New Townshend Rock 7 owner

Slaw, I contacted Mark, and he unfortunately doesn't make the round-profile belt the Elite version (Mk.2) of the Rock uses. I got myself an HW-19 Mk.2 (acrylic armboard and platter platform) to play with until a Rock 7 comes my way. I may end up putting a Trans-Fi Terminator on it, as it is suppose to work unusually well with London/Decca pick-ups.

bdp24, FWIW, I have some parts left off of my VPI HW-19 you may find helpful. I have a Mk IV plinth @ an original VPI (tall) dustcover. Maybe more stuff???

I have my highly modified base that includes Symposium Rollerblocks that greatly increased this TT's performance. Lots of stuff?

bdp24, The reason I reached out was to see if you would be willing to try out my platter mat material. I think you'd approve. When you mentioned the VPI, it got me in seller mode. If you're interested, you can PM me.

FWIW, here are my findings with two different mats:

I came across a material, solid vinyl, no backing, flexible, that is 1mm thick. It has one side smooth and one side with hundreds of slightly raised, symmetrical "bumps". I use it with the smooth side facing the platter.

I've trimmed it so there is a 1&1/4" hole in the center and the outer edge is around 11& 1/2". This allows for the fact that most lps are thicker around the spindle area and it allows the mat to sit just inside of the raised outer edge of most vinyl records.

Positives:
(1) It is only 1 mm thick
(2) It is flexible so it can slightly conform to any irregularities
(3) It extends the Rock 7's attributes further

Negatives:
(1) It does have some static electricity issues that I negate with my Mapleshade gun on each side. (I believe this product is no longer offered?)

I first used it on my VPI Classic 3 Sig SE with surprising positive effect! I had since pulled that TT out of my system.

I hesitated to try it on the Rock 7 because I thought it probably would not have a positive effect since this TT's platter is suppose to mimic that of a vinyl record. I could not have been more wrong!

I have since purchased a Funk Firm Achromat (5mm version). This mat seems immune to static. I've tried both mats separate and together. My findings on the Rock 7 are, separately the thin mat sounds great and is a welcome addition to the Rock 7. The Achromat too, is another welcome addition. Then I tried them together. The thin mat under the Achromat,... Cha-ching! Absolutely wonderful! Even with the benefits of the trough on the Rock 7, the interface of the stylus to the record still benefits from this additional isolation.

In percentage terms, on their own, I'd give my thin mat a rating of 85% of the Achromat. Together, they work extremely well.

I'm close to finalizing my new wall mount system that will allow me to use both TTs. This will be beneficial for me to readily evaluate system changes.

Happy Listening!

bdp24,

Your choice of tonearm for your VPI is interesting. I've owned a VPI HW-19 MkIV/Et 2.5 for over 2 decades.

After changing to my current tts, I now realize my past history was, while interesting, a venture in "not really moving forward in any meaningful way". I now understand the limitations of an air bearing tonearm on a sprung suspension TT. The ET has limitations as well, despite of other postings.

The Trans-Fi is a different animal. The ET is a tale of "the tail wagging the dog". I now realize this.

My history with the ET is, clean/stable air is of most importance. This is expensive! How does the Trans-Fi differ in this area?