Hey Everyone,

Got a set of Yamaha HS80m’s and need to find a good set of isolation pads that are a perfect size.

Auralex, Primacoustic and other brands of similar quality.

Price is not really an issue, so would love some recommendations. Least expensive, most expensive and best bang for your buck options!

If you could post some images of your setups, that would be awesome and really helpful.


Thanks in advance!

Im a fan of sorbothane hemispheres or pads

sorbothane hemispheres.

Same here.

Thanks for your input, guys!

Due to the arrangement of the monitors on my small desk, I am unable to use those because of the slight overhang and positioning of the HS80’s.

Can you recommend the best pads that are a perfect fit for the monitors?


Thanks!

Get your monitors off the desk and on to massive stands

Thanks for that, Jason! Haha!

I’m just starting out and currently organising and setting up a little home studio. I just want a decent set of isolation pads for now.

Looking at a few different brands at the moment and not sure what my best option would be in all honesty. Just interested in what others are currently using in their setup.

Well, heres the thing, none of them are going to actually decouple your speakers, they'll only dampen them. You would need a considerable ammount of weight to get a spring that could compress enough to decouple and not be wobbly as hell.

A good pair of massive stands would help more than "decoupling" for you. By having your speakers on the desk they are creating VERY strong reflections and also bluring your low end. The best cheap fix is to get your monitors off that desk.

Freestanding speaker decoupling system DIY on a budget question

Thanks, Jason!

I will consider purchasing a good pair of stands in the near future. Appreciate you taking the time to reply and provide some advice.

Cheers, mate!

Hollow concrete blocks work.

I’ve been looking at the IsoAcoustics ISO-L8R200’s and the Auralex ProPads. Can anyone recommend either of those? They appear to have some great reviews.

The desk I have is pretty basic. It is rigid and sturdy, just limited in terms of space. Ideally, I want a simple solution, but something that will make a massive improvement to just having them planted on the desktop with no form of isolation.

I’m new to all this and I’m trying to put together a small workstation to start making some electronic / house music at home.

Can anyone direct me to the Sorbothane isolators / pads that have been mentioned in the thread?

I’m in the UK, so if you could provide the best online websites to look that would be great!


Cheers, fella’s!

Lol, again, massive improvement = stands
Minimal improvement = "isolators"

Google for sorbothane hemispheres or look on amazon. Isolateit.com might ship to you.
https://www.isolateit.com/speaker-decoupling
Isoacoustics stands over auralex, imo, but full disclosure, i hate auralex.

Evening Jason,

Thanks for the speedy reply, mate!

I’m thinking that maybe the Sorbothane Hemisphere’s would do a reasonably decent job for now, and then consider something like the Iso’ stands later down the line.

I know it’s not going to be a major difference, but compared to being sat directly on the desk it should be a big improvement at the very least.

What would you recommend size wise for Hemisphere’s for the Yamaha’s?


Thanks!

You get SLIGHTLY tighter bass, but untill you get stands and properly treat your room dont expect too much benefit in terms of better translation.

Look up the weight of the yamahas and then use that link i gave you to check the chart. Go with durometer 50

I’ll take a closer look now. Will let you know how I get on. I think there are a few places here in the UK that sell them.

Are there different types or are they all pretty much the same material?

I’ll definitely get some Iso’s or stands in the near future. Trying to invest the little money I have at the moment into a basic setup.

Sorbothane is a patented material, so if it says sorbothane it better be...

.75 inch diameter durometer 50 for your hs80m. You need 4 per speaker.

I would try the contact form on isolateit's website or search amazon or google etc...

You can DIY stands pretty cheap. PVC filled with sand and a wood top/base painted looks good. Lots of tutorials on them. Concrete block stands too

Thanks, Jason!

I found a site here in the UK that sells them.

https://www.peakhifi.co.uk/cgi-bin/e...cts&db_scid=22

Would the 40mm be any good? They are £9.99 for a set of 4.

.75" = 19.05mm

The ones on there have a durometer of 70. The loading would be off

Each monitor weighs approximately 11.3kg (24-25lbs)

There are so many sizes available and each pad has a maximum load weight and this is then calculated for the 4 pads to find the ideal set for the monitors. Is this correct?

Is there much difference between the 50 and 70 durometer hardness? How does this affect the overall performance?


Thanks!

Durometer is stiffness. The important thing is the ammount of compression. Just make sure the loading is correct.

11.3kg ÷ 4 = 2.8kg per isolator. Just find ones that match that and you'll be fine.

Cheers, pal!

I’m finding a lot of posts online in relation to the Sorbothane Hemisphere’s. Some are using 1.5” - 2” diameter pads for the HS80’s. I’m just not sure which would be the best option when it comes to durometer hardness. The 50’s or 70’s?

If there are others reading this thread that own a pair of Yamaha HS80’s and use the Sorbothane pads, your views would be very much appreciated.

Again, thanks for taking the time and effort to reply, Jason.

There's a lot of people online who think the earth is flat too. Make your decision based on fact. They do not work if the loading is incorrect. Regardless of durometer make sure they are rated for correct weight

I have a set of HS80M's with Sorbothane domes.

Off the top, I forget what the duro value was. [bought some years back].

Back then, there was a message thread that got quite deep into all this ... very very helpful. In fact, one 'expert' here helped a bunch get their calculations right.

Do the search.

If I recall correctly, going 'soft' was the preferred ... BUT, not at the expense of dome compression [that is important].

Sorry can't be specific what I used at this moment ....

Hi!

According to some expert findings on the topic, Sorbothane isolation is actually more effective than Isoacoustics Stands, So it wouldn't be an upgrade.

Thanks, mate!

I have found a few threads on here, so just taking my time to browse through them.

Most of the UK sellers only seem to have the 70 durometer available.

I need to calculate which would be best for my monitors.

I’m still tempted by the Iso’s, but if the Hemisphere’s will do the job for a fraction of the price then I can invest the saving into something else for my home setup.

Interesting. Both seem to get rave reviews, but I can’t make a decision either way at the moment. Still reading up on both.

Would be great to hear some more opinions from other members of the forum that use the Hemisphere’s and Iso’s.

DIY Cinder block monitor stands

Can’t find any Sorbothane Hemisphere’s in the 50 durometer here in the UK. Everywhere has sold out!

Some of the information based on calculations seems to vary from website to website.

The monitors each weigh 11.3kg, so that is a load of 2.8kg per pad. Based on stock, there isn’t anything that falls within the ‘sweet spot’ to fit the criteria for recommended isolation.

Would appreciate a little help and guidance with this, please.


Thanks for the continued input, everyone!

Just received my 8 hemispheres. I gotta say that my expectations was way down, i just didn't know what to expect. The type is durometer 30 for 2 to 4 lbs. i'm using 4 with my Jbl lsr 305, which weights 10.12lbs.

The sound is definitely better now. i'm impressed on how the desk is much quieter, even when driving the speakers on max. It's almost impossible to feel any vibration from the desk.
Regarding the sound, stereo image is now wider, Transients and low end response tighter, more analytical. For 40 bucks this was a huge improvement on the sound.

Vibro EP RED 6 per 6 cm

Well done. And even if you end up with stands in the future, you might prefer to leave the hemispheres on in that scenario as well.