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Headphoneus Supremus
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- Mar 24, 2004
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Quote:
I suppose it's also worth pointing out that 78 RPM as opposed to Microgroove records have slightly wider grooves and are much more fragile so hand washing is probably safer as some of these machines exert forces which could easily crack them. However with microgroove records I think the machines have come a long way since the '80s so may be worth rechecking.
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I think they all make contact with the vinyl to some degree or else the cleaning wouln't happen. The Nitty Gritty minimises contact by just supporting the label and rotating via a capstan drive at the periphery. Only the "lips" around the vacuum nozzle (which is a slit as wide as an LP) comes into contact and this uses a nylon pad with "microfibres" soaked in cleaning solution, which then drys during the vacuum cycle.
Moreover all these machines vacuum gunk out of the grooves, that is their raison d'etre. The Nitty Gritty design vacuums the whole disc simultaneously which does exert quite a lot of force. The cleaning pads therefore need to be cleaned between every record and changed regularly. They supply a fine wire brush for this and I also use a velour pad of the type used to remove fluff from suits. This is done with the vacuum running so any foreign matter is simply sucked away.
A lot of other designs use an arm which swings over the record and sucks up the gunk via a nozzle with greater or lesser degrees of directionality. The Lorricraft seems to be the best designed of these and doesn't actually come into contact as it does so, rather it hovers just a few millimetres above the surface tracing the groove like a stylus.
Once the cleaning is done it's really desirable to put the records into fresh sleeves of the Nagaoka or Goldring variety which are non abrasive and antistatic. I havn't really experienced any problems with static but airborn dust in London is a major issue, so the battle is constant.
Originally Posted by Bigshot Yes. I used to pay a record store to clean my records. It was a waste of money. I'd rather buy music than pay someone to hose it off for me. |
I suppose it's also worth pointing out that 78 RPM as opposed to Microgroove records have slightly wider grooves and are much more fragile so hand washing is probably safer as some of these machines exert forces which could easily crack them. However with microgroove records I think the machines have come a long way since the '80s so may be worth rechecking.
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Originally Posted by wet weasel /img/forum/go_quote.gif Then bring forth the paper towels! Yeehaw! I have nothing in principle against vacuum machines. I would like to get one though that has an inherent zero-vinyl-contact design. Equally important: the vacuum feature should slurp solvent, NOT blow-dry it. Which machines qualify? (Opinions please?) I'd be a bit insecure about transferring abrasives from record to machine to record. |
I think they all make contact with the vinyl to some degree or else the cleaning wouln't happen. The Nitty Gritty minimises contact by just supporting the label and rotating via a capstan drive at the periphery. Only the "lips" around the vacuum nozzle (which is a slit as wide as an LP) comes into contact and this uses a nylon pad with "microfibres" soaked in cleaning solution, which then drys during the vacuum cycle.
Moreover all these machines vacuum gunk out of the grooves, that is their raison d'etre. The Nitty Gritty design vacuums the whole disc simultaneously which does exert quite a lot of force. The cleaning pads therefore need to be cleaned between every record and changed regularly. They supply a fine wire brush for this and I also use a velour pad of the type used to remove fluff from suits. This is done with the vacuum running so any foreign matter is simply sucked away.
A lot of other designs use an arm which swings over the record and sucks up the gunk via a nozzle with greater or lesser degrees of directionality. The Lorricraft seems to be the best designed of these and doesn't actually come into contact as it does so, rather it hovers just a few millimetres above the surface tracing the groove like a stylus.
Once the cleaning is done it's really desirable to put the records into fresh sleeves of the Nagaoka or Goldring variety which are non abrasive and antistatic. I havn't really experienced any problems with static but airborn dust in London is a major issue, so the battle is constant.