Well, I'm sure I don't understand what Marco and Alex are on about.


Anyways ... I decided that openness and honesty were the best policy (they usually are in marriage, imho).

"Have we got any Vaseline?" I asked.
"Oh" she repled in concern "Which bit of you is sore?".

"No" I said "it's for my new turntable mat."
"Ah." she smiled. "Yes, in the bathroom."

So ... job done. And yes, the sticky pad things are easy to sort once you get the knack ... luckily I don't chew my fingernails so I didn't have to ask the missus to help.

Bloody hell - the mat's not going to come off in a hurry is it? I reckon it will require a pickaxe to get it off. New turntable? - I'll have to get a new Funk mat!

But yes, it's well worth it.
The immediate and very very obvious improvement for me is a solidity and coherence to the imaging. A small group of chamber musicians suddenly sounds like they are sitting in a concert hall, near each other and playing as a single coherent, mutually supportive musical ensemble.

Yes, the bass is more solid, and the treble a bit smoother and more lucid. But for me the main benefit is a musical one not an obviously hifi one. The playing of the musicians just makes one hell of a lot more sense.