[wet weasel]

My records play well, as do any (not-ruined) properly-cleaned records. There is more than one right way to do this. I did not intend to precipitate an outpouring of analog morality. As *the captain* so wisely observed: shouldn't it ultimately be about listening, and enjoying doing so?
I Neutroned Eydie Gorme today. WHAT a voice.
cheers ww

 

[earwicker7]

Quote:

Originally Posted by the captain /img/forum/go_quote.gif well... there's nothing wrong with cleaning your records and equipment, but I'd hate to see 'proper care' turn into compulsion. Isn't it Rega's Roy Gandy who advocates just popping on a disc (no brushing, wiping etc) and letting the music flow? As audiophiles, we can let a lot of things get in the way of the music. We need to remember to relax and enjoy ourselves too

Of course he says that... that way you can wear your stylus down twice as fast and call him with an order for a new one

 

[the captain]

^ lol

 

[bigshot]

Quote:

Originally Posted by memepool /img/forum/go_quote.gif All this stuff about paper towels and hairdryers is faintly ridiculous when you can get a proper barebones version of the Nitty Gritty vacuum cleaning system from KABUSA for 100USD.

A gallon of white vinegar, a gallon of distilled water and a pack of clean sponges cost a lot less, especially when you have a lot of records to do. It works just as good too. I'm familiar with the machine. I just don't need one.

See ya
Steve

 

[earwicker7]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot /img/forum/go_quote.gif A gallon of white vinegar, a gallon of distilled water and a pack of clean sponges cost a lot less, especially when you have a lot of records to do. It works just as good too. I'm familiar with the machine. I just don't need one. See ya Steve

I swear, someday I'm going to drag you over to my apartment and force you to listen to a clean record coming through nice cables

Come on, it's 5 miles, you'll learn a valuable life lesson

 

[LFF]

I would love to get a record cleaner like Keith Monks or a Loricraft but I just don't have the $$$.

For now, cotton balls with DIY cleaner must do.

 

[memepool]

Quote:

Originally Posted by the captain /img/forum/go_quote.gif Isn't it Rega's Roy Gandy who advocates just popping on a disc (no brushing, wiping etc) and letting the music flow?

Probably but he also says there is no such thing as VTA

Linn's Ivor Tiefenbrun definitely says the best way to clean a record is with the stylus.

I began to question the wisdom of this when my last Linn K-9 cart cost 130UKP. I think their entry level MM is around double this figure today!

As mentioned already if you use a reasonably cheap MM stylus where the replacement carts cost 'only' 50USD

and you change them yearly and play just brand new records which you keep meticulously dust free then that's fine.

If however you enjoy rooting in the bargain bins and want to safeguard a more expensive stylus then a cleaning machine makes sound economic sense aside from any other consideration.

 

[Thermionic]

There are a lot of things in the Hi-Hi-world that I would like to spend money on, but a record cleaning machine was never high on the list. They always seemed expensive and complicated contraptions, but if cost was no object then I might think differently.

Mr Watts procedure works well enough for me, and I would recommend anyone with some old grubby / bargain bin records to give it a try. Paper kitchen towel might be too abrasive for a camera lens, but I have no qualms in using it gently to dry a gramophone record. Especially one that was less than perfect in the first place.

 

[memepool]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Thermionic /img/forum/go_quote.gif They always seemed expensive and complicated contraptions, but if cost was no object then I might think differently.

This indeed used to be the case but these days there are quite a few different companies making them offering different designs and levels of automation etc, ranging from 100USD on up into the thousands for professional ones like the Lorricraft.

see

http://www.kabusa.com/frameset.htm?/rcleaner.htm
http://www.okkinokki.co.uk/
http://www.britishaudio.co.uk/mothrcm.htm
http://www.nittygrittyinc.com/
http://www.vpiindustries.com/products_cleaning.htm
http://www.garrard501.com/
http://www.keithmonks-rcm.co.uk/

The use of vacuum cleaning is common to all which is what elevates them above anything you can do with a paper towel.

