Ikea Gear Stand and Vibration

OldSch00l

Seeking a Happy Medium
So I am moving at the end of the month and I have been trying to come up with a new home for my audio gear, as I currently have it built into the living room closet where I live now. I have been leaning towards some sort of credenza as that seems to be a popular choice, and I require that it be more of a piece of 'furniture' than just a 'gear stand' like a flexi-rack.

What concerns me most is isolation/damping for my turntable. My current setup works VERY well for this and I can crank my system as loud as I can stand and have no issues with feedback or footfalls, even with the tremendous low end that my speakers can reproduce.

Initially I started looking at your usual 'MCM' style low, wide credenzas like this:

ERJlPOx.jpg


However, the ones that I like tend to be rather expensive and in short supply. So I started looking around for other options and I came across an Ikea product that would work very well for the room it will be going in. Their 2 x 4 'Kallax' (formerly Expedit) with a row of cabinets:

kallax-shelf-unit-on-casters-with-doors-white__0271644_PE413460_S4.JPG


I would be replacing the casters with 6 standard legs.

I know that there are quite a number of people here with these Kallax/Expedit stands and I am trying to get an idea of how well they isolate/damp vibrations while supporting a turntable, and if I am better off saving up for a 'vintage' piece of furniture instead that is constructed from real solid wood instead of pressboard.

Thoughts? Experiences?
 
With the Kallax/Expidit you can expect the "light but rigid" approach which some favor. Particularly with Rega turntables. Just like the Lack tables this Ikea furniture is built with honeycomb core that keeps it light so it dissipates energy quickly. For acoustical feedback from speakers may be the thing, but for footfall not so much?

I think it is really system and environment dependent. You should tell us what your TT is and what kind of flooring is in the new space. Also where will the turntable be in relation to the speakers as well as the size of the room.

I suspect you will not be able to replicate the same isolation of having your TT in a closet unless you go wall mounted. In the closet you have all that framing in the walls to absorb footfalls and airborne feedback will also be minimized. (but I also think closets have their own problems with ventilation for other components).

Also beware the depth on the Kallax, a couple of my TT's would hang over the edge. And, the space in between the dividers is only around 12" so most components don't fit on shelves without modifications.

EDIT: Forgot to mention that as a former professional furniture maker I can assure you that most of the MCM is actually veneered particle board. Very few pieces, even the vintage stuff, are actually solid throughout. Some of it may be lumber-core under that veneer. Even back in the 50's and 60's Teak was expensive enough to dictate that veneer was the way to go. Plus there are special considerations in the design stage if you want to build with solid and not have the piece self-destruct with wood movement. That being said veneered (on both sides) particle board is very non-resonant. More so than solid wood. That's why no one really makes speakers out of solid wood.
That piece you posted is most definitely veneered save for the legs and trim at the front edge. You can tell by the book-matching of the grain.
Ok, off my soap-box.
 
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Anything comprising box cavity shapes is going to encourage vibration at frequencies whose wavelengths are integral multiples of the distances between the faces of the box cavities... the particular placement of the turntable will determine the effect - some placements will be better than others.

I have always had good luck using a 18"x18" marble topped 14" high little table over carpet for the record player.
 
Their Besta series is the same depth but the width of the shelves are wide enough to hold components (or albums).


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Thanks everyone for your input! I ended up going with the Kallax unit and replaced the casters with adjustable legs. I'm still in the middle of setting all of my stuff up and unpacking so I have yet to see how well this setup compares to my turntable's old home, more to come...
 
So this is what I came up with:

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x3Ecylt.jpg


I am still playing with other furniture and placement, but so far it seems to be working fairly well. I have cranked the volume up to very high levels while playing vinyl and have not run into any feedback issues, however footfalls seem to be a bit of a problem, certainly the turntable is nowhere near as isolated as it was in it's previous home. I am thinking that loading the shelf down with some more weight may help things, I plan to move my vinyl there once the final placement is sorted out. I'll update this again with my impressions when that happens... :yes:
 
This was just the thread I was looking for!

Im off to buy a Kallax unit tomorrow to house our equipment and was about to ask if they are suitable for having a turntable on.

This has answered my question.

Im sure my system wont look anywhere near as good as the above pic though.

Beth x
 
Old school, can you tell us a little about the cone/iso on your empire.? I have a 598 and tried some mapleshade footers but there is not much to work with on my style plith....thanks
 
Old school, can you tell us a little about the cone/iso on your empire.? I have a 598 and tried some mapleshade footers but there is not much to work with on my style plith....thanks

Sure. Here is a closeup of the feet and isolation that I use:

d932FWC.jpg


Basically, it is 1" of 30 duro Sorbothane cut into 2" squares (2 x .50" thick pieces stacked) with a 2" square piece of 1/8" mild steel flat stock on top of it to distribute the load. The spikes are from Parts Express, I specifically used THESE satin nickel adjustable spikes, which are bolted through holes in the base of the wood body. They also serve as a way to fine tune the leveling of the turntable.
 
Since we are on the topic, I must point out that the Expedit shelves at Ikea work great as vinyl record shelves. I use these shelves for my vinyl collection.

Take it ease.

Saalor
 
Even my heavy flexirack with 1 5/8" thick solid wood counter top shelves and 3/4" all-thread and 150-200 lbs of gear and 60 lbs of torsion sandboxes didn't handle footfalls in my upstairs room. I went to a wall mounted shelf.
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My apartment system has a 2x4 Kallax on casters which is now completely stuffed with records. I need another one. It's on a slab so footfalls are not an issue. Even with all the record weight I have to gentle in shelving and pulling records with one playing or it'll skip. On the plus side acoustic feedback isn't an issue, even with just the stock turn table suspension.

11760332_1432369017091301_7642223572564643991_n.jpg
 
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