The high frequency sounds were totally absent on the dirty record, causing a muddy sound, and nicely restored on the cleaned record, making it sound crisp and resolute. The record prior to cleaning was very dirty in the grooves. To not notice the difference, one would have to be quite hard of hearing.
Great video, clear explanation, solid camera work too! You are definitely one who pays attention to detail, and the resulting sound you are demonstrating shows it! I also have the Nagaoka MP-110 and a new ultrasonic cleaner, so thank you for the guidance.
I got my Isonic machine (like the one here) last week. Your demo shows what I have experienced. The cleaning does more than getting rid of the dirt that causes clicks and pops. It actually makes the audio clearer, like a veil has been lifted. Thanks for the video. It's posts like this that made me take the plunge and move from my vacuum RCM to ultrasonic.
@@ogsan1296 the Kirmuss can only clean one record at a time and then it takes more than 30 minutes to do all his steps. Kirmuss is an OCD nerd the invents problems that aren't there. Go with the Isonic.
Ultrasonic cleaning is the way. Removes pop and crackles from records that are visibly clean as well. I have tried on my noisy old records and it miraculously removes most of the noises.
This is the best and most informative video I have seen on ultrasonic record cleaning. I use the same method but without the addition of the Triton X, which I am going to ad, as soon as I can find some more distilled water. Thx a bunch, great video!
It is actually not, because you do not need to add any surfactant when ultrasonic cleaning. Only distilled water is needed. This is because H2O breaks up into H+OH, and that in itself works as a surfactant.
Patrick, you also have a hard time finding distilled water? I found a solution. Computer stores, who sell and build PCs, produce distilled water themselves for CPU cooling systems. Highly recommended. The pharmacy water that the employees there say is distilled water, isn't true, I've checked with the distributors, and the sterile water employees claim is "yes, it is, distilled", it is not. It is just lack of knowledge by the workers, which is quite annoying. Sterile water has only been boiled, not distilled.
Even though I watched this on my phone and even through TH-cam's compression, that's a really impressive difference. I definitely think you've made a very strong case there for using an ultrasonic cleaner.
I'm in Sydney Australia, I use similar percentages of tap water, Methylated spirits(actually grain ethanol in Australia) and a very small amount of commercial vinyl floor cleaning detergent. The results are just as good as all the recommended agents that I used when I first bought the ultrasound cleaner, but a mate that owns a record shop and has been doing this for 20 years put me onto this much cheaper and just as good way to get records clean.
How about a *quiet section* with empty spaces in the mix, and/or the sound of an intermediate band? Playing busy music in an A/B clean dirty is useful but not as illustrative of what an A/B of quiet bits would show.
We excel at this as seen at the Cascadia pressing plant visit and subsequent demonstration at the ARSC conference in Portland. We removed the dust trapped in the groove between tracks that landed on the hot record. No pop. No further pops created.
Excellent comparison. I don't have a lot of LPs(maybe 120) but what I have is irreplaceable because a lot of them are Indian Classical Lps that are not available anymore at any price.
Excellent 😃 Happy to hear that. I will get a Vevor 6L as soon as i can afford it too. Great choise. I also think of getting a Knosti Disco anti-stat to use as a rinsing bath with pure destilled water after the vevor clean, just to make sure there is Nothing left on the records when they dry..
With the exception for the loading time he says his setup will do five (5) each load cycle. So in reality that's only three (3) minutes per LP per load cycle. Not bad at all. Ultrasonics is a marvel it's now being used for cancer treatments to disintegrate tumors, I'm happy about that.
Bub Worsten yeah that turntable was left outside but under some cover, near the sea for years. Luckily it had the acrylic cover on it, which went completely opaque but under that protection it was in really good condition. It’s kind of a miracle that it works so well after sitting outside for 12 years.
Lp cleaning is a must. You really only have to do it once. The results are impressive. I wash my lps with distilled water and turgikleen using brushes to get into the grooves, then vacuum using a NittyGritty 1.5, then rinse using distilled water and another brush, then vacuum again. Takes 5 or 6 minutes per lp and the results are dramatic.
Thank you for this video. Until now I had thought that ultrasonic cleaning was just snake oil but your comparison leaves no doubts on its usefulness. I hope you are doing well and keep making videos!
Good video. I use the Kirmuss version of the Codyson unit. It only does 2 at a time but eliminates the need for the skewer & spacers. You just drop it in the slots of the top and press a button.
Hey! I'm back... I would love to try a side by side of a record cleaned with a Spin Clean (or similar) and an Ultrasound cleaner. Just watched your video again and it's still the best one of these on youtube. Great job!
The sound difference is incredible even through the TH-cam video. It would be cool to here and a b comparison between a record cleaned with the spin clean system versus the ultrasonic cleaner.
A spin clean is in between this. There you have that result. Spin Clean is also just annoying, dragging dirt around within the brushes. Also you need to spend a fortune on their silly priced fluid that makes dirt sink to the bottom, it has residue that sits on the records afterwards, due to these residues. And after a little while, you need to buy more overpriced brushes from them. Total waste of money product. You could rather clean by hand using a microfiber cloth - much safer - quicker - and CHEAPER.
I find the ultrasonic cleaning has a bigger effect on the fidelity than noise. Maybe that's because my records are already pretty clean. It definitely improves the sound.
I've been wanting to see a video on ultrasonic cleaning vinyl with "before and after" to see if it is worth it... this is brilliant, exceeds all my wishes, as it includes the technique and details on how to clean the records too... Awesome work!
I find ultrasonic cleaning a must when you buy secondhand records. Many people who sold their vinyl records didn't properly cared for them resulting in very dirty records. And this is were an ultrasonic cleaner really shines!
This is the first time I've ever really heard what can be called a true difference in the sound of a before and after. Can you please confirm that the level and settings of each playthrough are the same? The cleaned playback actually seems to have more volume, better highs and in general feels like a blanket was removed from in front of the speakers.
I've just put together an ultrasonic cleaning system, and looking for a "procedure" to clean with a minimum number of steps. I think yours looks to be good and thorough. I may have to pick up the Zen Matin Groupe recording as well! Thanks, from Spring, TX.
Great video sir, I just bought this particular ultrasonic machine looking forward to getting my collection of over 600 vinyl clean and play. How do you clean your machine after you're done cleaning vinyl?
I just drain it and wipe the bottom of the tub with a paper towel. I also leave the draining valve open so it might dry over time. Seems impossible to get the last little amount of water out. Enjoy your new cleaner. Let me know how it goes.
I like vinyl, but this elaborate system is one reason CDs will always be in my collection. A cloth and/or isopropyl alcohol is all CDs need, unless you get a really deep scratch on it.
