Vinyl Snap, Crackle & Pop Issues and Solutions!

hearingimpared

bikezappa wrote: »

Clean rooms are very expensive and the cost depends on the number of particles are in the air and their size. Having a clean room with fewer particles and smaller particles costs more $. ALL the stuff in the clean room is special, the cloths, the paint, the equipment and on and on. The room is pressurized with many filters and blowers so all in incoming air is filtered, You must wear special cloths, gloves, hair net and shoes covers as a minimum.

Listening to lps in a clean room means you couldn't even have a drink or bring in the cardboard LP jacket. Not allowed. Are you LP guys are ready to make the commitment?

:eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek::eek:

cnh

That's a good one bikezappa! Denizens assembling circuit boards in (air-filtered/air-conditioned) rooms with hair-nets and white coats, and surgical gloves, etc., not too far from me in the Haidian district of Beijing [its silicon valley]!!

Yeah we have 'clean' rooms over here. Which is PRETTY incredible considering how horribly polluted this place is!!

cnh

bikezappa

Just for kicks and chuckles turn off all the lights in your room and turn on a high intensity flash light and you will see many particules floating around and landing on your LP while it's playing.

bikezappa

Keiko wrote: »

I had a crazy idea once about trying my Sonicare toothbrush inside the tank of a Spin Clean record washer.

You could try that but I think you will need much more power to ultrasonic the amount of water to submerge the LP.

Maybe you could use ten toothbrushs and I bet that would work.

madmax

cnh wrote: »

with hair-nets and white coats, and surgical gloves, etc.

Welcome to my home. Please put these on before you come in, I have a record playing.

anhchungdoan

bikezappa wrote: »

Just for kicks and chuckles turn off all the lights in your room and turn on a high intensity flash light and you will see many particules floating around and landing on your LP while it's playing.

Done that after I dusted all my gear and it's a horrible experience. Flashlight at a close-up distance will show all the imperfection and dust on my look-as-new gear. :eek:

bikezappa

anhchungdoan wrote: »

Done that after I dusted all my gear and it's a horrible experience. Flashlight at a close-up distance will show all the imperfection and dust on my look-as-new gear. :eek:

And some of it falls into your record grooves to make pops.

It's really amazing that there are so few pops with all the dust floating around.

anhchungdoan

I stopped by BB today to purchase some Bluray music disc and I saw a Project Debut TT for a bit less than $400.00. The odd thing is there is a pair of attached RCA cables out instead of RCA output connector. For $100.00 more, I can get a PJ RPM1.3 with RCA output connectors. Any feedback is welcome. Thank you.

hearingimpared

bikezappa wrote: »

Just for kicks and chuckles turn off all the lights in your room and turn on a high intensity flash light and you will see many particules floating around and landing on your LP while it's playing.

I can see them without the light . . . it drives me nuts!!!:eek: Worse part is that my TT right under the intake duct for the heatpump system and it draws all the air and the nasties that go with it right up past where my rack is located. Unfortunately in the room I use for my 2 channel rig I have nowhere else to place the rack.

hearingimpared

anhchungdoan wrote: »

I stopped by BB today to purchase some Bluray music disc and I saw a Project Debut TT for a bit less than $400.00. The odd thing is there is a pair of attached RCA cables out instead of RCA output connector. For $100.00 more, I can get a PJ RPM1.3 with RCA output connectors. Any feedback is welcome. Thank you.

Pro-ject makes some nice sounding turntables but unless you are just starting out on the vinyl journey I would go for something higher up the chain and preferably one that comes with a record clamp.

IMHO entry levels tables are okay if you are just getting your feet wet in vinyl but if you already have the taste for it, a mid-level Pro-ject will keep you happy for a while and if/when the upgrade bug hits there are plenty of upgrades available from Pro-ject.

bikezappa

hearingimpared wrote: »

I can see them without the light . . . it drives me nuts!!!:eek: Worse part is that my TT right under the intake duct for the heatpump system and it draws all the air and the nasties that go with it right up past where my rack is located. Unfortunately in the room I use for my 2 channel rig I have nowhere else to place the rack.

