Turntable accessories

tmccullough

tmccullough

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I wanted to get some opinions on what 'accessories' are considered important or critical to properly maintain your record collection? I've read everything from felt pads and cloths to anti-static zappers to carbon fiber brushes. I have none of these, and would be interested in hearing if I should start to acquire these items. The CF brush is very inexpensive, and if it keeps the dust off my records, I'm cool with that. I would like to get a Spin Clean or something, but I'll put that on my Christmas/birthday list.
 
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Not really an accessory but just adding a cleaning regimen of some kind is a good idea till your wish list gets fulfilled. Lots of simple recipes for solutions are available (most common seems to be a solution of about 25% alcohol and distilled water with a *small* bit of detergent) which can be used with a manual cleaning/drying process... then a step up is a diy vacuum to suck the liquid off the record, or an off the shelf system.

Beyond that all I use is an CF brush on the LPs. ... oh and magic-eraser on the stylus.
 
cubby01 said:
Not really an accessory but just adding a cleaning regimen of some kind is a good idea till your wish list gets fulfilled. Lots of simple recipes for solutions are available (most common seems to be a solution of about 25% alcohol and distilled water with a *small* bit of detergent) which can be used with a manual cleaning/drying process... then a step up is a diy vacuum to suck the liquid off the record, or an off the shelf system.

Beyond that all I use is an CF brush on the LPs. ... oh and magic-eraser on the stylus.
Click to expand...

Check, check, and check. Although, I've been contemplating getting a paint pad for cleaning LPs as opposed to the paintbrush I've been using...
 
Not exactly part of the cleaning regimen, but a stylus force (VTF) gauge is essential for keeping your rekkids in tip-top condition. Just thought to mention it in case you don't have one already.
 
I find that I'm always flitting from one "have to have it" thing to another! But my CF brush, magic eraser, and anti-static zapper keep things pretty clean for me.

I also clean my records really well before play and store them in poly-lined inner sleeves and poly outer sleeves. I have a dog, two cats, hardwood floors, and I live in Iowa (think corn harvest), so I have to be pretty aggressive about keeping my records clean. YMMV depending on the conditions in your listening environment.

I also +1 watt's suggestion of getting some way to check tracking force. The records sound better immediately and keeps them sounding good for years.
 
OK, so it seems like a lot of the things I've heard are a good idea. I have the stylus brush that came with my Shure M97. I have a chunk of magic eraser for deeper cleaning. I have a cheapo digital scale that was written about in another thread to measure force. I'm presently cleaning used LPs with the dish soap/paint brush. I'll probably look to get the Spin Clean, though. I figure the investment in the CF brush should be next. Does that also help with static? From there, I may look to get some new paper sleeves.
 
Back in the vinyl days, you just would not think of putting an album on your turntable until you had used all of these Discwasher products and your Zerostat gun. Clean stylus, clean record, no static--now you are ready to enjoy.

P1000786.jpg
 
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First a clean LP (read cllection)

Then; LP carbon fibre brush, stylus brush (a brush from a electric razor here), Magic sponge, static gun. Setup: tracking force gauge, stylus protractor (Vinyl engine), level and a whole bunch of little srew drivers pliers etc,.

P.S. I also keep a machinist's tap on hand to loosen tight LP holes.
 
HTHMAN said:
Back in the vinyl days, you just would not think of putting an album on your turntable until you had used all of these Discwasher products and your Zerostat gun. Clean stylus, clean record, no static--now you are ready to enjoy.

P1000786.jpg
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The Ultimate tools back in the day, and a good portion of them used today HTHMAN. And nice to see that they were serenaded with the Minimus 7's. :smoke:
 
ZebraBlvd said:
The Ultimate tools back in the day, and a good portion of them used today HTHMAN. And nice to see that they were serenaded with the Minimus 7's. :smoke:
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Actually that is an Audiosouce/Minimus 77--The Minimus 7's (Japanese version) are sitting on top of it and my Optimus 1's are supporting the stack..

P1000780.jpg
 
HTHMAN said:
Back in the vinyl days, you just would not think of putting an album on your turntable until you had used all of these Discwasher products and your Zerostat gun. Clean stylus, clean record, no static--now you are ready to enjoy.

P1000786.jpg
Click to expand...
I have everything except the C.P.R. (What is this?) and the wooden holder.

Alas my bottle of SC-2 is empty. Where do I get some more?

My small bottle of D4+ is empty too, but I found a large vintage 6 oz. bottle in my stash (with a price tag of $8.95 on it).
 
aabottom said:
I have everything except the C.P.R. (What is this?) and the wooden holder.


Alas my bottle of SC-2 is empty. Where do I get some more?


My small bottle of D4+ is empty too, but I found a large vintage 6 oz. bottle in my stash (with a price tag of $8.95 on it).
Click to expand...

It is a cleaning solution for the cassette cleaner. The kit also came with a cassette cleaner and a cassette head demagnetizer.

I think everything they made was just denatured alcohol, but that solid walnut holder justified the price.
 
I found that my best investment bar none, in the vinyl world has been an RCM.
I was using the LAST solution to clean vinyl before and it doesn't do as good as a job as a real vacuum machine.

The spin clean is neat and inexpensive but I hate to wait for the vinyl to dry and I'm not a big proponent of using a cloth to wipe the record dry.

Yes an RCM is a bit more expensive, but I have found that it has rejuvenated garage sale and thrift store finds, brought a lot more depth to even new records.
Lastly if you play the record after you cleaned it, you don't have any static issues :)
 
I keep one of those walnut Discwasher stands with the brushes/fluids sitting on a shelf in my room to remind me of how poorly my analog system used to sound compared to today with LPs cleaned on a VPI 16.5 RCM. The RCM was the single biggest step/improvement I have ever made to my analog system.
 
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