@Shanon . Hello from Denmark. I have an honest question regarding water. Are you familiar with the difference between destilled water and demineralized water ? Reason for asking is that in Every video i see regarding record cleaning, be it from U.S. , England, Germany, France etc.. Everyone say they use destilled water bought for pennies at their local store, but here in ol´ Denmark, i can buy Demineralized water at almost any store for pennies, but Actual Destilled water i can only buy online from medical/farmaceutical companies at 3x the price. The reply i get from people around the globe is : `I´m not familiar with the difference` - as if Google is a thing not heard of.. So i´m truly interested in your thoughts on this matter.. Thanks and nice video btw
Hi, that is a good question. demineralised water is also known as Deionised water. the reason we are using distilled water, which is a type of purified water, is just so that there aren't any residues left behind on the record when it dries. Demineralised/deionised water has had it's non-organic salts etc removed, so it should work just as well, and be cheaper too. 'Because most non-particulate water impurities are dissolved salts, deionization produces highly pure water that is generally similar to distilled water, with the advantage that the process is quicker and does not build up scale.' en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purified_water good luck with your record cleaning!
Hi you from Denmark. It is the same here in Norway. You can't just go buy distilled water in a local store. I had to go to a computer store who made their own distilled water used for cooling systems for PCs. It cost €10 for only 1 litre. I couldn't just poor distilled water like this guy does in this video, it would ruin us. Also, I'm not sure why he needs to rinse the LPs after using only 1% isopropanol. Isopropanol is known to vaporise itself and it doesn't leave any residue behind. Also #2, he doesn't need to use isopropanol as surfactant when ultrasonic cleaning records. The kHz used to create the microscopic waves you see is actually the water molecules breaking from H2O to H+OH, which works as a surfactant in itself.
Did you connect the H5 via RCA to mini jack cable, out of your amplifier for the record clips you played? I just got an H5 to use for recording vinyl, and plan to work my projects the same way. I'm assuming the mini jack input on the microphone capsule defeats the mics and lets you use the input level gain on the capsule. I have not seen any other specific examples of using the H5 for this purpose, so any other advice for using the H5? Thanks.
If you clean by hand and microfiber cloth and use isopropanol with distilled water, it dries quicker. Dry it off with a microfiber cloth. This will reduce drying time dramatically. You do not need to rinse off isopropanol.
Nice, but I think it would have been a better test if you had also recorded samples after cleaning with a carbon fiber brush and a disco antistat to see whether the ultrasonic would make a noticeable difference after a basic clean had already been attempted.
No brush would solve it like the good result showed in this video. He could use the manual wet cleaning method, using about %15-20% isopropanol with distilled water, and wash it by hand and a microfiber cloth. I get the same results by doing this as he does in the video. There is nothing fancy about ultrasonic cleaning. Also I do not need any iso for ultrasonic cleaning, as the breaking of H2O molecules to H+OH is a surfactant itself. And 15 minute cleaning with ultrasonic? 6-7 minutes is enough, it is proven that longer than this actually damages the records with ultrasonic cleaning.
This is exactly what i am after / Im IN AUS so may order from NZ and get it shipped. May i ask how noisy the unit is when its turned on ? Alot of the other Ultra Sonic cleaners out there are super loud. Otherwise awesome video!
Thanks for your video and great to hear from a fellow kiwi in the vinyl community. Real groovy also sell the CD-4682 which appears to be a smaller cousin at a cheaper price. Are you familiar with this model? Also do you think there is and loss when cleaning 5 at a time? Does the cavitation occur between the records as well as it does when cleaning just one? Cheers
I haven’t tried that smaller one so I can’t really comment, but the one I have barely covers all of the grooves, you have to fill it above the max water line. As long as it is the same depth as my one, it’s probably fine. There is definitely a loss in cleaning action the more records you put in at once, because they block the energy reaching the records behind them. But still, even with 5 records in there, they definitely do get clean. If you really want to give it a good clean, I’d say just put in one record. Sometimes I put in 2 and space them out with the rings in between them. I think that with these machines there are definitely sweet spots in the tub, that have the most cavitation. It’s caused by 3 motors, and you probably want to be as close to those as possible, compared to off in the corner.
Hi Too Friendly! Firstly thanks for making this video! Great stuff! Now, I could have sworn that I read a comment from someone that mentioned they were going to try and import them into Australia. Does that ring a bell? Cheers.
Yes, someone had mentioned that, however they said they were going to import the ‘kirmuss audio’ version of it. And I would personally recommend staying away from that because the Kirmuss guy is full of crap. They use the standard cleaning machine made by codyson, although he will make up claims that it uses a different frequency. He also calls it ‘patented’, however nothing about the cleaning process is different, the only patent he’s got is the lid that spins the record - which i think is good actually. I wish he wouldn’t use scam artist techniques talking about ‘release agents’ a special ‘goat hair brush’ (obviously just a shaving brush, with bristles too thick to have any effect on the microscopic grooves of a record), and some bullshit spray etc. He wears a white lab coat and sounds like Dan Akroyd lol... and he keeps commenting on this damn video, making up nonsense, double lol. The bottom line is that they try to sell the Kirmuss audio machine for AUD$2,800, where it should only cost about $800, like this one did. I got it from real groovy music store in NZ. Good luck and let me know if you find one.
@@Filtersloth Thank you for the information mate. Dan Akroyd hahaha. Can you tell me the model of this Codyson please? As I think this could be what I’ve been looking for.
@@Filtersloth quick questions. How loud is it? As myself and a friend are looking for something quiet. And is there an in built thermometer. As I see you using your own. And what’s the price again? I can’t remember if it’s mentioned in all the comments. Thanks again 🙏🏻
@@fohentertainment it’s loud, all ultrasonic cleaners are loud, and annoying. I put it in another room usually. There is an inbuilt thermometer, but the lowest temp that it will turn off at is higher than I want to put my records in. Ultrasonic cleaners are generally made for cleaning metal and things like that. I have seen this one for as low as $800 NZD from real groovy, realgroovy.co.nz/product/492174/ultrasonic-record-cleaner-with-5-disc-motorized-r
Nigel Humffreys Hi. Yeah it’s the Real Groovy one. It works well. The ultrasonic cleaner itself is not made specifically for record cleaning, so it’s the spindle add-on thing that’s been made with records in mind. It’s worth putting a bit of lube on the part of the rod that rubs against the plastic, or it ends up making plastic powder. Also you have to fill it up with water way above the ‘max’ line, or it wont reach all the record grooves. I haven’t tried any other machines, but this one works well. The Nagaoka MP-110 is great, although I’m no expert. I was thinking of trying out a MC cartridge, but only because I like to experiment. I’m pretty happy with my setup now really, it sounds good so I can spot a clean record vs a dirty record easily.
@@Filtersloth Cool thanks for that. Think I'll give both a try. I'm running a Sumiko Pearl which is great but so many good things said about the Nagaoka 110. I was considering building my own ultra sonic set up but would be much of a saving from the Groovy one.
