Moonglum....I can only attribute it to confusion when I fell off my bike and into a concussion around that time...but I've been known to make many bad judgements in my years.
...a second listen
I have a Superscoutmaster VPI/rim drive/Classic Platter. Sometime ago, I heard that topping off the platter with a mat would do great things.....I tried a few, and decided on a deerskin mat (cheap)... Its been a couple of months now, but I just removed it and listened again. Why oh why did I think the mat is an improvement?. It diminished all the air from the presentation, eliminated any 3D effect... Now going au natural..