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Returning to Vinyl

Now planning a return to vinyl listening after a nearly 40-year hiatus and need some basic help. Although I do still own a functional mid-fi system (Goldring GR1.2 TT with preinstalled arm, Goldring Elektra MM cart, Cambridge Duo phono pre), long gone are the battery-powered vibrating stylus cleaning brush, the Nitty Gritty record cleaning machine, the LAST LP treatment solution with the big wide application brush, and even the MHS archive-quality replacement sleeves. I know there are several cleaning machines on the market and am willing to spend something reasonable (<$1k), but beyond that I'm clueless.
Q1. How necessary is a cleaning machine for an occasional (say, 3x/mo.) vinyl listener with irreplaceable LPs?
Q2. If needed, which product delivers most bang for the buck? 
Q3. Same questions re stylus cleaning devices.
Q4. Same questions re record preservation treatments.
Q5. Tracking/alignment/pressure have not been checked or adjusted since acquisition despite two moves. Are there still shops performing these services? 

Advance thanks for all useful advice.
hickamore
19 responses Add your response
millercarbon's avatar
millercarbon
12,531 posts
 
Q1. How necessary is a cleaning machine for an occasional (say, 3x/mo.) vinyl listener with irreplaceable LPs?
Not at all. Convenient. Not necessary.   
Q2. If needed, which product delivers most bang for the buck?

That said, a vacuum like VPI 16 will speed things up and do a better job compared to by hand.
Q3. Same questions re stylus cleaning devices.
What device? I use a brush. Same exact one since the 1970's. Good enough for Stanton, good enough for Koetsu. Good enough for me.  
Q4. Same questions re record preservation treatments.

Clean em, play em, carefully blow or brush off the occasional speck of dust.
Q5. Tracking/alignment/pressure have not been checked or adjusted since acquisition despite two moves. Are there still shops performing these services?

Never take your deck to a shop except as a last resort. DIY all the way. Use MoFi Geo-Disk for alignment, your choice of stylus force gauge for VTF. Learn to fine tune VTA. It is just not that hard.  

I can just about guarantee this is the least stuff/simplest advice you will get. I can totally guarantee if you hear the results you will be floored. https://systems.audiogon.com/systems/8367  This is just nowhere near as hard as people make it out to be. 

One thing you didn't ask, cleaning solution. Matters far more than the machine. Whole bunch of things will give excellent results so long as you wind up with distilled water rinse and vacuum off. Walker Enzyme 4 Step is preferred, but seriously a lot of stuff will work just fine.  
Post removed 
hickamore OP
659 posts
 
Just what I needed, thanks! 
tomic601's avatar
tomic601
12,911 posts
 
Look into Perfect Vinyl Forever, Joe Harley of Blue Note / Tone Poet recommends it, as does my audio mentor - he has a $4k Ultrasonic machine… I have a trial pack of 16 discs headed that way.

For a smaller record collection this may be much more economical, especially as you ease back in. PM w questions. The website is great. Should you want a wet vacuum cleaning system, the VPI, Nitty Gritty and recently released Keith Monks are all excellent.

Posters like @antinn and @whart have a wealth of info and experience and neither are full of themselves, best i can tell..

Last makes great stylus cleaner.

Where you are located may inform on ability to get great carrry in TT setup. Lots of great TT setup experts make house calls, with much better tools than the high value but imprecise Geodisc. Yes of course, I still have one.

For example @drsuttlife a poster here does TT setup in Florida.

Have fun. Enjoy the music.

Jim


tomic601's avatar
tomic601
12,911 posts
 
oh, if you like I can lend you the geodisc….
hickamore OP
659 posts
 
Most helpful! Having fun and enjoying the music (recordings) is my aim. Can't make it a career myself, but eager to learn from those who can.
armstrod
612 posts
 
Millercarbon gives great advice, and I'll add that VTF is critical with many cartridges, so a stylus force gauge like the Riverstone is essential to proper setup. Inexpensive and worth every penny:

https://www.amazon.com/Riverstone-Audio-Record-Level-Turntable-Resolution/dp/B01N7H52GL
hickamore OP
659 posts
 
armstrod
Looks like a nifty device which maybe even I can learn to use. Some DIY will be necessary for me, living far from metro hotbeds and not wanting to haul delicate TTs around on road trips. But where do I find mfr's recommended VTF for any particular cartridge? Maybe online somewhere? Need to begin by cleaning and optimizing the cart I've got before considering upgrades.
mijostyn's avatar
mijostyn
8,570 posts
 
