Kirmuss Audio vinyl cleaning system

As a vinyl lover with just under 1,000 records in my collection, I've always been curious about all of the different record cleaning methodologies but never committed to anything. Every time I'd get close to settling on something, the price or the actual process itself would discourage me.

Plus, my records always sounded pretty good to me just using a microfiber towel and a can of compressed air to remove the majority of dust before playing. But let's be honest, for a lot of us "pretty good" isn't nearly good enough.

At the California Audio Show earlier this year I noticed that Kirmuss Audio had a booth setup demonstrating their ultrasonic record cleaning system. I've always thought these ultrasonic machines had the most mystique and coolness factor! I asked if I could bring in a record to be cleaned and was told of course!

So, I did, and I wrote about my experience here in my latest post on The Audio Beatnik: https://theaudiobeatnik.com/kirmuss-audio-ultrasonic-record-groove-restoration-system-expectations-vs-reality/

Hope you enjoy reading about this somewhat complex but highly effective approach to cleaning literally everything out of the grooves of your favorite records!

Comments

  • joecoulson
    joecoulson Posts: 4,943
    Great write up as usual sir.
  • DaveHo
    DaveHo Posts: 3,471
    edited October 2019
    Well written, Drew. I'm still using a Spin Clean along with an AQ carbon fiber brush before playback. Every so often I get the hankering to up my record cleaning game, then remember how long it took me to spin clean my collection(350ish). The thought of doing that all over again is not something I want to think about.
  • This is worth following your thread.
    happy birthday daughter
  • Mike Reeter
    Mike Reeter Posts: 4,314
    Nice write up Drew! Although I've not seen one in action, I agree with your assessment of the Cleaner and the price. If a fellow had a large collection such as yours, the Cleaner would be well worth the price of admission.
  • verb
    verb Posts: 10,176
    Nice write up Drew! :smile:
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  • Clipdat
    Clipdat Posts: 12,560
    edited October 2019
    Nice write up Drew! Although I've not seen one in action, I agree with your assessment of the Cleaner and the price. If a fellow had a large collection such as yours, the Cleaner would be well worth the price of admission.

    I agree, Mike. It's also especially valuable for those who love to hunt for used record bargains. A lot of times these are in less than perfect condition and need a good deep cleaning.

    I thought it was interesting that during the cleaning process, Charles could tell which side was the previous owner's "favorite" based on how it had been cleaned more often with a product like gruv glide that leaves behind a residue.

    Realistically I feel like you'd only have to really run your records through this process once, especially if they're going into a high quality sleeve afterwards. That being said, it did take about 15 minutes to do the one record, so it's not a quick process by any means.