VPI felt mat vs aftermarket

Mats are hit and miss and are very subjective.  You will get a lot of VPI owners stating that no mat is the best, but that’s just one perspective.  If you can find a local dealer that will lend you some prior to purchase, that would be the best course of action.  

I have a VPI Classic and i am using the Origin Live mat.  My main table is an Origin Live and I ended up with two of their mats.  I tried it after a few others including an older VPI mat, cork, acrylic, Herbies, and a few others.  It continues to remain in use.  As @testpilot stated mats are very subjective.

I was in the camp of preferring no mat with my VPI Classic when I owned one years back, especially if using the periphery ring and center weight. Most mats are not designed to have any weights added down to them, and doing so can deaden the sound / affect the dynamics.

I have the classic platter....no mat....

TEAC Washi Mat.  I have a couple of them.  They work very well and are pretty thin.

https://www.turntablelab.com/products/teac-washi-paper-turntable-sheet

"Mainly to avoid slippage when used without center weight"

dmk_hifi you probably know everything audiopyledom is subjective.

You're going against VPI philosophy.

Playing an LP without a center weight defeats idea of getting the LP flat against the platter. VPI believes playing without any mat ensures "best" possible SQ.

I happen to believe the screw down clamp with the rubber washer is the best attempt at getting the LP to lay flat, since the rubber washer dishes it, allowing the clamp to flatten it-a much better psuedo vacuum hold down solution than just using a center weight if you're not incorporating it with the outer peripheral ring.

Weight only is good for only perfectly flat LPs.

Auditorium 23 Turntable Mat and any other audiophool mat- waste of money that could be used for records.

Longtime Classic user here.

@tablejockey +1 to everything said plus it helps the uni-pivot arm stay as stable as practically possible to insure for premium performance. The peripheral ring with a screw down clamp also figures into VPIs philosophy as well, making the uni-pivot achieve better performance. Enjoy the music.

Thanks for all good advice. Worth noting that my VPI Classic Companion comes with gimbal tonearm so stability is not an issue as with their unipoint arms. I use HRX weight, not clamp, for ease of use.

@drrsutliff never heard of this Origin Live mat but appears to get good reviews did you have any issues with it sticking to the record? Another mat that I came across with good reviews is Soundeck PM

@dmk_hifi no I have not had any issues with the mats sticking to records and I frequently change records without stopping the platter.  I also use a second OL mat  on my Origin Live Sovereign mk3 TT.  

To mat or not to mat.  After a lot of experimenting I settled on the Origin Live on both my VPI HW-40 and my SL1200GAE although on the latter it is a two layer affair with a plastic disc first and then the Origin on top.  That is because of a limitation of the arm adjustment on the Technics and I need some extra height. An old record would work just as well, but the plastic disc is cheap and readily available from places like Amazon.  On my old VPI HW-19 MkIII, though I still use nothing, as in no mat at all.  For record clamps I use the VPI weight on the Technics, a Stillpoint on the HW-40, and the old screw down clamp on the HW-19.  Truth be told nothing works better than my old KAB clamp with a rubber washer, but I foolishly gave it away. 

It seems to me that felt would encourage static...

Thanks everyone for your feedback, I'm going to try VPI felt mat to start. Worst case, I'll use it as a dust cover :)

@tablejockey , I tried using VPIs stainless steel screw down clamp with rubber gasket, but I don't find it performing any better than HRX weight with warped records.

Most of my warped records are warped around the outer perimeter, and clamp does nothing to flatten the outer edge. For other records, HRX is just as good in keeping center section flat to the platter, without the extra effort. However, I'm also not ready to pay $1k for a perimeter ring, and for 45rpm it's not worth the effort.

If any reflex clamp or weight system is going to be implemented, it’s also worth noting that a proper VPI platter should allow the groove surface of a record to make intimate contact with the platter surface.

This is accomplished by machining a proper “relief” for the record label at the inner platter area adjacent to the spindle as well as at the outer platter perimeter for a record’s potential “edge guard”.

A felt mat would be beneficial in cases where the platter surface is incorrect.

What do you mean by a proper VPI platter?

My VPI has the standard Classic platter with the indent for the record label area around the spindle. Only indent is much deeper than thickness of a typical paper label, but more shallow than the rubber ring VPI supplies for their clamp. So I'm not exactly sure what it supposed to accomplish.

You’re sporting a proper platter.

Yes, with a reflex clamp the washer (rubber) is meant to raise the record just slightly above the platter surface. The threaded reflex clamp forces the record over the washer due to the sculpted profile of its underside. As it is tightened, it forces the outer perimeter of a record to contact the platter surface. This contact patch moves closer to the lead-out groove & label area as the clamp is tightened.

" I tried using VPIs stainless steel screw down clamp with rubber gasket, but I don't find it performing any better than HRX weight with warped records"

dmk_hifi - the amount of dish provided by the clamp/washer is limited by the degree/area of warp the LP has. 

I play used LP almost exclusively. I don't play LP's beyond what the clamp will fix.

A slightly thicker washer (for more dish) MIGHT help for those? 

There are some less costly  than VPI periphery ring solutions. None of Agon at the moment.