Nigel Humffreys Yeah I was going to build my own one, but importing a budget machine through amazon was actually really expensive, the shipping was as much as the machine, plus I doubt they are very good. I got a quote for a machine from an NZ company that specialises in them, and it was more than $1000, then after that you’d have to build a spindle.
@@Filtersloth I picked one up last week and have done 15 records. Really happy with it! pretty easy process. I find the speed brush paint brushes from Bunnings or Mitre10 work well for the prewash/brush. It's what I used for cleaning before getting the ultrasonic.
What's the unit name of the cleaning machine? Does it come with the LP spacer? The sound comparison was amazing, almost hard to believe the record sounded this bad without cleaning.
No it’s not a Kirmuss one... we’ll in a way it is, because Kirmuss just buys these Codyson ultrasonic cleaning machines and adds his own the lid that spins the record, then sells it for more than 3 times the price (prices I have seen over here at least). He also makes up A LOT of nonsense claims. Basically he’s a classic sideshow salesman with an act and a lab coat. So... I’m not a fan lol.
I've watched a lot of videos of Kirmuss talking and I find it hard to believe anything he says quite frankly. Like that thing he does with the 'special shaving brush' with the spray bottle and the foam showing up on the record after each wash... it's residual soap on the brush that doesn't get rinsed. It's a carnival trick to sell cleaning machines, which incidentally is the exact same machine as this. I do like the look of the record spinner on his though. I do appreciate that he sounds like Dan Ackroyd in Ghostbusters though.
utub what stuff? It only came with the record spinner thing and the machine itself, the stuff shown in the video. This is a cleaning machine manufactured by Codyson, which Kirmuss would have bought in bulk. He’s said that his is tuned to a certain frequency but I really doubt that’s true. This machine is generally used for cleaning dental tools I believe.
@@utub1473 this isn't a Kirmuss ultrasonic cleaner. I bought it from a record store called Real Groovy in New Zealand. Kirmuss doesn't make ultrasonic cleaners, they just buy this machine from Codyson who is the actual manufacturer. Kirmuss does have their own top attachment made though.
Amazing video. One question. Once you clean up records, do you "preserve" the entire solution or dump it every time? If you want to keep it for extended time period like a few months, what would be the best way?
no I only keep it for a couple of weeks max. It will start to grow bacteria which you can see floating around as clumps (I forgot to throw some out once and it stayed in a bottle for a month or more. That's why it's important to dry the records thoroughly after cleaning. I throw it out after it starts to look murky anyway. Once you have some of that detergent that's shown in the video, a small can will last for years. Isopropyl is cheap and so is the water, so overall it's really cheap to make. Best to just make a new batch. I would like to find out if there is an antibacterial that I can put in the water.
@@Filtersloth Thanks for reply. I was thinking it's waste of money to throw it away after a couple of records cleaning though. I should wait for a batch to clean up. As you said, i wish there is something to keep it for a longer time.
@@Filtersloth did you ever get round to testing any antibacterials? from my brief research it seems benzalkonium chloride is the active ingredient you want, and it's in pool cleaners to vet disinfectants. I've had no issues using a mix of water/iso/ilford. Usually get through enough in a day or two and dump the liquid after. Sometimes will run it through a coffee filter, but meaning to try TDS measurements to see if it actually has an effect.
Very interesting but I'd love to here a comparison between a manual cleaning and the US. I clean using a basin with a very similar cleaning solution to what you are using. Then I use a shop vac with an attachment to vacuum the record, go back to a 2nd basin that is distilled water to rinse,, then back for a 2nd vacuum. I;m wondering if there is enough difference to justify the cost difference? I can usually clean about 10 records an hour using my method. I have about $120 invested in the equipment I need to clean. What is the US you have selling for?
I’m not really sure how you could do a comparison between the two methods, because you can’t really clean the same record twice. I suppose you could clean it in a basin first, test it, then ultrasonic clean it and test it again. But that wouldn’t tell you much because just washing it in the basin a second time might have made it cleaner. Maybe the only way to know would be to clean half the record in the basin and the other half in the ultrasonic cleaner (without it spinning), then look at how dirty it is under a microscope. Maybe I should buy a microscope... Cleaning records in a basin does a really good job, there’s nothing wrong with it. This isn’t really promotional video for ultrasonic cleaners, I was just lucky enough to be given one and wanted to see the difference before and after. But you can see that I didn’t really scrub the record beforehand, so just the US cavitation did all the cleaning, so that definitely works. I guess the other good thing about ultrasonic cleaning is that there isn’t any mechanical action like you get with a brush or cloth, pushing grit around the record grooves potentially causing scratching or pushing dirt further in. I’m not sure how much this one cost, maybe about US$600.
@@Filtersloth I guess the closest you could get would be to clean with one method play, then clean with the other, then do another record reverse it, cleaning with the other method first. But you are right not really a totally scientific way to do it.
I can help. I now use a similar model (Kirmuss Record Restoration System) and used to use an enzyme with a VPI 16.5 in a TWO-STEP process before this. The US process is a winner! The difference is in the sound. The US process with alcohol in the mix adds clarity and high-end extension with details that no other process I know can do. A similar tank to his is $800 usd on Amazon. I have the basic Kirmuss Audio system (modified top lid versus a 'skewer' here) and it goes for $900 usd. ....WELL WORTH THE MONEY !!
That's probably quite difficult to test. You could probably clean it with a brush, record it, then ultrasonic clean it and record it again. Ultimately I think the best way would be to clean half a record with each method and then check under a microscope. But I don't have one.
Hey man. I saw an essay about ultrasonic cleaning and the guy recommends using Hepastat 256 for anti microbial in his solution. did you exclude it because it's hard to find in NZ?
Yes that's right. It was probably the same place that I got this cleaning recipe. Any idea where to find hepastat256 in NZ? Here is where to find Triton-X 100 in NZ. $15 (I saw the same thing being sold for $100 on another site) www.conservationsupplies.co.nz/products/triton-x-100
@@rabarebra it’s just a sticky soft rubber thing. Similar to the material you’d get with those kids stretchy hand toys. Hard to describe, but it doesn’t leave a residue, and it can be cleaned with water when it eventually gets covered in dust. Lasts forever pretty much.
@@Filtersloth Eh, not really. Attaches to the dirt? 😂 The "extreme" tiny sound waves in an ultrasonic system, H2O split to H+OH, removes the dirt. You do not need that detergent, nor the isopropanol in such a system.
@@rabarebra well I’ve tried it with just distilled water, without detergent or isopropyl, and it did not clean it as well at all. Cleaning it again with the detergent brought more dirt off the record, which could be seen in the water. But anyway you seem like the kind of special person that leaves half a dozen comments on a video, likes to argue and is an expert in everything. So good luck to you. Bye.
