How to clean your vinyl records... the proper way

[a5e26]

nice record player

[stratmanjem]

Please ignore this, for sake of your vinyl....never use liquid solutions...the stylus will clean the record while playing it, just use a soft brush to brush the dust of the stylus.

[adonist7]

@stratmanjem

Please ignore this, for the sake of your stupidity.

If your playing a dusty record, sure the stylus will pick it up (more like gather it up), but tiny dust particles get stuck in between the grooves, and when the stylus goes over it, it's very hot. This "melts" the dust into your record.

Please keep using your records without using the cleaning solution, and show us how it sounds in a couple of years. It's gonna be full of pops

[McPhaill]

@adonist7 Hahaha! This made me laugh.

[t3chn1cfr3q]

@stratmanjem i damn sure wanna make sure my records are clean before i put my 100 dollar stylus on em! You play dirty records, your stylus will just grind the dirt into your vinyl.

[t3hpez]

thanks man thought I'd check this before I went and did it, don't wanna ruin my records! good man :)

[neitherdoi]

Best thing is the Loricraft record cleaning machine, but it costs £1500.

Removes all dust and dirt from records using a solution and then playing it along the grooves. It sucks up all the dirt onto a piece of string which goes through the arm using a vacuum.

Still need to find a way of removing spray mount from an LP though. That stuff just won't budge! Was nowhere near them but it travelled through the air in my room and ruined my exposed records.

[bayani33]

thanks for sharing.

[metalisbetter1o00]

Nice shorts

[dano2385]

elusive disc

best audiophile equipment and accessories in the world!!!!!!

They ship around the world and usually free shipping to first time buyers:)

[sixstringrock]

dude you dont use it like that.. just get a nitty gritty

[castironspudger]

Great tutorial. Makes sense to move the cleaner off of the record. I have been doing it wrong all this time leaving some of the dust behind.

[guywalker29]

Brushing your records scratches your records. You are not lifting tiny particles out, you are smearing them around. You are only driving them into the grooves so that your stylist in turn burns them into the vinyl. You are not operating in a vacuum. There is moisture in your air and it is getting into your brush and making mud that you drive around your vinyl.

[ryder164]

how do u clean the brush when it gets dirty? MESSAGE ME PLEASE!

[toocheaptobuyatripod]

I just use a preener (carbon fiber thingy), a microfiber cloth & some alcohol/water solution. Works great!

[HitchHikersBlues]

Love the 1200's...my fave!

...wish i never of sold mine.

[ajkarman]

Vinyl is nothing more than plastic. Soap and water and rinsing well cleans just as well as anything you can buy, including record cleaning machines.

[TimeMachine1984]

recess.nl is that a site from the netherlands?

[adonist7]

@TimeMachine1984 yes it is. do you plan on buying something from there?

[TimeMachine1984]

@adonist7 No not really, but because your playing hardcore, or hardstyle records and i thought .nl is the netherlands.

Besides if you in to hardcore etc, Then you best can buy it out of the netherlands.

Hardcore is made in holland we have some of the worlds best djs. so pretty cool that a guy from the other side of the ocean plays such records.

do you know TIESTO that has the song with BUSTA RHYMEZ he also started with making hardcore in the netherlands.

[TimeMachine1984]

@adonist7 Im more in to older music guitar etc etc and love synthesizers, but still vinyl is awesome 10 times better than cd or whatever, pretty nice spintable you have i have also have such a spunch for cleaning works pretty good.

[boneidyll]

i have those speakers and decks :D

[ECgod77]

Can you use computer screen polisher to clean records?

[Darkgod171990]

Hardstyle eh? Nice, you into the classic stuff much? The new stuff is still pretty good, but you have to respect the classics as well. Thank you very much for the tutorial, man, I appreciate it!

[adonist7]

@Darkgod171990 Good ears! Yeah I only like the classics. The new hardstyle scene isn't really working for me. Have you seen the Qlimax videos? Qlimax 2003? My god that was some good music/dj'ing... nowadays it sucks. All the songs sound the same/have the same types of breaks.

