Audio Rack Shelves?

Hello,
I have a big rack to accomodate both my Stereo & HT rig. I got this rack made when i was just a newbie. The shelves of this rack are all 1/2" glass which is making sound thin and tizz at high frequencies. I tried MDF instead of glass which made sound bass heavy with less clarity. Is there any other material for shelving which is more neutral then glass and MDF ?
Regards
Vasu

Not sure how big your shelves are .. and i assume you are placing your speakers in the shelves and hence the issue.

I could think one the below:
1. take the speakers out of these shelfs and give them a more open environment.. if they are bookshelfs put them on stands etc.

2. If option 1 is not possible, then pad the inner area of your shefs with any sound dampening material.. which could be as simple as your old turkish towels across the shelf lining. To prevent rattling of your speakers ensure that they are on a firm and thick plywood base. please do not put your speaker directly on cloth or on soft material where the speaker would sink in.

try and tell us if they make any inprovement..

Hello Realactivex,
My speakers are floorstanders and they are spiked on the floor.
Regarding dampening of shelves, i have put newspaper i.e. glass shelf > newspaper > component. This has worked out good for me. The sound is more on neutral side now but then the newspaper look ugly on shelves. That's why i am looking for a new shelf which is neutral as well as goes with WAF.
Regards
Vasu

myriad,
i have read that 2 MDFs sandwitced either with Cork OR with Dynamat (the material used for damping in cars) deadens the sound. the problem with glass is that it rings although you do get accoustically treated glass as well these days

I had tried for dynamat in Kolkata but couldn't find anywhere. Is there anyone who stocks dynamat in Bangalore or Mumbai?
Regards
Vasu

Most car audio installers should stock it..else they would have Bitumen sheets which are also effective.

From Dynamat's site i got a name of their indian distributor in Mumbai. I have mailed them, Hope they answer.
Regards
Vasu

Both Glass and Gypsum absorbs low frequencies very well - if you allow them to resonate. They absorb sound with resonance. Thats why switching to mdf made the bass heavy and muddy. Other fibrous materials ( to contrast) absorb sound due to friction generated by sound pressure. I deliberately placed my speakers on glass attached to surface with suckers to allow this. on the other hand it has not made my bass too deficient. Infact there is still room for improvement in my opinion, but it has definitely improved low freq sound and made it sound punchier. Glass works best around 125hz and 250 hz.


Please post a pic of your rack and mention your audio rig specs and room dimensions. That will give us better idea.

Regards

PS: Putting your rack on spikes may change things perceptibly. Please try it before running around for less available/experimental solution.

Regards

Yesterday i put newspaper on each and every shelf and vibrapods in between newspaper and componenets. I did this tweak late at night so couldn't actually gauge the performance. Today i was a amazed with the result i got both with stereo and HT. I will say it's amazing. There might be better tweaks but this one is rocking my boat now. As pointed by arj, i am looking for Dynamats and if i get some, i will surely try that tweak too. But right now im happy the way my rig is sounding , maybe looking just little ugly with newspapers
Regards
Vasu