Degritter brand ultrasonic record cleaner

I still have a Nitty Gritty......when the mood strikes me, and I feel I want to get it the best that it can be, I steam clean it. ....cheap and very effective.

I’m using an Elma and Vinyl Spin, with an external DIY 1um pump filter circuit and the finishing touch of a VPI 16.5 to extract residue loosened but still in the grooves after ultrasonic cleaning. I’m suspicious that the high-priced integrated units are conceived mostly for ease of use, and that their automated brushes and inboard filtering circuits may be less effective than manual techniques. They are certainly added points of failure owing to complex mechanisms. The Elma offers both 40 and 80K frequencies. I can’t hear any improvement at 80K. At 80K there is much less ultrasonic energy communicated to the LP, as measured by the increasing heat of bath temperature during the cleaning cycle. This could be a good or bad thing w/r to safety and cleaning results. But there is no damage to the LP provided that the Vinyl Spin keeps spinning. I have melted LPs on the few occasions that I forgot to engage the spinner. One or two lessons like that and you won’t forget to turn it on.

 @dgarretson mind just a quick rundown on essential bits of the DIY filter....I think RACOR makes a nice 1 micron replaceable element model....I can write that off against the boat account as safety equipment!

@whart,

I did not buy the Elma. I'm still having fun, experimenting with my original Rushton copy.

The thing about higher frequency is that the wave length is shorter. A 40KHz wave is about 1.5" long, a 120KHz wave is 0.5" long. The significance of this is the space necessary for the US wave to develop. If the space (record to tank wall) is less that the wave length, then cleaning is compromised. And don’t forget to factor in a margin for warped records, so those numbers are an underestimate.

Bottom line is a 120KHz machine can have a smaller tank. If it meets spec, and truly generates 120KHz. Which is why it’s a good idea to buy lab grade equipment like the PH60 - you know what you are buying, and you can trust it to meet spec, this year and next.

The first thing I did when I bought the PH60 was to test for damage. It doesn’t, unless you overheat (50C) the chemistry - then records warp, but the grooves remain undamaged. At least, not with my equipment, which includes an air bearing turntable and a Koetsu.

I have cleaned some 3000 records, most of them twice, some many times. No detectable damage from US. YMMV, but I doubt it.