Reducing background fizz and pops on Vinyl.

Matrix, $100 is about what 4 records cost now, and there is enough Disc Dr. treatment to clean alot of records, if you use it all up quickly you will have enough experience then be able to get a job washing dishes in a diner, so you can pay for it. At the grocery store you can get some Lemon Pledge and a Scothbrite pad, but I have not tried that method, let me know if it works for ya?
John_1 have you tried fluid in your Nitty Gritty other than Pure2, I tried the VPI concentrate you mix with water and found it not to work so well with my machine(it didn't flow out at all). Has anyone tried the Last cleaning machine fluid or any other one they have found that is a good value.
The Geeks at Stereophile claim that Disc Doctor works great for removing the ticks and small sizzles, there must be someone here that has tried it. Chime in!

I was not knocking products, I was just wondering if their was a good way to do it without Miracle Treatments that cost alot. Please understand that I do not have hundreds of records so I have not found a way to justify the cost for about 20-25 albums. But I will consider putting my experiance in Record washing on my resume for the next dishwashing job thanks.

Matrix, I've got to chime in on this one. I have been collecting lp's for over 35 years and only recently purchased a Nitty Gritty machine. What I have found is that records that originally came with a paper sleeve almost always have surface noise and the audiophile lp's were markedly quieter. With the vacuum machine the surface noise is gone. Interesting though, it does take time and perhaps repeat "washings" to really get them clean and quiet. I wish I would have purchased a similiar unit years ago. My suggestion is get a vac machine now, save money for a really good table/arm/cartridge, and buy the vinyl last. I don't have experience with many tt's but can honestly state that my Linn/Ittok is stunningly quiet, revealing, and offers qualities not found with compact disc.

Going back in time, my first "real" table was a Thorens with a Shure cartridge purchased in the very early 70's. I purchased a B&O years later for the convenience and bought my first Linn about 1980. Having kept the above mentioned tables and being able to compare their performance it became clear to me that much of the noise is table induced. Why else would the Linn, playing the same recordings, be so silent compared to the others? The lack of background noise is but one benefit. After all this time I can still rediscover hidden nuances in my collection as veil upon veil has been lifted through upgrades. This is coming from a guy that rarely upgrades but wishes he would have done these things early on.

Regards,
Patrick

Matrix,sorry to be so sarcastic. If I knew of one I would not need the $600 record cleaning machine I bought 20 years ago.I can't imagine playing records without it. If you only have a small collection it is hard to justify the cost of the machines. Someone out there may have a great DIY formula for you. This is why CD's have been so popular. They are real easy to use. Unfortunayly there is no free lunch with analog,everything, including the cleaning of the vinyl seems to be pricey. The Disc Doctor thing sounds like sort of a pain in the butt, like washing "dishes". With only 25 you won't get dishpan hands, I just imagined trying to do one or two hundred, it could take months to get thru them all.

Dear Matrix,
Great question. I have tried many of the above mentioned products. Many of which are quite good too. I have the best, consistent sound improvement with Genuine Gruv Glide. I've used Gruv Glide for over 15 years with fine results. It's easy, and very economical. Check out their web site at www.gruvglide.com for reviews and technical info.

Hope this helps, Happy Listening!
hififile