DIY - Speaker Stands
The Repository->DIY->Speaker Stands
So let's say you just bought a kick-ass pair of bookshelf speakers--or perhaps a pair of biamped powered studio monitors (rock on!)--or perhaps you've done the coolest thing of all and built yourself a pair of DIY loudspeakers. You love the way your new babies sound, but you keep scratching your head to try to find the right place to put them.
Should you:
A. Stack cinder blocks high enough until the tweeters are at ear level
B. Plop them on top of your old, boxy speakers
C. Try to fit them on top of a dresser... or clear enough space on the desk (only to see the image on your monitor warp due to magnetic interference)
D. Buy overpriced speaker stands at Guitar Center or your local electronics store
The answer, of course, is E, none of the above. The first three choices are fine, if you are a bachelor. However, the chances of a wife being willing to go along with those solutions is slim. And if you try to buy a pair of stands, be prepared to shell out well over $100 (which is tough to do after you've blown your wad on speakers).
So there's really only one solution: be a handyman. Instead of feeling the hurt in your bank account to the tune of $189, you could feel the self-satisfaction of building your own useful-yet-visually-appealing furniture. And the pair will only cost you about $20 or $30, total.
Now, these particular stands are designed to hold the lovely Dayton IIIs, brainchild of the DIY speaker maestro Wayne Jaeshke. If you've never built a pair of speakers before, it's a great place to start. For a little over $200 in electronics and wood, you can build yourself some jaw-dropping music makers. ("Entry-level audiophile," without a doubt.)
However, the plans are very easily adjusted for pretty much any medium-to-large bookshelf speaker (or monitor) by simply cutting a different sized top "pedestal."
You will need:
2 sheets of 2'x4' MDF (don't consider any other types of wood. trust me, we want something dense and heavy that won't resonate)
Some 1 1/2" sheet metal screws
A tube of wood glue
A bit of wood filler or bondo
Paint of your choice
1. Cut your wood
Here is a cutlist for how to get the correct boards out of a 2'x4' sheet of MDF. Since I only have a circular saw, I try to make as few cuts as possible (although I always use a straight-edge guide, which gives very decent straight cuts). Note: the 4"x24" pieces can certainly be cut shorter to taste (mine were actually cut down to 4"x22"). However, they will be referred to as the 4"x24" throughout this how-to.
Each sheet of MDF is enough to make one stand, with a bit of scrap left over (Keep it. Scrap is good)
2. Clamp the bases
As soon as you finish cutting your boards, take the two 12"x15" pieces and put glue on both boards. Then, clamp them together. Let them sit for a few hours, and you will have a super-strong piece of 1.5" thick MDF for the base of the stand.
3. Route away (optional)
If you have access to a router, and you like your furniture to have a bit more style than just perfectly square edges, this step is really worth it. Perhaps you like a smooth roundover, or a sharp chamfer, or maybe even something exotic or colonial. Sky's the limit. Not much to it, just clamp the boards you want to route the edges and route away. Note: it might be best to do this step outside because routers + MDF = overwhelming amounts of sawdust!.
If you plan on doing this routing step, you will want to route the following:
Four of the eight 4"x24" boards (do not do all eight!)
Both bases
Both of the "minor bases"
Both of the pedestals
4. Screw the tubes
You will construct the each tube (read: pillar) by screwing and gluing four of the 4"x24" boards together. The final tube dimensions will therefore be 4"x"5.5"x24". If you've never used wood glue, now is a good time to learn. It's great stuff. In the end, the glue will be the bond that holds the stand together--the screws just act as clamps to hold things tight while the glue dries. Weird as it sounds, wood glue is stronger than wood itself.
Anyway, when using the "screw n' glue" method, just be sure to measure and drill your pilot holes for your screws first (ALWAYS pre-drill MDF, or it will split. I guarantee). Once you have drilled your holes in the appropriate places (nothing too fancy, maybe 4 per side), apply wood glue to both edges of the wood you want to affix. Then, quickly put the screws in and tighten away.
The next day you can feel free to remove your screws if you would like (or leave 'em in, I don't care). Like I said, it's the glue that does the holding. After you remove the screws, you can then fill those open holes with some wood putty or bondo. (be sure and sand that filler before you paint, though)
5. Attach the mini-base to the tube
This is not rocket science. You can use a ruler or a square or just your eyeballs. Simply mark where you want the tube to be centered on the mini base (not the thick 1.5" one. We're saving that for a few more steps). Then, pre-drill four holes in the mini base and the end of the tube--yes, make sure they match.
