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Steve Harris |
RINGMAT
FOR ROKSAN
Analogue-minded
readers will have noticed another plug for the paper-and-cork
Ringmat in JMH's March issue review of the Ghibaldani Domus
turntable. I've also been a Ringmat believer for some time
now, using one on a Roksan Xerxes.
Now, the Roksan
platter is one of the few in which the centre area is recessed
to give clearance for the label section of the record: this is
always slightly thicker than the rest of the disc. So other,
flat, turntable platters tend to contact only the label area,
unless a lot of clamping pressure is applied. I'm sure that
Linn, if asked, would come up with a convincing explanation of
why its own flat platter was best, but the Roksan recess
always seemed logical enough to me. Roksan's felt mat son of
sags into the centre, leaving the grooved parts in contact.
With the Ringmat, the record is supported only by a series of
concentric cork rings, the innermost of which is at well
outside the edge of the label; so the platter centre would not
seem to matter. However, on a Roksan, the inner ring is not
ideally supported because of the centre void.
So Ringmat
Developments has launched a special edition (or rather
addition) which literally fills the gap. This consists of two
discs of spongy black material 125mm in diameter and with a
combined thickness of 4mm. At the risk of admitting a
dereliction of duty, I confess that I haven't really worked
out whether the it's significant which way up the discs go
(their two surfaces are different) but I'm certain that the
things work. The benefits of the Ringmat really come to
fruition, with a further degree of tactile realism, a greater
firmness and accessibility to the sound. It all just goes to
show that there really is more in the grooves to be dug out
and, no matter how futile it may seem in this digital age,
that we can still go on enhancing our enjoyment of those old
vinyl treasures. If you're a Roksan owner, ring Ringmat. The
number is 01277 200210.
Steve
Harris, Hi-Fi News & Record Review April 1998 |
