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Clean away old CD treatments

Hello,

Recently I've been trying various CD treatments. I began with Optrix, switched to Shine-ola, and even tried Ultrabit. A few of my CDs have received all three treatments without any cleansing in between.

I would like to start over. I want to clean all the old treatments off my CDs. Is it enough to use mild dish soap and distilled water? Or should I use something like Novus? I am hesitant to use lens cleaners with isopropyl alcohol or ethanol because I've heard alcohol is bad for polycarbonate.

Would appreciate any advice.
rfprice
gdnrbob
4,481 posts
 
Geoffkait, the OP wanted to remove old cleaners, for which I suggested Dawn. Introducing magnetism and static charge to the conversation seems a bit off field. In any case, the OP can get a demagnitizer, which I would endorse, as I have noticed a marked sound quality difference after using it.-And, I really was expecting it to make no difference!
Some of these tweaks aren't snake oil sometimes.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 

gdnrbob

Geoffkait, the OP wanted to remove old cleaners, for which I suggested Dawn. Introducing magnetism and static charge to the conversation seems a bit off field.

Not really off field since many CD "cleaners" do more than just clean. As i already pointed out, since some cleaners remove MRC you cannot really "start over from scratch" since once treated with many cleaners the CD will always be better than its original state. besides many CD cleaners such as Optrix employ an anti static agent. Dawn may or may not remove MRC, I don’t know. And most likely it doesn’t contain anti static agents, but anything is possible.

cheers

rfprice OP
150 posts
 
In fact, I've been thinking about getting a demagnetizer, such as the HiFi Tuning or Furutech. I've experimented enough with various tweaks to know that they do provide a benefit. But I wish I could hear the demagnetizer, considering the cost. And I presume it's true that there will always be some residual effect from the previous treatments. But now that I've seen that there really is a benefit to these spray treatments, I want to think more carefully about what I'm doing before I go any further. I think I might just stick with Shine-ola. Or I might take one last stab with the L Art du Son.

Finally finished cleaning the CDs. I put them through three rinses in distilled water after washing with Dawn. What a chore.
rfprice OP
150 posts
 
Actually there were not 50 discs, but 150. Long day.

I left four discs that had received only the Ultrabit and four discs that had received only the Shine-ola. Listening last night, I think the Ultrabit treatment might be mellowing over time. It doesn't seem so aggressive now. The clarity and detail are very compelling.
geoffkait's avatar
geoffkait
23,365 posts
 
Clark Johnsen did a review of quite a number of CD treatments for Positive Feedback titled Lotions Eleven. 

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