OK- I'm not Stepehn but I'm going to chime in anyway. From his posts, it sounds like Stephen went with the MOFI brush and is looking into the VPI cleaning machine. The main thing is- make sure what you're using doesn't have ANY chemicals or embedded polish etc. if it's going on your records. You'd just be fixing one problem by adding another.

Swifter's seem to have no additives, so that might be the ticket. That, or one of those new microfiber cloths, some of which are amazing at picking up dust, and can be washed and reused over and over, might be the best easy care home solution.

In the end though a real record brush is still probably best 'cause, well, that's what they are made for right?

Vacuum and liquid with the tiny fiber brush will always work better. Wiping the surface doesn't get the grime out of the grooves which is what matters. Just wiping the surface is useless busy work. This is one instance where it's better when the thing you're using SUCKS, at what it does. Well maybe there are a few other instances, but not related to audio.

I'm going to agree with dup this time. Using the same brush over and over just spreads the same dust over all of your records. Throw out the carbon fiber brushes and the Discwashers. Use a very well wrung out but still slightly damp microfiber towel if you must remove large chunks of crud from a disc before you clamp it down onto a platter. Otherwise, if it's big enough for you to see, it's big enough for the stylus to knock aside. If it's too small for you to see, then it's time for a vacuum wet/dry cleaning.

WOW, and I agree with Jan this time. Now let's work on quanity of drivers...soon, there will be PEACE.

Scientists in Switzerland have just reported a major rift in the space-time continuum, of which the long-term results are as of yet impossible to predict. Please Jan and DUP, stop agreeing, or our entire universe may disappear in a quantum mechanical vortex!

We don't really agree. I recommend using your turntable for its intended purpose - playing music contained in flat, black discs with grooves. dup uses his table as a stand for his CD's.

hahaha

But at least you both know how to clean the things!

Nothing I've done has worked as well as a wet vac. With good records, noise levels have approached those of CD (which is to say, "zero"). For now, I take my most prized albums to my dealer, where they have a Typhoon, and will clean both sides and slap a new sleeve on for $1.50, which I feel is very reasonable. Sometime in the future, though, I hope to have a VPI to call my own. Or, if I become a DIY wizard like Doug, I'll make one!

I agree mostly with Jan, but think that a carbon fiber brush is still the best for cleaning the worst pieces of loose dust off of a new or generally clean LP. You can clean the carbon fiber brush with your micro fiber cloth, then use a micro fiber cloth before the final cleaning before play.

I use the Zerostat and carbon fiber brush for the first cleaning, then follow with a micro fiber cloth and then finish with one last blast with the Zerostat.

For records that need serious cleaning I use the Disc Doctor manual system. I actually believe that it's superior to any record cleaning machine that I've tried, mainly because you can focus on the areas that need the most attention and you can quickly and easily vary the dilution.

Dave

The TT is a stand for CD's when not playing the LP's, since I don't have 78's as you so edumacated me, on my typo. I do have a shelf full of LP's spilling over to the floor. Matta' o' fact I just got the new Elvis Costello LP, Mufubuku or what ever it is...ain't played it yet. If LP was superior to SACD, they woulda' replaced SACD/DSD with vinyl, it was the other way around. With each play of an SACD, or CD, it don't wear, each time you play one of them overpriced $5 records that now cost $20-$40 and more they are losing fidelity, thus the optical disc is superior. One of it's original design parameters, met. So them 78's that are still "playable" is really like a Yugo that still runs.

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From his posts, it sounds like Stephen went with the MOFI brush and is looking into the VPI cleaning machine.

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In the end though a real record brush is still probably best 'cause, well, that's what they are made for right?

That's right. The Pledge dust cloths did seem to pick up some of the obvious dust without leaving any residue, but, for me, they were more of a short-term solution. I'm looking forward to giving my records a good cleaning using the MoFi record brush and VPI 16.5.

Some are, most aren't. And what those good 78's have is something most CD's simply don't care to go after.

Pick up your records off the floor, man, letting them get filthy is no way to treat them.

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Scientists in Switzerland have just reported a major rift in the space-time continuum, of which the long-term results are as of yet impossible to predict. Please Jan and DUP, stop agreeing, or our entire universe may disappear in a quantum mechanical vortex!

Someone check the weather channel. I think they're reporting frost in Hell.

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Vacuum and liquid with the tiny fiber brush will always work better. Wiping the surface doesn't get the grime out of the grooves which is what matters. Just wiping the surface is useless busy work. This is one instance where it's better when the thing you're using SUCKS, at what it does. Well maybe there are a few other instances, but not related to audio.

Dup spoke English! Dup Spoke English!

when looking for a CLEAN version of that image, I came across this file of highly amusing (And some offensive) images.

http://www.lolsauce.com/RandomBS/

Sounds like a great plan, shade.