I would recommend THE MAT
Showing 13 responses by chakster
I expected that we’re all have different aesthetic preferences, but are you serious ? I must say i never seen Slaw’s MyMat, so i just check it, this is how it looks for $49 (original listing is here) Definitely not for everyone in my opinion, i would rather pay $350 more on top of it to have something like this SAEC SS-300. |
rubber, cork or felt mat is a waste of time, they must be replaced with a proper mats if you want to hear the difference. you will find tons of reviews about Boston Audio graphite mats and the latest version of BA mas is The Mat by Sakura Systems. Boston Audio has been known for their pure carbon graphite turntable mats and insulation accessories, many of them received rave reviews and awards worldwide. After some hiatus period, Boston Audio has teamed up with SAKURA SYSTEMS and now proudly introduces "The Mat", the culmination of our experiences through developping Mat 1 & 2. By incorporating different carbon graphite material, we successfully achieved the identical performance of Mat 2 with less thickness (4 mm) and the reduced price. manufacturing tour is here P.S. I have some of the best metal mats like Micro Seiki and SAEC and last year i bought my first Sakura Systems The Mat, been using it and i must say this is a great mat! Unlike many other mats The MAT looks great on turntable platter! Here is the only picture of The Mat i took with Grace Ruby on it on my platter. |
I am sorry, but i would never even try any mat that looks like that one in the ad. And i would not use such mats even if it’s claimed to be superior to $400 mats, because i own those $250-1200 mats and they are just great. I think it is also important how a seller represent his product for his customers, i hope my criticism will help to improve it, nothing personal here, just a good advice. This is DIY product, very simple, in my opinion with very high price for a piece of something that looks like a 5 year old kid just cut it for fun. That was my first impression, today i just checked again and i have the same feeling. Again, nothing personal here, if someone like then it buy it for $49. I do not sell Sakura Systems THE MAT and i am not related to that company at all, i bought THE MAT for $250 + shipping and i can highly recommend this mat here on audiogon, because it is a top quality product even after i have compared it to gunmetal mats that cost over $1k. Boston Audio designed first 2 versions of the mat. For $250 it’s the best buy (imo). |
I was re-reading the comments above.... It seems that @chakster prizes looks & price over effectiveness. Design is definitely very important for me when it comes to any high-end gear (turntable or mat, speakers of amps). But do you think that Sakura The MAT, SAEC SS-300 and Micro Seiki CU-180 and CU-500 are all inferior in comparison to your mat ? If you never tried those mats i recommend you to try. If you already tried please comment |
You were the "instigator", by dismissing MyMat based upon a picture. maybe, but it’s my impression, and it’s DIY producs. Several MyMat users chimed in. Given the construction of MyMat, it’s flexible nature, it’s 1mm thick design, it’s ability to dampen motor noise and still decouple a record from a platter in a 1mm thick mat, is incredible!. Every felt mat is as flexible as yours, this one is the thinnest ever, not sure why thin mat must be better than thick mat ? I have all positive users’ posts. It seems to me, I have nothing to prove. Actually, one MyMat user said he didn’t like the Boston Mat (Sakura) at all in his system. Which brings me to another point...all of my customers , with different TTs, have all reported good things. Again, I have nothing to prove. You don’t have to, i believe none of your customers compared it to Micro Seiki CU-180 gunmetal mat or SAEC SS-300 mat then. The comment about Boston Audio is just one opinion, you will not find negative feedbacks about BA mats, but latest Sakura System The Mat is not exactly BA mat, it’s mk3 version (it’s thinner if it’s important for you). This is with just one MyMat, ...I have had one repeat customer. Two MyMats are better than one, and two are just 2mm thick, perfectly connected to your platter. The question was about direct comparison of Your Mat to some of the best mats out there (such as Micro Seiki and SAEC people using for over 40 years, and modern mat like BA or The Mat from Sakura which is relatively new product). An opinion of someone will be more valuable when i will see a list of mats compared to your mat. There are many bad mats of the market, especially new mats, but i want to remind you about the most popular expensive mats. Did you ever try Micro Seiki CU-180 or CU-500 or maybe SAEC SS-300 ? |
I guess you failed to remember @ noromance list of his personal mats and their benefit. There is nothing interesting in his list and nothing serious to compete with your mat. Apparently this thread is not the advertising of your mat i hope, so i've mentioned some killer mats for the OP to consider as a serious alternative. |
Some proper mats as alternative to any modern mats: my CU-180 with ST-10 and SAEC SS-300 Two best vintage mats on the market, the last one is much cheaper. Instead of isolation platform under a turntable i would recommend to use pneumatic feet (support up to 60kg). Need help to find them in mint condition? Send PM |
