You might hang them from the ceiling. Connect wire or strong cord to each side of the speaker to balance it. Attach the cord(s) slightly rear-of-center towards the top and the speaker will hang facing slightly down toward your listening position. I've seen and heard this set up and it works great.

Like you, I've got the same setup and I'm looking for stands as well to get them up off the table surface. Hanging from the ceiling is not practical in my situation.

How far above the surface should they be for optimum sound?

Jay

You likely won't find speaker stands that will take them as high as recommended, but in truth, as long as they are in a linear plane with the other 3 forward speaks, you'll be fine. Our VASST Instant Surround book is just now coming off the press, shouldn't be too long til it's shipping and in stores, it goes into detail about how to set this up correctly. Short answer though, is have all 5 speaks on an equal plane when all else fails to work.

as i suggested on the DMN forum , cast iron base mic stands work well ... like the atlas AMS-20E with a hamilton KB751 speaker adaptor


or just build your own out of sono tube and fill with sand and cap each end.

Search out Wendy Carlos...

Excellent suggestion Bob. Her Adventures in Surround Sound section is fantastic!!

Mike

I built my own very inexpensively. They are at a height of 5 1/2 feet off the floor and are rock solid. If you are interested I will describe how I built them in greater detail.

John

I just ordered some Wood Technology stands from Buy.com for my editing bench. Much less time and cheaper in the long run, for me anyway.

Jay

Thanks for all the replies! I picked up a pair of stands from RadioShack to try them out. The quality of the threads attaching the base to the pole is questionable, but the stands feel pretty solid otherwise. I am considering using velcro to ensure that the speakers don't slide off. Any other ideas?

http://www.radioshack.ca/estore/Product.aspx?language=en-CA&catalog=RadioShack&category=SpeakerMounts&product=4002015

Though I bought a couple of stands as possible solutions, I'm still considering my options, so, John, I would be very interested in how you built your stands.

VC,
The parts came from Home Depot.

Bases - Pre-cast concrete pier block (pyramid shape used for deck footings)

Posts - 1" Galvanized Pipe cut in two to around a foot less than the height you want the speakers. Have Home Depot cut the pipe and thread the other end of each half for you (free). That will be cheaper than buying two pre-cut pieces already cut to length and having them thread the ends of each piece. Check the threads with a Female pipe part from the same department and make sure they thread it so that it screws on at least three or four turns. It won't screw in all the way. That is normal. They may have to set the machine to cut the threads deeper in order for it to go on three turns. Just make sure an idiot doesn't operate the machine. In my case I bought a ten footer and had them cut it into two five foot pieces and thread the other ends of each half. I supervised the kid who did it, but in a nice way.

Buy four 1" pipe flanges. Put one on the base and get some lag screws that will fit through the holes in the flange and dangle into the square opening of the concrete base. Stuff newspaper into the hole at the bottom of the block to keep cement from leaking out and pour cement into the square opening and level the cement with a piece of wood. Center the flange and push the lag screws through the holes in the pipe flange and down into into the wet cement. Make sure it is dead level and let it set. Then you can remove the newspaper from the bottom.

Buy two short threaded 1" pipe nipples (determine the length by how far up the stand you want the speaker wire to come out of the side of the pipe) a couple of inch nipple is usually long enough. Screw the pipe nipple into the pipe flange.

Buy two 1" pipe tees. Screw a pipe tee into the nipple (for the speaker wire to come out the side).

Then screw one of the pipes into the tee and screw another pipe flange upside down on the top of the pipe.

Paint the entire thing with several coats of black and allow it to dry thoroughly. You can paint the concrete with two coats of a primer like Kilz first if you plan on spraying everything. Or you can disassemble the stand before painting it, but cover only the threaded portions of pipe and nipples with masking tape which will screw into the female ends. I painted mine assembled after priming the concrete with two coats of Kilz Primer and Stain Blocker which I had in my basement anyway. I also painted the bottom of the blocks to keep the concrete from flaking off.

Get some wood for the top to support the speaker. You can use anything you want as long as it is a hardwood. Drill a hole in the center for the speaker wire if you want the wire hidden. I routed a channel in the wood from the center hole to the back so I could stand the speaker on top without the wire upsetting it's balance. You could use another pipe tee on top between the flange and the pipe if you want and bring the wire up around the back from underneath. Or you could drill a hole directly through the side of the pipe at the top for the wire. There are several possibilities. I would recommend routing the wood like I did if you have a router. It was really easy.

Put a finish on the wood and then screw the flange onto the bottom of it in a similar fashion to this birdhouse project. I routed 3/4" oak around the edges with a decorative router bit after routing the channel. Then I used a medium oak stain/finish. Looks nice.

To keep the speaker from sliding off I bought a small roll of non-skid rubber-like material used to line the drawers of kitchen cabinets or rolling tool cabinets. The speakers don't fall off even when someone knocks into it. Keep in mid that mine are really high off the floor. The lower the better.

If the stands are going on a rug you may want to use rectangular or square blocks instead of the pyramid shaped ones, but I have mine on a pretty thick carpet and it seems to stay well with a little hidden shimming. Both stick up from behind sofas so you don't really see the bases anyway. They are for my home theater rear surrounds and are very nice when missles are fired over people's heads.

John

I have another idea which is even easier. Buy four 8 or 10 inch square terra cotta clay flue liners. Make sure they are 5/8" thick or more. Stack two
for each stand. Flue liners come in 24" lengths and are available from masonry yards. Buy a nice looking 12" glazed tile from Home Depot and place it on top of the double flue tile stack and put the speaker on top of the tile. Leave the clay natural and don't paint it. You then have an instant rock solid inexpensive 48" speaker stand. Won't wobble on a rug either.