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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
effischer
565 posts
 
Like a couple of others in this thread, I've had good luck with my Sorbothane table mat (an Audioquest).  Used it on a Rega Planar 2 and now have it on my vintage Pioneer PL 15D II.  Made a bigger difference on the Pioneer because of its flimsy aluminum platter.

My Sota never needed anything; one of the best suspensions out there.  Both of my tables are also in an exceptionally massive built-in cabinet rig.  Footfalls and the like simply don't propagate much, if at all.  Never liked the idea of accessory isolation feet.  They just seem like too much of an engineering compromise.  My 2 cents, anyway.
williewonka
3,082 posts
 
Beware "fake sorbothane"?

I've used sorbothane sheets for many years - originally purchased it from a local supplier - they used in AC applications to dampen vibration noise on AC ductwork.

I use it on most of my components for isolation - especially the feet

But it definitely is a case of less is better - I only use 1/10" thick sheet. I tried thicker but the SQ gt worse.

I purchased a couple of sheets off the web last year (I don't remember the vendor).

The issue I have with these newer sheets is that they leave a slight residue (almost greasy) on the components they are attached too. My original purchase left no residue at all.

So I'm wondering if these latest sheets are actually a knock-off of the "real thing"

I'll be more attentive in future

Cheers
terry9
2,354 posts
 
Willie, I think that what you have may be genuine. I bought a bunch from Isolate-It, which seems to be what you are describing. Isolate-It is a legitimate Sorbothane distributor. 
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