With reference to my previous review on this item, I received the Statmat II from Ringmat Developments a few weeks ago. Visually, one could be hard pressed to tell the difference between the earlier one and the mark II version. I could make out three small additional cut-out holes around the centre and that's about it.
I didn't think that anything much could be done to improve the already great performance of original Statmat. I was dumb wrong. The Statmat II does everything that the original Statmat does, but with a lot more depth and refinement to the reproduced sound. Quite unbelievably staggering.

The performance of a system made up of a NAD 310 amplifier, a pair of Celestion 3 mk II loudspeakers and a Rotel RCD-965BX CD player hooked up with AudioQuest Emerald3 and AudioQuest Indigo+ comes astonishingly close to my more (read, a lot more) expensive gear made up of Krell/Audio Research/Yamaha NS1000m. Some macro details may be missing in the 'budget system' and that's expected. However, at around 20 UK pounds retail, the Statmat II is probably the bargain tweak of the century. Anyone who owns a CD player (or DVD or CD-ROM for that matter) has no idea what his exsisting system, flagships to bargain-bin stuff, is capable of until the Statmat II gets to hitch a ride on the CD within the player. I would give it 6 stars straight away.

Thanks to John Rogers, the man behind Statmat.

Helps discharge static, especially if you keep your disks in plastic storage sheets.

Doesn't work on all players

At the recent Toronto stereo show there was a guy hawking Statmats. He did a quick demo with one of my own disks (one with which I an intimately familiar). There seemed to be a recognizable improvement when he added the mat, and it worsened (although not to the original state) when the mat was removed. Vocals seemed more fluid and natural, and the musical image was a little more "open". I figured it was a pretty cheap tweak (approximately $30US), especially if it worked [grin].

The basic theory behind the Statmat is that static builds up in pockets on the label surface of the CD, affecting the player's ability to read the disk. This seems marginally reasonable, as it is somewhat similar to the method that TVs use to create the illusion of a picture on the screen (beams of electrons directed by a magnetic field). Via a layer of conductive ink on the plastic sheet, the Statmat neutralizes the static charges and bleeds them off into the air. I was looking forward to trying it out at home to verify or debunk these claims.

When I got it home, I immediately took it over to my Naim CD 3.5 to give it a try. I started with the same CD that I had used at the show, and there seemed to be no change. After trying few more disks I was disheartened. The Statmat seem to make no difference to my system (better or worse).

I may have been disheartened, but I wasn't defeated. I took the Statmat to my office to try on my Cambridge Audio CD4SE. This is a "budget" player, but it really sounds quite good for the money. It's nothing compared to my CD 3.5 w/Flat-Cap, but it's very acceptable for my office system.

I definitely noticed a difference with the Statmat on the cheaper player. The benefits seemed to vary from disk to disk, with some having no effect and others having much more. Also, I noticed the same behavior as at the show: after using the Statmat, the CD seemed to retain some of the benefits. If the Statmat were really transferring the static into the air, this would make sense. Unfortunately, the polypropylene film is rather difficult to center on the CD, and it likes to slip off when the drawer closes. Because of these inconveniences, I decided not to use it all of the time. I didn't trash it, though.

Yesterday I got one of my favorite CDs back from my ex-wife. She had been keeping it in one of those plastic storage sheets that fit into 3-hole binders. When I played the disc at home, the it sounded fine. When I took it to my office, however, the vocalist sounded like she was screeching. Then I remembered the Statmat, which I suspected might help. Those plastic storage sheets likely created a huge build-up of static. As expected, the Statmat made a huge difference, especially to the vocals.

Therefore, I can recommend the Statmat for limited use. It definitely provides more benefits with cheap players than good ones. It also temporarily alleviates residual static build-up on a CD. (BTW, I haven't determined how long it takes for the static to build-up again.)

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Any plastic disk rotating at high speeds tends to build up some static charge in its surrounding. This is something that is not too condusive to nearby components within the CD player, and thus could corrupt the signal path with some unwanted spurious impurities. "Statmat" is a thin (read, very thin) plastic film with some (weird) cut outs and special ink pattern printed on one surface that is said to absorb the static build-up on the CD, at least that is what the manufacturer claims. The "Mat" is simply placed directly on top the CD while it is being played.
Ever since I have had this little "tweek" (say a year or so), I have never played a CD without it. This is the single most cost effective passive upgrade that I have ever done in my system. The sound is totally free of grain, the sound stage also becomes wider and deeper. Vocals just shine through. I believe that there is an upgraded Statmat II available now.

If you can't get it at your local tweek shop, try contact them at the following address:
Ringmat Developments
P.O.Box 200
Brentwood, Essex CM15 8QG
United Kingdom.
Fax: 01277 201 225

clears the sounds

none....a bit fragile maybe

i will say two words...........
it works its the best cheap upgrade

i bought it from www.trichordresearch.co.uk with free delivery next day

Try it to remove that curtain in fron of u r speakers

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