Woah, impressive - you have certainly just helped my decision-making process on the way! I will be cleaning both LPs and 78s: frustrating thing I've noted with 78s is that when you clean them by conventional means (I use of Knosti manual cleaner) you actually get worse build-up on the stylus than before cleaning, presumably because the 80-year-old dirt is only loosened but not removed by the cleaning fluid and brushes. So I have high hopes for an ultrasonic. Have you ever tried enzyme-based cleaning fluids in your ultrasonic tank?
Richard Black thanks a lot. I don’t have any experience cleaning 78s but I do have a few albums. 78s are usually made with shellac, so I would not put alcohol anywhere near it, as it will dissolve the shellac. I’ve heard to avoid immersing 78s in water, so an ultrasonic cleaner or any water bath might damage them. I read this: “It is important that records are not left immersed in water for any length of time. Some records (Columbias and Edison Diamond Discs, for instance) are laminated over a core that will swell if it gets wet. This causes peeling in the form of lamination cracks and edge separations. Additionally, certain labels can be damaged by water, especially those with porous paper or water-soluble inks.”. I haven’t tried enzyme-based cleaning but I’ll look it up, thanks.
@@Filtersloth Thanks. Most of the troublesome 78s are acoustic-era discs, pre-1925, and my collection is almost entirely later than that. I've cleaned many 78s by immersion methods, generally 5 minutes or so, and never had the slightest trouble, but you're right about alcohol: they generally don't like it, even diluted. Hence interest in enzyme-based cleaning fluids.
Hi Richard , in the process of looking for an ultrasonic cleaner for my records , can you send a link or info on your machine please , I'm in Oz , thanks ...
@@martyzone2316 I bought this one and it seems to do the job very satisfactorily: www.bestultrasonic.co.uk/ultrasonic-cleaner--bath-professional-digital-with-degassing-6-litre-80-p.asp
i have the same experience with Knosti. Guess you just cant let it dry but have to rinse it with water again after finished cleaning to avoid that build-up on the stylus
I can hear the difference between clean and dirty....many comments want to hear a quieter piece of music to really hear the difference. Ultra-sonic might finally be the answer!!!
too bad you didnt use quiter passages for comparison, even with headphones the difference between cleaned and dirty loud passages is not that big according to what i hear, just a bit more open thats it. I also wonder why you add alcohol and triton as most manufacturers advice just tap water
Try listening again but try to just concentrate on the sound of the guitar. It becomes pretty much inaudible when dirty. At first I tried with just tap water, however it didn’t work very well at all, and it left mineral deposits on the record. You need a bit of detergent to bind to the dirt and carry it away.
It's a shame your vinyl rips are not in stereo, the groove noise tends to have a wider soundstage than the music on the same records, and is therefore super easy to spot on headphones.
This is the best A/B comparison video I have ever seen on any topic and any equipment. Bravo!
I've been a VPI 16.5 user for about a decade. I'm reasonably sure I'm going to finally make the jump to ultrasonic due to videos like this. Thank you!
Wow big difference. I didnt expect the fidelity and clarity of the high range to increase so much
I am just as surprised!
I expected the pops and clicks to reduce a bit.
The high frequency sounds were totally absent on the dirty record, causing a muddy sound, and nicely restored on the cleaned record, making it sound crisp and resolute. The record prior to cleaning was very dirty in the grooves. To not notice the difference, one would have to be quite hard of hearing.
"How do you clean your records? Hand wash in the sink? Spin Clean? Vinyl Vac? Okki Nokki?"
"Nah, mate. Electric spiders."
I think this is the only video that shows the clean/dirty comparison like you did, huge difference!!!!! Very well done!!!!
Great video, clear explanation, solid camera work too! You are definitely one who pays attention to detail, and the resulting sound you are demonstrating shows it! I also have the Nagaoka MP-110 and a new ultrasonic cleaner, so thank you for the guidance.
I got my Isonic machine (like the one here) last week. Your demo shows what I have experienced. The cleaning does more than getting rid of the dirt that causes clicks and pops. It actually makes the audio clearer, like a veil has been lifted.
Thanks for the video. It's posts like this that made me take the plunge and move from my vacuum RCM to ultrasonic.
Dan, how do you like the ISONIC ?, I have been looking at it. Can't decide that or the Kirmuss
@@ogsan1296 the Kirmuss can only clean one record at a time and then it takes more than 30 minutes to do all his steps. Kirmuss is an OCD nerd the invents problems that aren't there. Go with the Isonic.
@@dougmacmillan1712 Thanks, I appreaciate your opinion. Just what I wanted to hear....
Bravo! Excellent how-to and before-after comparison. My ultrasonic cleaner is on its way. I can't wait!
Perfect comparison! You can really tell how much detail the cleaning brought to the surface!
Ultrasonic cleaning is the way. Removes pop and crackles from records that are visibly clean as well. I have tried on my noisy old records and it miraculously removes most of the noises.
Excellent. And, after all these years, that was the first time I've heard Anthony Phillips' first post-Genesis album, 'The Geese & the Ghost.' Nice.
Wow, brought back so much treble and clarity.
This is the best and most informative video I have seen on ultrasonic record cleaning. I use the same method but without the addition of the Triton X, which I am going to ad, as soon as I can find some more distilled water. Thx a bunch, great video!
It is actually not, because you do not need to add any surfactant when ultrasonic cleaning. Only distilled water is needed. This is because H2O breaks up into H+OH, and that in itself works as a surfactant.
Patrick, you also have a hard time finding distilled water? I found a solution. Computer stores, who sell and build PCs, produce distilled water themselves for CPU cooling systems. Highly recommended. The pharmacy water that the employees there say is distilled water, isn't true, I've checked with the distributors, and the sterile water employees claim is "yes, it is, distilled", it is not. It is just lack of knowledge by the workers, which is quite annoying. Sterile water has only been boiled, not distilled.
Great A/B. Definition and soundstage opened right up.
Even though I watched this on my phone and even through TH-cam's compression, that's a really impressive difference. I definitely think you've made a very strong case there for using an ultrasonic cleaner.
Best and convincing demo that I saw. Great job. thanks a lot.
Your cleaning process made a heck of a difference to that record !
I’ve been looking for a video with a before and after like this forever. So it is possible to bring a record back from the dead.
You can bring back records from the dead by manually wet-cleaning as well.
I'm in Sydney Australia, I use similar percentages of tap water, Methylated spirits(actually grain ethanol in Australia) and a very small amount of commercial vinyl floor cleaning detergent. The results are just as good as all the recommended agents that I used when I first bought the ultrasound cleaner, but a mate that owns a record shop and has been doing this for 20 years put me onto this much cheaper and just as good way to get records clean.