[NEWBEGINNINGSRR]

I have been using alcohol for over 40 years and had no problems

no pop no nothing no bubbles

just make sure you use 91 percent alcohol and a cloth from home depot

anything under 91 per will damage your records

[1myusernamesucks]

I have been using non-alchol spray eyeglass cleaner and a lint free LCD tv cloth, I set the record on a fabric surface .Spray the cleaner on the cloth and press and clean with circular motion, then wipe with the dry side of the cloth. Workson 33's 45's 78's come real clean and may need a few passes.

[hungarianmazdadriver]

Különös helyek, elbűvölő tájak!

[adonist7]

@hungarianmazdadriver hahahaha jo a szemed

[hungarianmazdadriver]

@adonist7

:))

[BakesMeCakes]

Hey... I know this guy! baaabiieedonniissss ! =)

[TheDiscoGroove]

I use this method on ALL my old records that I get from ebay, dishwashing liquid on a kitchen spong onder luke warm water, rinse off and dry with a soft clean Tea towel. Then use Methylated spirits on a clean sunglasses cleaning cloth on the turntable from inside out before I record them. This is the best that they will sound and offen brings them back to ex or mint-.

[anderzom]

turn on the lights boy! haha

[curbfeelercosmo]

Use the Disc Doctor's brushes and fluid, followed by a distilled water rinse to clean LPs. The carbon fiber brush is good for dry maintenance when playing a side.

[spilsby88]

Why don't you put the light on?

[TheFRiNgEguitars]

Nice guy, right tools, wrong method! Carbon fiber brush is good, or a velveteen wand. The WRONG METHOD is how the brush is slowly moved to the outside of the record. Never move it laterally against the grooves, even slowly. This redeposits a LOT of dust back into the grooves. The RIGHT method is to LIFT straight UP, which may leave a slight line of dust on the record. Although visible, this is preferred over depositing deep in the grooves where we can not see, but where it will do damage.

[adonist7]

True. I dont know, the way i do it, i learned from guys at the record stores. I dont use it much to be honest though, if its dusty i just clean it off with the cloth/fluid

[peterbenchleyJAWS]

This makes sense, and I know what you mean when you talked about the line of dust. But how do you get rid of that line of dust? What's your method? Swipe it off with velvet?

[outofthegreenmist]

@TheFRiNgEguitars Interesting. I've always worried about that little line of dust, so I sometimes do it the same as adonist7, but moving inwards, not outwards. The best record cleaner I ever had was a brush on a sort of second tone-arm that followed the groove and cleaned in advance of the stylus. But with second-hand records, I'm interested in cleaning with a solution. I don't have much experience with that method.

[fatshoolaces]

@outofthegreenmist  Tonar anti-static carbon-fibre brush on tonearm. - great little device !!

[outofthegreenmist]

@fatshoolaces Yes, it was very effective.

[dimebagdave77]

i've had one of those brushes for over 10 years and it was the single best investment i've ever made as far as cleaning gear

[AKT6168]

Can't I just run my records through the dishwasher? That seems more cost-feezable than all these gadgets.

[forkv]

the heat of the water in the dishwasher probably won't be good for the records.. Might make them warp

[TheFRiNgEguitars]

I've been a collector for nearly 30 years, just would like to share something from experience: Most cleaning solutions contain a silicone lubricant which help a record play with less noise, however, the record in fact may be dirtier deeper in the grooves. After a few plays, the silicone wears off (the stylus may gum up) then the record will be noisier than ever, which then calls for another cleaning.. the cycle keeps repeating. Hate to say it, the expensive professional machine is the way to go

[desertman123]

what if you wet the brush with rubbing alcohol?

[Terrybob123]

people say it destroys your records years down the line a little bit at a time, because of the acid to it.

[buckbumble]

i like this tutorial, well done. You hear of some really weird ways of cleaning records.

My grandad cleaned his 78's with Whiskey!!!! They cleaned up just fine, but still its a waste of perfectly good booze lol

[TheFRiNgEguitars]

That's funny!!  But seriously, any kind of alcohol reacts with the lacquer, and should be avoided (drink the whiskey LOL) Wet cleaning 78's is risky, and some say to never wet clean them. The liquid is absorbed in the lacquer very quickly, and into the inner wood pulp substrate. The result can be mild swelling of the grooves to massive rupturing or chafing of the lacquer, thus a ruined record.

