Johnny/42659, I have done careful comparisons on the water used for the rinse step. In my listening comparisons, the UltraPure water made a SIGNIFICANT improvement over standard distilled water (such as readily available from the grocery store or pharmacy) when used on the rinse step, regardless of cleaning system used (Disc Doctor, AIVS or Walker Audio Prelude). What I consistently hear in my system using the ultra pure water versus generic distilled water are: quieter surface, a "blacker" background and greater resolution of harmonic overtone details.
If you're going to the trouble and expense of using a three or four step cleaning process, my experience is that you'll be short changing your yourself on the rinse if you don't use an ultra pure water.
As Sonofjim and Hdm observe, using a reagent grade water may be a pretty good alternative to the ultra pure water sold by Walker and AIVS. While there are variations in reagent grade water and none may match all the steps being taken by Walker, AIVS and other audiophile providers, as pointed out by Markd51, the NERL Reagent Grade, Type 1, water sets a pretty high standard. Several people posting here have tried it and reported positive experiences with it as a reasonable alternative. The challenge is to be willing to buy in bulk or to find some audio friends willing to share an order.
I'll add that, in addition to using the ultra pure water rinse, Walker Audio's Step Four High Resolution Rinse makes yet a further improvement in the results I get. If you like the overall results you're getting with Prelude, you should try the recently introduced Step Four Rinse.
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If you're going to the trouble and expense of using a three or four step cleaning process, my experience is that you'll be short changing your yourself on the rinse if you don't use an ultra pure water.
As Sonofjim and Hdm observe, using a reagent grade water may be a pretty good alternative to the ultra pure water sold by Walker and AIVS. While there are variations in reagent grade water and none may match all the steps being taken by Walker, AIVS and other audiophile providers, as pointed out by Markd51, the NERL Reagent Grade, Type 1, water sets a pretty high standard. Several people posting here have tried it and reported positive experiences with it as a reasonable alternative. The challenge is to be willing to buy in bulk or to find some audio friends willing to share an order.
I'll add that, in addition to using the ultra pure water rinse, Walker Audio's Step Four High Resolution Rinse makes yet a further improvement in the results I get. If you like the overall results you're getting with Prelude, you should try the recently introduced Step Four Rinse.
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