How high should your speakers be? How to choose the height of your speaker stands, with the calculator
There is just one rule: the tweeter at ear height. Below you can work it out in a moment for your sofa and your speakers; further down you'll find the reasons and the other details that make a stand sound good.
Work out your stand height
Three measurements, and I'll tell you how tall your stand should be and which of my models suit you.
The rule: the tweeter at ear height.
A bookshelf speaker usually has two drivers: the woofer, the larger one, for bass and vocals, and the tweeter, the small one, for high frequencies. The tweeter is very directional: if it points at your ears you hear the detail, the voice sits in the centre and the instruments have a precise place. If it points at your chest or above your head, the sound becomes duller and less focused.
That's why the right height for a stand isn't a fixed number: it depends on where you sit and how your speaker is built. There is just one formula:
Stand height = seated ear height − tweeter height from the base of the speaker − any feet or spikes.
Some manufacturers design their speakers to be heard with the ears between the tweeter and the woofer, not exactly on the tweeter. If your speaker's manual gives a listening height or axis, follow that: just enter that measurement in place of the tweeter height in the calculator.
How to take the measurements.
- Your ears. Sit where you usually listen, in the position you actually sit in, and have someone measure from the floor to your ear canal. On a sofa it's usually between 95 and 105 cm, on an armchair a little higher, on a chair between 110 and 120 cm.
- The tweeter. Measure from the surface the speaker rests on to the centre of the tweeter. On bookshelf speakers it's almost always between 18 and 30 cm.
- The feet. If you put spikes, cones or feet under the speaker, add their height: they raise the tweeter too.
With a sofa and a medium-sized bookshelf speaker, the result almost always falls between 60 and 75 cm. That's why many stands on the market are around 60-70 cm tall.
A few centimetres matter little; symmetry matters a lot.
You don't need millimetre precision. From three metres, a difference of 5 cm moves the axis by barely a degree: you wouldn't hear it. If you can't find the exact height, choose a stand a few centimetres lower, not higher: the tweeter just below your ears is the most natural position.
What matters much more is that the two speakers are at the same height, at the same distance from you and angled the same way. A good starting point is an equilateral triangle: the two speakers and your head at the three corners, with the speakers turned slightly towards you.
If the stand is too low, tilt the speaker.
When the speakers sit on a low cabinet, a shelf or a desk, the tweeter ends up below your ears. In that case a tilting support angles the speaker upwards and restores the listening axis without changing furniture. It also works the other way round, if the speakers are higher than you: the support tilts them downwards. If you need one, I build it to measure for your speaker.
Not just height: what makes a good stand.
Rigid and stable
The stand must hold the speaker still. If the support sways or vibrates along with the speaker, the bass becomes muddy. That's why I build stands in solid wood or thick plywood, with wide bases and proper joints, not with lightweight tubes.
A top plate of the right size
The top plate should be roughly as big as the base of the speaker. It doesn't need to match to the millimetre: a speaker that overhangs by 2-3 cm, or a slightly larger top plate, is perfectly fine. But if the top plate is much smaller, the speaker is unstable, and if it sticks out a lot at the front it creates a surface that reflects sound. When I build a made-to-measure stand, I start from the dimensions of your speaker's base.
Spikes or feet
Under the stand, on carpet or a rug, spikes go through the pile and rest on the floor. On parquet or tiles, spike shoes or felt pads are better, so as not to damage the floor. Between stand and speaker, rubber or cork feet work well: they hold the speaker still and decouple it from the wood. My standard stands rest directly on the wood; I add feet, rubber feet or spikes on request, even to a stand that's already made.
Away from the wall
The closer the speaker is to the wall behind it, the more the bass swells. If your speaker has a rear bass reflex port, leave at least 30-50 cm from the wall, then try moving it a few centimetres closer or further away while listening.
The height of my stands.
These are the stands I build in the Cesena workshop, in order of height. If none of them is right for you, I'll build one to measure: height, top plate and wood to suit your speakers.
| Model | Wood | Height |
|---|---|---|
| Extrasound Ground | Low plywood stands | 24 cm |
| Extrasound Rigatini | Solid beech | 50.3 cm |
| Stile Pannello stand | Solid beech | 54.6 cm |
| Wood Brick | Solid wood | 55 cm |
| Art Triangle | Solid beech | 60.3 cm |
| Extrasound Stylus | Solid Doussié | 61 cm |
| ESSE2 | Beech, for KEF LS50 | 64 cm |
| Modern Art Grey Buttons | Solid beech | 65.6 cm |
| Extrasound Tree | Solid beech | 71.5 cm |
| Listelli Rado | Solid beech | 75 cm |
Frequently asked questions.
How tall should speaker stands be?
For the most common bookshelf speakers, listened to from a sofa, usually between 60 and 75 cm. The exact calculation is simple: seated ear height minus the tweeter height from the base of the speaker. With ears at 100 cm and the tweeter at 25 cm, the right stand is about 75 cm tall.
Should the tweeter be at ear height?
It's the most reliable rule: the tweeter is the most directional driver and, if it points at your ears, voices and instruments stay in focus. Some manufacturers specify a point between tweeter and woofer instead: if your speaker's manual says so, follow that.
Is a stand that's too tall or too short better?
If you really can't find the exact height, a few centimetres lower is better: the tweeter stays just below your ears, which is the most natural position. A stand that's too tall makes the sound come from above, and that is more noticeable.
Can I put my speakers on a cabinet instead of stands?
Yes, but the cabinet is usually lower than your ears and makes the shelf vibrate. In that case, a tilting support that angles the tweeter upwards helps, along with something that decouples the speaker from the surface.
How tall should stands be for a desk or for floorstanding speakers?
On a desk you use low or tilting supports, because your ears are close and already high relative to the surface. Floorstanding speakers don't need tall stands: 10-25 cm bases are enough to lift them off the floor and make them more stable.