"Cleaning" Vinyl Makes It Worse Not Better!

@impaler you want to get that junk off the record. The mold release agent residue can increase surface noise and mask some detail. I generally clean new records before playing them.

@vitussl101 maybe so. But I’m more than happy with the results I get from my homemade record vacuum machine. It is head and shoulders above the old Discwasher we used in the 1970s. No, it isn’t as convenient for one off use like a Degritter or the $6000 Clear Audio Double Matrix or whatever you said, but as I stated, I only have about 250 vinyl records and don’t buy new ones or play them like I used to. When records were about $20 a pop, I became more selective. When they became $30, I cut my buying in half. When they became $40, I stopped completely. I’m done.

I can’t see the sense in blowing $6000 on something for just 250 records.

I could buy about 500 CDs for that amount and not have to waste any time cleaning. Or I could pay for Tidal for about 40 years, assuming I live to be 106.

Alternatively, if I really, really, really was anal about it, I could box up the top 100 of them and send them off to be professionally cleaned and returned to me.

Ultrasonic cleaning of records is something Audio Advice or other bricks and mortar places should think about getting into. As a service, say charging $2 a record, it would also allow them to sell associated audio equipment like turntables, phono stages, and cartridges.

The thing is, if people are having to deep clean their records often then they are doing something wrong either in handling or in storage. Once I clean a record with my vacuum system, I generally don’t have to do it again for a very long time. Glad of that.

If a Degritter was $500 I’d buy one in a heartbeat just for fun. But not at $4000. I’d have to own at least 2000 records to justify it.

@impaler Apparently you didn’t watch the video and you completely missed my point. Take care.

  And your question about some sort of release agent on records during manufacture, I once had a Ultra one step pressing that had a ring of a grease like substance around the outer grooves.  Touching it made it smear like grease.  MusicDirect was not sure what it was either.

@vitussl101 Yes, I know what you mean.  The little bottle you're talking about is Mofi's Ultra Record Wash concentrate for ultrasonic cleaning machines.  Again, you can make your own for a fraction of the cost.

I have many used lps.  Only clean the real dirty ones.

I use Dawn dishwashing detergent and distilled water in

my Spin Clean brand record cleaner.  Then gently rub and pat dry.

An expensive tonearm will also ameliorate/reduce/change surface noise.

One of the things I really like about my KL Audio ultrasonic machine is that the only "cleaning fluid" it uses is distilled water.  No gunk, no chemicals, no minerals, just clean (and dry!) records.  I also have a VPI 16.5 that I use first if a used record looks really dirty.  I've never had either machine make a record "worse".  

There have been times where I've wondered how much they really do, but a lot of times a record is just pressed badly, or worn and no amount of cleaning will help.  It can be very effective as well.  I remember a time I had my girlfriend over listening to music with me and the record we were listening to was really noisy.  She said "why don't you put that in your cleaning machine" to which I replied, "it's probably just worn out and I doubt that will help", but after a good cleaning it was noticeably better.