Just made my own cork turntable mat...

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by action pact, Jun 14, 2008.

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  1. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore Thread Starter

    I bought a 12 x 22 sheet of cork at Joanne Craft for $2.99, and using an old rubber turntable mat as a template, I cut out a 12" circle.

    On my AT-PL120 (with AT440MLa) I spent about 15 minutes doing comparative listening (test subject: a Harry T. Moss-mastered copy of "Revolver"), and the cork easily beat out the OEM felt mat (which had previously beat out the generic rubber mat).

    With the cork, the music had more presense and more of a 3D sound. Bass was a lot tighter. The felt mat sounded flat and flabby compared to the cork. The improvement was significant.

    As an experiment, I placed the felt on top of the cork, and adjusted the VTA. No good, very dull sounding.

    I expect that as the cork seasons and dries out, it will sound even better. Right now it's leaving bits of cork dust on the record - I had to wipe the record before re-sleeving. I'm hoping this will be a temporary nuisance.

    I look forward to doing a similar comparative test when my new SL-1200Mk2 arrives next week!
     
  2. roberts67

    roberts67 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pacific Northwest
    Hello!

    Thanks for the report. I will have to give it a try! Peace. Robert
     
  3. lemonjello

    lemonjello Forum Resident

    Nice! What did you use to punch the hole in the center?

    Jake
     
  4. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    When I tried the cork thing a couple of years ago, it left a residue on my records. I quickly stopped using it.
     
  5. TheNomadicSoul

    TheNomadicSoul Active Member

    Location:
    Chicagoland
    I suppose a layer of contact paper on the cork could eliminate the residue on the records, but would it also eliminate the audio advantages? The cork mat has been on my "to do list" for sometime now.... :sigh:
     
  6. Tony Plachy

    Tony Plachy Senior Member

    Location:
    Pleasantville, NY
    ap, Post like this would be so much more useful if you filled out your profile, that way the reader could easily check on your reference point before he or she decides to try the same.
     
  7. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore Thread Starter

    My profile has been updated! Thanks for the nudge, Tony.

    Punching a center hole: I just used the exacto knife, following the contours of the rubber mat's spindle hole. A spindle-sized piece of metal tubing would work just as well if not better.

    Cork dust: Yes, there is some residue ending up on the record. I am hoping that with time this will become less of an issue. I'm hesitant to put anything between the cork and record (ie: contact paper) since it will probably affect the tone.
     
  8. KT88

    KT88 Senior Member

    Cool. Mats can change the sound noticabley and can be very inexpensive. I like the Rigmat, which is paper based with cork rings, on some tables. It is system and table dependent as to what mat sounds best.

    I used to use the Ringmat as a replacement for the felt mat on my Revolver table years ago. When I got a Rega, I tried it a couple of times but always went back to the stock felt mat. More lately I have put together a system that is warmer than I usually have and I thought it might be time to bring out the Ringmat again. I tried it and initially liked the tighter bass and crisper highs. Then after a few Lps I noticed that it had a more pronounced upper midrange than usual and surface noise was higher. I also noticed that the stock Rega mat was rather thick on the P5 so I then recalled having a thinner felt mat as well as a really thin P9 wool mat. I tried both of those, which effected not only the amount of damping but also the VTA. I decided that the medium thickness felt mat worked best for the system in its present context and that is what is on there now.
    -Bill
     
  9. RBtl

    RBtl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto, Ontario
    I had always assumed the point of a mat was to give the vinyl grip, so that it doesn't slip, and to protect the vinyl from the metal surface of the turntable.

    What other function is it performing that affects the sound during playback? Something to do with cushioning the needle?
     
  10. KT88

    KT88 Senior Member

    Not all mats "grip" the record. Gravity is enough to keep the record in place without it slipping on any table. Mats are used to protect the record and to effect the sound of the playback.

    Turtables are purely mechanical devices. In theory, they need no electricity at all as they could be and have been spring operated, like a clock. The electric motor is an accessory of sorts and is included as standard on virtually all turntables now. The only part that has any electrical aspect is the cartridge and that is not powered but is an electro-mechanical generator which actually creates a very small voltage by mechanical means. What all that means is that nearly every aspect of the table will have some sonic effect, some way more than others. The turntable platter material is very significant in regards to the resulting sound as the record can be either directly or indirectly coupled to it and that can effect the resonance of the vinyl and the resulting playback sound. The choice of mat (or no mat at all) will determine how the vinyl is coupled to or decoupled from the platter.

    Assuming the thickness is the same, the softer the mat material, the "softer and warmer" the sound as they decouple the vinyl from the harder platter material and absord (or "dampen") specific reflected frequencies. The opposite is also true of harder mats such as rubber or acrylic. They will absorb less energy and possibly in a more narrow frequency band. A really soft rubber, like Sorbothane which is basically a gel, will absorb more energy and effect a great range. That can significantly alter the electrical signal output of the cartridge as it is producing those impulse from vibrations caused by the record, whether they were cut into it intentionally as the recording or they are reflections of stored energy between the record and platter. That interface between the record and platter is probably the most or second in some cases significant aspect of vibration control on a turntable, assuming that everything attached to the plinth is tight. The next place is the feet of the table. There again, you can change the sound significally by using soft or hard materials. Now, certainly there have been tables that were pretty noisey and had all sorts of contraptions under the chassis clanging around for changing speeds or records, auto start and stop functions, and poor drive systems. Also a cheap tonearm with bad couplings can cause distortion but we will assume all that to be in order as if it isn't you just don't have a shot at hi-fi sound. So once all the basics are in place, you can experiment to great effect with mats and feet and quite easily and affordably in most cases. Just beware that not every change is for the better. Many times different is just different and many times one area of improvement means a mess in another area.

    So yes, it is cushioning the record and acting as a mechanical filter for the stylus. The properties of the filter determine the results of the effect on the sound as it either adds to, balances out, or subtracts from the recording. It would take a really hard mat (or lack thereof) to add energy to the recording I guess, but I'll say it is possible.
    -Bill
     
    MikeyP and raferx like this.
  11. Sckott

    Sckott Hand Tighten Only.

    Location:
    South Plymouth, Ma
    You have to use a certain quality of cork that's treated. Otherwise, you get breakup and it's nasty.
     
  12. RBtl

    RBtl Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto, Ontario
    Thanks Bill. That's sort of what I meant when I said "cushioning the needle". I see now, it's vibration control that causes the big impact.
     
  13. highfidelity81

    highfidelity81 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Tulsa, Ok, USA
    Is there different thicknesses of cork mat at Joanne Crafts? I'm thinking about making one of these myself. Are you still getting cork dust?
     
  14. action pact

    action pact Music Omnivore Thread Starter

    The cork sheets at Joanne are 1/8” thick, so I simply stacked up two of them on the platter. I think that’s the only thickness they sell.

    The cork dust problem went away after a few days.
     
  15. dmagalhaes

    dmagalhaes Forum Resident

    You can lightly sand the cork as well, that will get rid of the fuzz that leaves the residue.
     
  16. highfidelity81

    highfidelity81 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Tulsa, Ok, USA
    Awesome! Thanks guys, I'll as soon as my new turntable comes in I'll be trying this out.
     
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