Anybody use Record Doctor

boston1450

Just wondering if this 2 hundred dollar machine works good. Will it do everything my Knosti will do ? I pick up albums fairly often & i usually wait till i have 10-15 before i fill the Knosti unit up with salution & clean them. So i was wondering if this would be a tad bit easier than by hand. Im not sure how they work & i cant afford a 800.00 + $$$ one.. Are there Pro/Cons. Here is the site http://www.audioadvisor.com/mobile/Record-Doctor-V-Record-Cleaning-Machine-US-115v/productinfo/RDV/
..
TIA

boston1450

Also. Has anyone heard on this seller ? Thanks

hochpt21

Audio Advisor is a very reputable seller.

Vacuum record cleaning machines are the only way to go IMO. I bought the Nitty Gritty entry level model for $400. I believe the product you linked is similar and it's at a very good price.

Basically, you apply the solution manually and wipe or "scrub" with a brush. You then set the record on the machine and manually turn it slowly and the vacuum sucks the solution and gunk right out.

I can't vouch for the build quality of the product you linked, but I know VPI and Nitty Gritty are very solid units.

boston1450

Thanks. I looked at those brands also. Maybe i should wait it out & get more for my money. They really had nice machines-but WOW big money

voltz

I bought a lot of stuff from audio advisor. And I use th VPI HW 16.5 which has the vacum and powered table, which you manually apply the cleaner and then manually use the brush, then vacuum it off. then I use wash of 3x distilled water (pure record rinse by mofi)

I use to clean them manually but finally broke down and bought the vacuum. I even clean brand new records to get the factory junk off of them

You can towel dry them by hand but that does get old when you clean a lot of records so in the end the price I think was worth it.

boston1450

^^^^ thats what im thinking

hochpt21

boston, how many records do you currently have that need cleaned?

boston1450

Not many now. I just got finished doing all of them & i pick up a few here n there. Ive been waiting till i had 20 or so to do them all at one time & then discard old salution. Fill it up-wash & then use strainers/holders i bought to dry & then i wipe them down. Seems to work - but if i can do 2-4 at one time-i can keep from waiting OR wasting salution. If that makes sense..
.. I own around 600-700 & maybe 100 45's (havent done the 45's yet)

maximillian

I have a manual/DIY vacuum pickup. It gets most of the fluids up but I still use a microfiber cloth to completely dry them. Do these more expensive units get records completely dry?

hochpt21

My Nitty Gritty gets them completely dry.

I have about 400 albums, so I figured it would be a good investment (actually the wife bought it for me:))

$1 per album for a super clean....definitely worth it.

hochpt21

boston1450 wrote: »

Not many now. I just got finished doing all of them & i pick up a few here n there. Ive been waiting till i had 20 or so to do them all at one time & then discard old salution. Fill it up-wash & then use strainers/holders i bought to dry & then i wipe them down. Seems to work - but if i can do 2-4 at one time-i can keep from waiting OR wasting salution. If that makes sense..
.. I own around 600-700 & maybe 100 45's (havent done the 45's yet)

I think this would be a good investment for you. It would also be interesting to play one of your currently 'clean' records and then run the vacuum RCM to see if it makes a difference.

boston1450

Thats not a bad price at all. I know i will be adding to the shelf & that may be easier for sure. Thank You for recommendations

msg

being an 8-track guy and considering making the switch to vinyl, what exactly happens to records that requires cleaning on this level?

in all seriousness, I'm only just getting into higher end audio, and I've considered picking up a turntable and picking up some of my favorite albums on vinyl. curious about this post and the benefits/need of vinyl deep cleaning. is this where all the clicks/pops come from? a dirty groove?

hochpt21

Some clicks an pops come from scratches that can't be repaired.

But a lot of surface noise definitely comes from a dirty groove.

Actually that would be a cool band name...

"A Dirty Groove"

voltz

^^^^^

what he said

and it helps your needle last longer, Clean your LP's & Clean your Stylus! And clean your new LP's also.

