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Good Old Chipboard

I observe that all the medium-priced turntables (all turntables are expensive) rely heavily on MDF for their basic structure.
I'd love to see some adventurous soul find some good-quality good old fine-grained chipboard and run off a couple test units identical to their MDF models.  I suspect that they might sound better.  MDF is supposed to have very little inherent sound, but the inherent sound that it does have is yucky.
Of course the most important thing is trying to sell it to people, and that would be tough.
mrearl
cd318
2,636 posts
 
@mrearl, I thought it was only me that felt this way!

"MDF is supposed to have very little inherent sound, but the inherent sound that it does have is yucky."

MDF is cheap, easy to work with, easy on tools and easy to prepare for lamination. But that’s about all that can be said for it unless maybe you know exactly where (and how) to damp those life killing tendencies.

The use of chipboard, especially for loudspeaker cabinets declined rapidly once MDF became available. Some have resisted the desire to go down the MDF route on sonic grounds, but it always comes with increased cost.

Chipboard may well sound better than MDF for budget/entry level turntable plinths, but without lamination it would be a hard sell, as you say.





dgarretson
2,588 posts
 
My vintage TOTL Luxman PD444 plinth is a combination of chipboard and cast iron. I doubt they did that to save money. 
mrearl OP
40 posts
 
" After a while you gain enough experience you realize you can get a pretty good idea what something will sound like simply by tapping on it. The sound it makes when you hit it is the sound it will impart to whatever you build out of it."
That is correct.
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