show a picture of  the very renown and hi-tec Naim cable optimiser; the Snaic Shaker...

For years I have used wall hooks and rubber bands for my NACA5 runs. 

It has made vacuuming the floor much easier.

Drewy posted:

My Axminster carpet is vibrating so much I must put some foam between it and my cables. 

Theres a main road about 12 metres from my house. I am also considering jacking up my whole house and putting it on coil springs to "decouple" it from planet earth. Not sure if I'll hear a difference but it will be worth it.

This is one of the better ideas I've read in a long time. Naim woukd be smart to get on this or at least announce its impending debut then work out the kinks to get it to market. 

Hook posted:

For years I have used wall hooks and rubber bands for my NACA5 runs. 

It has made vacuuming the floor much easier.

Skyhooks work better and you don't have to fix anything to the walls.

But then you should know all about hooks!

With all this talk about springs of course Hooke's law comes into play doesn't it!