Leather mats for your serious listening enjoyment

So, doing a lot of reading lately and one of the topics was mats for a RP10. Between putting my VPI up for sale and that Rega's use of a mat of some sort I started looking at options.

Initially it was the Herbies type I was looking at, where they have two different models that would apply. It brought me back to thinking about the Mooo Mat. I always loved the look of them, and I know Jeff from Tone has/had one (whether he still does or uses it is a different thing - saw a thread from 2013 or so that is locked).

Now I also see that there are ones from HINDINTHESOUND, Dulcet, and Analogue Studio it seems there are a variety of them.

Anyone use any of these? Do the cow hairs come off easy and all over the place?

http://www.mooomats.com/

http://hideinthesound.com/?product=black-split-mat-11-5

http://www.analogueseduction.net/tu...udio-leather-turntable-platter-mat-black.html

 

I have the dulcet tone mat and have seen the moo-mat in person. In my opinion they suffer from lack of uniformity - it's nothing severe but some are better than others, and taking the microphysics of LP playback into account, it's something I'd like to avoid. I don't dislike it but I do wish I had gone with a more traditional cork and in the future I hope to have a turntable with one of those large mat-less acrylic platters.


There is a cool "leather slipmat" from Tanner Goods that I'd be interested in reading reviews on. It looks nice, that's for sure.

 

I was wondering about that. There's something to be said for the synthetic ones and their advantages (uniformity/dampening/etc) but dangit having a piece of cowhide spinning around has a big attraction.

 

They are probably rather similar in sound to the felt actually. I think the felt sounds best of what I have tried. I have tried suede some time ago before leather was in vogue. The Ringmat sounds nice also but a bit different from the felt. Neither the felt nor the Ringmat (paper and cork) will shed fur.

-Bill

 

lol thanks for that info Bill. Yea, between my two girls, a minpin and an Irish Jack there's plenty of fur around the house as it is now haha.

I'm going to live with the table for a while and see how things go. I'm not in a real rush (if ever) to change things up on it. BTW it was nice to put a voice last week with all the awesome posts you put on here. I don't get it till next week so it's like putting the cart before the horse (or cow before the Mat). To be honest it was your posts and your professionalism on this site that really put the bug back into my mind about Rega. That and having heard some pretty awesome rigs with Rega tables.

I may put the Mooo Mat on my list for my birthday though, even it it just sits there idling when I'm not using it.

Funny thing is that I have the logical side saying stick with what ya got thats how it was designed and the emotional/illogical one saying MOOOOOO lol

This is a big change in my philosophies about tables. Went from some pretty bad tables to a 1210 MK5 for a number of years, then the VPI Classic , then to the Rega. I kept moving up in size/weight/dimensions now going back down the scale. Even then, Rega's they say to use clamps but I used a clamp on my 1210 from KAB religiously (didn't notice much of a difference but did it anyway), to having to use a clamp on my VPI with it's unipivot (just didn't like the sound without it).

 

I've been thinking about ordering a purple Hide in the Sound felt mat. Moo Mats look cool I've heard stories about them shedding bad

 

I've been using a mooo mat on my VPI Classic and like it. No shedding to speak of, although I think the cowhide can build up a static charge easier on dry days. I brush it with a Swiffer from time to time. I've used both cork and the bare aluminum platter in the past and I'd be really hard pressed to tell you what sounds better or even different. The mooo mat is one of the thickest I've seen so you need to consider your VTA setting. And yeah, the original reason I went with the mooo mat was it just makes me happy to spin a cow.

 

I use one of these (in red) over an Isoplatmat from SoundDampedSteel on my Kenwood KD7010. The suede leather kills static, the Isoplatmat kills ringing.

 

lol yea, cow spinning, cow tipping, cowgirls - they all make me happy. Not to mention a great steak from the mooo cows.

IDK to be honest I don' really hear a lot with the VTA changes though, I have the adjustable tower now and to have an audible effect I really need to crank it. Even though the Dynavector I'm going to use is taller than Rega carts it seems like almost everyone never goes past 2mm and most that have gone 4mm or higher end up going back to 2mm shims. Of course you have those that say that they hear just a few clicks of a difference on the VPI towers (which seems ridiculous from a mathematical perspective and my own personal experience over the last two years). I think it "maybe" due to some of the inherent deficiencies and differences in a unipivot arm that makes it more susceptible to changes?

I know I'm not the only one in this boat as far as VTA goes. I keep thinking there is something off that I'm not hearing these differences but experience keeps showing me it's not as big of a deal to me over the years. YMMV. Could just be marketing too - spend an extra grand to get a tower.

I'm going to play around with over the next couple of weeks and try a few different shims to see how it sounds.

 

I have a dark turquoise split leather mat from Hide In The Sound. One side is suede, the other leather. They're pricey and I didn't notice an drastic uptick in sound depth or quality compared to the standard stock felt mat that came with my turntable, however, it sure does look nice! And it does definitely cut down on static during playback, so that's a plus.

