I use an ultrasonic record cleaner with distilled water, a bit of Spin Clean washing fluid and a little Kodak Photo-Flo 200 in the tank. Once the records are cleaned, I simply leave them on the spindle in a vertical position to dry for about 30 minutes. I I NEVER touch the surface of the LP with anything after the cleaning. In my experience, this produces the best clean with the least amount of noise. It has also been my exoerience that using any kind on cloth or wiping method simply applies dust back onto the LP and forces it into the grooves. Again, this has been my personal experience but it does kind of make sence. Why would you ever want to be touching the surface of the LP?
Now using Spin Clean cloths for drying...
I've used my trusty VPI 16.5 for roughly 35 years. I have been using the following process below for roughly 10 years...1) wet clean with Audio Intelligent #15, which does require a distilled (or other pure) water Rinse process. I use separate wet brushes.. one dedicated for the #15, and another for the H20. As the thread title hints upon, I'm no longer vacuuming, Sidenote: When I was vacuuming, I used separate VAC arm tubes for the #15 and water. I would say a couple of years ago, I just stopped the Vac drying in favor of the Spin Clean Cloths. The SC Cloths are very much like an old fashioned cloth baby diaper. I'd like to seek out opinions to see what my fellow Audiogon members think of this. My take is: I see this as a positive, as it eliminates the static (noise/pops/clicks) that the Vac process seems to promote. I use a dedicated bin of cloths for drying the #15, and then another to dry the distilled H20. I realized after a very short period, that the SC Cloths should be used only once. So after a single use, they get laundered with the all natural type laundry detergent.
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The stuff in the grooves is the problem. Do you not think using a brush on the surface of your record is going to be pushing micro size particles back into the grooves? Same with a cloth laying on the surface of the record? Happy to be shown the error of my assessment, but I come back to the same point. Why touch the surface of the record with anything after you have cleaned it? |
I hear you...and I’m trying to be open minded. Being that it’s a Vacuum cleaning machine, the LP surfaces are being touched after cleaning either way. Either by the Vac wand during the Vac dry stage, or by cloth drying. I'm aware these two options may have their advantages and disadvantages. I think the Cloth drying has the edge for the anti-static reason I mentioned in the original thread, Again, there is no Ultrasonic machine in the mix here. Just a VPI Vac cleaner and the comparison between the two drying options. |
A Tap Water that is ’soft’ is claimed to be fine for cleaning an LP, as the particulate that is suspended in it is not going to be of a dimension that can be detected by the Stylus, if it is able to become lodged deep in the groove. I am not sure if this method when used to clean would leave a residual when left to air dry? A Water that is ’Hard’ goes have particulate suspended within it, that is best not to be in contact with a LP Groove, using this method is best avoided and using a Distilled or Purified Water will be the better alternative. Distilled and Purified Water will both air dry without leaving a residual on the surface. When making a Solution for cleaning, there are Solutions that are used that have chemical constituents that can be detrimental and there are ratio’s of mixes for the constituents to be considered for the exact dilution of the chemical. The Link will offer much insight into areas to be concerned about for Cleaning Vinyl LP’s.
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Dear @fjn04 : I cleaned and clean my LP’s through VPi and I only make it once in the LP life. I do it for new LP’s or dirty second hand ones. The best day by day cleaner that mantain each LP in cleaned condition are the cartridges stylus tip. I use a carbob brush ligthly and that’s all.
I don’t care of deep grooves " dust " if the stylus tip can goes deeper. Who cares about? because trying to doing that deeper clean can’t almost helps to improve the quality of what we are listening day by day.. Of course that we have to take care to mantain cartridges stylus tip clean . As almost everything in audio: common sense is just enough.
Regards and enjoy the MUSIC NOT DISTORTIONS, R.
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The cloths are the cheap, easy solution. The problem is that the do not dry deep enough into the groove. If you dry a record and quickly put it on the table and play it, you will see water pile up against the stylus. So, the bottom of the groove dries by evaporation leaving whatever was in the solution. Distilled water is not pure H2O, it is less contaminated H2O. Leave a puddle on a black surface and let it dry. You will see a white spot where the puddle was. That is what is left in your groove. Blow drying is also bad because it is an evaporative method that leaves the same residue in the groove. Vacuum drying is handily the best if it is a good design. It removes the most fluid from deep in the groove. If it leaves a residue it is on the molecular level which may or may not be a good thing depending on what you are leaving behind. |
Oh ok...so the Vacuum does the best job. I wonder if I'm the only one who owns a Vac Cleaning Machine who cloth dries. I watched a You Tube reviewer do a system tour the other day. I can't recall his name, but apparently he reviews for AUDIOPHILIA. He said he generally cleans his Stylus only one way. That is with a drop of Distilled water on a standard cleaning brush. If traces of distilled water are bad for a Stylus, I suppose this isn't the greatest of ideas either. As far as my Stylus goes, I've become very of the Leave It Alone School, and keep my LP's as clean as possible. I will not play an LP without cleaning it, a practice I'm sure others here share. Hmmm... |
Dear @mijostyn : " It removes the most fluid from deep in the groove. "
Deep in the groove? yes but please let me know which cartroidge stylus tip goes " deep in the groove ". Again, best groove cleaner is the stylus tip that must be cleaned with the Lyra solution formulated in specific for that purpose with out damage the stylus/cantilever.
R. |
@rauliruegas , The stylus does not go to the bottom of the groove. It does go deeper than the cloth is capable of drying because I have watched the water pile up behind the stylus. Anything you drag across the groove is going to pick up debris. I personally would rather that it was not my stylus doing the cleaning. Do you know what Lyra Stylus Cleaner costs? $60 for a tiny little bottle. Shoot, Clearaudio sells a bottle twice the size for 1/2 the money and you still even get a brush. I have a brand new high power photomicroscope coming!!! (Wallyscope) I will be able to take before and after pictures of styluses and nose hairs. This one is good enough to see stylus wear. I am going to make a designer record cleaning solution for machines with vacuum drying. I stumbled into an interesting discovery which needs more study. This could be my retirement gig:-) |
