Dust a lot, Chris! A turntable with a dust cover that can be in place during play is a must, and I use an old-fashioned shaving cream brush to dust my table's platter. I will face a different challenge when relocated up in Portland, that of moisture in the air, not dust. I'll gladly take that!
Cleaning records. How often really?
Suppose, they have just been machine-cleaned and are played maybe two times a month in a regular environment.
Also treated with Last record preservative and kept in sealed outer sleeves.
Once a year or so?
Just don't tell me before each play, yeah, I heard of this insane approach.
Also treated with Last record preservative and kept in sealed outer sleeves.
Once a year or so?
Just don't tell me before each play, yeah, I heard of this insane approach.
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11-27-15: Nsgarch Hi Nsgarch taken from Premier's website is this wording. Premier But Premiér features a special additive which breaks those 'static' bonds, freeing the dust to float off the LP. This unleashes the 'like new' sound thats trapped in your LPs -- getting rid of the static means you get rid of the dust, along with the snaps and pops and cracks which drive you nuts. So what is the special additive ...By chance is it a well known wetting agent ? This is the battery operated record brush I was referring to in my earlier post that I got from an audio friend. battery record brush - - |
A turntable with a dust cover that can be in place during play is a must, Eric - anyone with a kit setup that is capable of pressurizing their room, even at 75-80 db or above with full scale classical or rock can feel the cover resonating. Those vibes go into the plinth. Well Vinyl is a resonance hobby so maybe this added effect works well for that room, gear, and listener. I have this Technics SL-1200 with cover, that I have been loaning out the last 15 years - mostly to work colleagues for their kids. They keep it a few months, some more than a year. They either get their fix and forget about it, or they like it and buy their own table. It was in fact just returned to me last October. Amazing how much its value has gone up. |
Not sure if there's any science to support this idea but one of the only reasons I can think of to use a RCM every time is that, in theory, when you spin an lp, micro particles of plastic break off some micro peak and could then, if not removed, wind up getting lodged in some other sideways valley that make up the groves of the album. If you wash regularly, even every time if you're so inclined, you would probably remove those little pieces of debris. I suppose if you're listening to the same lp over and over again (who's crazy?) washing it again and again may get ridiculous, but maybe you might want to get a couple of other records and musically change things up a bit. Don't know if there's any damage done to an lp by washing too often but it seems at worse you waste a couple of minutes and some washing fluid but have a super clean lp. Call me crazy, but you may not even have to worry about being called insane :) |
Hello Ct0517 Re the Premier products: it looks like Soundstage, MusicDirect, and Acoustic Sounds all list the item as discontinued? All I know is it's still available from All-Spec, and when I took the time to look closely at fine print on both products, they use the same bar code and list the same manufacturer and part no. As for the Panasonic record brush -- looks very cool! But it won't remove static from a record because it's not grounded -- and so there's nowhere for the static charge to go. The only NON-GROUNDED device that is effective is the Zero-stat (or other gun) and they work by NEUTRALIZING the (negative) static charge with a positive ion discharge. I have one of those too (the Ortofon version) and it works alright, but it doesn't discharge the static like a grounded carbon-fiber brush. |
As for the Panasonic record brush -- looks very cool! But it won't remove static from a record because it's not grounded Hi Nsgarch What a cool gift from an audio buddy - don't you think ? I don't have a static problem, so as long as it picks up the lint and does not make any static - I'm ok with that. I may call All-Spec out of curiosity to see is there is a wetting agent in there. Just curious because I use one in the formula I make up. btw - I remember our phone call - four years ago ? 11-29-15: Veroman Do you live in S. California ? 8^0 Glad we can be of help. If you change your mind let me know. I have a Technics sl-1200 that I can lend you ..... |
If anyone wants to inquire about the Premier product and if it was different from the (regular) Micro Care contact cleaner, the company to call is Micro Care. They were the ones who (also) supplied Premier (for which Smart Devices used to charge $19.95!) but apparently Premier as a separate product is no longer supplied to the online audiophile outlets. You can contact them here: http://www.microcareelectronics.com/product-category/contact-cleaners/ . |
When a record comes into my possession, whether it is new , used and clean in appearance or used with remnants of mishandling, regardless they get run through the Loricraft I have used for decades twice then placed in a new inner sleeve. Handled properly and lightly brushed before play and put back in the sleeve they never see the cleaner again. |
gpgr4blu Hi Gpgr4blu Jordan of Micro Care told me (by phone/email) that they are the same product except the new one includes Acetone as well. ****************************************************** Me - Hi Jordan. per our call is this the same product. http://www.soundstagedirect.com/accessories-mico-care-premier-cleaner.shtml
He sent me the SDS sheets. If anyone wants them send me an email listed on my virtual system link and I will forward them to you. Cheers |
Well ,maybe not 'couple of minutes' but not too long. Depends on how you clean them. In my case, I would skip enzyme solution and just use Archivist solution followed by pure water once or twice. So..I'd say two minutes each side. And I do believe that there is debris. This is needle 'scratching' vinyl not laser moving along. |