1) I can’t find the MyMat on US Audio Mart. A little help, please? @2channel8 You’d better look HERE at the product Slaw is selling even after his listing has been removed. Does it looks like something anyone would buy even for $49 ? Up to you. I think soon we will see someone selling just a piece of paper for $50 claiming it's the best solution ever made. 2) isn’t it the height of insanity (or arrogance) to recommend that one spend $250 on a mat for a Linn Basik? That money surely could be better spent. Linn Basik is an awful turntable, but Sakura Systems THE MAT is an excellent mat for $250 even for turntable that cost 20 times as much. Its predecessor Boston Audio Mat has been reviewed worldwide, actually with rave reviews. And it’s not a funny looking DIY product (badly cut with scissors) like the one above, it’s a serial product sold and shipped worldwide to many audiophiles. Ain’t cheap like almost everything in high-end. Manufacturing tour is here. Read reviews if you want to know more Boston Audio Mat (latest official version is The Mat aka BA mk3): http://www.6moons.com/audioreviews/bostonaudio/mat.html http://www.enjoythemusic.com/magazine/equipment/0205/bostonaudio.htm https://www.theanalogdept.com/bamat2.htm http://www.soundstagenetwork.com/vinyl/vinyl20080515.htm |
Chakster your an a$$ hole!!! I’ve been a member here over 15 years and only have 200 post and one of the reasons is I don’t want to deal with people like you. A lot of people prefer the Basic to the Axis. I own the Axis it makes wonderful music for its entry price. Am i dealing with you anyhow ? Slaw turned this thread to advertising of his mat that he is selling, well ok. I just posted many different mats as an alternative to his DIY stuff. I posted ONLY mats that i bought and have been using myself for a long time, the latest was Sakura THE MAT. What’s the deal ? I’m not dealing with you anyhow in anyway. But may i ask what is your useful information left on this forum in 15 years? Do you think your comment will help someone to find the right mat ? This thread is about MATS (there are many) and not just one mat that slaw is selling, can you dig that ? Basic or Axis, personally i prefer Direct Drive and this is my opinion, yes. The Linn Basik is NOT awful. Could you please try to open your mind up to those of us who are not "cost is no object" members! My philosophy is quite opposite (i do not buy expensive stuff), i paid $1000 for my Luxman PD-444 and about $700 for Denon DP-80, no more than $1200 for Technics SP-10 mkII and every tonearm used on them are no more than $1500 max. My favorite cartridges are no more than $800 (most of them). This is what you call "cost no object" ? You’re wrong! For a $2500 turntable some nice $250 mat is quite reasonable, don’t you think so ? But i’m not selling Sakura Systems mats and i do not work for them (i live in Russia), i paid for Sakura The Mat myself (in fact i bought two of them) ! And even more for better mats like Micro and SAEC, highly recommended! There were many reviews of the Basik/LVX table paired with a Shure V15 that declared it the best value in high end (for that time) audio. Even if the Basik was awful(NOT); the idea that a freakin mat could resolve all it’s IMAGINED faults is just bull SH!t. Repeat BULL $HIT! Who said the mat will solve the weakness of belt drive turntable ? :)) But i can’t recommend BAD mat, no matter what turntables, please try to understand. $250 for a nice mat like Sakura The Mat is even cheaper than nearly same mat from Boston Audio with rave reviews online. Freaking mat is this, it looks so funny that a 10 year old kid could cut it better, but it’s $49 DIY from Slaw (similar price for a nice original Japanese pressing LP that i would buy instead). cut it out please! I tried those Linn in local high-end shops long time ago, not impressed as with many similar belt drive turntables, what do you want me to say ? My opinion, yes. You’re free to post yours and i do not ask you to post what i like, but we like different things, so what ? I never supported the idea to buy mediocre cartridge (for example) if the turntable is mediocre. I think it’s always good to upgrade stuff, no matter mat or cartridge, or tonearm, or turntable. In which order user can upgrade them doesn’t matter, what is important is final result in upgrade. So people can start with the mat, why not. Normally we upgrade everything after all, this is the nature of the hobby. ************* P.S. Answering the OP’s question "Rubber, Felt or Cork?" i would say Gunmetal, Aluminum or Cabron Graphite! |