Great video. I did find that .1% Triton 100-X was too much. My LP's were very sticky. Going to try .05%
This is a really nicely shot and well put together video. The cleaning made a huge difference. I think I'm going to get one
How about a *quiet section* with empty spaces in the mix, and/or the sound of an intermediate band? Playing busy music in an A/B clean dirty is useful but not as illustrative of what an A/B of quiet bits would show.
We excel at this as seen at the Cascadia pressing plant visit and subsequent demonstration at the ARSC conference in Portland. We removed the dust trapped in the groove between tracks that landed on the hot record. No pop. No further pops created.
Excellent comparison. I don't have a lot of LPs(maybe 120) but what I have is irreplaceable because a lot of them are Indian Classical Lps that are not available anymore at any price.
Hello to India from Denmark.. Before you think of buying this machine, look at Vevor ultrasonic ! Much cheaper and just as good.
@@elCaxi1971 LOL. I agree. I bought the vevor 4 weeks ago. Works great. Half the price of the humminguru
Excellent 😃
Happy to hear that. I will get a Vevor 6L as soon as i can afford it too. Great choise. I also think of getting a Knosti Disco anti-stat to use as a rinsing bath with pure destilled water after the vevor clean, just to make sure there is Nothing left on the records when they dry..
Very good video ,i might look into this,i do manually clean every lp every time is is played but this sounds worthwhile
15 minutes per record. That's crazy. It will take me forever. Good video 👍
I think you can do 10 at a time with that machine.
With the exception for the loading time he says his setup will do five (5) each load cycle. So in reality that's only three (3) minutes per LP per load cycle. Not bad at all. Ultrasonics is a marvel it's now being used for cancer treatments to disintegrate tumors, I'm happy about that.
Absolutely wonderful test video. Kudos!
I also have to say... the wear and tear on that old Yamaha turntable looks so good sat on top of the matching metallic amp.
Bub Worsten yeah that turntable was left outside but under some cover, near the sea for years. Luckily it had the acrylic cover on it, which went completely opaque but under that protection it was in really good condition. It’s kind of a miracle that it works so well after sitting outside for 12 years.
Lp cleaning is a must. You really only have to do it once. The results are impressive. I wash my lps with distilled water and turgikleen using brushes to get into the grooves, then vacuum using a NittyGritty 1.5, then rinse using distilled water and another brush, then vacuum again. Takes 5 or 6 minutes per lp and the results are dramatic.
Thank you for this video. Until now I had thought that ultrasonic cleaning was just snake oil but your comparison leaves no doubts on its usefulness.
I hope you are doing well and keep making videos!
Thank you for this! ... Triton X-100 is the BEST I've tried yet. .... Love this stuff.
Dirty was fuzzy, dull, distorted and clean was open, clear and sparkle. A big difference... thanks
Good video. I use the Kirmuss version of the Codyson unit. It only does 2 at a time but eliminates the need for the skewer & spacers. You just drop it in the slots of the top and press a button.
Have you seen results as positive as this with the kirmus? I know his method does not use any soap.
Great results! Before cleaning the sound was muffled and blurred.
Hey! I'm back... I would love to try a side by side of a record cleaned with a Spin Clean (or similar) and an Ultrasound cleaner. Just watched your video again and it's still the best one of these on youtube. Great job!
Isnt' this the same as the two iSonic models? Are they just branded differently in NZ?
The sound difference is incredible even through the TH-cam video. It would be cool to here and a b comparison between a record cleaned with the spin clean system versus the ultrasonic cleaner.
A spin clean is in between this. There you have that result. Spin Clean is also just annoying, dragging dirt around within the brushes. Also you need to spend a fortune on their silly priced fluid that makes dirt sink to the bottom, it has residue that sits on the records afterwards, due to these residues. And after a little while, you need to buy more overpriced brushes from them. Total waste of money product. You could rather clean by hand using a microfiber cloth - much safer - quicker - and CHEAPER.
I find the ultrasonic cleaning has a bigger effect on the fidelity than noise. Maybe that's because my records are already pretty clean. It definitely improves the sound.
I've been wanting to see a video on ultrasonic cleaning vinyl with "before and after" to see if it is worth it... this is brilliant, exceeds all my wishes, as it includes the technique and details on how to clean the records too... Awesome work!
A very good Video! Especially the before and after Demonstration.
I find ultrasonic cleaning a must when you buy secondhand records. Many people who sold their vinyl records didn't properly cared for them resulting in very dirty records. And this is were an ultrasonic cleaner really shines!
Very nice demonstration
Where did you get that record rack, its brilliant for this job (I'm NZ too, so if its from an nz company that is great.)
I think it’s some kind of office rack for putting files into.
Finally someone with fine taste in music....
This is the first time I've ever really heard what can be called a true difference in the sound of a before and after. Can you please confirm that the level and settings of each playthrough are the same? The cleaned playback actually seems to have more volume, better highs and in general feels like a blanket was removed from in front of the speakers.
yep, the levels were the same, nothing changed between recording the before and after.
@@Filtersloth That's amazing. Thanks for posting.
Nicely done. Great comparison!
Great video. Awesome job with the clean and dirty comparison.
I've just put together an ultrasonic cleaning system, and looking for a "procedure" to clean with a minimum number of steps. I think yours looks to be good and thorough. I may have to pick up the Zen Matin Groupe recording as well! Thanks, from Spring, TX.
Great video sir, I just bought this particular ultrasonic machine looking forward to getting my collection of over 600 vinyl clean and play. How do you clean your machine after you're done cleaning vinyl?
I just drain it and wipe the bottom of the tub with a paper towel.
I also leave the draining valve open so it might dry over time. Seems impossible to get the last little amount of water out.
Enjoy your new cleaner. Let me know how it goes.
Hey, where can I purchase the RCM? What frequency does that use? I checked online but I couldn't find it.
I like vinyl, but this elaborate system is one reason CDs will always be in my collection.
A cloth and/or isopropyl alcohol is all CDs need, unless you get a really deep scratch on it.
that Antony Phillips record!!! love it
What about Triton's toxicity?
@Shanon . Hello from Denmark. I have an honest question regarding water. Are you familiar with the difference between destilled water and demineralized water ?
Reason for asking is that in Every video i see regarding record cleaning, be it from U.S. , England, Germany, France etc.. Everyone say they use destilled water bought for pennies at their local store, but here in ol´ Denmark, i can buy Demineralized water at almost any store for pennies, but Actual Destilled water i can only buy online from medical/farmaceutical companies at 3x the price. The reply i get from people around the globe is : `I´m not familiar with the difference` - as if Google is a thing not heard of.. So i´m truly interested in your thoughts on this matter.. Thanks and nice video btw
Hi, that is a good question.
demineralised water is also known as Deionised water.
the reason we are using distilled water, which is a type of purified water, is just so that there aren't any residues left behind on the record when it dries.
