Remember the Ringmat? You should!

Turntable mats are like seasonings on food. They certainly make an important difference, but no one of us is in a position to say whether the perceived difference that one guy hears is right or wrong. Like salt and pepper, it’s a matter of taste. Or as Frank Sinatra said about his favorite bourbon, I’m for whatever gets you through the night. Especially during these times.

Excellent post

I guess I could say the same thing for any difference one perceives in any one TT design.

No. 

The difference is that a turntable is designed by an engineer who knows the parameters of a vinyl record.

When someone designs a mat, unless it is designed for a specific turntable and the underlying platter structure is known, then the aftermarket mat will always be a lucky dip - or seasoning as Lewm calls it.

I have heard the ringmat on many turntables - it does not support the record properly, its only use is to paper over the cracks of a poorly designed turntable, or turntable that is low in resolution.

Try a MyMat.

BTW, the MyMat completely supports the lp by way of hundreds of tiny inverted 'dimples'. These also help to decouple the lp from the platter/bearing.

When I bought my first Linn LP12 about 25 years ago, the guy selling it demoed the turntable with a Ringmat. It sounded awful - thin, lightweight, no midrange. I was disappointed and asked him to put the stock felt mat back on and suddenly the LP12 magic returned. It sounded great and I bought the turntable - with stock mat (that TT is now sadly long gone).
Years later I bought a Ringmat to try myself and had exactly the same experience with a few different turntables.

It was one of those tweaks that became popular for a few years and got good reviews - as happens often in the faddish world of hi fi - and then thankfully disappeared without trace.

To the OP, live with the Ringmat for a while. My guess is that in a few weeks or months you will remember why you put the Ringmat away years ago.

Every mat sounds different .....use the one that you like.....try them all.