The colors are much more vibrant than what's depicted on their web site. All in all, I'm quite happy with my Hide In The Sound leather mat.

 

!!! another Mat! We need to start thinning out some of the Mats in the world. It can't be good for us!

Thanks Morris for that pointer though. I'm familiar with the gents at Analogue Seduction. Great people there. I just wish they could get 110v Regas!!!!!

I like that in red too. Good choice in colors.

 

Static is a big issue for me. Our house is as dry as King Tuts tomb.

 

I do not know if manufacturers are allowed to join this discussion. But I would be happy to answer any questions you might have about Mooo Mats.

The first question appears to be about shedding. Cows do not shed so there is not a long term issue with hair. Saying that, each Mooo Mat goes through four cutting processes which do cut some of the hair. While we clean each piece extensively, some cut hair does get left behind. Normally after the first record and certainly after the second or third, that issue disappears. If any hair gets on a record simple cleaning with any record brush works perfectly. We have never had one complaint about shedding.

On the static side, cowhides are naturally resistant to static. In addition, as an extra precaution, each Mooo Mat undergoes an anti-static treatment as well. Most users tell us that their Mooo Mat eliminated their long standing static problem. Yet, we have had some customers who report continued static issues with their system. I have no explanation why this happens.

The reason that Mooo Mats make such a difference in improving the sound quality of vinyl based system is that by using 2 dissimilar materials they do a better job of isolating the cartridge from the vibrations coming off any platter. The vibration may be lessened in more expensive turntables but any spinning object vibrates.

If you have any other questions please let me know.


Ben - Mooomats.com

 

Sorry about the short phone "conversation"; I didn't realize that it was you or I would have been a bit more helpful.
-Bill

 

The problem with a cool looking mat is that unless you're playing a clear LP, you will not see the mat spin.

 

If static is an issue the A23 Standard Mat or Hommage will work great with the RP10 or try the Merrill Cork Mat. Listen to the deck for a bit then decide or leave alone...

 

What's the benefit of a leather mat vs. an acrylic platter? I put an acrylic platter on and have been much happier with it than with felt or cork... I really liked the Simple Mat but it seemed to create a lot of static, which hasn't been an issue at all with the acrylic platter (very dry up here several months of the year)... what's the consensus on this? And would I even want to put a mat over an acrylic platter?

 

No worries Bill. It looks like my local dealer is not anymore which had me calling around some and you came to mind from all your insightful postings.

I hope the child that did that is proud of himself. Funny thing it's easy to find someone else. No skin off my back.

I'm going to be moving down to the Reston area in the next year or two, I'll definitely stop in when I'm in the area.

 

Thanks Ben for that info!!! Sure, there are plenty of dealers/reviewers and such on the SH forums. Steve is definitely a friend to manufacturers.

I've always been a bit enamored with your products. I have to put a wishlist together for my birthday so I'll see if the woman gets me one, if not I'll probably be ordering one shortly thereafter.

I seem to run into a lot of PETA folks, would make for a great conversation with them too in DC haha.

What has been the impression so far for use on ceramic platters like on the RP10?

 

Mats certainly affect sound. It's funny how people acknowledge that mats sound different, but swear that 200 g or 180 g records sound the same as 140 g?

 

No need to use a mat on a acrylic or delrin plainer. Those platters are designed for the LP to be used bareback and to couple the vinyl to the platter. No mat necessary...

 

I think it's more a resonance thing than a VTA matter. There's quite a few compelling arguments why VTA is not as important as some stress it to be where I believe that resonance is something more universally accepted by people. There's also the matter of static, felt is horrible for that, but that will be the first mat that I get used to and experiment with. I think it's foolish to ignore trying out some reasonably priced alternatives for the best sound. Might all sound the same for me and I just divest myself of the others.

That being said, I really like the Mooo mat so think no mater what I decide that will have a place on my table. Now what color is the big decision lol I'm thinking all white but I'll let my stylist make the decision, she doesn't steer me wrong in that department.

Some companies want to throw more massively build up tables at the problem (plinths, platters, etc. same people designing tables on pieces of cardboard) where others use science to tame it. To my ears , and I had ample time to check this and compare even with others listening in my home, it takes a very large swing of VTA to have a discernible negative effect.

I'm quite looking forward to doing a comparison between the two.

 

Thanks for the welcome.

As for platters, the Mooo Mat pretty much works on all of them. If it is spinning, it is vibrating and the job of the turntable mat is to prevent that from getting to the cartridge. We have one dealer who when a customer says they want a $1000 turntable tells them to purchase a $500 table, an acrylic platter, and a Mooo Mat.

 

Well I'm interested to try it out. I had one show up last night that I ordered. The weather is too nice to really sit inside listening to music right now though. From an initial look it seems like its pretty nice quality.