Demineralised/deionised water has had it's non-organic salts etc removed, so it should work just as well, and be cheaper too.
'Because most non-particulate water impurities are dissolved salts, deionization produces highly pure water that is generally similar to distilled water, with the advantage that the process is quicker and does not build up scale.'
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Purified_water
good luck with your record cleaning!
Hi you from Denmark. It is the same here in Norway. You can't just go buy distilled water in a local store. I had to go to a computer store who made their own distilled water used for cooling systems for PCs. It cost €10 for only 1 litre. I couldn't just poor distilled water like this guy does in this video, it would ruin us.
Also, I'm not sure why he needs to rinse the LPs after using only 1% isopropanol. Isopropanol is known to vaporise itself and it doesn't leave any residue behind.
Also #2, he doesn't need to use isopropanol as surfactant when ultrasonic cleaning records. The kHz used to create the microscopic waves you see is actually the water molecules breaking from H2O to H+OH, which works as a surfactant in itself.
Did you connect the H5 via RCA to mini jack cable, out of your amplifier for the record clips you played? I just got an H5 to use for recording vinyl, and plan to work my projects the same way. I'm assuming the mini jack input on the microphone capsule defeats the mics and lets you use the input level gain on the capsule. I have not seen any other specific examples of using the H5 for this purpose, so any other advice for using the H5? Thanks.
Yes that’s right. Into the Mic capsule that clicks on to the top.
@@Filtersloth Thank you sir!
Wow that is an amazing difference.
what's frequency does it run at?
It also runs too fast.
How do you dry you vinyl after it has finished cleaning in the CD-4875? I'm considering getting one. Would you still recommend this product?
I just let it sit in the rack and slowly dry, like I show in the video.
Yeah I’d still recommend one
If you clean by hand and microfiber cloth and use isopropanol with distilled water, it dries quicker. Dry it off with a microfiber cloth. This will reduce drying time dramatically. You do not need to rinse off isopropanol.
Nice, but I think it would have been a better test if you had also recorded samples after cleaning with a carbon fiber brush and a disco antistat to see whether the ultrasonic would make a noticeable difference after a basic clean had already been attempted.
No brush would solve it like the good result showed in this video. He could use the manual wet cleaning method, using about %15-20% isopropanol with distilled water, and wash it by hand and a microfiber cloth. I get the same results by doing this as he does in the video. There is nothing fancy about ultrasonic cleaning. Also I do not need any iso for ultrasonic cleaning, as the breaking of H2O molecules to H+OH is a surfactant itself. And 15 minute cleaning with ultrasonic? 6-7 minutes is enough, it is proven that longer than this actually damages the records with ultrasonic cleaning.
Love this song. What's it called?
This is exactly what i am after / Im IN AUS so may order from NZ and get it shipped. May i ask how noisy the unit is when its turned on ? Alot of the other Ultra Sonic cleaners out there are super loud. Otherwise awesome video!
It’s pretty noisy and annoying. But not quite as annoying and loud as another smaller one I have
@@Filtersloth thanks for info man, much appreciated 👍.
Thanks for your video and great to hear from a fellow kiwi in the vinyl community.
Real groovy also sell the CD-4682 which appears to be a smaller cousin at a cheaper price. Are you familiar with this model?
Also do you think there is and loss when cleaning 5 at a time? Does the cavitation occur between the records as well as it does when cleaning just one?
Cheers
I haven’t tried that smaller one so I can’t really comment, but the one I have barely covers all of the grooves, you have to fill it above the max water line. As long as it is the same depth as my one, it’s probably fine.
There is definitely a loss in cleaning action the more records you put in at once, because they block the energy reaching the records behind them. But still, even with 5 records in there, they definitely do get clean. If you really want to give it a good clean, I’d say just put in one record. Sometimes I put in 2 and space them out with the rings in between them.
I think that with these machines there are definitely sweet spots in the tub, that have the most cavitation. It’s caused by 3 motors, and you probably want to be as close to those as possible, compared to off in the corner.
@@Filtersloth Thanks. Food for thought. I'm also eyeballing the humminguru soon to be released and appears affordable.
Hi Too Friendly! Firstly thanks for making this video! Great stuff! Now, I could have sworn that I read a comment from someone that mentioned they were going to try and import them into Australia. Does that ring a bell? Cheers.
Yes, someone had mentioned that, however they said they were going to import the ‘kirmuss audio’ version of it. And I would personally recommend staying away from that because the Kirmuss guy is full of crap. They use the standard cleaning machine made by codyson, although he will make up claims that it uses a different frequency. He also calls it ‘patented’, however nothing about the cleaning process is different, the only patent he’s got is the lid that spins the record - which i think is good actually. I wish he wouldn’t use scam artist techniques talking about ‘release agents’ a special ‘goat hair brush’ (obviously just a shaving brush, with bristles too thick to have any effect on the microscopic grooves of a record), and some bullshit spray etc. He wears a white lab coat and sounds like Dan Akroyd lol... and he keeps commenting on this damn video, making up nonsense, double lol.
The bottom line is that they try to sell the Kirmuss audio machine for AUD$2,800, where it should only cost about $800, like this one did. I got it from real groovy music store in NZ. Good luck and let me know if you find one.
@@Filtersloth Thank you for the information mate. Dan Akroyd hahaha. Can you tell me the model of this Codyson please? As I think this could be what I’ve been looking for.
@@fohentertainment sure, it is a codyson CD-4875. It is 410 watts.
@@Filtersloth quick questions. How loud is it? As myself and a friend are looking for something quiet. And is there an in built thermometer. As I see you using your own. And what’s the price again? I can’t remember if it’s mentioned in all the comments. Thanks again 🙏🏻
@@fohentertainment it’s loud, all ultrasonic cleaners are loud, and annoying. I put it in another room usually.
There is an inbuilt thermometer, but the lowest temp that it will turn off at is higher than I want to put my records in. Ultrasonic cleaners are generally made for cleaning metal and things like that.
I have seen this one for as low as $800 NZD from real groovy,
realgroovy.co.nz/product/492174/ultrasonic-record-cleaner-with-5-disc-motorized-r
Hey from the Tron. Cheers for the video. Is this the Real Groovy cleaner?
You still rate it and the Nagaoka Cart?
Nigel Humffreys Hi. Yeah it’s the Real Groovy one. It works well. The ultrasonic cleaner itself is not made specifically for record cleaning, so it’s the spindle add-on thing that’s been made with records in mind. It’s worth putting a bit of lube on the part of the rod that rubs against the plastic, or it ends up making plastic powder. Also you have to fill it up with water way above the ‘max’ line, or it wont reach all the record grooves.
I haven’t tried any other machines, but this one works well.
The Nagaoka MP-110 is great, although I’m no expert. I was thinking of trying out a MC cartridge, but only because I like to experiment. I’m pretty happy with my setup now really, it sounds good so I can spot a clean record vs a dirty record easily.