PSOVLSK

How well would it work to clean with a Spin Clean and then run it through the Record Doctor?

boston1450

I think it would be better. Thats why im going to buy one. As soon as the wife gives me the ok. I keep saying yes dear & she knows there's something up

boston1450

msg wrote: »

being an 8-track guy and considering making the switch to vinyl, what exactly happens to records that requires cleaning on this level?

in all seriousness, I'm only just getting into higher end audio, and I've considered picking up a turntable and picking up some of my favorite albums on vinyl. curious about this post and the benefits/need of vinyl deep cleaning. is this where all the clicks/pops come from? a dirty groove?

i just got back into vinyl after 30+ years. Got rid of albums. Went cassette then cd & wanted to change it up some. Picked up a cheap Knosti & it works good. Washed 50 or so on rainy days & finally got all my 33's done seems to work good on used & Goodwill/garage sale & new albums. Im very fussy on purchases though. I enjoy putting the albums on-listening to them-flipping them over. Cleaning the needle each album. Some think its alot of work (my wife especially) i am in hopes the machine will make it easier & clean/sound better. In hopes of a collection of 2-2500 albums for retirement enjoyment later on

PSOVLSK

Keiko wrote: »

Here's a cheap tweak for keeping your stylus clean that costs pennies vs expensive gadgets that works. Been using a ME for years with no issues at all. Keeps my DL160 and 10X5 pristine.

http://www.high-endaudio.com/Magic.html

http://forums.stevehoffman.tv/threads/magic-eraser-as-a-stylus-cleaner.272492/

Thank you, sir!

I think I'm about to buy a Record Doctor to use with my Spin Clean. I've hand cleaned and vacuumed in the past, but it's just too time consuming for me.

Obsession18

Another option to consider is the KAB EV-1, it costs $169 (you provide the vacuum). One advantage to not having a built-in vacuum is nothing to FAIL, I use a small $30 Sears shopvac with mine, if it dies all I have to do is spend $30 for another shopvac and I'm back in business. The other big advantage in my opinion is the EV-1’s low profile, I can sit at my kitchen table cleaning records and everything is at a comfortable level, the record doctor is quite tall in comparison.

rromeo923

I have the Kab ev-1 that I bought used here. It works great. However I am a huge proponent of adding a hand held steamer into the equation. First cleaning solution w/brush/foam paint brush etc. Then Kab ev-1 vacuum. Then I steam clean, then Kab ev-1. Then finally a rinse with distilled water and the Kab ev1 vacuum. Voila album clean and ready to play. Amazing results. Must have for a flea market/goodwill vinyl buyer like myself.

voltz

If you already had a spin clean I think the Record Doctor would be a nice companion for it, now the 1 thing I like about the VPI (which should also work with the record doctor) is you just use a little cleaning fluid for each LP and not a lot of cleaner in a container, I then only clean a few records I plan on playing and not a ton of records at 1 time.

but I don't know if the spin clean fluid is re-usable? and if a person would find themselves wanting to clean a lot of LP's at 1 time as to not waste cleaning fluid?

PSOVLSK

voltz wrote: »

If you already had a spin clean I think the Record Doctor would be a nice companion for it, now the 1 thing I like about the VPI (which should also work with the record doctor) is you just use a little cleaning fluid for each LP and not a lot of cleaner in a container, I then only clean a few records I plan on playing and not a ton of records at 1 time.

but I don't know if the spin clean fluid is re-usable? and if a person would find themselves wanting to clean a lot of LP's at 1 time as to not waste cleaning fluid?

Good points.

I'm new to the Spin Clean, but I believe you can save the washing fluid for about a week to re-use before it needs to be thrown out.

