Forums https://www.decware.com/cgi-bin/yabb22/YaBB.pl AUDIO FORUMS >> General Discussion and Support >> Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? https://www.decware.com/cgi-bin/yabb22/YaBB.pl?num=1395946830 Message started by ML on 03/27/14 at 20:00:29

Title: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by ML on 03/27/14 at 20:00:29 Has anyone tried adding weight to the wood base on the se34i.3 or other.  I was thinking of a 1/4" piece of glass in the unit to add weight, reduce microdynamics, etc. I haven't found that there is a difference between having the amp on brass cones or off or on wood shelf vs on a 1.2 marble tile.  Also tried Amp on a the marble tile with cones under it then on a wood shelf.  i should mention that the wall unit is solid red mahogany and at least 400 lbs. The amp is already awesome, but open to an improvement in this regard. Thoughts?

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by deucekazoo on 03/27/14 at 22:01:24 Can't really picture how you want to add the glass in but if I was you I would try some lead shot or fishing weights lets say inside balloons first. Place them aroung the bottom or on top and see if anyting improves. You can also use sand in balloons or baggies.

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by beowulf on 03/27/14 at 22:08:26 Is there enough room inside for a sheet of glass to be placed on the bottom?  If so, if I was going to place glass inside I would soundcoat it first.  Another alternative that might work is a piece of granite or slate tile.

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by ML on 03/27/14 at 22:25:33 There is a little room.  I was thinking to glue it down with something gummy like caulk.  Granite or marble would be hard to cut to size and too think.  So, you like the idea?

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by beowulf on 03/27/14 at 22:37:23 I don't think it would hurt to try it, but there could be some unwanted micro resonances ... so I wouldn't glue/commit to anything until I found out if it made a positive difference.

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by will on 03/27/14 at 23:35:20 ML I wonder....It sounds like one of two things to me. Either your 400 lbs of mahogany, along with the improved anti vibration construction and materials of the 34i.3 are taking care of your vibration.Or there is something else in the signal chain or room that is not allowing the amp to be as revealing as it can be and making it difficult to hear the changes you have described. I can hear different types of feet with my system.

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by 4krow on 04/07/14 at 00:07:24 I can't leave anything alone. I hadn't thought of the weight thing, but instead, I put a sheet of damping material on the inside of the bottom. To be fair I wasn't used to the unit enough to say if this helped, but that never stopped me before.

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by Lon on 04/07/14 at 00:18:57 I know what you mean. I had a magical sound the other day and did some changes . . . and I have a different magic now. LOL. Isolation control is so complex.

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by ML on 04/07/14 at 14:56:11 4Krow, what did you use?  Did it have a metal backing?  Steve and I spoke about his concern about products with metal backing. Make sure it doesn't touch/short out the components and also, be sure to ground it as it will amplify RF?  Can it be grounded to something inside the amp?

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by Lonely Raven on 04/07/14 at 15:28:21 One thing to keep in mind, is that the Rachel (at least the one I cracked open) looked like it had conductive paint on the bottom of the case - if that's the case, it acts as shielding and I would avoid scratching or peeling it while installing or removing any damping materials. You might also try simply floating the amp on a big foam pad seeing how some good soft isolation helps. I've tried it on a few amps after it was recommended to me, and I was surprised by how well cheap foam isolated a heavy amp. Ugly as anything, but good sound. The key is keeping any thumping or resonation away from the preamp tubes. Steve showed me this when he demonstrated to me how the Herbie's tube dampers really didn't do a lot for thumping and tapping. It's also why the steel plate the amp is built on is so thick.

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by ML on 04/07/14 at 16:35:02 No conductive paint in mine. What is the best way to ground a metallic shield placed in or painted in the amp?

Title: Re: Adding weight to wood base of SE34i.3??? Post by Lonely Raven on 04/07/14 at 18:29:50 If I were to do an amp myself that didn't have any shielding, I'd treat it like it was a guitar and use copper tape to line the bottom and sides of the box, and make sure this had a good mechanical connection to the metal top plate. Here is how it would be done on a guitar. Notice the bit of tape going up to a screw hole for electrical connection, and the dot of solder electrically connecting two pieces together. (makes me think a copper sheet in the bottom might work better) But also keep in mind, Steve didn't use lots of shielding in the amps, so is it really necessary?

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