@@Filtersloth Cool thanks for that. Think I'll give both a try. I'm running a Sumiko Pearl which is great but so many good things said about the Nagaoka 110.
I was considering building my own ultra sonic set up but would be much of a saving from the Groovy one.
Nigel Humffreys Yeah I was going to build my own one, but importing a budget machine through amazon was actually really expensive, the shipping was as much as the machine, plus I doubt they are very good. I got a quote for a machine from an NZ company that specialises in them, and it was more than $1000, then after that you’d have to build a spindle.
@@Filtersloth I picked one up last week and have done 15 records. Really happy with it! pretty easy process.
I find the speed brush paint brushes from Bunnings or Mitre10 work well for the prewash/brush.
It's what I used for cleaning before getting the ultrasonic.
@@nizzalotti nice! Yeah I think a pre-wash helps to loosen it up a bit.
Did you get that triton-X detergent?
What's the unit name of the cleaning machine? Does it come with the LP spacer? The sound comparison was amazing, almost hard to believe the record sounded this bad without cleaning.
The brand is 'CODYSON', but I forgot the model number. maybe CD-4875
I think the machine is usually used for cleaning dental tools.
Is your tank the one from audio Kirmuss? If so then are you unhappy with the kirmuss method?
No it’s not a Kirmuss one... we’ll in a way it is, because Kirmuss just buys these Codyson ultrasonic cleaning machines and adds his own the lid that spins the record, then sells it for more than 3 times the price (prices I have seen over here at least).
He also makes up A LOT of nonsense claims. Basically he’s a classic sideshow salesman with an act and a lab coat.
So... I’m not a fan lol.
Great results, but I'm curious why didn't you use the method Kirmuss audio recommends?
I've watched a lot of videos of Kirmuss talking and I find it hard to believe anything he says quite frankly.
Like that thing he does with the 'special shaving brush' with the spray bottle and the foam showing up on the record after each wash... it's residual soap on the brush that doesn't get rinsed. It's a carnival trick to sell cleaning machines, which incidentally is the exact same machine as this. I do like the look of the record spinner on his though.
I do appreciate that he sounds like Dan Ackroyd in Ghostbusters though.
TooFriendly Your machine did come with all that stuff though, didn’t it?
utub what stuff? It only came with the record spinner thing and the machine itself, the stuff shown in the video.
This is a cleaning machine manufactured by Codyson, which Kirmuss would have bought in bulk. He’s said that his is tuned to a certain frequency but I really doubt that’s true. This machine is generally used for cleaning dental tools I believe.
@@Filtersloth Oh I thought the Kirmuss ultrasonic cleaner came with the brushes and the water-soluble detergent. I guess not.
@@utub1473 this isn't a Kirmuss ultrasonic cleaner. I bought it from a record store called Real Groovy in New Zealand.
Kirmuss doesn't make ultrasonic cleaners, they just buy this machine from Codyson who is the actual manufacturer.
Kirmuss does have their own top attachment made though.
Thank you for this! Do you have an online link for the ultrasonic unit + motorized spinner?
For New Zealand?
I got it here: realgroovy.co.nz/product/492174/ultrasonic-record-cleaner-with-motorized-rotisseri
Amazing video. One question. Once you clean up records, do you "preserve" the entire solution or dump it every time? If you want to keep it for extended time period like a few months, what would be the best way?
no I only keep it for a couple of weeks max. It will start to grow bacteria which you can see floating around as clumps (I forgot to throw some out once and it stayed in a bottle for a month or more. That's why it's important to dry the records thoroughly after cleaning.
I throw it out after it starts to look murky anyway.
Once you have some of that detergent that's shown in the video, a small can will last for years.
Isopropyl is cheap and so is the water, so overall it's really cheap to make. Best to just make a new batch.
I would like to find out if there is an antibacterial that I can put in the water.
@@Filtersloth Thanks for reply. I was thinking it's waste of money to throw it away after a couple of records cleaning though. I should wait for a batch to clean up. As you said, i wish there is something to keep it for a longer time.
@@Filtersloth did you ever get round to testing any antibacterials? from my brief research it seems benzalkonium chloride is the active ingredient you want, and it's in pool cleaners to vet disinfectants.
I've had no issues using a mix of water/iso/ilford. Usually get through enough in a day or two and dump the liquid after. Sometimes will run it through a coffee filter, but meaning to try TDS measurements to see if it actually has an effect.
Is it possible to clean Singles (7 inch) using this device?
Yes, you have to fill it up above the max water line though, but you also need to do that for 12” records too
Very interesting but I'd love to here a comparison between a manual cleaning and the US. I clean using a basin with a very similar cleaning solution to what you are using. Then I use a shop vac with an attachment to vacuum the record, go back to a 2nd basin that is distilled water to rinse,, then back for a 2nd vacuum. I;m wondering if there is enough difference to justify the cost difference? I can usually clean about 10 records an hour using my method. I have about $120 invested in the equipment I need to clean. What is the US you have selling for?
I’m not really sure how you could do a comparison between the two methods, because you can’t really clean the same record twice. I suppose you could clean it in a basin first, test it, then ultrasonic clean it and test it again. But that wouldn’t tell you much because just washing it in the basin a second time might have made it cleaner.
Maybe the only way to know would be to clean half the record in the basin and the other half in the ultrasonic cleaner (without it spinning), then look at how dirty it is under a microscope. Maybe I should buy a microscope...
Cleaning records in a basin does a really good job, there’s nothing wrong with it. This isn’t really promotional video for ultrasonic cleaners, I was just lucky enough to be given one and wanted to see the difference before and after. But you can see that I didn’t really scrub the record beforehand, so just the US cavitation did all the cleaning, so that definitely works. I guess the other good thing about ultrasonic cleaning is that there isn’t any mechanical action like you get with a brush or cloth, pushing grit around the record grooves potentially causing scratching or pushing dirt further in.
I’m not sure how much this one cost, maybe about US$600.
@@Filtersloth I guess the closest you could get would be to clean with one method play, then clean with the other, then do another record reverse it, cleaning with the other method first. But you are right not really a totally scientific way to do it.
I can help. I now use a similar model (Kirmuss Record Restoration System) and used to use an enzyme with a VPI 16.5 in a TWO-STEP process before this.
The US process is a winner!
The difference is in the sound. The US process with alcohol in the mix adds clarity and high-end extension with details that no other process I know can do.
A similar tank to his is $800 usd on Amazon. I have the basic Kirmuss Audio system (modified top lid versus a 'skewer' here) and it goes for $900 usd.
....WELL WORTH THE MONEY !!
Love your setup!
thinkzinc100 thanks a lot.
I’ve rearranged it a bit since then but still have the same stuff.