How many records do you have? You can go to any retail web site like Elusive Disc and the VTF will be in the Cartridge's Specs. 
wyoboy
261 posts
 
As some have said, not essential-just convenient; however, you don't need a machine if you follow this advice on record cleaning:
Neil Antin's paper is thorough and evaluates all types of machines--but his process does not involve anything but easily obtainable cleaner and regular household items--the process is covered in Chapter V if that's all you want to read:  https://thevinylpress.com/app/uploads/2021/03/PAC-Vinyl-Records_2021-03-01_pdf.pdf                                                             (Note:  the "Vinylstack" label protector is no longer available as they've gone out of business but you can improvise
hickamore OP
659 posts
 
mijostyn
Got 300-400 LPs, some duplicates and/or different pressings, virgin vinyl, half-speed mastered, etc.
Will definitely check Elusive Disc, which I'd never heard of. Last time I spun vinyl, there was no such thing as a website to find such information.
wyoboy
Will check the referenced paper. If I end up doing more and more vinyl, a machine will certainly become the right move.
ghdprentice
6,965 posts
 
Given some investments you are in for a real treat. Unless you treated your disks really badly (as in scratched) they are capable of tremendous sound. Also turntables and associated equipment has gotten orders of magnitude better at all price points. A disk cleaner (I use a VPI) can return disks to like new condition and contemporary cartridges can drop deeper into worn record groove and yield spectacular sound. With contemporary turntables noise simply disappears and the cleaning machine eliminates pops and ticks. I haven’t taken a hiatus from vinyl but I remember steps that took me beyond what I thought was possible… over and over again. 

I still use Last preservative after cleaning.
wyoboy
261 posts
 
@hickamore:   Vinylengine is another good website with a database on TT's, tonearms and cartridges & specs
hickamore OP
659 posts
 
Many thanks to all for the tips and encouragement. Will definitely follow them up. Believe the right time has come. While vinyl is a hassle, I'm finding streaming falls well short of audio nirvana and is not without its own frustrations. Synching streaming apps with iPad -- !%^&!* Can't help wondering: six months from now, will I be creating playlists dubbed to cassette tapes as I did in the 1970s? Just discovered that TEAC still sells one, and for that matter I've got an old Rotel that sounds better than it deserves to. (Can't afford R2R, from what I'm reading).

tomic601's avatar
tomic601
12,911 posts
 
Goldring Elektra Phono Cartridge Specifications
- Frequency response: 20Hz-20kHz ± 3dB
- Channel balance @ 1kHz: 2dB 
- Channel separation @ 1kHz: 20dB 
- Output voltage @ 1kHz,5cm/sec: 5mV±2dB 
- Static compliance: 16mm/N
- Equivalent tip mass: 0.7 mg
- Vertical tracking angle: 26°
- Stylus radius: Elliptical .0007 x .0003 (18µ x 7µ)
- Stylus type: Replaceable, Golding D152E stylus 
- Load resistance: 47k ohms
- Load capacitance: 150-400 pf
- Internal inductance: 560 mH
- Internal resistance: 700 ohms
- Weight: 4.2 g
- Mounting: 1/2 inch (12.7 mm) 
- Tracking force range: 1.5-3.0 g (2.0 g nominal)
hickamore OP
659 posts
 
Got that box checked! Thanks Jim.
ghdprentice
6,965 posts
 
Just as an aside. Streaming these days can be outstanding. It can be completely hassle free and truly audiophile quality. High end streamers produce outstanding bit streams with very reliable easy to use apps to manage them. But as in all things audio it takes carefully choosing equipment that is compatible and synergistic. Sounds like there are lots of opportunities for enjoying an improved system. I’d recommend concentrating on one leg at a time. Enjoy.
mglik
908 posts
 
Regardless of price level, vinyl playback is most rewarding.
And whatever you put into it will give a great return on investment.
And even a modest system produces that organic sound that is digested in a way beyond digital.
BTW-best stylus cleaner that is also most easy to use is the Onzow Zerodust. $52 on Amazon.
hickamore OP
659 posts
 
So much shared experience here, and all for free, what a bonanza! Absorbing every word I'm reading from you veterans who know the way. Key accessories will have been ordered by this time Monday, and some old record spun to get me oriented.
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