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Slipmat query

Sich

Sich

pfm Member
Hi all - sorry if this is already a thread - I did search.

I currently have a felt Slipmat for a linn axis and feel I’m getting static which a replacement may help.

I’ve done some research and apparently cork and acrylic options may help this issue.

Can anyone attest and recommend anything?

Thanks.
 
https://pinkfishmedia.net/forum/threads/lp-12-rubber-or-felt-mat.177541/

I have a "Plattamat" (analogue innovation - not sure if they are still trading though ), it is cork and works really well, no problems with static and I felt that it gave sharper transients (snare drum and suchlike) although I am using a Linn felt mat again at the moment (slightly more mellifluous?) - nice to have both as I do change between them on occasion.

You could try a couple of bits of double sided tape on the bottom of the felt if the record lifts the mat when changing records.

I would like to try a point support (lifting record from the platter at the centre), as I do wonder whether keeping the record out of contact with the platter could be worthwhile?
 
Thanks Guy (for the tips and link).
Did you swap to cork for any particular reason? E.g. static.
 
Hi Sich,
I just wanted to try it out and see whether it did actually make a difference, and it did (it was also a cheap experiment). Sometimes I prefer the cork, others the felt.

I think that sometimes just having a change can be fun with hifi :)
 
Those felt mats are awful.

It sounds like you need to get rid of the static by wet-cleaning your records.

You do not need fancy inner sleeves - basic Covers33 paper/poly inners are fine.

I never have a problem with static - all records, new or old are wet-cleaned once > Bobs yer Uncle.

I use an inspire acrimat, but I think cork or leather would be worth experimenting with. Just get rid of the felt mat.
 
Big Tabs said:
Those felt mats are awful.

It sounds like you need to get rid of the static by wet-cleaning your records.

You do not need fancy inner sleeves - basic Covers33 paper/poly inners are fine.

I never have a problem with static - all records, new or old are wet-cleaned once > Bobs yer Uncle.

I use an inspire acrimat, but I think cork or leather would be worth experimenting with. Just get rid of the felt mat.
Click to expand...
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000BFXIVW/?tag=pinkfishmedia-21
Had any experience with this? @Big Tabs
 
This site contains affiliate links for which pink fish media may be compensated.
Sich said:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B000BFXIVW/?tag=pinkfishmedia-21
Had any experience with this? @Big Tabs
Click to expand...

Yes.

It works very well, just ditch the cleaning fluid that comes with it and make your own.

Many recipes on pfm, but after many years of experimenting I use deionised water and a couple of drops of very cheap biological clothes washing LIQUID (not powder)
If you want you can get 2 machines and use one machine with just deionised water in it to rinse.

I have tried I.P.A, photographic wetting agents etc. but the solution I use now is the simplest and cheapest.

Leave overnight to dry.

The record is now clean and static free. Do not rub or dust the record again, there is no need and you will potentially induce static again.

Someone will be along soon to tell you that you need a vacuum machine… ;)
You don’t though.
 
This site contains affiliate links for which pink fish media may be compensated.
Wet cleaning your records will eliminate all static. An RCM like the project vC-e would prove itself a worthwhile investment. Then you can choose platter mats based purely on sonic preference. I reverted to a thin felt mat on my linn (lp12) - not quite the standard mat but the collaro felt mat — I find it allows the music to ‘sing’ more than other mats. I found both leather and cork deadened the sound somewhat. I have toyed with the idea of an achromat or a hexmat, but I’ve not felt that there’s anything lacking since I got the collaro.
I also have a linn axis in my 2nd system with the standard Linn mat and it sounds perfectly fine with no static issues. Your problem is likely with the records and no so much the mat.
 
vinylslug said:
Wet cleaning your records will eliminate all static. An RCM like the project vC-e would prove itself a worthwhile investment. Then you can choose platter mats based purely on sonic preference. I reverted to a thin felt mat on my linn (lp12) - not quite the standard mat but the collaro felt mat — I find it allows the music to ‘sing’ more than other mats. I found both leather and cork deadened the sound somewhat. I have toyed with the idea of an achromat or a hexmat, but I’ve not felt that there’s anything lacking since I got the collaro.
I also have a linn axis in my 2nd system with the standard Linn mat and it sounds perfectly fine with no static issues. Your problem is likely with the records and no so much the mat.
Click to expand...

Point taken on the records being the issue. Will look at wet cleaning…
 
I have had static - free playing using leather mats, shiny side down. It has a slightly different signature to the Rega felt mat, possibly slightly less bright, but make sure you get the same/similar thickness as the felt mat, but experiment.
I made mine from some offcuts from a furniture manufacturer, which seems to be thinner than that from a bag manufacturer.
 
FWIW, since moving to a Nottingham Analogue turntable, static has been a bit of an issue (wet-cleaned records, same story). I've tried bare platter, NA-supplied foam, felt, rubber, leather, and the Herbie's mat linked upthread. The only one that really reduces static in my experience is the leather one.

Edit: RE: leather, shiny side down is what works best, as Fudgemaster states.
 
With respect, it seems to me that any reduction in static charge resulting from wet cleaning can only be temporary. PVC has a dielectric constant of 4, which makes for a decent capacitor when an LP is sandwiched between two layers of dry air. My understanding of why anti-static sleeves work mirrors this effect (i.e., the paper in the sleeve acts as a capacitor that takes static away from the LP and stores it). If wet cleaning an LP discharges the stored charge, seems to me friction will eventually just charge the disc again. The only way around it that I see is if the wet cleaning process leaves a coat of insulating material (surfactant, maybe?), but that to me suggests incomplete cleaning.

Not intending to derail the thread, and perfectly happy to be set straight by folks who know more physics than me. That's just the view through my dim lens.
 
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