You could try putting a filter in the outlet duct into the room. A filter on the inlet won't help. Try to find a HEPA filter that will fit tightly into the outlet duct. You want to filter all new air going into the room.

If you can close all the doors in the music room and close/seal off the outlet duct you will sightly pressurize the room with the filtered air. This is what a clean room does. It takes days however to clean up the particles if it does any cleaning at all. The problem is that the music room will generate many particules from the rug and cloth furniture......

cstmar01

hearingimpared wrote: »

Pro-ject makes some nice sounding turntables but unless you are just starting out on the vinyl journey I would go for something higher up the chain and preferably one that comes with a record clamp.

IMHO entry levels tables are okay if you are just getting your feet wet in vinyl but if you already have the taste for it, a mid-level Pro-ject will keep you happy for a while and if/when the upgrade bug hits there are plenty of upgrades available from Pro-ject.

hehehehe......
ever since I got my new table I haven't listened to a CD yet because I'm just having too much fun. Now its even worse with the discovery of the 7" at the store I go to. Yep there goes my wallet haha.

hearingimpared

bikezappa wrote: »

You could try putting a filter in the outlet duct into the room. A filter on the inlet won't help. Try to find a HEPA filter that will fit tightly into the outlet duct. You want to filter all new air going into the room.

If you can close all the doors in the music room and close/seal off the outlet duct you will sightly pressurize the room with the filtered air. This is what a clean room does. It takes days however to clean up the particles if it does any cleaning at all. The problem is that the music room will generate many particules from the rug and cloth furniture......

Thanks Peter for the info. Just an FYI, when I listen to music I always close the two doors to the room, windows closed and I close the two outlet vents because they are noisy when the AC/heat is on. I'll have to look into the HEPA filter.

hearingimpared

cstmar01 wrote: »

hehehehe......
ever since I got my new table I haven't listened to a CD yet because I'm just having too much fun. Now its even worse with the discovery of the 7" at the store I go to. Yep there goes my wallet haha.

Yes, it is addictive, yes it is expensive!:D

anhchungdoan

hearingimpared wrote: »

Pro-ject makes some nice sounding turntables but unless you are just starting out on the vinyl journey I would go for something higher up the chain and preferably one that comes with a record clamp.

IMHO entry levels tables are okay if you are just getting your feet wet in vinyl but if you already have the taste for it, a mid-level Pro-ject will keep you happy for a while and if/when the upgrade bug hits there are plenty of upgrades available from Pro-ject.

Have you tried to " steam-clean" your LPs ? I've read somewhere on A'gon that the Perfect Steamer at Walgreens with some Omosis (?) solution at fish store will do the job just as well the RCM.

I am planning to buy the PJ Debut @ BB and I will use my old Technics TT as the RCM along with the " steam-clean" method. It's a lot of labor of love here for folks who love LPs. I tip my hat to you guys.

hearingimpared

anhchungdoan wrote: »

Have you tried to " steam-clean" your LPs ? I've read somewhere on A'gon that the Perfect Steamer at Walgreens with some Omosis (?) solution at fish store will do the job just as well the RCM.

I am planning to buy the PJ Debut @ BB and I will use my old Technics TT as the RCM along with the " steam-clean" method. It's a lot of labor of love here for folks who love LPs. I tip my hat to you guys.

Yes I have used steam cleaning and posted about it several times here. It is a great way, probably the best for the amount of money involved, to really get into those grooves and get the grunge out. However, I can't use it as I am very heavy handed and can't seem to get it down right without scalding records. As far as I know, I'm the klutz who seems to have this problem so I've come up with a multi-step method to clean records the best I can.

hearingimpared

Peter, I was looking up the HEPA filters you mentioned and I don't know what I am looking for as far as ceiling vents go. Can you help me out a little with this.

