Offer is still open. I'll try to flatten a few LPs for those that want to see if this thing works. No promises, it has worked for me on the few I've tried but I've been too busy to work through my collection.
My interest was peaked by this thread so I ordered the Vinyl Flat and pouch and have been experimenting with it. I was skeptical. I've tried several methods of flattening discs without success. Short answer? This works. I think the key is even pressure and controlled heat. The fact that these groovy rings avoid the label step up as well as the one at the outer rim is very important. Even pressure is applied to the playing surface only. I also like the pouch because it take the guess work out of heat application. The records I've tried have come out much more playable with no noted change in sound quality. The one thing I would say based on my experience is to error on the long side with heating times. The first record I tried really didn't improve on a 3.5 hour trial. I retried it and went way to a party all night. I forgot about it and came home and went to bed. After 11 hours in the heated pouch I thought all may be lost. The record was nearly perfectly flat after cooling and sounded the same as before. Currently, I'm going 6-7 hours. Let it cool to room temp before opening. To me, the Furotech is way too expensive. This system is safe, effective and affordable. That passes FDA standards. I don't know how much weight my opinion carries on these forums(I'm no Doug Deacon I know that)but I give this thing my recommendation. If you have a large collection you have enough warped vinyl to make this product well worth the price.
SonofJim- It either works or it doesn't. Your opinion is good enough for me. Sounds much less complicated that a dry mount press, which is basically what the Furutech is. AS for any changes in sound, the basic question, IMO, is whether it makes an unplayable or severely compromised LP and makes it playable. if it does, and has a minor impact on sound, then so be it.
Swampwalker, That's what I'm saying. It does just that and it's the first time I've had any success at all doing something like this. I made a copy of Al Di Meola's Hotel Splendido that had severe ripple warps play with very little tonearm movement at all and this record sounds great, still. At this price, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend trying this to anyone. If you have a group of friends to share one with even better. Currently, I'm flattening the Legacy 50th anniversary pressing of Kind of Blue. This set was fairly well done but horribly packaged. I found one for $30 but with a dish warp. I'm optimistic. We'll see.
You must have a verified phone number and physical address in order to post in the Audiogon Forums. Please return to Audiogon.com and complete this step. If you have any questions please contact Support.
