What are the audio differences you hear with turntable Mats.

My direct experience of a substantial improvement over a Felt Mat on a Linn Deck has been when a 5mm Thick Forex Foam Mat was used.

Forex Foam is a mat made from the same material used for the Commercial offered DAT Mat.

On the day the Forex Foam was selected, there was approx' £1000 in value of Mats to be demonstrated, with a few Mats retailing between £300-£500.

The Forex Foam Mat as part of a Group Buy and one of Four Mats purchased for the GB (2 x 3mm and 2x 5mm) had a cost of £30 for all four mats purchased.

It is well worth looking to acquire a Mat made of this material, as the cost will not be a concern, and the end result of using it, might just be what is desired.

Atmasphere’s explanation makes perfect sense, and that’s where I’d begin if I were a beginner. But with his hypothesis as a model there is still wiggle room. Which is to say there are other materials that approach the suitability of acrylic and which might be preferred after audition. Whether you also use a clamp vs a weight and the mass of any chosen record weight, these also affect results. I have never liked rubber or felt mats. I do like the now unavailable Boston Audio graphite mats which probably are similar in hardness to acrylic, and yet I don’t like acrylic. I guess if there were only one best answer to this question, we would all be using the same record mat, and there would not be such a big market for such a wide variety of them.

@lewm , 

the now unavailable Boston Audio graphite mats

The BA graphite mat is available from Sakura systems, as I said earlier in this thread.

https://www.sakurasystems.com/mat.html

Good to know that the BA mat is still available. I missed that point in your earlier post. I think Chakster also bought one from Sakura.

I might be wrong, but my impression is you need to use a record clamp with the Oracle mat due to the concaved nature of it.  
 

Does anyone know if you need to use a record clamp with the BA The Mat?

Thank you,

Don