Speaker Asylum

General speaker questions for audio and home theater.

Use this form to submit comments directly to the Asylum moderators for this forum. We're particularly interested in truly outstanding posts that might be added to our FAQs.
You may also use this form to provide feedback or to call attention to messages that may be in violation of our content rules.

You must login to use this feature.

Inmate Login

By default, logging in will set a session cookie that disappears when you close your browser. Clicking on the 'Remember my Moniker & Password' below will cause a permanent 'Login Cookie' to be set.

Moniker/Username: The Name that you picked or by default, your email. Forgot Moniker?	Examples "Rapper", "Bob W", "joe@aol.com".
Password:	Forgot Password?
	Remember my Moniker & Password ( What's this?)

If you don't have an Asylum Account, you can create one by clicking Here.

Our privacy policy can be reviewed by clicking Here.

Inmate Comments

From:
Your Email:
Subject:

Message Comments

Original Message

REVIEW: Sound Anchors N805 stands Speaker Stands

Posted by HanoNymus on December 31, 2002 at 09:00:38:

Model: N805 stands
Category: Speaker Stands
Suggested Retail Price: $425
Description: B&W 805 NAUTILUS STAND
Manufacturer URL: Sound Anchors
Model Picture: View
Review by HanoNymus (A) on December 31, 2002 at 09:00:38
IP Address: 68.105.0.9 Add Your Review
for the N805 stands
I can only agree with the opinion that the N805's MUST have appropriate stands to sound their best.
Sevaral people here and on Audiogon suggested that I should try the SoundAnchors. (thanks!) Since the cheap stands I had around the house were clearly inappropriate, I decided to give the Anchors a try. I was a little pessimistic about their looks - by themselves they're bulky and industrial. Not so with the speakers on them. Actually, they match very well and will probably look good in just about any room.
Looks, however, are merely a secondary aspect. The sound is what counts, and in that regard, the Anchors are doing a great job. The improvement they bring is so dramatic, it's almost like changing the speakers altoghether. Soundstage, resolution, and bass improve a lot; the sound becomes "cleaner" and more "alive". Sound Anchors claim that the stand's structure is "tuned" to bring out the best from the speakers. Before buying them, I couldn't find convincing "scientific" arguments on how this can be accomplished. Now I don't care - for whatewer reason, they DO work, and extremely well at that. All of the people listening to my system before and after the Anchors were invariably asking "what did you add to your gear? it sounds so much better!" I was told that you never know how the 805's can really sound until you tried them with these stands. I completely agree. I am really careful about investing in a new addition to my system, but this one was really worth it. I have not tried other quality stands with the speakers, but I would guess it doesn't get much better. (Some say the Anchors are better than the dedicated B&W stands - at any rate, they're cheaper).
A nice feature is the (at first a little strange) 3 contact-point base - initially I was concerned about the possibility of tipping them over. Nah. Not these... anchors: they're very well designed and balanced, and having only 3 spikes to adjust makes toe-in a snap.
Another nice touch is the hole + screw for attaching/coupling the speaker with the stand. Besides the obvious benefit of safety (you'd have to try really hard to knock the speakers and stands over) I strongly suspect it also adds to sound quality.
I'm really hard pressed to find something to criticise about these stands. The only possible improvement may be a second mounting hole to secure the speaker even better. For those with fancy tastes, Sound Anchors could consider different finishes (chrome? paint? it's all a matter of taste). I personally like them as they are. For the perfectionists, some cable securing/hiding device would be a plus, but then again, it would have to be very well designed not to interfere with the sound, and it would probably add to the cost quite a bit.
All in all, the Anchors are about as good as a stand can get, and they're definitely a must-have for any N805 owner.
Product Weakness: None really.
Product Strengths: Great design. Dramatic sound improvement.
Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier: MF A300
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated): none
Sources (CDP/Turntable): Technics Carousel -> Lehmann Dac+
Speakers: B&W N805
Cables/Interconnects: DIY
Music Used (Genre/Selections): All
Time Period/Length of Audition: 3 months
Type of Audition/Review: Product Owner

Model:	N805 stands
Category:	Speaker Stands
Suggested Retail Price:	$425
Description:	B&W 805 NAUTILUS STAND
Manufacturer URL:	Sound Anchors
Model Picture:	View

Product Weakness:	None really.
Product Strengths:	Great design. Dramatic sound improvement.

Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	MF A300
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	none
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Technics Carousel -> Lehmann Dac+
Speakers:	B&W N805
Cables/Interconnects:	DIY
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	All
Time Period/Length of Audition:	3 months
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner