RRL Cleaner, Vinyl Zyme, and Groove Glide

4yanx: If a solvent has some form of detergent action to it, it is not a neutral PH. Anything that isn't neutral will leave behind some type of residue that will have some form of interaction with the materials that it resides upon. On top of that, there's no way to avoid "smearing" contaminants back onto the record. That's because the brushes come into contact with the foreign materials on the record and have the "grunge" sucked up over and through them as it is recovered by the vacuum pump. One would literally have to clean the felt "lips" or brushes after each record to avoid this. Even then, whatever you used to wash them with will have left some form of residue on the lips. As such, i'd rather have distilled water left behind as a residue than anything else i can think of. Sean
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Okay, here's the deal guys. Tomorrow I'm going to immerse several records in an isopropyl alcohol bath, labels and all. I've got an import picked out, a generic pressing from the 70's, an early 60's jazz and my least favorite MFSL. So, here's the questions I have. How long should I soak them? What magnification should I be seeking in a microscope in order to see any changes? Do the members here trust my ears when reporting sonic changes or lack thereof? How long is sufficient, in your opinion, to wait for leeching to happen?

I'm also going to try and find residue from an evaporative process of the cleaners I have on hand. I'll be using alcohol in computer chip manufacturing multi-stage processed water and RRL cleaner and wash. How much of each type of fluid would be enough in your opinion? Would you prefer microscopic inspection, weighing or both?

Does anyone have any idea on how I can find fact about whether Gruv Glide interferes with the stylus interface in the groove? My ears do not confirm what Narrod claims and my vinyl has been played on some of the finest systems I've ever imagined. Input on this subject is really wanted.

Then, if I go through all of this trouble will anyone believe the results if I post them? I did this with the rice paper sleeve controversy and the same old claims pop up.

Anyone have access to an electron microscope?

Sean, until I got the Loricraft with the string that is the only contact with the record groove, I experienced what you mention namely the contamination of the cleaner brushes. I use DD and I do follow-up with distilled water as I can hear the benefit of the additional rinse.

If you can vacuum all that is dissolved in a liquid off the record, I cannot imagine that the Ph matters, but distilled water should remove anything remaining.

Lugnut: You are doing what i would love to do. I was going to check with my local Cal Lab to see if i could work something out with them in terms of inspecting vinyl and documenting the differences in cleaners. I would think that they would have some type of high powered microscope and the ability to record / document before & after photo's. I was interested in doing this myself, but having some type of third party perform the tasks seemed like a better idea. I might "fool myself" into obtaining the results that i wanted to see and this would act as some type of a "control" in the whole testing process. Sean
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I'm working today so I'll put this off until I get some input and more free time. There's no sense in doing this unless others are interested. Perhaps I'll just soak the albums for a month or so, clean them and note any audible differences. But then, maybe my system isn't capable, in the minds of others, to resolve any differences. One last note on this. I'm not trying to be a smart ass or start any barbs between members. I'm genuinely curious as my findings differ from others. Honestly, I think the hardest part will be gaining access to a really high powered microscope without breaking my bank, not to mention a desire to photograph the resultant images. Should this become cost prohibitive I will need some ideas on how to evaluate on the cheap.