My favorite "cheat" method for making quick n' dirty screw holes meet is to pre-drill holes in one piece (in this case, the mini-base) and screw the screws in... but only until their sharp points are just barely sticking out. Then, go back and align the two parts exactly how you want them. Now, press really hard on the mini-base. The points of the screws will make nice indentations in the tube where you will want to drill corresponding pilot holes.
Now that you have your pilot holes drilled, glue n' screw the mini-base and the tube, just like you did the last step.
6. Attach the pedestal to the tube
Your pedestal can be cut to whatever size you deem appropriate to put under your speaker. Personally, I like the look of the speaker hanging out exactly 3/4" on each side. Therefore, I cut the pedestal 1.5" inches shorter on each side than the bottom of the speaker.
For instance, on the D3s, the actual dimensions of the base are 9.5"x13.5". So I cut the pedestal to 8"x12". Cool?
Once your pedestal is the size you want (and you've routed it (again, optional)), go ahead and glue n' screw this pedestal just like you did the mini-base.
7. Attach the bottom [thick] platform.
These babies are almost functional! There is no screwing on this last step. Simply mark how you want the mini-base to align on top of the thick 12"x15" base. Then apply glue to the bottom of the mini base and the thick base and press the two together. I recommend putting something heavy on top of the stand to compress the glue as much as possible. Might be a good use for that old, heavy laserdisc player or tape recorder.
Note: keep an eye out during this part as the glue sets. I found that my tube/mini-base wanted to slide around on the semi-slippery glue as it set. However, after 10 minutes or so, the glue was viscous enough that the tube wasn't going anywhere. Then all I had to do was wait a few hours for the glue to really set before I handled the stand.
8. How you want to paint this thing?
It's totally up to you how you want to paint these suckers. First however, you must put a layer of primer on the bare MDF. The stuff just wants to soak up paint; so let the primer take that job.
Next, you can pretty much choose almost any type of paint (or spray paint) under the sun and give these things a nice finish. I get impatient about this time, so I just found some Krylon black enamel paint around the house. The stuff is thick as tar! But it dries really thickly, too, so it only requires 1 or 2 coats. It looks nice and smooth and shiny from a short distance away (crappy brush strokes and all), so it works for me. Of course, that story might change once I get married in a few months ;-)
You could also use some clever hardware store options for spray paint. For instance, truck bed liner (yes, in a can) is very popular with speaker builders because it has a nice-looking tough finish, and it's thick so it hides blemishes. In a similar vein is the Rust Oleum hammered paint. On the other hand, you could always go with a classic white or black in a can. If you are careful about dust, and sand well, you can get very professional finishes on MDF--way nicer than anything you'll get on Guitar Center speaker stands. Don't ask me about professional finishes, though; by the time I get to this point in a build, my patience is pretty much nil.
9. Finishing audiophile touch (optional)
Some people like to put isolation feet of some sort on either the top pedestal, or under the bottom base, or both. Audiophiles typically use pointy spikes (probably because they look cool). I just bought some fat rubber feet at the hardware store and stuck four of them to the top of each pedestal. Then I put my D3s on them and rocked, hard.
Now you are looking at two very sturdy, reliable speaker stands that you crafted yourself. Doesn't that feel nice? Much more satisfying than just shelling out a bunch of bucks for something that was made by an overworked factory worker in some impoverished country for 15 cents a day. With a half-decent finish, you would pay between $150-$200 for these at a music store. With a killer finish... well, they don't sell them with killer finishes. These stands, however will cost you about $20-30 total, depending on what you want to spend on paint. (yes, you could buy the cheezy ones at Crutchfield for $60. But come on... you MADE these! How cool is that? Plus, these are way sturdier.)
Some audiophiles swear by filling the pillars of speaker stands with sand or shot. They claim it "limits harmonic coupling" between the speakers and the floor--in other words, reduces the amount the stand vibrates with the speaker. It also makes for a sturdier stand. Well, as for sturdiness, I honestly don't think that's a problem with these. The stands weighed exactly 20 lbs apiece. The Dayton III speakers weigh around 35 lbs apiece. Basically, this stuff is heavy enough as it is that I'm not worried. However, if your kids or dog are rowdy enough, it doesn't matter how heavy your speaker stands are; if the speaker is gonna topple, it's gonna topple. Let's just hope no one's head, feet, or hands are in line of the falling speakers--yikes!