Chakster Really, we’re discussing his product and not his personality, but you came here again with your pointless comment, buy his product if you like it. With the same success you can use a piece of paper between your platter and your record. I don’t believe soft mat can be effective in any way on any turntable. See below why i think so. But no you chose to blithely ignore the true meaning of all of the posts directed towards you. Have a great day Post must be addressed to the product and its properties, not to the members. ******************************************************** I want everyone to understand why a soft mat is useless (no matte rubber, cork, felt or something else). And i can add more information about my favorite mat again, because finally i was able to get English manual instead of the Japanese manual. FROM THE ORIGINAL SAEC SS-300 (ENGLISH) MANUAL: "The conventional turntable mat is made of soft material such rubber, in the belief that soft cushion will effectively filter out vibrations between the turntable and puck-up stylus. ***A lesson from an old tradition: In certain Buddhist ceremonies a bell or wood block is used which sits on a cushion. The cushion, being softer than the bell or wood block, does not prevent the instrument from ringing when it is struck. It merely damps the vibrations somewhat so that they are of shorter duration (that is, they decay faster) than in the case of bell or wood block suspended in the air. The record disc and turntable platter used in conjunction with a soft mat are in state resembling that of the bell or wood block on a cushion. As the stylus oscillates in the record groove, the disc having a certain elasticity, it caused to vibrate slightly. Depending on the size and other physical properties of the disc, these pulsations vary in frequency from 100Hz to 400Hz. If the turntable mat is softer than the record disc, it will deform along with the vibrations of the disc. The Sympathetic vibrations are of sufficient amplitude to cause an audible low resonance peculiar to record playing. Likewise the turntable platter, when a soft mat is used, vibrates sympathetically and contributes to the problem of low resonance. ***A classically simple solution: After two years of development, the audio engineers at SAEC have produced a completely new turntable mat which solves the problems of the conventional soft mat. The new SS-300 Solid Mat is of material harder than any record disc. Placed directly on the turntable platter, the Solid Mat by its mass and hardness cancels sympathetic vibration of the platter. Likewise a record disc in immediate contact with the Solid Mat is prevented from vibrating. Where as the conventional soft mat merely damps sympathetic vibrations, the Solid Mat reduces these vibrations by 10 to 15dB compared to the conventional mat, thus effectively eliminating the problem of low resonance. ***We did it our own way: This new component brings us an important step closer to the realizing a technical ideal of record-playing. For a record to be reproduced perfectly, the stylus and its cantilever must oscillate with no interference from vibrations of the other record-playing components. Thus not only the headshell and tonearm but also the turntable platter and record disc itself should be completely oscillating. The famous SAEC tonearms with their patented Double Knife Edge design are the only tonearms made that have solved the problem of tonearm resonance. This was accomplished by radical departure from conventional approaches. Again with the SS-300 Solid Mat, SAEC has turned conventional wisdom on its head to solve the problem of record and turntable resonance. *** Turntable Solid mat. Model SS-300: The holes is the mat are made not to cause resonance in the radiant direction on the plane of the turntable. Aluminum alloy - using special surface treatment (rough surface). The solid mat is so shaped that may be used for many representative record players and turntables. The resonance of a turntable itself (resonant sound from turntable), which could not be eliminated by the conventional type turntable mat made of soft material like rubber, is prevented by using the SS-300 solid mat, which creates a state of non-resonance through its interaction at its critical point. The Solid Mat must be placed directly on the turntable platter. Do not use a soft mat between the Solid Mat and the turntable platter, since the Solid Mat will then be caused to resonate either independently of or jointly with the soft mat. Similarly do not place a soft mat between the Solid Mat and the record disc! Under ordinary condition there will be no problem of slippage, since the SS-300 Solid Mat has a special nonslip surface. -Do not place a stabilizer weight on the record disc, as this will deform the disc and reduce the effectiveness of the Solid Mat. -Use reasonable care in placing record on the Solid Mat. Do not place/remove records while the turntable is rotation. -Do not drop the Solid Mat, since any crack or deformation will reduce its effectiveness. " -SAEC Corporation ******************************************************** P.S. For the same reason Micro Seiki engineers made CU-500 (2.7kg copper) mat for their best turntables, i will repeat again that solf/flexible mat is u-s-e-l-e-s-s. Let’s say truth about product, i have nothing against a person who produced soft mats, i just think it’s the worst material ever for the mat. Seems like the engineers of two Japanese companies (SAEC and MICRO SEIKI) share the same opinion and i trust them more than the DIYers. There was a test in Japanese magazine and SAEC SS-300 was next best after Micro CU-500. Everyone who is serious about turntable mats should considering SAEC Solid Mat (870g) for audition. |