[BellGoku]

What I also use to do, is to take some cotton with alcohol, it won't hurt or damage the records and take all the irt away and it helps

[shaykari]

adonizzzzzzz!! :D

[xindeathwedefyx]

how do you think i should clean a record that has a small spot of dried super glue? i was thinking warm water or some alcohol. soak it a bit and then try to peel it off. help!

[adonist7]

I doubt warm water will help, and alcohol will probably just damage the record.

try picking it off with your nail, but i honestly cant think of any safe solution to it. cause once super glue is dried, its pretty hard to take off most things, especially when its stuck in-between the grooves of a record

[pfarnsworth84]

@adonist7 Well alcohol (90%) shouldn't damage the record. Most cleaning solutions use alcohol. But it really won't do much for superglue. The only way to get that off would be acetone, which will likely dissolve the vinyl.

The cloth and solution is a great idea since the only real way to reduce static is wet cleaning. I use an rca discwasher velvet brush, but would like to pick up a carbon fibre brush for minor dust. Also canned air works great for any dust that didn't come off with the brush.

[RubHerSoul1]

@xindeathwedefyx you can't clean that off of a record. If you try to chip it off with your nail, you'll just end up with a big scratch or a divot which will be even worse. Hate to tell ya this, but you'll have to chuck the record or play every other song except the one with the glue on it. Hope it isn't worth much.

[ninjabluewings]

@xindeathwedefyx Hmmm... That's A Tricky Problem, I Am Assuming That The Record Is Useless At The Moment Due To The Glue It Probably Jumps Quite Bad So I Would Just Go For A Kill Or Cure Method To Be Honest As Long As It's Not A Valuble Record. You Can Buy Something Called De-Bonder And It's Used For Breaking Down Super Glue So That Would Work BUT! I Have Never Tried It On Vinyl So It Could Be Risky. Why Not Try It On A Record That Is Beyond Repair And see What Happens?

[djstuarthodson]

good stuff thts how i clean mine

[ChefTips]

Good idea for a tip! I have an old collection of vinyl that I hope to break out some day. Before I play them, I will refer to your video. Thanks for posting this!

[Ibuylps]

I buy and sell records and I ofetn get records that are very dirty,so I have to hold the record and clean it several times. I usually find that I need to use a fair amount of pressure to really get into the grooves. I dont use cloths like this since they will get too dirty too quickly,so I just use tissue pape,which sometimes leaves lint,so I am looking for an alternative,which is cheap,but wont leave lint behind.

[adonist7]

Just use the cloths, and wash them when they get dirty... no other way really unless you buy one of those expensive machines

[Ibuylps]

ok thanks i will give that a try,thanks for the post

[ThugRandles]

I understand most people use Gruv Glide for cleaning their records, but the only local place that carries anything carries the "Stanton VC-1 Vinyl Cleaner Kit." Have you used it before? Would it be worth the extra $7 and waiting 5 days to order the Gruv Glide solution?

Thanks!

[adonist7]

No i havent.. but i searched on google, and it seems like its pretty good... But i seriously dont know.. i would probably wait the extra 5 days...

its up to you! they all work the same pretty much

[ThugRandles]

ah, ok, thanks =D

[Maxxarcade]

Sweet, I have that same Stanton brush.  It's great for keeping good records clean, but not too good for cleaning the really dirty ones like you find at yard sales :-)

[adonist7]

Yeah, in that case its best to use the cleaning solution! :)

[condorsat77]

You could make a do it yourself record solution.Use 1 part 90% or better proof Isopropyl/Alcohol to 4 part amount of distilled water, and 5 drops of dawn discwasher detergent.

Make about 1 gallon....will last a while. I've been using for 10 years.

[chippatty]

nice, would it not cost more though lol?

[DJdirtyfaderz]

how do you apply it and with what do u apply it with?

[adonist7]

yeah, it was fine?!

i got it downtown at one of the dj shops for like $20

its hard to find the cleaning solutions, i asked like 5 shops :S i had to order mine from Holland :P

[KnowledgeProductions]

good tutorial man...how much was the stanton brush?