Bowers & Wilkins STAV24 S2 Speaker Stands — Pair

Bowers & Wilkins STAV24 S2 Speaker Stands (Pair)

The Bowers & Wilkins STAV24 S2 is a pair of dedicated speaker stands designed for the company’s 600 Series stand-mount loudspeakers, principally the 606 and 607 models in their S2 Anniversary Edition forms. A stand-mount speaker only performs as designed when its tweeter sits at ear height for a seated listener and its cabinet is held still; the 24-inch STAV24 S2 exists to provide exactly that. It also suits other compact stand-mount speakers of similar size, including models from the 700 Series stand-mount class where the top plate and footprint match, but its dimensions and fixings were developed around the 600 Series.

Key features

• Supplied as a matched pair for a stereo set of stand-mount speakers
• 610 mm (24 inch) height places tweeters at seated ear level
• Designed specifically for Bowers and Wilkins 606 and 607 stand-mount speakers
• Twin-column design that can be mass-loaded with sand for stability
• Floor coupling options for hard floors and carpets
• Low-resonance construction keeps the cabinet free to perform
• Slim profile and black finish match the 600 Series aesthetic
• Simple assembly with base, columns and top plate

Height is an acoustic decision

Put a bookshelf speaker on a sideboard and two things go wrong: the tweeter fires above or below your ears, and the surface underneath adds its own vibration and early reflections. At 610 mm tall, the STAV24 S2 lifts a typical 600 Series cabinet so its tweeter aligns with a seated listener, restoring the imaging and treble balance the speaker was voiced for. Just as importantly, it lets you place the pair where the room sounds best, clear of walls and furniture, rather than where a shelf happens to be. Stereo width, toe-in and distance from the rear wall can all be set by the stands, not by the furniture.

Stability, mass and cable care

The columns can be filled with dry sand, adding mass that lowers the centre of gravity and damps vibration, a long-standing Bowers and Wilkins recommendation for getting the best from stand-mount speakers. The base accepts the supplied floor fixings, so the stands sit securely on carpet or hard flooring. Speaker cables can be run neatly down behind the columns so the installation looks clean and the cables stay off the floor and out of the way. Once assembled, the stands feel planted rather than perched, which matters with speakers that will be nudged by daily life in a living room.

Compatibility and placement guidance

Before ordering, confirm your speaker’s footprint against the top plate and check that the combined height of stand and cabinet puts the tweeter near your seated ear height, typically around 900 mm to 1,050 mm from the floor for most sofas and chairs. Start with the stands about as far apart as they are from your seat, speakers vertical, then adjust toe-in in small steps. Keep them a reasonable distance from rear and side walls, fill the columns if the floor is lively, and recheck the fixings after the first week. Done properly, the STAV24 S2 disappears from the sound entirely, which is the highest compliment a speaker stand can earn.