maxg Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Well now that I am getting seriously into this vinyl thing (140 albums now) the question of how to clean the records has arisen. I am assuming that a good bath in fairy liquid with a scrubbing brush and then hanging them outside to dry is not a good idea. Funnily enough that is not a million miles away from what I do with CD's - minus the hanging part. What do people use? I have seen a dedicated cleaning unit but it cost more than my turntable. What cleaning stuffs do I need? Would surgical spirit be a good idea? How about nail varnish remover? (I noticed the clear audio needle cleaning bottle smells of acetone) Vodka? What should I use for a brush? Lots of questions - not particularly urgent - all my records are new but I am sure it will come up as an issue. ------------------ My System: http://aca.gr/pop_maxg.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Yea I would like some guidance on this issue. There has to be a way to get them real clean without buying a high dollar cleaning machine. ------------------ HH Scott 299 Amp HH Scott LT-110B Tuner HH Scott P-87 Turn Table Grado cartridge Sony CDP315 CD Drive 1985 Walnut Heresey I KSW-15 Subs>c> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Songer Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 I am somewhat of a maniac when it comes to cleaning records. Here's what I do: I start with a good scrubbing with the Disc Doctor solution and brush--a good 2-3 minutes per side and a trip through the Nitty Gritty (I have the cheap, fully manual one and it works great--I'm on my second one, the first one lasted about 7-8 years!). I then give another scrubbing with an alcohol based cleaner and then another trip through the Nitty Gritty. Finally I scrub (again with the Disc Doctor pads--I've used a TON of different pads over the years and these are BY FAR the BEST!) with distilled water and then a final trip through the Nitty Gritty. I then air-dry the LP for about 15-20 minutes and ZAP it with a Zero-Stat and it's ready to go. If you dont want to spenda bunch of money on a Nitty Gritty or VPI machine, I can honestly say you'll get very good results with the Disc Doctor system alone. I can't say enough good things about the pads or the cleaner--they're by far the best. His stylus cleaner is great too, by the way. I clean my stylus between each LP. Disc Doctor is available from Duane Goldman at: Lagniappe Chemicals (314) 205-1388 www.discdoctor.com Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Songer Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 I forgot to address the "how often" comment. Answer: Once! You have to get a good dry brush (Decca or AudioQuest) and make sure to brush before every play. And make sure you store your LP is GOOD sleeves (I like the VRP sleeves from DiscWasher) and handle them carefully! Never touch the surface of the record! Some REALLY nasty records might need 3 cleanings or more before they are really clean, however. And remember to clean NEW records too--there is a lot of crap in the grooves right from the pressing plant! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted April 2, 2002 Author Share Posted April 2, 2002 Allan - what took you so long? LOL. My god - how quickly would you have responded if I had said it was urgent??? Unfortunately the discdoctor link seems to not be working - I get a micro$oft message to say it no longer exists. Any other sources??? TIA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Songer Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Sorry! Duane has a new URL: www.discdoc.com Welcome to the world of vinyl! I have about 1800-2000 LPs at this point--99% jazz from the 50's through the early 80's. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maxg Posted April 2, 2002 Author Share Posted April 2, 2002 99% jazz !!!!! I am guessing you really really really like jazz then. For some strange reason I have precisely zero jazz records - but I will remedy that soon. Right now it is 10% classical and the rest are pop/rock and soul from the 50s to the 90s. My current best in the recording stakes is a Sade record (which sounded great on CD but it murdered by this). For some reason it seems to be recorded about 10 db louder than anything else - couple that with zero pops, squeeks et al, add on the imaculate soundstaging and it is a winner. The bummer is that my Queen - Live at Wembly and my Madonna are dreadful - the balance is way out (way to bassy) and they boom like cannonfire. ------------------ My System: http://aca.gr/pop_maxg.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Yea Allan you were on this subject like a bad habit !!! I'm pretty much a 70's rock freak and can't believe the deal I get on LP's at my local used shop. $3 to $4 a LP. So i've been stacking up. I just called them to order but got a answering machine. God I hate that ! Craig ------------------ HH Scott 299 Amp HH Scott LT-110B Tuner HH Scott P-87 Turn Table Grado cartridge Sony CDP315 CD Drive 1985 Walnut Heresey I KSW-15 Subs>c> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Allan I've been using D4 disc washer is this system way better ? ------------------ HH Scott 299 Amp HH Scott LT-110B Tuner HH Scott P-87 Turn Table Grado cartridge Sony CDP315 CD Drive 1985 Walnut Heresey I KSW-15 Subs>c> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Also...How would it compare with the Last Record Cleaner fluid? Whole different ball for your wax? fini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Craig, You should get in the habit of posting your signature just one time in a thread. This is generally standard etiquette on every Forum