dubai2000 Posted August 27, 2001 Share Posted August 27, 2001 Hello everybody, many years ago it was very fashionable in this country to use a wet playing system (using a mixture of alcohol and water) when playing LPs. Having got used to the handling advantages of CDs, I have neglected my record collection more and more until I purchased a new cartridgde a few month ago. I had also borrowed a record cleaner which I used to clean a few recordings (and that certainly improved the sound!and it was possible to play them 'dry' again!). Now somebody has offered to sell me his VIP 16.5 record cleaner. Having already gathered a lot of valuable information on this board I was wondering if anyone can tell me about his experiences with this device. Are there any weaknesses that such a machine might develop and how effective is its cleaning mechanism? Any comments will be highly appreciated. Thanks a lot in advance. Wolfram Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Garrison Posted August 29, 2001 Share Posted August 29, 2001 I have used a 16.5 for about 3 years. Wife got it for me for Christmas of '98. After many, many records you will need to replace the goo pickup tube's velvet strips, or the whole tube. Audio Advisor lists these from time to time, would bet they almost always have some in stock, or various other dealers (Needle Doctor, etc.). Have not had one single solitary bit of trouble with the system. Understand the 16.5 will overheat if you try to clean too many records at one sitting, that's why they make the 17... but I've cleaned upwards of a dozen LP's at a sitting with no problem. I use the Disk Doctor's fluid, think it's the best of those I've tried. One point - be careful when applying fluid. If you get carried away and put on so much that you saturate the label, you may not see any damage right away, but over time bad things happen. Ray ------------------ Music is art Audio is engineering Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boa12 Posted August 29, 2001 Share Posted August 29, 2001 1st i've seen on lp cleaning here - this forum's great! i still have the vac-o-rec. dry cleaning sys i believe using goat hair(?) wonder if they're still in business(?). no, it wasn't from Ronco or Popiel Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mike Lindsey Posted August 29, 2001 Share Posted August 29, 2001 I have the same one, Boa! I've been using it for over 20 years now with the D4 cleaner and SC-2 stylus cleaner... Mike ------------------ Family Room ----------- Hitachi 43UWX10B HDTV (16:9) Denon AVR-4800 Panasonic DVD-RP91K (Progressive Scan & DVD-Audio) Dual CS-5000 Turntable w/Shure V15V-MR DBX 3bx Series III Range Expander Klipsch Epic CF-2's (mains) Klipsch KLF-C7 (center) Klipsch RS-3's (surrounds) SVS 20-39CS Sub w/Samson S700 Amp Monster HTS-3500 Line Conditioner Scientific Atlanta Explorer 2100 Digital Cable box Monster M-500 Component Video cables Monster Datalink 100 Digital Coaxial cables Radio Shack Gold Series for all other audio interconnects Bedroom ------- Mitsubishi 31" TV Yamaha M-4 Amp Yamaha C-4 Preamp Yamaha T-7 Tuner Teac DVD Player Dual CS-721 Turntable w/B&O MMC2 Looking for a pair of Heresy's Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dubai2000 Posted August 29, 2001 Author Share Posted August 29, 2001 Ray, thanks a lot for the info. The Disk Doctor's fluid is probably a mixture of alcohol, water and some chemical to soften the water, right? When borrowing the record cleaner mentioned in my previous post I mixed the stuff myself (I think I used one part alcohol and 2 parts distilled water plus the odd drop washing up liquid). Would any professionally produced liquid really be superior? Wolfram Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ray Garrison Posted August 30, 2001 Share Posted August 30, 2001 dubai2000, I have absolutely no idea what the stuff is composed of. I tried VPI's fluid, Nitty Gritty's fluid, pure isopropyl, diluted isopropyl, Dawn dishwashing detergent, Diskwasher's fluid and some other stuff, and found the Disk Doctor's cleaned the record better - less filmy-like stuff left that accumulated on the stylus. Check out their website at http://discdoc.com/ , though it doesn't tell you what it's made of. Ray ------------------ Music is art Audio is engineering Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Charles Turner Posted August 30, 2001 Share Posted August 30, 2001 I bought a Nitty Gritty a year ago and it's been great...I'm sure the VPI will be too. I haunt garage sales now and buy up old vinyl. If there are no visible scratches these wet vac systems bring new life back to these 50 cent records Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.