This is one of the websites I was looking at. I don't see anything, or don't know what I am looking for that would be used for ceiling vents.

http://www.air-purifiers-america.com/defaultHEPA.asp?campid=ExAirFilters&adid=Hepa+-+Main&utm_source=adwords&utm_medium=cpc&ovcrn=hepa%20filter&ovtac=PPC&ovchn=GGL&ovcpn=Exact&gclid=CN7Pr_Oc26ECFV195QodDD-vIw

bikezappa

Hearing

If you have forced hot heating and air conditioning you will have an air duct inlet and air duct outlet in various rooms in your home. In your music room try to put a HEPA fiter that duct that brings in the new hot or cold air. I'm not sure how you would fit/locate the filter in the air inlet hole. Experiment. You just want to filter the new incoming air with a HEPA. Over time if you keep the doors closed you will reduce the particles in that room. You could also block up the outlet or return air duct. This will increase the pressure in the room and prevent particles frrom getting past the doors and windows.

rcrook317

anhchungdoan wrote: »

I stopped by BB today to purchase some Bluray music disc and I saw a Project Debut TT for a bit less than $400.00. The odd thing is there is a pair of attached RCA cables out instead of RCA output connector. For $100.00 more, I can get a PJ RPM1.3 with RCA output connectors. Any feedback is welcome. Thank you.

I hav the rm 1.3 and it is a very nice tt.Awesome build quality,sleek looks and ive read many great reviews.The platter is positioned on 3 spikes and the motor is totally separated from the chassis to prevent any vibration.I just recieved mine 2 days ago and i am currently waiting on new pulley to come in the mail as i got killer deal on a uk model....so i have yet to hear it yet .

hearingimpared

bikezappa wrote: »

Hearing

If you have forced hot heating and air conditioning you will have an air duct inlet and air duct outlet in various rooms in your home. In your music room try to put a HEPA fiter that duct that brings in the new hot or cold air. I'm not sure how you would fit/locate the filter in the air inlet hole. Experiment. You just want to filter the new incoming air with a HEPA. Over time if you keep the doors closed you will reduce the particles in that room. You could also block up the outlet or return air duct. This will increase the pressure in the room and prevent particles frrom getting past the doors and windows.

Peter,

I always keep the doors to the room closed. The only time they are opened is when we need access to the backyard mostly to let the dog out.

The knucklehead who installed my heat pump only put two intake ducts in the entire house. One in my audio room, which is not large, and one in the vestibule which is between the kitchen and the living room as well as adjacent to the hallway leading to the bedrooms. This is a much larger intake vent. Because there are only these two vents, I fear blocking the one in the music room because I think it will stress the main unit having it have to suck in air from only the intake in the vestibule. So I think that is out of the question.

I have two ceiling output vents in my music room. My main issue here is that I've looked at various HEPA filters and there doesn't appear to be any that would fit inside the ceiling vents. From what I've read, these are not just filters like an AC filter. They appear to be standalone filters that run off of some kind of power. Am I mistaken? Do you know of any that are made for this particular application?

Thanks in advance for your help.:)

hearingimpared

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f4zyjLyBp64

tcrossma

doctorcilantro wrote: »

I just picked up one of these rather than shell out $66 shipped for a zerostat.

ionolcast

DC

Any update on this thing? I'm thinking about giving one a try...

bikezappa

hearingimpared wrote: »

Peter,

I fear blocking the one in the music room because I think it will stress the main unit having it have to suck in air from only the intake in the vestibule. So I think that is out of the question.

I agree. You need both.

I have two ceiling output vents in my music room. My main issue here is that I've looked at various HEPA filters and there doesn't appear to be any that would fit inside the ceiling vents. From what I've read, these are not just filters like an AC filter. They appear to be standalone filters that run off of some kind of power. Am I mistaken? Do you know of any that are made for this particular application?

It may help to try and fit just the HEPA filter element into the vent openings behind the grating in the music room. I don't think you want the stand alone filter that have their own power. You can buy HEPA filters even at HD. The HEPA filters come in all sizes and shapes. Measure the inside vent opening and try to see if a filter can be made to fit into the vent opening with no leaks. Duct tap is your friend here. You need to locate the HEPA filter behind the metal grating so it looks nice. HEPA filters are nothing more than filters that trap very fine particles. It would be interesting to see what particles and how many you can trap with the filter after a month.

hearingimpared

tcrossma wrote: »

Any update on this thing? I'm thinking about giving one a try...

