First time poster, made an account just for this. I've got a T40 that I purchased last summer; huge upgrade from the Technics SL-3 I had previously. I'd consider it a pretty good deal at $120 CAD. Running an Ortofon. VMS-30 II on it, with a JICO stylus. Not much I can fault about the combo, absolutely love my Harman.
Anyways, here's the bit that may be of use. Like most of these tables, mine had an incredibly hard mat on it when I picked it up. I just used it like that for a while, but it bothered me. So, I got to thinking...my dad used to get me to detail his car, and he'd make me use a product called Aerospace 303, which would pretty much instantaneously restore any plastic/rubber/vinyl. So, I tried it on my mat, and it flexes again just fine, restored the sheen, it now seems much less dry...and I could swear it helped the sound. Glad I had a bottle around (I think they run like 15 bucks here in canuckland, so still cheaper than a new mat). Let me know if this helps anybody.
Also, any of you who've modded your tables, particularily with additional deadening: I would love to see some pictures, makes it easier to duplicate than just doing some guesswork.
Regards,
Will