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recommendation for turntable vibration damping

hi!
i recently moved into a new home and just completed a project to install insulation under the floor (in the crawlspace). this was done to save on heating costs, but i figured it would also help to dampen vibration from the floor. the floors themselves are fairly cheap with thin carpet over them. (we are likely to install hardwood floors in about a year or so.)

anyway, after the insulation project was complete, i noticed that if i tapped my foot (as in moderate footstep), i could see my turntable shake. i'm wondering what steps i could take to reduce this vibration.

here are some relevant details:
>> VPI Aries on a Bright Star Air Mass 19, sitting atop a...
>> Finite Elemente "Spider" rack built up about 24" with a preamplifier, CD player, and VPI SDS also on it/weighing it down.

the rack is modular (which has served me well during a few moves) and is lightweight.

i'm wondering what my options are for reducing vibration -- i don't think i can afford a big/heavy rack right now.

is something like a bright star 'big rock' advisable? i would imagine loading it down with sand would really weigh down the rack and, presumably, dampen vibration. (they're not cheap, though...especially for the size i need for an original aries. i don't have an outboard flywheel, but i may get one one day.)

i'm open to any thoughts.

thank you in advance.
ebalog
valve_and_vinyl
19 posts
 
Hi Ebalog,

How's it coming along??

I just wanted to say: Don't completely dismiss the wall mounting option- it's superior.

Wall mounting your turntable is one of the best ways to isolate it. Even when vibration isn't as obvious (as it is in your case), wall mounting is still a choice method. You should brace the floors anyway- that will help no matter what you do with your TT. (my 2 cents).

If Target doesn't have the size you are looking for- try Apollo or Rega (Needledoctor carries both). A google search will turn up a lot of leads as there are several manufacturers making them.

Even a simple DIY wooden shelf will do wonders for your turntable. If you are mechanically inclined enough to tackle bracing and securing your floor joists- you can obviously build a high quality wall shelf that will not only look great- but will reap a LOT of performance increase for under $50 & a couple of hours' worth of effort. Look at the analogdept.com site and check out the DIY shleves for inspiration.

best of luck with your audio adventures and let us know how it all works out.

Take care.
ebalog OP
31 posts
 
thanks for the post. i didn't see anything at "analogdept.com".

i haven't made any progress yet, as i have been on-the-road, and i haven't felt like unpacking all of the boxes & such that are blocking access to the crawlspace. (i had to unpack and repack them so many times while getting the floor insulation done, and the prospect of doing it once more hasn't been appealing.)

i had a conversation earlier today, and someone mentioned the idea of measure the distance of the rack to the wall, then cutting two 2x4s to that length +1/4". that would brace the race to the wall and dramatically reduce lateral displacement of the rack.

that seems quite logical -- but it might not affect things is the floor is moving vertically.

as i contemplate this, i start to thing about how i am generally not moving around when listening to a record, thus there are no footfall issues (and no "major"/visible vibration). it's logical that there are still smaller vibrations which could affect the music, but i wonder if these could be treated by mass-loading the rack a bit, and using some air suspension.

i will investigate the wall-mount further to see if there is something in the size i need.

thanks!
ebalog OP
31 posts
 
Just wanted to post an update. I have decided on a wall-mount solution for the turntable, as i believe that all other solutions are attempts to fix the vibration problem with results that may or may not pan out.

What I mean is that the floor is clearly highly compliant/springy -- so much so that the top of the rack visibly shakes with footfalls -- and is moving vertically as well as horizontally. Bracing the floor from below would definitely help, as would mass-loading the rack and changing the shelving.

However, as good as those solutions may be, I don't think they'll eliminate as much vibration in one fell swoop as doing a wall-mount -- and there could be more time and/or expense involved.

I'm going to see what happens with the wall mount. I have no doubt that all the solutions regarding treating the floor and rack would help with the rest of my system, but I think they're lower priority than dealing with the most sensitive source.

I hope to be in a better position to evaluate my turntable's true performance, as well as that of the rest of the system as soon as the wall mount is in place.

Thank you!
valve_and_vinyl
19 posts
 
You'll really be happy with a wall mounted turntable. I used to walk with such care- now I can do whatever. Before I had a wall mount, I wouldn't want to get up during playback- not even to answer a phone/door for fear that I would make the needle jump! I felt like once to record had started- I was a prisoner. That's not to mention my active 3yr old who loves to jump around when the music is on. I was constantly trying to keep her from dancing, and I though 'What's wrong with this picture!? She loves music; Just like her dad.' Now it's nice to watch her do her dance routines without worry. :)

The overall fidelity was improved, too. Bass got tighter- highs more silky...
valve_and_vinyl
19 posts
 
I just thought of something-

Why not consider buying TWO target shelves? If you did it right- you could space two shelves apart so that your TT was suspended in the middle gap (each pair of feet resting on 1 shelf). That way you'd have even better isolation, underneath access (for suspension adjustments), and room on either side for a dedicated phono pre and/or misc cleaning and maint gear.

I might do this myself!
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