The plan here was to absorb as much vibration as possible without affecting the outward look of the platter. This required some thinking outside of the box and honestly if it didn’t work as well as other methods, I would rather keep the ‘chrome’ look of the outer edge. That said I’ve used this technique before and it does make a significant difference to the sound quality, so I was confident it would do the same here.
Firstly, with the inner platter, I masked off the area where it comes into contact with the outer platter and sprayed it with a layer of Plasti Dip to create an absorbent soundproofing cushion between them. Then the inside of the outer edge of the inner platter was covered in sound reducing foam.
Later, I added two, 1mm thick silicone rings for added sound insulation. I bought two 200mm square sheets online. One sits on top of the inner platter and the other on the ledge between the inner and outer platter. Cutting them out was fiddly – using the inner platter itself as a guide for the scalpel. It’s not perfectly round and the edges are a bit wobbly, but it’s not seen so doesn’t really matter. This modification is only possible if you can adjust the VTR of your tonearm, if you can't then don’t do it.
Outer platter – the underneath was masked and sprayed with Plasti Dip to create a soundproofing layer that would soak up any unwanted vibrations.Then the inside of the outer edge was covered in soundproofing foam, just like the inner platter.
The only job left is to polish the outer patter, when the polishing wheels I've ordered arrive. I'll add pictures of that later...
Until then enjoy your vinyl.
Other blogs in this series.
Refurbishing a Thorens TD160 – An impulse Purchase
Refurbishing a Thorens TD160 – Veneering the Plinth
Refurbishing a Thorens TD160 – Soundproofing the Chassis
Refurbishing a Thorens TD160 – Repurposing the faceplate
Refurbishing a Thorens TD160 - The Finished Turntable