@@Filtersloth please let me know when you are giving away your setup
The Geese and the Ghost - what a great album!
Yes, of course it sounds better than a dirty record but how does it compare to a record cleaned with only a brush?
That's probably quite difficult to test.
You could probably clean it with a brush, record it, then ultrasonic clean it and record it again.
Ultimately I think the best way would be to clean half a record with each method and then check under a microscope. But I don't have one.
At what cost.
Try to put the nut on backwards and you won't get water on the label. I am gonna try your suggestion with the alcohol and Triton. Cheers
this was a really great tip, thanks.
Also, get rid of the detergents and surfactants, and there will be almost no spilling at all, as it is also unnecessary for ultrasonic cleaning
Hey man. I saw an essay about ultrasonic cleaning and the guy recommends using Hepastat 256 for anti microbial in his solution. did you exclude it because it's hard to find in NZ?
Yes that's right. It was probably the same place that I got this cleaning recipe.
Any idea where to find hepastat256 in NZ?
Here is where to find Triton-X 100 in NZ. $15 (I saw the same thing being sold for $100 on another site)
www.conservationsupplies.co.nz/products/triton-x-100
WHY USE RECORD'S SOUND AT TH-cam; IT'S ANYWAY CANNOT HEAR THE QUALITY ON A PC;
BUT HOW IT IS ?....
DO IT ANY IMPROVMENT ?
What did you use to clean the stylus between dirty/clean record?
An Onzow ZeroDust
@@Filtersloth Should only use a clean dry stylus brush. What is Onzow good for? They don't say what is in it. Do you know?
@@rabarebra it’s just a sticky soft rubber thing. Similar to the material you’d get with those kids stretchy hand toys.
Hard to describe, but it doesn’t leave a residue, and it can be cleaned with water when it eventually gets covered in dust. Lasts forever pretty much.
@@Filtersloth The Onzow leaves grease all over your stylus. It DO leave a residue.
@@Filtersloth A stylus brush is the only thing you need.
Do,you actually get time to LISTEN?
what does the tritan x do?
It’s a gentle detergent. It attaches to the dirt and helps take it off the record.
@@Filtersloth Eh, not really. Attaches to the dirt? 😂 The "extreme" tiny sound waves in an ultrasonic system, H2O split to H+OH, removes the dirt. You do not need that detergent, nor the isopropanol in such a system.
@@rabarebra well I’ve tried it with just distilled water, without detergent or isopropyl, and it did not clean it as well at all.
Cleaning it again with the detergent brought more dirt off the record, which could be seen in the water.
But anyway you seem like the kind of special person that leaves half a dozen comments on a video, likes to argue and is an expert in everything. So good luck to you. Bye.
@@Filtersloth You would be better off pre-cleaning it, then use ultrasonic with distilled water only.
@@Filtersloth "half a dozen comments" Is to correct your faulty unnecessary claims.
Hey, how did you purchase this? I tried on Alibaba but they said they don't sell to the USA :(
TheEnergyWarning i bought it from a record store in New Zealand called Real Groovy. I’m not sure about buying in the USA sorry.
shanon Stevens How much are they selling this at Real Groovy? You reckon the other record stores sell these or even JB Hi-Fi?
What was the name of the system?
The cleaning system? It’s a Codyson CD-4875.
It’s in the video description there somewhere.
Wow it really does work.
Woah, impressive - you have certainly just helped my decision-making process on the way! I will be cleaning both LPs and 78s: frustrating thing I've noted with 78s is that when you clean them by conventional means (I use of Knosti manual cleaner) you actually get worse build-up on the stylus than before cleaning, presumably because the 80-year-old dirt is only loosened but not removed by the cleaning fluid and brushes. So I have high hopes for an ultrasonic.
Have you ever tried enzyme-based cleaning fluids in your ultrasonic tank?
Richard Black thanks a lot.
I don’t have any experience cleaning 78s but I do have a few albums. 78s are usually made with shellac, so I would not put alcohol anywhere near it, as it will dissolve the shellac.
I’ve heard to avoid immersing 78s in water, so an ultrasonic cleaner or any water bath might damage them. I read this:
“It is important that records are not left immersed in water for any length of time. Some records (Columbias and Edison Diamond Discs, for instance) are laminated over a core that will swell if it gets wet. This causes peeling in the form of lamination cracks and edge separations. Additionally, certain labels can be damaged by water, especially those with porous paper or water-soluble inks.”.
I haven’t tried enzyme-based cleaning but I’ll look it up, thanks.
@@Filtersloth Thanks. Most of the troublesome 78s are acoustic-era discs, pre-1925, and my collection is almost entirely later than that. I've cleaned many 78s by immersion methods, generally 5 minutes or so, and never had the slightest trouble, but you're right about alcohol: they generally don't like it, even diluted. Hence interest in enzyme-based cleaning fluids.
Hi Richard , in the process of looking for an ultrasonic cleaner for my records , can you send a link or info on your machine please , I'm in Oz , thanks ...
@@martyzone2316 I bought this one and it seems to do the job very satisfactorily:
www.bestultrasonic.co.uk/ultrasonic-cleaner--bath-professional-digital-with-degassing-6-litre-80-p.asp
i have the same experience with Knosti. Guess you just cant let it dry but have to rinse it with water again after finished cleaning to avoid that build-up on the stylus
Great video!
Wow, you even managed to clean off the mistracking! That is some difference.
Hej
Was that record new or second hand from real groovy records.
I checked but they only have cd.
Cheers
Prill
Second hand. I forget where I got it from.
That is a fantastic result, I could do with one
This is a great demonstration, definitely getting the HumminGuru very soon, cheers!
Huge difference.
thanks for sharing
I can hear the difference between clean and dirty....many comments want to hear a quieter piece of music to really hear the difference. Ultra-sonic might finally be the answer!!!
I might try cleaning an old test record that I have.
Nice. Thank you.
Wow.. The results are stunning, it's night and day! Hell with spin clean, I'll just get an ultrasonic cleaner big enough for LP's
too bad you didnt use quiter passages for comparison, even with headphones the difference between cleaned and dirty loud passages is not that big according to what i hear, just a bit more open thats it. I also wonder why you add alcohol and triton as most manufacturers advice just tap water
Try listening again but try to just concentrate on the sound of the guitar. It becomes pretty much inaudible when dirty.
At first I tried with just tap water, however it didn’t work very well at all, and it left mineral deposits on the record. You need a bit of detergent to bind to the dirt and carry it away.
@@Filtersloth The H+OH will carry it away. You do not need the detergent.
Nice work!
impressive!
It's a shame your vinyl rips are not in stereo, the groove noise tends to have a wider soundstage than the music on the same records, and is therefore super easy to spot on headphones.
nice vid ! thanks
Any other humminguru backers here?
Not Dave Denyer...