homemade turntable vibration isolation platform


Out of a couple years of frustration, I irrationally tried to create my own turntable suspended platform to cure two problems. First, footfall would often jar the stylus enough to skip and my music seemed muddy/blurry. The floor bounced enough to make us have to tip toe through the living room. It was getting where I would hate to even play a record. I went searching for tweeks. Ideas abound. Ropes from ceiling, etc. But I live in a yurt. Everything moves, including ceiling beams. Floor works like trampoline (almost). Out of complete desperation, I drilled holes in the top of my component cabinet (double 3/4" plywood) and suspended my turntable on another piece of plywood by bungees from four posts. I got lucky!! It worked fantastically. One could almost jump up and down in the room (my wife tried). AND, a solid bass appeared, soundstage grew a third larger, the clarity was enhanced exponentially. Pure luck I cured my years of frustration and got an indescribable upgrade sound quality besides. After 6 tries I've recreated a free standing unit that works as well. Just had to share.....  


allears4u

Showing 1 response by millercarbon

Right. And it needs to be tuned according to both the frequency and amplitude of the vibration you're trying to filter out, as well as the mass and fundamental resonance of the device you're using. 

Normally the #1 most important source of vibration is the component itself. Even amps and DACs with no moving parts generate significant vibrations. Acoustic vibration is usually #2 with vibrations from floors a distant #3, unless of course you live in a yurt, in which case its #1 with a bullet.

If the OP wants to take this to the next level, adding mass will further lower the fundamental resonant frequency of the rack with a further increase in bass response and imaging. But again, this will require tuning to find the right combination of mass and bungee cords.

Essentially what you are doing allears4u is building a giant Linn type suspension for your turntable.