I've never used one but I have bought several items from Mapleshade and I can tell you he doesn't sell junk.

For less than half the cost of the Zerostat plus a 30 day money back guarantee, I think you have nothing to loose plus with the cash saved you can get this;

http://shop.mapleshadestore.com/prodinfo.asp?number=PHONO-BRU

I've been wanting to get one of these for some time now.

hearingimpared

bikezappa wrote: »

hearingimpared wrote: »

Peter,

I fear blocking the one in the music room because I think it will stress the main unit having it have to suck in air from only the intake in the vestibule. So I think that is out of the question.

I agree. You need both.

I have two ceiling output vents in my music room. My main issue here is that I've looked at various HEPA filters and there doesn't appear to be any that would fit inside the ceiling vents. From what I've read, these are not just filters like an AC filter. They appear to be standalone filters that run off of some kind of power. Am I mistaken? Do you know of any that are made for this particular application?

It may help to try and fit just the HEPA filter element into the vent openings behind the grating in the music room. I don't think you want the stand alone filter that have their own power. You can buy HEPA filters even at HD. The HEPA filters come in all sizes and shapes. Measure the inside vent opening and try to see if a filter can be made to fit into the vent opening with no leaks. Duct tap is your friend here. You need to locate the HEPA filter behind the metal grating so it looks nice. HEPA filters are nothing more than filters that trap very fine particles. It would be interesting to see what particles and how many you can trap with the filter after a month.

Thank you sir and if I read this correctly I would need to buy spares as eventually they would clog up despite just very fine particles being trapped.

bikezappa

hearingimpared wrote: »

bikezappa wrote: »

Thank you sir and if I read this correctly I would need to buy spares as eventually they would clog up despite just very fine particles being trapped.

Yes, all filters will clog. Life.

It would interesting to see how long the filters last and if they can reduce particulates. month? year?

hearingimpared

hearingimpared wrote: »

I've had several members who are just getting into vinyl PM me with questions on how to minimize or eliminate the noise which can be very annoying and discouraging. I thought I would just post up some advice that I have given. I hope this help you wet behind the ears vinyl guys!;)

This is a recent reply to such questions from a member who just bought a Micro Seiki turntable.

There can be many contributing factors to the ticks & pops;

1) as you stated, dirty records top the list especially used records. They may even look pristene and shiny but unless you can give them a good scrubbing whether it be with an RCM (recommended) or manually with a good Enzyme Cleaner such as Vinyl Zyme Gold http://www.smartdevicesinc.com/buggtussel.html or MFSL Plus Enzyme cleaner http://www.mofi.com/store/pc/viewPrd.asp?idproduct=170 and then follow up with any of the record cleaning solutions then with a distilled water rinse, you are not getting the grunge completely out of the grooves. MFSL record cleaning brushes are the best to do the scubbing and subsequent cleaning with. You should buy two, one for the initial enzyme cleaner and other for susequent cleaners and rinses. A record, once prep'd should always be cleaned before each play.

2) The next cause could be and usually is static. Do you live is a dry climate? Or is the air in the room you have the TT dry. Vinyl is a static magnet especially after a good cleaning and vacuuming and a record charged with static will, as the stylus rides the grooves, discharge the static thus producing the ticks and pops. I use a ZeroStat gun which typically have become very expensive to the tune of $90 however I found a place http://www.juno.co.uk/products/299784-01.htm?currency=USD&utm_source=google_us&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=Google%2BShopping which is the cheapest I've found. IMHO this is a necessity.

3) This one is a b*tch. Many records made during the massed produced era when vinyl was king have this problem. They were taken out of the mold press before they were cooled enough. This curse presents itself in a very noisy, ticking, crackling & popping especially in the first two tracts. I have several awesome recordings and performances that are cursed with this phenomina. I just had to learn to listen past the noise to hear the music. In some cases the noise is so bad that I just aquired another copy of the record trying to find one from a differt lot. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do about this.

