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Help! Tweaking My Lovan Rack for new Big A**ed Transrotor Turntable!

Folks, some input would be mighty appreciated.

I’ve been using a hand-me-down (though very nice!) Micro Seiki dd-40 turntable for a number of years and finally got the upgrade itch (it helps the upgrade itch when your cartridge is going on 30 years old, and sounding like it!).

I went down the rabbit hole and picked up a Transrotor Fat Bob S turntable, with an Acoustic Solid 12" arm and a Benz Micro Ebony cartridge. All with only about 30 hours of use at a great price. Yay!

Though I have considered getting rid of my old Lovan Classic rack for a new custom jobby, I’m pretty much spent out and I think I’ll have to make do for now, working with the Lovan.

The Fat Bob turntable is 55 lbs of solid aluminum and built like Thor’s hammer.

I figure this will finally get me to fill my Lovan stands for a bit more rigidity - probably with rice. The stand is the old 3 legged triangular shaped bass, which means the thin MDF shelves can feel like they sit sort of precariously on top. But the stand itself feels quite solid.

I want to incorporate a wood platform base, as many do, because I really love the look of a nice wood slab.

At first I thought maybe I’d have 3 spikes drilled in to the bottom corners of the wood base to directly couple it to the rest of the Lovan frame, vs resting it on the top mdf shelf. But I’m not sure that’s really necessary. And I’d like to incorporate some isolation as well, I think. So I’m thinking of just laying it on the top shelf, with something in between.

My first thought is to place a Symposium Segue shelf between the top of the Lovan shelf and the wood base.

Other than that...I’m flummoxed as to all the other choices...roller blocks? Symposium Fat Padz? Vibrapods? Herbie’s Tendersoft footers? Voo-Doo Isopods?  What should I put between the wood platform base and my Lovan shelf?

Any comments of suggestions on the direction I’m going?

Thanks!

(BTW, I’m an resolutely NOT a DIY/Handy-man type, so I’m not trying to go to heroic efforts, wishing this to be as painless as possible).
prof
perfectpathtech
226 posts
 
No disrespect but MDF is Medium density fiberboard, most speaker manufactures use it
perfectpathtech
226 posts
 
@Prof I would recommend sending a pm to the audiotweak he is very nice man with a wealth of knowledge about vibration control. Like lewm
I have used lead shot for years in conversing with Tom, audiotweak seems micro steel spheres is the way to go, even more so than micro ceramic spheres.
lewm
6,770 posts
 
Dear perfectpathtech, You wrote, "No disrespect but MDF is Medium density fiberboard, most speaker manufactures use it".  I welcome your dissent, but your statement proves what?  It proves that MDF is cheap.  Lots of turntable plinths are made of MDF, too.  MDF plinths are usually found on the lowest end turntables, in terms of cost.  Certainly MDF can be used as one layer in a CLD construction; Adona uses it that way very successfully.  But two layers of MDF separated by foam would not have any CLD property, because the foam is mushy in between two layers that have identical properties.  The foam would impede energy transfer between the two layers of MDF, at least in my opinion.
perfectpathtech
226 posts
 
@lewm

My apology no dissent meant, I  misunderstood what you meant by MDF
Foam MDF, and no I would not consider using foam in any way for isolation or damping
prof OP
1,741 posts
 
Thanks for all of the input.  There's a heck of a lot of opinions for me to consider (even worse when I research threads in audiogon and other forums).

I'm still set on a nice big hunk-o-wood for the turntable to sit on, then likely the Townsend pods under that, and they would sit on...not sure.  But I did put the raw 3/4" MDF sheet I'd picked up at Home Depot, on the top of the Lovan rack, then the thinner Lovan rack on top (also tried underneath).  I have to say that just adding the thicker MDF gives me a whole lot more confidence, it feels so much more solid, than just leaving it with the stock, thin MDF top.

I went to see a local wood guy who would do the wood block.  He's done similar things for stereo gear.  I'd first asked about maple or similar hard wood.  He had maple, wall-nut, but he pointed me towards a beautiful couple pieces of Siberian Elm, which when stained would be my preference over the other woods.  I've seen that Elm, depending on the type, can be in the "soft" or "hardwood" designation.  I'm not sure where Siberian Elm lands, but he insisted this was a really hard wood, similar to maple.
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