HISTORY:
For many years we ran an audio post production facility and one area we specialised in was archival recordings from cardboard, shellac and vinyls. A variety of turntables were put to work, ranging from the old (but very good) Technics SP10's (ex broadcast), Planar's, Rega's and Linn Sondek LP12's - it all depended upon the media we were working with.
All of the wonderful equipment has already found new owners (mostly overseas) and today I discovered some "spare parts" ... the mats. When items are "put away" I am usually very careful about identifying which mat belonged to which turntable, in this case I seemed to have slipped up and I have no idea which turntable platters this slip mat was used with or perhaps the sound guys just had this "around" for experimenting - slip mats were not a big thing for us ... please read this description and hopefully you may be able to work out if this mat may suit you as a replacement for your own OR for experimentation to to see how the sonics change of your system - different types of mats DO make a difference to the sound from your turntable.
UNIDENTIFIED MANUFACTURER/TURNTABLE MODEL - Turntable Slip Mat
Material: Appears to be a synthetic felt (Black)
Strong but of a medium density (you can see through it when bright White line is shone from one side)
Yes, it difficult to keep clean - these mats tend to attract every little bit of dust unless you have some sort of anti-static treatment applied.
Part number: there is no indication of any part number
Mat diameter: 300mm
Outer edge of the mat is straight not bevelled
7.2mm diameter centre hole
Mat thickness: 2mm
Weight: 25g
Flat on both sides - no ribbing
COSMETIC CONDITION:
USED
CLEAN (as much as I could manage with a fine horse hair brush, dust just loves this material!)
NO physical damage to the mat (NO tears, mishaping etc)
NO marks on either side
All turntable mats must be treated with respect, afterall your favourite or super rare piece of vinyl sits on it when being played - keep it clean and do not drink coffee while standing over your turntable!
TESTING:
I was curious so this slip mat was placed directly on top of my existing rubber mat. Currently I am using a belt drive turntable, not the greatest for scratching but I did some experimenting and the slip mat is pretty good. I found that in normal use the mat has good friction between the slip mat and the vinyl sitting on top of the slip mat. While playing normally the two mats maintain a good consistent contact, no additional Wow & Flutter heard. Due to the low thickness, the tonearm angle doesn't alter dramatically and there is no extra stress on the bearings as the weight is so low.
NOW ...
Hold the edge of the vinyl and the slip mat cannot maintain the contact with the underneath rubber mat and both the vinyl and slip mat become stationery - the rubber mat continues to spin underneath the slip mat but the slip mat and the vinyl on top do not move. Movement of the vinyl back and forth to create the scratching effects (I used an old test record) worked a treat and upon release, the correct rotational speed was quickly achieved even though it is a belt drive.
I remember in the broadcast industry MANY years ago, the radio station program presenter would use these slip mats all the time. Cue up the record, hold and then when the time is right - release so that the music plays at exactly the right spot...it was quite an art to get the timing exactly right.
Now that I have taken a photograph or two, measured and weighed the mat, it has been inserted into a large sealed clear plastic packet. That packet has been placed onto a piece of very thick cardboard and once again, sealed in clear plastic. It is safe n sound and ready to slip into someone else's life now.
