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Turntable and Rack vibration control

Hi,
I moved from a Nouvelle Platine Verdier to a Loricraft Garrard 301. The big change with this move was that the Verdier comes with a terrific implementation of pneumatic suspension feet which kept the TT almost floating and hence great isolation from vibration. The result was always a noise/grain free playback and super clean backgrounds. With the Garrard, the plinth is typical custom made stacked birch ply with standard steel cones as footers. When placed directly on the rack the background is noisy, the images muddle up and overall music is not well sorted.

I do not expect the Garrard to be as quiet as the Verdier but I know it should not be this noisy either. In fact the Verdier also sounded noisy when I placed it directly on cones bypassing the pneumatic suspension feet. 

I use a Hutter Racktime rack which is not like an overbuilt audiophile rack. It is more like an open frame rack with lightweight supports. It is a bit like a Rega TT, not very damped or controlled. The rack has pointy steel feet which rests on brass spike plates (mine is an wooden floor). I guess this implementation is not sophisticated enough to keep away vibrations and let the TT play quietly. 

I am looking at two levels of solutions:
1. Replace the existing steel feet and brass plate with a quality vibration control footer below the rack
2. Replace the stock steel cone below the TT plinth with a better footer/platform.

I have tried Sorbothane, Squash balls kind of tweaks, while they reduce noise they slow down the music too.
I have also tried Stillpoints and Finite Elemente footers under the rack. They make the sound thin and metallic IMO. Platforms like Minus-K are too expensive so I have not considered them yet.

I am looking suggestions here, probably footers and vibration control devices that are more musically oriented yet well engineered like Shun Mook, Harmonix, SSC or something like an HRS platform ?
pani

Showing 7 responses by pani

pani OP
1,220 posts
 
Thanks guys. I will try to get a demo of Townshend seismic pods. 
Are there any specific model of Newport and Vibraplane platforms that would suit a TT installation ?
pani OP
1,220 posts
 
I wonder if the TT sits on a granite stone with a set of metal cones between them, wouldnt it cause the sound to harden up ? I mean, wouldnt the vibrations that reflects back from granite would also make things harder and harsher ?
pani OP
1,220 posts
 
Thanks guys,
I need to clarify few things. My floor is concrete but with wooden parqueting on top, so there are no foot fall problems.

I am just looking for a good vibration control for quieter playback. One of the achilles heel of using turntables like Garrard is one is on his own to handle isolation of the TT. The plinth is mostly any of the small DIY outfit and there is no scientific method being used to create a plinth or platform for the Garrard to be hooked on. It is quite unlike a TT like Technics SP10 or say a VPI where all these things are done up for you at the factory so it can be played back right out of the box. 

Till now I have tried to keep things simple with my garrard by using a good multi-layer birch ply plinth and using some cones to rest it on the rack. But it is now getting painfully clear that this is not a very well-sorted system. The noise floor is high, the images are grainy, the air and tranquility is missing. When I tried some softer footers, it did wonders to the sound by bringing back the air and lowering the noise floor, just that it was again not a full proof solution.

I wonder if I should get something like an HRS platform which is scientifically designed and as is a complete solution of sorts. Suggestions ?
pani OP
1,220 posts
 
I just managed to borrow a set of Townshend Seismic pods under the plinth. The sound is totally in a different level. The grainy, noisy background is 90% gone and what I am hearing is a very open airy and free sound. That is with the deck plugged directly into the wall through a basic $50 power cord, so no electrical isolation yet. Whether it is the final solution or not is yet to be seen but it definitely confirms that isolation is the problem, not the deck itself. At least some breakthrough!

pani OP
1,220 posts
 
I tend to agree with @jollygreenaudiophile2. I tried the iSeismometer app on my iPhone. It shows very very minor vibrations in the z axis. But the reading looks the same whether I place the iPhone on the TT platter, plinth, rack or on floor. No difference in reading which only goes to show that it is not sensitive enough to measure the differences in vibrations between these surfaces. Something much more sophisticated would be needed. 
pani OP
1,220 posts
 
As I dig deeper into this subject, at least for the Garrard it is all about vibration control or isolation. Mechanical vibration and electrical vibration both needs to be handled to the maximum and that too with our own intelligence. For example, putting a stillpoints footer under of 301 plinth does nothing to reduce noise floor, it just changes the tonality. Adding something like the Townshend seismic sink or even a tight sorbothane cone brings about a lot of silence. 

Connecting the garrard directly to my power distributor again makes for a rather noisy playback. Connecting it to my Monarchy AC regenerator reduces grain and noise but at the same time the signature of the AC regen and the power cord that connects the AC regen to the main distributor is also audible through the TT so it has to be well chosen. Anything cheap or flimsy just comes through in the sound glaringly. So, an elegant solution to all these isolation issues is a must for this deck and that seems to be non-trivial and expensive too.
pani OP
1,220 posts
 
@anvil_turntables, would you allow a home demo ?
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