Velcro as Vibration Isolator

[Buckapound]

Anyone got any experience with this?

I was pondering the problem of trying to isolate a laptop CD-ROM drive I'm building into a portable source using one of those eBay controller kits. Standard shockmounts start at a pound or two of weight to be effective, and take up a lot of space besides. Then it occurred to me that a few dots or strips of heavy-duty velcro mught do the job. Since the actual contact between the two pieces is actually the ends of very thin and flexible hairs or fibers, it is reasonable to assume they mught not transmit a lot of energy from piece to piece, and should be effective for relatively low-mass items. Also, they're compact, should hold the piece in place well as well as allow for easy removal.

Anybody have any experience or thoughts?

--Buckapound

[jtsaudio]

...a laptop CD-ROM drive I'm building into a portable source using one of those eBay controller kits.

Interesting...

Will you post photos of the gear you're discussing?

-Joe

[Buckapound]

I will when I have something to show. Right now, it's in the planning stage. I'm doing drawings and trying to figure out how I can build it from the pile of junk I currently have in my basement. The plan is to create a decent-sounding portable CD unit, hopefully that I can run with a lithium battery pack.

I bought a Plextor laptop drive and a controller unit from here:

http://cgi.ebay.com/CDROM-controller...QQcmdZViewItem

And I'm waiting for an adaptor unit, as the connection on the laptop drives are different than the 40-pin IDE on standard-size drives. The plan is to makes a metal case, the front top half of which will flip up to show the display and controls, so when it's shut those things will be hidden and protected.

I may build a rough model of it first to make sure the dimensions work out. I'll post my progress, probably over in Digital.

--Buckapound

[dangus]

I don't know about the Velcro, but there's nice shock mount doo-dads inside car CD changers and CD players. The ones I've seen appear to be filled with some magical damping fluid.

But, since I assume you're going to build a battery powered DAC, there are (or were) portable CD players that had S/PDIF outputs. One notorious example was the Radio Shack Optimus CD-3400, but there must have been others. Something else to consider is a portable DVD player that has S/PDIF out; they exist and are relatively cheap.

[Pano]

Cool idea! How could it be tested?
(must go drink coffee and think....)

EDIT: A quick google shows a number of other folks using Velcro to isolate. One is a drummer who uses Velcro to isolate a drum pad and eleminate false triggering.

Looks like it could work.

[maxlorenz]

Velcro is great.
I have used heavy duty velcro for example to fix monitor speakers to stands and also to maintain portable CDP on my car when I was poor and did not have a CDP on the car-s radio