4) A good reflex record clamp such as the Clearaudio Twister Clamp http://store.acousticsounds.com/d/36249/Clearaudio-Twister_Clamp-Record_Mats_and_Clamps when applied to the record with a shim underneath the record causing the record to make intimate contact with the platter from the label out to the lead in bead will dampen most if not all of the noise. Also a good record mat, seeing that your platter is made of metal will also dampen the noise. This mat gets rave reviews from Keiko and others on this forum http://herbiesaudiolab.net/ttmat.htm I've never used a mat as all of my platters have been made from delrin or acrylic and don't require a mat. PM Keiko to get his opinion on this mat.

5) A new or used record if cleaned properly and stored in MFSL Inner Sleeves http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=330415236445&rvr_id=&crlp=1_263602_263622&UA=WXI7&GUID=c9a3f0151210a09c19f4b0a4ffd0c5da&itemid=330415236445&ff4=263602_263622 which is an anti-static, anti-dust archival record sleeve will usually produce a minimum to no tick or pop presentation.

6) A good stylus cleaner will keep your stylus clean and keep from welding dirt to your grooves thus producing wear which once done cannot be reversed. I use the Onzow Stylus Zerodust http://shop.ebay.com/items/onzow+zerodust?_dmd=2&_cpr=249&rvr_id=&crlp=4536146735_238321_238331&UA=WXI7&GUID=c9a3f0151210a09c19f4b0a4ffd0c5da&agid=924118115&MT_ID=70&keyword=onzow+zerodust&ff4=238321_238331 which is very easy and safe to use to clean your stylus. I use it after playing each side of a record.

7) Visual inspection of used records is at best a guess. IMHO the grading method currently in use, i.e., M, NM, VG+, VG is BS. I have records that to the naked eye or under a microscope looked pristene and shiny but sounded like ****. I've also had used records that looked like **** and thought were useless. E.g., My son had given me a Styx and a Rush LP. On first inspection of both they looked scratch, scuffed, scraped, full of finger prints and just plain grungy. I was going to trash them when my wife, who loves those two particular albums asked me to perform my restoration process. I did and WOW was I absoltely shocked. Aside from an occasional pop or tick they both sounded wonderful. To reiterate the grading method of visual inspection is at best hit or miss. When I go to Good Will to check out the LPs unless they have deep scratches I buy them and go through the restoration process and usually come out on top.

8) Finally, if you have a record that has been played over and over again DIRTY, the grooves have been welded with all kinds of dirt and groove damage has occured. Again there is nothing that you can do to remedy this. You can try to give it a good cleaning but if the noise remains, time to find a better copy.

Seriously getting into vinyl can be a very expensive proposition. Unfortunately & fortunately, the methods used and the expenses involved to maintain your record collection properly will reward you with a much better and satifying musical experience than digital unless you get into the uber expensive CD players and even then, well maintained records on a good vinyl rig will surpass even the most expensive CDPs.

The thing is to realize that you don't need to buy everything at once. Go at your own pace that your wallet will allow and you will find the vinyl sounding better and better with each tweak. At least once a month, check your set up as it is a mechanical device and the settings can vary over time degrading the SQ.

One more thing dialing in your TT componets i.e., cartridge alignment, tonearm setting, leveling etc is crucial to achieving and maintaining good SQ. TTs that are out of alignment will sound like **** and produce all kinds of nastys.

Hope this helps and I hope it doesn't overwhelm you LOL!

Joe

PS; Digital lovers need not reply or make snotty comments!:p:D

One more thought here. Having your cartridge being a good match to your tonearm will ensure proper tracking and no resonance at the lower frequencies thus presenting a quiet backround.

Also, it is imperative that your cartridge zenith is perfect and you also have set you cartridge up with a good protractor with the two null points. Playing a record with the zenith off, is like an angled snow plow pushing snow to one side of the road. If the zenith is off it literally runs the stylus side ways through the groove thus producing some nasty noise.

hearingimpared

Bump for the recent batch of folks who just bought record cleaning systems and new cartridge buyers.

quadzilla

Why was this not stickied? This is a great wealth of help. Thanks Joe.

inspiredsports

quadzilla wrote: »

Why was this not stickied? This is a great wealth of help. Thanks Joe.

Great Stuff! I second the motion to sticky