 

[stevenkelby]

Roy Gandy was joking! Ivor was not...

Lots more reading in a thread here:

http://www.stevehoffman.tv/forums/sh...d.php?t=122485

The gist of it is, a vacuum machine is the only way to get a record as clean as it can be, all records should be vacuum cleaned, even new ones, and if you don't use a vacuum machine you aren't hearing your vinyl to anywhere near it's full potential. Silent playback can be achieved, zero hiss, cracking, pops etc. But only with a vacuum machine.

That's the consensus from sources I trust, at SHF and elsewhere btw, not just my opinion.

Make up your own mind, but it seems about as logical to me to buy a brand new vacuum machine for a measly stinking $150 or so (which cleans equally as well as a $1000 unit btw, it's just fully manual), as it is to try getting a good fit with IEMs . You don't "need" a vacuum machine or a good fit with IEMs if you have them, but it makes sense to if you can. As others say, it's a no brainer.

If you believe that a machine makes no difference to the cleanliness of a record then that's fair enough, good for you!

 

[bigshot]

Anyone who tells you that silent playback on an LP is possible is lying to you. Even brand new records have small manufacturing defects. You can reduce the amount of noise buy buying good pressings and taking good care of your records, but no amount of cleaning is going to make a thrift store record have silent surfaces. That depends on the condition and quality of the pressing, not how clean it is.

That said, playing a dirty record can damage it though. Best to clean them- however you do that- if they get dirty, and maintain them with regular brushing.

See ya
Steve

 

[earwicker7]

To the paper towel/rag/cloth people... given how extremely thin the area between the grooves is, how is your cleaning tool getting all the way to the bottom of every groove? (NOTE--I know that technically there is only one groove, but for convenience, I'll use the traditional way of speaking) For those areas you can reach, aren't you just pushing whatever gunk you can get to out of one area and into another? I know that when I wash dishes, it's pretty much impossible to make them 100% clean unless you spend a huge amount of time on them, and dishes are, unlike records, a perfectly flat surface.

I just can't comprehend how people think that records are by nature supposed to be a noisy, hissy, poppy experience. A truly clean record on a nice table should have extremely low background noise... not like a CD, but more like a cassette.

 

[earwicker7]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bigshot /img/forum/go_quote.gif Anyone who tells you that silent playback on an LP is possible is lying to you.

Maybe, but anyone who tells you that you can't get pretty darn close hasn't listened to a good lp that has been cleaned properly.

 

[CarbonTi]

As a recent convert (or could that be phrased "born again") to vinyl, I have heard high end analog setups playing records maintained by zealous aficionados. These records sound from very quiet to silently flawless, depending on the pressing. I was once sceptical but impeccable LP playback is doable and it was the most enjoyable sound coming from recorded music as I've experienced. Plain 'ol LP's, not an audiophile pressing disc in the lot. These guys all use vacuum-based machines to clean records.

Once systems such as these are heard makes it understandable why some chase that grail. The only down-side was this system cost as much as the GNP from any number of 3rd world nation states.

 

[mikeg]

I recently got a VPI 16.5, and its operating principle is really simple. Why do you think that a much more expensive cleaning machine (e.g., Loricraft PRC4-Deluxe) that's based on the same principle, will do a better job? What do you get for the much higher cost (i.e., $500 versus $4,000+)?

Quote:

Originally Posted by earwicker7 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I understand why people freak out when they hear the price (actually, $2,500 is for the cheap model, not the one I got ) but I look at it this way... it's like record insurance. A lot of the records I have (and my collection is SMALL as I just rediscovered vinyl recently) will never, ever be released again; if the record has dirt that isn't removed by normal means, it will gradually be ruined. I'm confident this machine will get ALL of the crap out of the grooves. Also, I'm not implying BigShot needs to get a Loricraft. He should, however, get a used VPI machine or something similar, it's only going to be around $300 used. I'll actually be selling mine as soon as the Loricraft gets here... cough, hint hint, BigShot, cough cough