Cleaning Vinyl

[lodger]

Hey, all

i was just curious to see how or whether you all clean your records and what approaches you use. In all my years of making music, etc, I never have but am starting to wonder if that will improve the quality of my tracks. any thoughts?

-Lodger

[Dr Van Nostrand]

most cleaning solutions for records are highly alcohol based i'm pretty sure, and i've read that isopropyl is good to use if you can't find a solution (they are pretty expensive, but the isopropyl has to be at least 90%), but i actually have looked into a nice soap and water solution that i've read works really good, but its gotta be done correctly, you need to have the most basic soap possible, no fragrances, no moisturizers, just plain ass dish soap, and you only use a little squirt, and fill up the sink or whatever so that your record sits in there right up to the label, cause water will definitely fuck up the label, but that then you use a record brush, or i guess even a nice soft cloth, and spin the record in circles while holding the brush on it, and then you pat the label dry when your done cause it will inevitably get a little wet, then the most important part if that you need to let the vinyl dry for hours, playing a wet record is bad news, and will fuck it up permanently, so letting em dry overnight is a smart idea, i haven't gotten to try this though cause i needed a good basic soap to use, so i'll update when i try it, if you search on google you'll probably find tutorials explaining my way more clearly, along with other methods

[Unfolding]

Brushing your record after each play is a drag but helps a bunch in the long run...

Failing that, try the [urlhttp://www.recordrevirginizer.com/]Record Revirginizer[/url]. Its a polymer goo you smear onto the record, leave it 8 hours or so until it dries then peel it off and its good as new. It pulls all the grime & dust off the surface.

Kinda a like a Brazilian wax for your, err, wax...

[crumbsucker]

We use Nagaoka roller on every record that hasn't been cleaned lately just before it sees the needle...or just a brush
Sometimes we have vinyl cleaning sessions with Knosti kit and lots of wine.
It's a boring job but those vinyls are too precious not to be taken care of.
Here a cellphone photo of our family club dj's setup.

[skepsis]

Generic dish soap (no scent), water, and a microfiber cloth seems to get the job done. To dry, I leave the record between two towels and set some sort of weight on top so it acts as a bit of a press. Leave it for a couple of days just to be sure...

[Dj_just_jeff]

i use isopropyl alcohol (rubbing alcohol) and Tp, not kleenex, not paper towel. I just pit the alcohol on the tp and rub the record counter clockwise, not clockwise.

[fauna]

i use a solution of rubbing alcohol and water, dry it with a chamois, then give it a few minutes to air out / evaporate.

i also use a cloth i bought 20,000 years ago, imported from germany, called "the platofix disco service", which is - despite the cool name - really just a cloth.

but (sacrilege!) i usually just leave the vinyl all shitty and gross, cuz i only buy from dollar bins, and figger i'm getting more character from the records when they're lousy than i would when they're clean.

but i realize you didn't ask about that

[Dust le Villain]

word @fauna me too. i like that sound of dust on a record.

Kinda a like a Brazilian wax for your, err, wax...

hahaha

[Dr Van Nostrand]

i definitely dig the dust, i don't make a big fuss about it, but sometimes you buy a real shitty copy of a record with a dope drum break and you just gotta clean it up, when its in the drums it comes through so heavy sometimes

[Dust le Villain]

true true

[a.D.]

A little glass cleaner with a soft rag is a quick and easy way to clean a record - and safe, non-dammaging. But please don't tell me I'm the only one on here that will spit on it a few times, wipe it down, and throw it on the turntable.

[lodger]

Thanks for the feedback. For me there are times you want grit, and sometimes you don't. Grit doesn't always equal character and I've definitely had times where it can get in the way of an otherwise awesome sample (its the worst with early 60's era records, etc.) I'm really curious about that revirginizer stuff...has anyone tried it?

-Lodger

[Unfolding]

I'm really curious about that revirginizer stuff...has anyone tried it?

Yeah, its heaps good! Only other cleaner I've used on records is an anti-static brush so Revirginizer is pretty next level.

Using it is straightforward, just pour it on, smear it all over one side of the record, stick a bit of paper hanging off the record so you've got somewhere to lift it off when it forms a skin & wait up to 12 hours. Then peel it off & marvel at all the dust, hairs & bugs that died in the tracks.

When peeling it off, it lifts quite easily. Just lifts out of the groove & any residue is easy to rub out with the removed skin.

After peeling off the goo skin your records will sound & look more or less new if they're not scratched- they'll have that fresh glossy look back and almost no surface noise.

Downside is that because its made for audiophiles it costs a bit-> AUS$60 (about the same in US $ these days, ha!). Each bottle will get you through maybe 25 sides of 12" vinyl. So that's about $2.40 a go.

Its smells like dirt too.

[fauna]

crazy! i didn't know about this.

[aro.elekwent]

fuck that. THERE IS NO NEED.

vinyl sounds good as long as it doesn't skip.

end of story