Material for a turntable shelf..
There is no general answer, I believe. I just keep my Nottingham on 3" thick maple platform on the floor with Boston Audio big graphite tuning feet under the platform. I also use Boston Audio graphite record mat. I hear nothing wrong. You could try different woods under your VPI to compare before building shelves. Turntables sound different, what is good for Nottingham might be not so good for VPI.
I have no idea how African Blackwood platform would work with my table, though. It is also a matter of preference. Do you want a very tight sound or a little loose one ? I like it to be slightly bluesy but controlled, definitely not tight and analytical. We are in fact talking about tuning or even fine tuning the sound.
There is no general answer, I believe. I just keep my Nottingham on 3" thick maple platform on the floor with Boston Audio big graphite tuning feet under the platform. I also use Boston Audio graphite record mat. I hear nothing wrong. You could try different woods under your VPI to compare before building shelves. Turntables sound different, what is good for Nottingham might be not so good for VPI.
I have no idea how African Blackwood platform would work with my table, though. It is also a matter of preference. Do you want a very tight sound or a little loose one ? I like it to be slightly bluesy but controlled, definitely not tight and analytical. We are in fact talking about tuning or even fine tuning the sound.