I had one of those Michell clamps back when I had a Michell turntable. I thought it would help flatten out those thin, warped discs that were so common but it rarely seemed to help with that so I gave up. After moving to an LP12 my dealer said it would be a bad idea to use it, so off it went to ebay.
My avid has one but I only use it if the record doesnāt appear to be flat when on the platter. I think itās supposed to be used all the time.
I am in the U.S. (St. Louis, MO), but I was born in Heidelberg to native German parents. My family emigrated to the U.S. when I was 3 yrs. old. I am effectively a displaced European. 
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@Richard.Dane I stop and start the paltter with each record change, but the motor has a bit of torque, such that when I press the start button, by the time I cue and lower the tonearm ā without hesitation ā the platter is up to speed (incl. for 45 RPM), even though itās a heavy 40mm POM. When I stop the platter, I just use my hand to bring it to an instant stop, so I donāt have to wait for it to slow down.
@paulbysea Using a clamp and ring is really not fussy for me. Iāve gotten so used to it, and itās become such a natural part of my record change routine I donāt notice and it takes maybe 5 seconds extra at the most.
I donāt think the company exists anymore Richard, Clearaudio sells the clamp under the name Clearaudio Souther Clever Clamp, so it must be them who have the rights to the name. However, the clamp looks exactly the same as when Souther made them themselves.
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Those are really good-looking and well-built 
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How about āit dependsā?
While trying ant-vibration devices, we tried the HRS rubbery weight with multiple listeners and me standing in front of my old LP12. On the standard-ish LP12, it had a modest impact but did seem to clean up treble and sibilance at seriously high volume. However, I did worry that lots of use would throw of suspension not designed for it.
I have since swapped to a Stiletto/ Keel/ Radikal LP12. Whether because of all the extra mass or not, the HRS āclampā now has no audible effect at all. I did try swapping back to my old cherry-plinth-and-Kore LP12 and turning it up after a few months away, and there is still a modest benefit to the clamp at seriously high volume. At normal listening levels, it had no effect I could hear - but it could still be gradually stretching springs. I was also reassured to note that the Stiletto LP12 still sounded better, even though I do miss the look of the wood a bit.
I think that good positioning and a non-springy floor would mean there was literally no benefit from the clamp on the old LP12. However, that TT may well go to Tasmania, where the floor is concrete - and if it does I will try the HRS clamp one more time before ditching it.
TTs that are designed to work with a clamp are a very different story - I have yet to hear any of those that sounded at their best without the clamp.
Thatās a seriously good sounding deck!
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Is it a Sorane/Abis SA-1.2BCS tonearm in the picture, Porphyr?
Hi Bjƶrn
Yes, that is correct! It came with the Woodpecker turntable when I bought it second hand.
Edit: itās not the BCS version with silver cable, but standard black version.
Regards
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Thanks! I agree 
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You probably already know it, but it is the same manufacturer that makes your tonearm and the Hana pickups, wonderful arm I must say 
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No weight or clamp will ever be allowed near my LP12!
Iām not at all sure why anyone would use one anyway.
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Actually itās quite simple Graham, some turntables are designed to be used with a clamp or a weight, for example Michell Engineering turntables. It was also Michell who developed the clamp first of all.
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Horses for courses. If your TT comes with a clamp then it was probably designed to be used with one.
Linn and the LP12 were never designed with one in mind.
Avoid Linn owners. And that comes from my dealer.
Some record clamps are designed to counteract the effects of warped vinyl. Why spend large amounts of money to get a silent and speed accurate turntable when a warped record constantly alter the playback speed?
I think the profile of the Gyrodeck and Orbe platters lend themselves to the Michell clamp and itās second nature for me to use on that deck. Iād be reluctant to use the clamp or a weight (puck) on any flat platter though. Iāve a project deck in the living room that runs au naturale.
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Yes, exactly, the plate and clamp are designed to work as one unit togetherš
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Maybe review some comments above. Weāre not all LP12 owners here. Some of us have TTs designed specifically for use with clamps, and in some cases peripheral rings too (e.g. Clearaudio, VPI).
The clamp and ring help couple the record to the POM platter on my Ovation (ditto for VPI, etc), to help prevent high frequency ringing and refine/stabilize low freq response. An additional benefit is I never have to worry about records with dish warps ā which are not all that uncommon ā since the clamp and ring flatten them perfectly.
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