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Are You Sorbothane Experienced?

I couldn't find any discussions on user experiences with sorbothane isolation feet, so decided to start one. I recently purchased a set of 4 40mm sorbothane feet for my Music Hall mmf-5 turntable. 
Setup was less than favourably a one-man affair, so it was a rather precarious endeavour.

One thing that adds to the difficulty of what I imagined would be an entirely straightforward installation, is the fact that the sorbothane feet easily distort under the slightest off-centre loading. That means you have to adjust them incessantly  at both top and bottom contact points until you miraculously have all 4 perfectly vertically loaded perpendicular to your turntable's factory feet as well as your shelf. In my case the shelf is by Salamander.

Once you've managed all this and justifiably rather pleased with yourself, guess what? Your turntable may or may not be level as it was prior to the installation. So, level the TT at the shelf rather than at the adjustable feet, as are standard on the MH, because adjusting the feet would upset those super squishy sorbothane isolation pucks. 

The listening verdict: I honestly can't say that I can hear any difference during before & after playback of Jimmy Cliff's Wonderful World, Beautiful People.

I'm curious to learn of your experiences, if any. Cheers!
avdesigns
terry9
2,209 posts
 
Sorbothane is a material like any other, and it must be used in the right place in the right way. That means engineering calculations. The sorbothane website is a good place to start.

IMO, feet are not the right place. Spikes give much better performance in both the TT which form my testbeds - sound is more focussed and precise, while sorbothane feet sound mushy.

Where sorbothane shines is in motor isolation. But again, it's not often used correctly.  According to the website, you need inches of low durometer material to isolate the typical AC TT motor. That describes my DIY units - but not many others. Of course, there are other valid approaches, like SME.

The key here is how much noise is transmitted into the TT plinth from the floor. If you live in a railroad switch yard, you will need as much isolation as you can get. The SME solution is made for you. IMO. If you live on rock, miles from the nearest industry, highway or railway, you probably don't need any isolation at all. The latter is my situation, which is why spikes without any isolation device work for me.

As noted, YMMV.  


roxy54's avatar
roxy54
7,638 posts
 
Sorbothane under components was very first-generation. I used it many years ago, but after trying other metal cones and Starsound devices, I realized how bad it sounded. It is good for damping buzzes in than component cases and things like that.
avdesigns OP
29 posts
 
Thanks lads, you have given me so much to consider. Far more than I anticipated actually, and I know there must be so much more to learn. I'm above all else a music and movie lover and although I'm notorioisly frugal (my mum says "cheap" lol) I maintain 5 entertainment systems and I'm willing to spend $ where and when I have to. I've just purchased a 40-yr old home, so trying to get everything setup to the point of perhaps preempting an unpleasant experience. So far, my experience has been all positive, apart for some concern over my bouncy floor. If one of these suggestions proves to be a winning solution I will revisit the topic to share that experience. Thanks, once agan. Cheers!
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Timely tip: generally speaking you will get more traction by abandoning soft, pliant materials in favor of real isolation, I.e., mass-on-spring techniques, with minimal internal damping, using very stiff and hard materials such as diamond hardness ceramics to interface to both the top plate and directly to the floor, plus thick granite, maple or bluestone slabs for the top plate.

brf
1,715 posts
 
The best way to help isolate your table from a bouncy floor is by addressing the floor issues or by getting your table off the floor onto a load bearing wall.
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