In this video I review a $30 Amazon acrylic turntable mat. Is it a gimmick or will in truly improve your sound? At least for this specific item, my ears did not lie.
Just out of curiosity, I bought a Takmork acrylic turntable mat on Amazon for about a dozen dollars, and thanks to your advice, it was a very worthwhile investment!
If you have the typical $200-350 turntable, who cares! If you have a$1000 - whatever, then you need an acrylic platter. My $1300 Thorens has a metal platter that is nicely balanced, but with my line contact cartridge the rubber mat versus a good acrylic (without the problems stated) has a more isolated sound, indicating it isn't picking up vibrations externally. You should add the quality of the turntable, and the type of cartridges used makes a difference. The quieter the electronics used, the more the turntable benefits. We've done a blindfold test with the same records, and all my friends can tell when the acrylic mat is used. On my Rega with heavier acrylic platter (private English made), the difference is more pronounced with a richer midrange and less noticeable distortion. This stuff isn't cheap, so determine the quality of the system and turntable before buying a high quality acrylic platter (turned, not molded), and so perfect you can't see the rotations. Sensitivity of speakers, especially with ribbon tweeters, also makes a difference. You should always remember it's the total system that gives the quality of the sound.
Ideally an acrylic mat should be made model specific to a given TT, and there are some out there. There are so many variables with different TT's that it is hit or miss for the consumer, and that is probably why we see so many different review from good to bad.
instead of a weight, I prefer a well designed record clamp, because I never wanted extra weight on the platter bearing, and figured a clamp serves the same purpose .. I use the Michell clamp now, but others have worked well in the past, including a five dollar plastic one from the now defunct radio shack . the Michell clamp is made of Delron, a hard material they say has the benefit of closely matching the resonance of a vinyl record, if that matters, and which they also use in their turntable platter, without a mat. When the presenter mentioned the ceramic platter has a sharp edge , that was enough to satisfy my product curiosity, because that edge is not consumer friendly, and will stay that way, like a ceramic knife.
I may look into a clamp. Some turn table motors won't handle the added weight. Clamps were pretty scarce for a while but it looks like more options are available.
I got a good quality mat (the Acromat by the Funk Firm) for my Rega. Rega does not recommend a weight or record clamp. My 10 y/o Rega was sounding a bit dark, lacking openness and detail in the upper mids. The cartridge was a good one and new) I tried a cork mat but it made the bass more pronounced but did not open up the sound or allow more upper-mid detail. So upon recommendation of another RU-vidr, I tried the Acromat. It opened up the sound (vs the wool stock mat) and allowed more upper-mid detail to emerge. What a difference. I was shocked. (I was shocked at the cork mat too. I just didn't like the effect). I think the two other factors that determine the effectiveness of mats are the specific turntable including platter material and the quality of the mat. That's why higher end manufacturers are using Delrin platters. Rega is using ceramic on its high end tts now. A lot of manufacturers use wool mats, even Rega. They are more neutral sounding. Mats making a difference in sound...I would have thought it was ridiculous three years ago.
@@AudioTomReviews That's probably true. A poorly coupled one is no good. I got a Funk Firm and it is solidly coupled to the platter via thin tack strips.
The only time I put it on the rubber mat was on the Hitachi since the raised area at the center hub precludes you from using the acrylic mat without it. That was done only as a test and it showed that putting it on top of the mat is not a viable option.
