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My thoughts on TT isolation methods.

I have done extensive research on isolation platforms and with help from the Audiogon community plus many hours of listening. Its not scientific and I did not measure results but here it goes. I have tried MDF board, Granite with both and alone and cork and or neoprene rubber and truck bed material as sandwich material. Granite and marble are beautiful and mass loading. It would probably be OK for a suspension loaded TT but not as good a choice for a mass loaded TT like mine. I finally invested in a 4 inch maple slab and 4 cork rubber sandwich supports that is common in industrial machine dampening. Its better and doesn't give the sound as much detail. With detail. =harshness. Its the best I have found. With less edginess and no harshness but more neutral detail. You can use 2 MDF boards which come close. Ok, if you want the absolute best for an expensive TT get an electron microscope isolation device which costs in the thousands. You could get one for a much cheaper TT but at that point you should just invest more in a TT for more bang for the buck. I think thats what Michael Fremers 100k plus Caliburn TT comes with. Look at one of his videos. The other very low cost option is a sand box. I heard a TT in one before and it sounded great but that was a 30k Clearaudio TT. I almost went with that. I thought about suspending it from the ceiling but mine is 80 lbs. I hope this helps!
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Showing 2 responses by millercarbon

millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Well see cost is a factor. As big an improvement as the Special K would surely be its getting well into Soundsmith strain gauge money. It might be good but I doubt its that good. My whole rack on the other hand was under $300, including the granite which was about $150 delivered.  
The sad news is I have more wanted components than money, more projects than time, and so must pick and choose very carefully. Its on the list. But its a long list.  

millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Since you're into DIY and value you might want to try my approach. You've already come pretty close and have a lot of what you need. https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/8367  

You're right about granite and the tradeoffs with materials between detail and harshness. Its hard to tell by just my system pics but the rack is solid concrete with a sand bed cast into it. The granite is on the sand bed which damps a lot of the ringing and greatly reduces the glare and hardness while leaving all the detail. 

The next step is springs between the granite and the turntable. The springs do need to be tuned to the mass of your component/shelf system, but once they are the sound is amazing! Even more detail- a LOT more detail! - but without the glare and hardness. You get all the great mass loading benefits of granite without the glare and with even greater detail.  

There's a fairly recent thread started by (if I remember right) noromance about the Nobsound springs. These things are a total bargain and I would think would be right up your alley.
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