I have ever been a part of. To not have it included in the post, just clear the checkmark where it says Show Signature above the Submit Reply button. Better yet, post your equipment list out on the Audio Asylum like mine and then create a link to the site. This way, if anybody wants to see what you have, they can just click on your link. The other good thing about doing it this way is not cluttering up the search engine when trying to find some information. As an example, if I was trying to find some threads on "Scott" let's say, I would find 300 posts just because they were part of your signature. Just a suggestion... BTW, I really like the graphics. Mike Edit: Allan, thanks for all the info on how to clean a record collection. ------------------ My Music Systems This message has been edited by Mike Lindsey on 04-02-2002 at 01:28 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynnm Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Actually quite a good suggestion Mike ... I will try to rember to do that from now on too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Allan Songer Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 By the way Craig-- is your nom de plume a reference to a Big Block Mopar "on the bottle?" Just checking. Right out of high school I owned a '69 Super Bee with 426 Hemi, a 4-speed, bench seat, dog-dish hubcaps, no air, no power anything. It did have a heater and an AM radio. It was quite a ride, especially on those skinny bias-ply 70-series tires!! It was the fastest car in town by a long shot. Later I out-did the Super Bee with the ulitmate sleeper--a '64 Studebaker Lark Daytona with a factory Paxton-blown Stude 304, T-10, 4:55 Dana rear end, factory traction bars, etc. It was called a "Super Lark" and there were only a handful made. The engines were hand-assebled by Paxton and shipped to South Bend for intstallation I believe. I used to BLOW AWAY 454 Chevelles and the like. It turned low 11s with no sweat at 108-110 mph. What a car! It's the only car I wish I never sold, really. And it didn't even have a radio! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 That really shows what gears and traction can do for ya. My vette runs 12.70's @ 111 mph on street tires w/the stock 3.45 rear-end. I could probably reduce it by 2 or 3 tenths with drag radials and another driver. Mike Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Allan NOS stands for Nitrous Oxide Systems 440 stands for .060 overbored Chevy 427 = 440 Your buddy at Disc Doctor said thanks for sending him the business he ended up getting me for $150 I bought the works and his CD cleaning Kit too !!! Oh super Bee's are awesome ------------------ HH Scott 299 Amp HH Scott LT-110B Tuner HH Scott P-87 Turn Table Grado cartridge Sony CDP315 CD Drive 1985 Walnut Heresey I KSW-15 Subs>c> This message has been edited by NOS440 on 04-02-2002 at 08:59 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NOSValves Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Oh and yes guy's that's 9:88 in the window. Not bad for 10" slicks and slapper bars with a pump gas motor LOL !!!!! Actually before I parked it 2 years ago it ran 9:20s at 158 mph with 1.38 60 ft times. With my $11K motor, Traction bars and Mickey Thonpson's new 28" X 10.5"W tire designed for the fastest street car shootout Super Street cars. It was a real hairy ride so I decided to give it up for a while and decide what to do with the car. Tame it down or have it 4 linked. I'm still debating. Right now a buddy of mine has spent about 20K on the mustang that were going to put my Chevy motor in and see if we can hit bottom 8's. The chassis was done by Diamond collison here in Flint Michigan. Car should weight in at about 2800 lbs with driver. Craig ------------------ HH Scott 299 Amp HH Scott LT-110B Tuner HH Scott P-87 Turn Table Grado cartridge Sony CDP315 CD Drive 1985 Walnut Heresey I KSW-15 Subs>c> Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weiming Posted April 2, 2002 Share Posted April 2, 2002 Hi, I clean my vinyl using the economical yet effective KAB-EV1 available from KABUSA . Basically, one would need to wet clean a record only once. However, before playing a record, do a dry clean using a carbon fiber brush. The TNT Audio website gives a good overview on record cleaning and maintenance. Do check it out at http://www.tnt-audio.com/clinica/fluids.html Another good site to read up on is http://www.gcaudio.com/Archives/recordcleaning.htm ------------------ My system This message has been edited by Weiming on 04-02-2002 at 10:53 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted April 3, 2002 Share Posted April 3, 2002 Anyone still use the Last Record Cleaner system? fini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clipped and Shorn Posted April 3, 2002 Share Posted April 3, 2002 I just do them when I wash the dishes (soft sponge not the SOS pads). For new vinyl I don't do anything. Maybe I need to rethink this. Since I like Kevin at KAB I will check that out. -Ajaxed, Baboed, and Bon Amied anyone have some NOS Babo? PS. fini, by Last Record Cleaner, do you mean the method used prior to throwing the disc into the trash? ------------------ Cornwalls currently upgrading to all tube components This message has been edited by Clipped and Shorn on 04-03-2002 at 03:56 PM Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fini Posted April 4, 2002 Share Posted April 4, 2002 I've finally realized that my questions will not be taken seriously here in the 2ch forum until I get a NOS-this or an HF-that. Not a jab at you, Clipped. fini Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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