Garrard 401 damping

[JBonner]

I wonder if anybody has thoughts or advice on the subject of damping a Garrard 401 chassis? I have used Dynamat to good effect on a Goldring Lenco GL75, but that is much thinner than the Garrard and not ribbed.
Clearly, I would not want to take away too much of the deck's character, but would judicious (or even not so judicious) application of a Dynamat-like damping sheet between the chassis ribs help reduce vibration transmission?
Thank you in advance.

[Blue Angel]

Hi

I don't know much about damping 301/401 chassis but just in case, I built a plinth once which isolates the deck totally from its plinth and the plinth from wherever I set it up. The isolation is by means of butyl pads and tubes and works for me.

According to some internet legend, the platters allegedly ring like bells. Whether this is so or not, has never bothered me.

I once read somewhere, a 401 owner poured melted rosin in his platter which apparently had a beneficial effect.

Wiser VE members will no doubt dispense better advice.

ba

[aardvarkash10]

@ the OP - what is the problem you are attempting to solve?

[JBonner]

To reduce any vibration transmitted through the chassis. I realise there is no substitute for a well serviced deck in an appropriate plinth, but wish to improve the odds in reducing any tendency to rumble. This approach has worked well on some other decks I own but I would be interested to know if anyone here has direct experience of the effects of chassis damping on a 401.

[Ryelands]

I fitted Dynamat-style damping to my 401 over twenty years ago and found the effect good. I've since fitted those rubber rings that go round the platter - these are very effective and, when I recently improved the plinth, I thought about removing the damping. The snag is that it's not easy to do. OTOH, if you experimented with the likes of BlueTak, which is probably less effective than Dynamat or "Brown Bread" but much easier to remove, it would at least do for a trial and help you decide.

The gurus seems generally against it but then some of them would have you pay for spares in £.s.d. (though not, you'll notice, at Garrard-era prices).