School me on slip mats please

Drummerboy75

Drummerboy75

Active Member
I'm in need of a slip mat. Like anything else audiophilia, the subject is much more complex than it first appears.

Do I want cork, leather, rubber, sheepskin, cats ass....? Do I need anti dampening? Should I have a rubber mat with a felt one on top of it??????

HELP!!!!!!
 
Slip mat is for DJing so the record would slip freely with platter still spinning.
For listening music you want something with some grip. I normally just use rubber matt that came with the turntable.
 
Ok, first thing. Why do you call it a slip mat? I won't deal so much with the different audiophile characteristics, but to clear up the semantics, a slip mat is for a DJ environment. That's not to say it can't be used at home but that's not the intent.
 
Guys, that's the reason for thia thread. I don't know the difference. And I'm not djing, I'm listening to albums, so what is it that I need?
 
You need a thing called a platter mat. The one that originally came with your table is probably available online somewhere. What is your table?
 
As the others have said a slip mat is used by DJs and isn't appropriate for what you intend to do listening at home. First off try cleaning the oil of the platter and the bottom of the mat, possible that when the turntable was moved the bearing oil leaked, you might also want to check and replenish the bearing oil. If you don't have the owners manual go to Vinyl Engine and download print out and read carefully. As for mats the best mat is the original that came with it, if you need a replacement check Ebay, just about any Technics mat will work fine. As for aftermarket mats, save your money, I'v tried a few and never heard any improvement over the original factory mat.
 
The Technics SL-D202 mat has no holes for record size detection purposes like the D303 would need. Try a new thin (1/8-inch) SL-1200 series mat. I modified one to replace my hardened D303 mat ( needed cutouts for size detection fingers) and it fit and worked as well as the original. Unmodified, it should work for the D202.
 
It may not make a whole lot of difference but I don't think your table has a manual adjustment for VTA (which allows you to set your tonearm parallel to the record). So when choosing a mat you might want to get one that matches the thickness of the original mat so you don't make your tonearm's VTA too far out of whack.
 
My dear boy, what makes you think that you need one?

I would remove the rubber mat, clean the oil from the platter, wash the mat carefully in lightly soaped water, dry it thoroughly and place it back on the turntable. That's all you 'need' to do, unless

- you are a dj. "Slip mats" were for slip-cueing, a method of starting a record at a precise moment.

- you have big static problems, in which case you may want to investigate anti-static mats.

- you have a problem with VTA and instead of lowering the tonearm, need to raise the platter.
 
majick47 said:
As the others have said a slip mat is used by DJs and isn't appropriate for what you intend to do listening at home. First off try cleaning the oil of the platter and the bottom of the mat, possible that when the turntable was moved the bearing oil leaked, you might also want to check and replenish the bearing oil. If you don't have the owners manual go to Vinyl Engine and download print out and read carefully. As for mats the best mat is the original that came with it, if you need a replacement check Ebay, just about any Technics mat will work fine. As for aftermarket mats, save your money, I'v tried a few and never heard any improvement over the original factory mat.
Click to expand...

Well I don't know about all the technics models, but the sl-1200 and sp25 mats are god awful and imo. the first accessory that needs to be replaced.
 
Folks, the "slip mat" definition was cleared up many posts ago. It's not really what the OP is looking for.

Seems just about any stock platter mat would do; at least one of the proper diameter if there's a lip on the outer edge of the platter itself (you'd need it make sure it didn't sit up on this lip) That's the kind of thing many people might have sitting in their extra parts stash.

BTW, you say there is oil under it. I assume this means the mat itself is deteriorating, but in case it's something else, have you tried cleaning it up with a strong degreaser?
 
Last edited:
The oil is from me turning it over to inspect, clean and lube the innards of the unit. I've since relube the shift.

Honestly, there's really nothing wrong with it, I never said that.

Thus thread was simply to educate myself, and anyone one such as myself, who's knew to all of this.

Thanks everyone, everything is clear now, we can all move on.
 
Carefully level a thick application of wood glue and allow to dry. Before placing record on the platter, spray platter with Scrubbing Bubbles. This insures that the second side will sound much nicer when played. I'm not a vinyl guy yet but sometimes I read the turntable sub forum. I have learned a lot.

BillWojo
 
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