Cork & Rubber

I have been meaning to get a new mat for the Technics. I had been using a felt one on top of the standard rubber one, just because it has a design that looks cool, but thought there must be some improvement to be had. Since this is my ‘budget’ system I didn’t want to spend too much on it.

Initially I thought about an Auditorium 23 Hommage mat, as that has the thickness required and good damping properties, but didn’t want to spend that much. Then I considered a Funk Firm Achromat that lots of people seem to use, but the local distributor had none and I couldn’t be bothered ordering one from overseas and paying ridiculous amounts of shipping.

Ultimately I decided on a Pro-Ject Audio Cork and Rubber mat. It looks pretty cool and is quite heavy. Mine is the 3mm version, you can get a 1mm version as well, but that would be too thin for this application I think. Seems to work pretty well on the Technics, I may give it a try on the Rega when I get around to finishing the restoration on that. Time is always scarce though…

The Pro-Ject spiel: “Isolating the critical parts of your turntable is the most important thing for achieving fantastic sounding vinyl playback. A key step is isolating the actual vinyl record from the turntable platter itself. Quality cartridges are extremely sensitive, and can easily detect interactions between your record and the platter surface.

Standard felt mats have poor anti-static characteristics, which attracts dust to your precious vinyl. They are often too thin for effective acoustic control of platters, especially those made from metal.

On the other hand, thick rubber mats can Isolate the record from your turntable too much. This makes the record vulnerable to static build-up, and can result in noise and clicks during playback.

As the name suggests, Cork & Rubber-it uses a carefully blended mix of cork and rubber to offer the ultimate acoustic control of rubber alongside the anti-static properties of cork. Cork & Rubber it is available in 1mm or 3mm thicknesses, to suit all turntables. The two thickness options allow you to choose what’s best for your turntable, and cater for your personal listening tastes at the same time.”