I've got a setup for cleaning my records now that works well, but I'm looking for something easier and less time consuming. I think the Spin Clean/Record Doctor combo might be the ticket for me.

miner

I use a Nitty Gritty MiniPro2 and it does work well - gets LP completely dry after vacuum portion. I actually manually scrub with a MoFi brush before using the NG - I let the fluid sit and disolve for a few minutes and then vacuum off.

nspindel

+1 for vacuum cleaning and steaming. I use a VPI 16.5. Initially I thought the purchase price was high. I bought it new, packaged with some brushes and cleaning fluid, during a sale at elusivedisc. If I subtracted the value of the accessories it came with, all of which I used, the price of the machine alone was below $500. I still thought this price was high, but I bought it anyway.

Now that I've cleaned close to 700 discs with it, I look at the price as being below $1 per disc. Is the improvement it provides to the sound quality of each disc worth less than a dollar? All day.

I added a TTWeights clamp desinged for the VPI machines, thanks to DarqueKnight for the recommendation. The machine comes with a sufficient clamp, however the TTWeights one is much larger. I like the larger clamp because I too use a steam cleaner. The larger the clamp, the less surface area of the label gets wet during steaming.

The steaming procedure definitely lengthens the amount of time it takes to clean each record, but I believe it's worth it.

After I place the record on the 16.5, I first use a carbon fiber brush to remove as much surface dust as I can while the record is still dry. Then I use a Shark steamer machine (also thanks to DK for the recommendation) with distilled water and give the record a thorough steaming. I don't do any brushing after the steaming, I immediately vacuum the water off and wipe the bit of label that sticks out from the clamp with a towel. Then I apply MoFi Deep Cleaner and use a brush for several spins, then vacuum. Then I apply MoFi Record Wash, brush again, and vacuum again. Then I flip the record and repeat.

After I finish cleaning side 2 of a record, I flip it back on to side 1 and do one final vacuuming. Reason for this is the underside of the record can get a bit wet during the steaming, since the platter is a bit smaller than the disc. So I want to remove any water that gets onto side 1 while I'm steaming side 2.

After cleaning, the record goes into a MoFi anti-static sleeve.

The resulting improvements have been mind blowing. I've had records that were barely listenable turn into complete sonic gems as a result of a good cleaning.

nspindel

For stylus cleaning, I just use the MoFi product:

http://www.elusivedisc.com/MOBILE-FIDELITY-LP-9-STYLUS-CLEANER-WITH-BRUSH-05oz/productinfo/MFSL-LP9/

$25 for a little bottle and a brush does seem expensive, but I've had that little bottle for almost two years and barely notice that the fluid level has gone down at all in the bottle. It will probably last me ten years. Given what I've invested in records, turntable, cartridge, cleaning equipment, $2.50 per year isn't even a blip on the radar. So in that case, I'd prefer using something dedicated to this purpose rather than trying to save an insignificant amount of money on something not necessarily meant specifically for cleaning a record stylus.

voltz

Good stuff there nspindel! THanks

I have the same VPI 16.5 so I'm now looking for a shark Also Thanks DK

using some "LAST" stylus cleaner & Stylus Treatment...hoping it will make my Stylus last longer. won't know untill I get there.

xsmi

Keiko wrote: »

Save your money and go with the VPI, Randy. I got the HW17 and am very pleased with it. In the meantime, this method will get you by. I did this until I could spring for my RCM. I picked up some 4" suction cups from Napa Auto and used them to cover the label instead of the Groovemaster Savers. Cost me 4.00 bucks, but you can still get by without them. Just be careful not to wet the label too much. If you do, wipe it up, asap.

http://www.gallagher.com/clean_records.htm

When you cleaned your records by hand, what type of bristles were in the paint brush you used?


http://www.napaonline.com/Catalog/CatalogItemDetail.aspx?R=MMM956_0139750792

When you cleaned your records manually, what kind of bristles were in the paint brush you used?

voltz

xsmi

I would go here to Audio advisor and check out some of there TT accessories, like brushes and stylus cleaners etc..

http://www.audioadvisor.com/Turntable-Accessories/products/72/

plus needle doctor & amazon, there you can find brushes and micro cloths for cleaning.

Devlon

Never used the Record Doctor, but check this out. Guy cleans records with wood glue.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_gyvipBs6Vs#t=79