Improvement with case damping on my Cambridge Audio Diskmagic.

[Shoog]

After reading a thread here I decided to try damping my Cambridge audio Diskmagic transport case.
I used some artists cutting matt. I cut pieces for all available areas of case and glued them on with PVA. I didn't expect any difference. Whilst the case was open I added a ferrite bead to the safety mains earth (because i had a salvaged one from a monitor).

Well I listened and thought i noticed a significant tightening of the bass and extension of the top end detail. I am very cautious of attributing this to the damping, and expectations are often misleading. However I put a disk on which previously always jumped in two places, such that the track had to be skipped. I put it on today, and was admiring the improved clarity and waiting for the jump. It got to the first point and started sticking - but hey it self corrected in about 5 secs. On the second dodgy track it broke up a tiny but but didn't stick at all.

The Cambridge Audio Diskmagic always had a reputation for poor tracking, and I found that quite often it would simply stick on the last track. So a simple bit of case damping has improved servo response and improved overall clarity - remarkable

Shoog

[Gopher]

The human psyche is a wonderful thing indeed.

You were expecting an improvement and that's what you heard.

[Shoog]

The objective fact is that the tracking has improved significantly, which is proof of a physical change.
I am quite willing to dismiss the sound improvements as pycho-accounstic, but not the improvement in tracking. To my mind if tracking has improved then that means less case feedback which is almost bound to have an effect on the sound, though it would be very difficult to quantify.
I only tried this because others had reported positive results and my small experience confirms those results.

Shoog