A custom-made fly fishing rod would mean little to me, but I understand that, for the avid fisherman, it may be desirable. So too, with those of us who have lots of records-in my case, accumulated over the course of almost 50 years. I started with a basic VPI in the early ’80s. I have owned several of the fancy, expensive machines and still use two constantly, in combination. Why are they expensive? I guess, for the Audio Desk, the developer had to recoup his development costs and make a profit. It’s far more than a glorified vacuum cleaner. The KL is simpler, but overbuilt. The Monks- it’s a sort of Rube Goldberg affair of tubes, jars, outside vendor supplied pump, various motors, housed in a case with some fabrication cost involved. (Monks is now introducing an even cheaper cleaner than their Discovery machine, which adapted a commercial turntable into a cleaning machine to reach a broader market). The Loricraft is very similar in design and operation.
If all you need is a basic vacuum system, there are plenty of semi-DIY kits that permit you to add a small shop vac. If you are after ultrasonic, and want to do it without full automation, there are semi-DIY kits that add a rotisserie to a generic ultrasonic bath, and get you there for far less than a commercial machine.
Not sure what your complaint is-- there are plenty of alternatives. My sense is, the ’push one button’ ultrasonics designed for vinyl cleaning are not just about effective cleaning (though I still use them in combination with vacuum cleaning), but about convenience. When I first got one, I was overjoyed at the thought that I didn’t have to do any work, just pop a record in, and come back when it’s done. That alone has value to many audiophiles who find cleaning records a tiresome, noisy exercise that takes (limited) time away from listening.
