Better Record Cleaning Method

I have never been a huge fan of Disc Doctor, simply because I didn't feel it achieved better results than my one-step Nitty Gritty Pure2 fluid. I've always found DD difficult to rinse in the conventional way - applying pure water to a DD brush and brushing the record. It seemed to me that there was always DD left on the record, which would make the pure water soap up. I guess I could have gone through multiple rinse cycles, but I like to spend more time playing than cleaning, so I contented myself with the one-step Pure2, which works well and dries fast due to the (dreaded) alcohol, which I can live with.

Recently, inspired by the George Merill GEM record cleaner, I decided to try something else. I first gave the record a quick wipe with Nitty Gritty First or Premier applied to a DD brush. Then, laying the record flat on a towel, a good cleaning with DD fluid, maybe one minute dwell. I know - others leave it for a long time and that's up to you.

Here's the twist. Once half the record is saturated with DD, rinse it off in the sink with warm tap water. Return the record to the towel and do the other side and rinse in the sink. Wipe with a microfiber cloth.

Now I'm as much against tap water as the rest of you and I wouldn't leave the record like that. I then gave the record another quick wipe with Nitty Gritty First and then cleaned on my record machine using Pure2. Yes, you could definitely follow up with a pure-water rinse, but you have to decide how much time you want to take.

The result, to my ears, were MUCH improved sonics. Quieter, clearer, all the good stuff. I say this being a pretty meticulous person about record cleaning in the past. It's not like I went from filthy records to clean ones. I went from clean ones to VERY clean ones. It makes a big difference.

Again, I understand people's hesitation in using tap water and I agree. I guess you could use distilled, but I don't feel like pouring a gallon of water on each record. I feel that the procedures after the tap-water rinse, i.e. the Nitty Gritty First wipe, followed by a Pure2 cleaning on my machine will take care of any potential nasties in the tap water.

In any case, the results were superior to the point where I felt it might be beneficial to share this with you. Audiophiles don't agree on much, but I think we all believe that cleaner records sound better. Best of luck to you all.