ct0517---Being aware of the problem of dust covers resonating, I modified the base/dust cover of my Townshend Rock Elite table. The Rock's solid/non-suspended plinth (a folded sheet of steel, filled with plaster-of-paris) has three squishy (Sorbothane?) half-spheres on it's underside to isolate it from ground-borne vibration, and when used with the optional base and dustcover, sits on a thin sheet of wood that is the bottom of the base. To minimize the amount of vibration the base and dust cover may transmit into the Rock's plinth, I cut out the bottom of the base, leaving just a frame that surrounds the plinth, the two now connected only through the shelf they sit on. The base (with dust cover) sits on little rubber feet, and the Rock's plinth on roller bearings, both situated on a Townshend Seismic Sink. I may try a set of the new Townshend Seismic Pods under the plinth in the near future. |
Yes dust is the common enemy and vinyl that is playing is exposed to it. Dust is made up of yucky things that are floating in the air around us such as dead skin, house-dust-mites, the droppings from house-dust-mites,pollen from flowers and trees,dirt from the roads,fluff from our clothes sheets bedding etc, ash, exhausts of motor vehicles,and small bits of debris which is carried in on the soles of our shoes. The Op Inna further discusses cooking and smoking in his posts . The contaminants from those activities end up on the vinyl, carried there by dust. Another threat to the vinyl - pets. You know Koaltar and I are buds; and as much as I really want to allow him beside me when listening; (he is good at not talking); he is not permitted downstairs where the gear is for two reasons. His shedding. I do find hairs on the stairs leading down. He is also a chewer. Dust in the Wind https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tH2w6Oxx0kQ |
ct0517- for my next room, I’m seriously considering a whole house active filtration system that installs as part of the HVAC. We had one in our previous house- I’m sure that the technology has improved since then. I have none in this house, but even with the air conditioning off, the listening room isolated from the rest of the house, windows never open, no pets in room, no "traffic" other than me and the occasional guest, no shoes, etc., the dust is a constant. We live "in the country" along the Hudson River 25 miles or so north of Manhattan- perhaps not as pristine as some parts of the country due to air-borne pollution, but pretty clean, green, quiet and low density here. Also very little vehicle traffic on my road. I’m fastidious in maintaining a ’clean’ room within reason (not a "clean room" in the technical sense) and I find that at best, I am moving the dust around, it is impossible to eliminate. |
I rarely find it necessary to clean LPs. Usually a dust brush right at the time of play is sufficient. FWIW I also don't experience a lot in the way of surface noise. The phono equalizer (preamp) can exacerbate surface noise if the preamp is unstable. My preamp employs passive EQ, which helps a preamp be more stable, and even though bandwidth is unaffected, surface noise is obviously reduced. So its rare that I have to clean an LP. |
Atmasphere - FWIW I also don’t experience a lot in the way of surface noise. The phono equalizer (preamp) can exacerbate surface noise if the preamp is unstable. Vinyl would be no fun with noise. But noise is also relative. One thing for sure, those that are older and had a stash of records before CD came in are more conditioned to deal with the noises issues and fix them to levels acceptable to them. Those younger that only knew digital first - have very little patience. I agree, and believe there are some, re-cleaning, clean records that are noisy not due to the lp’s fault itself entirely, but due to some anomaly that is happening in the way the LP is being played, the signal sent to pre/amp/phono, and on to the amp/speakers. This would be evidenced IMO by a person saying, I think something similar was said on this thread too :^) ; "I cleaned the record over again - my whole routine, and nothing changed". This tells me the cleaning process, or something in the signal chain need to be looked at. My records are quiet. Many rival digital with the lead in, and between grooves. I am running a straight shot of unshielded phono wire. I am confident through my trials with other gear over the years, and in speaking with the person that makes my looms, and his experiences with his other customers; that the isolation afforded by the design of the TT, Tonearm, and the quality of my pre/phono is what allows this to happen. I knew someone who thought his surface noise was made worse by improper grounding, so he tried grounding the TT to his very sturdy house cold water supply pipe. Surface noise multiplied. That experiment didn’t last long. Whart - I’m fastidious in maintaining a ’clean’ room within reason (not a "clean room" in the technical sense) and I find that at best, I am moving the dust around, it is impossible to eliminate. I agree Whart and I am about the same I guess, within reason. I also cannot imagine someone being OCD over dust and being involved with vinyl. I recall someone on the forums mentioning that he was building his own turntable, but that he had this thing (problem) with dust. Didn’t make any sense. I am very sensitive to cleaning around the cartridge, having beheaded an XV1’s cantilever years ago. An isolated incident 20 feet from the TT; but what can happen if you’re not careful.... still makes me shudder a bit. |
Seems that we all have a cure for dirty records. I use an Audio Technica brush and make my own cleaning fluid. I got the recipe from the December 1996 Stereophile. I clean every time I play. I have no ticks, clicks, or pops. In fact I can't remember the last time I heard a click or pop from my LP's. They're very quite. I make the formula in gallons, bottle it and give it away as gifts to other audio nuts like myself. If you can't find the Stereophile issue email me and I will send you a copy. Best, Norman |
When I started record playing I used the Parastat cleaner which basically was a round brush you recharged with water. I then had a Nitty Gritty but gave it away. I just bought a vpi cyclone and I use zyme then put the record in a static free sleave. As far as pops or ticks they are few and far between but for me there just the price of admission in the analog world. I clean a record when it sounds dirty or has a skip. I'm not fanatical about it,I would rather enjoy the music. |