A $300-$400 turntable tweak

I believe the magnetic bearing in the Project RM10 only unloads the platter from the bearing and doesnt isolate it completely under the same theory that a drain path is desirable. So essentially you have a regular bearing with minimal load and therefore minimal friction and noise with the advantage of a heavy platter for rotational momentum

J Carr

Hi Jonathan, interested in your feedback on centre clamps. My main concern on the gunmetal Final Audio clamp is that the spindle hole has no sleeve so it has metal to metal contact and it is not snug. I have often thought it would be an advantage to mill out the centre and put a teflon or other polymer sleeve in, but this is a one way trip. Do you have any recommendations on heavy clamps.
The other query is that on the Final the record edge is ever so slightly proud of the platter/mat, therefore I assume peripheral clamps may not be ideal on this turntable - thoughts ?
Might as well ask a third - graphite mats - a friend had an unfortunate experience where his cartridge ended up gummed up with grey scale off the graphite - comments ?

Dover, how did the graphite mat get the "grey scale" onto the cartridge? I've used a Boston Audio Mat 1 (graphite) for years without problems and the only one I'd replace it with is a Mat 2.

The mat was the Millenium, which has a smooth and rough side. I assume its off the rough side, but I dont know if the gentleman is using it correctly. Hence the question.

My experience with clamps is that when I use my TTWeights Classic, I get noticeably better sound I think because the flatter records creates a more consistant azimuth, right? I lusted after the VPI center weight and when I got it it made my turntable sound horrible. Even my wife noticed a difference. You could play half a song with the VPI and then lift the cue and put the TTWeights on and immediately tell the difference and same if you did it in the other order. I think some bearings can handle a little extra weight but there's a limit.