I would like to get my mains off of stands and onto wall brackets, but the best location for one of the mains is between studs. If I accept that I am going to have to cut out some sheetrock, add reinforcement and then repair the hole in the sheetrock, what is the best way to fill the gap between the studs with something on I can later (after covering it with nice new sheetrock) hang the speaker bracket? Any chance there is something prefab made to fit the gap between standard spaced studs?

I suggest just taking a piece of 2x4 and making an "H" between the studs at the height you want the speaker. If you want more freedom with your placement vertically, I suggest turning 2 - 2x4's vertically (instead of the usual method which causes the sides of the 2x4 to butt the drywall) between the studs and screwing a piece of plywood to them (the plywood butts the back of the drywall so that you can hang the speaker anywhere in that area).

I hope that makes sense.

Yes, I get it -- secure two 2x4's horizontally between the studs (making a square, rather than an H), but rotating the 2x4's so that they are 2" deep, rather than 4" deep. That should do it. Thanks.

how large are you mains? Or how heavy are they?

you can use these type of drywall anchors: http://www.smithfast.com/ezanc.htm

the metal ones that screw it are rated for 80lbs a peice.

if you use those to attach your speaker mounts to the wall, and depending on if your speakers are somewhat small (if your using stand I would assume so) you can easily use those a couple of those drywall anchors and attach a spaker mount to the wall.

- Josh

I second umdivx. I would definately use drywall anchors. There is no reason to cut out the drywall unless you have very significant loads. 1/2" spring-loaded anchors will support some pretty heavy loads with 3/4" drywall.

FYI, my first two projectors mounted from the ceiling using the spring-type anchors and you could jsut about hang from it (although I never went that far. :))

Shan

I second umdivx. I would definately use drywall anchors. There is no reason to cut out the drywall unless you have very significant loads. 1/2" spring-loaded anchors will support some pretty heavy loads with 3/4" drywall.

FYI, my first two projectors mounted from the ceiling using the spring-type anchors and you could jsut about hang from it (although I never went that far. :))

Shan

I would use wall anchors like Snaptoggle from Toggler and not the SnapSkru type drywall anchor.

Sorry if i'm being too specific. Professional, i use them to anchor modular partitions to walls. The support maybe over kill for a speaker (unless they are 40+ lbs.) but the vibration over time could start weighing in on the screw type. Also, if you screw in the screw type too hard, you begin to weaking the area around the screw which then have to knock out and they use a the Snaptoggle to cause of the hole thats already there.

As you can tell, i write from experience. :)

either way we agree that its still better than tearing the wall apart just to mount a speaker.

- Josh

If you are handy, use a french cleat. Holds very well and snug to the wall. You can use several metal drywall screw-in anchors and spread the load. :)

Just keep in mind that you can't share the weight across anchors that are right next to each other. I have hung large pieces of art using two anchors that were separated by several feet, but if you are using three screws in a speaker mount that are all within a couple of inches (for instance), I sincerely doubt you can expect to get the full rating off of each. (since you are really putting load on the same section of drywall.)

My $0.02,

S.

It depends on the weight of the load. That weight has not been advised.

I will be replacing my 2 vintage speakers for a new set of matching mains and surrounds. No final decision yet, but expect to be under 20 lbs. per speaker (including the weight of the bracket). So, although a bit scary to mount lots of newly spent dollars on toggle bolts, snaptoggles sounds a hell of a lot better than tearing into the walls. It will certainly improve the WAF!

Thank you all very much for your suggestions. It may be a couple of months before this all actually happens, but I will try to report back when it does.

His question was this:

If I accept that I am going to have to cut out some sheetrock, add reinforcement and then repair the hole in the sheetrock, what is the best way to fill the gap between the studs with something on I can later (after covering it with nice new sheetrock) hang the speaker bracket?

I figured he already looked into drywall anchors