Do I need a machine to clean ?

A machine does a much better job than hand cleaning. It actually sucks the suspended dirt off the vinyl. Nothing else works as well. Some discs play better than new afterwards ; they came from the plant with gunk in the grooves and we never knew...

You can get away with a cheaper machine if you do more hand work. A manual rather than motor-driven turntable costs less but you turn the platter. More expensive machines clean both sides at once. All of them can do a good job.

There are do-it-yourself designs around. Check at Audio Asylum or the back issues at UHF magazine ( www.uhfmag.com--UHF also sells a quality cleaning solution at a good price ). You need a platter to turn the disc as you apply fluid and scrub, and a wet vacuum with a nozzle that won't damage the disc as it sucks from the vinyl surface.

One tricky point is keeping the vacuum nozzle clean, so as to avoid putting the gunk right back where it came from.

The main benefit of a Nitty Gritty, VPI, SOTA or similar device is speed: I can clean an LP on my Nitty Gritty 2.5 in about 40 seconds. I do use Disc Doctor in really stubborn cases, and it works quite well - (although I still use the NG to vac-off the rinse water). The Disc Doctor method is, however, quite a bit more time-consuming - takes me at least 5-6 minutes per LP - - once I get into it.

If you have a lot of LPs - or are planning to purchase a lot - A Nitty Gritty or VPI machine is a very worthwhile investment.

Well you can argue all day about what method of cleaning is the most effective, but I personally bought a VPI 16.5, which is a semi-automaic machine. It's effective, simple, and solidly built with quality materials.

I like the "semi-automatic" because the manual scrubbing allows me to give just the right amount of attention to each vinyl, then it's just a flip of a switch and everything gets sucked up, and I have a very clean record. It's intuitive and not at all awkward to use.

I also personally feel the VPI is more attractive than the Nitty Gritty machines, appearance-wise. It's not a big deal, and I bought it mainly because I preferred the feel of it, but it's nice that it can blend into my room pretty easily. No complaints about its performance; the only thing that I would change about any of these machines is the noise of the vacuum.

I use the VPI as necessary, and I have Decca and Hunt brushes that I use for light dust each time I play a vinyl.

Thanks for the input. I play mostly vinyl, maybe 80/20 vinyl. I really have about 300 albums and they all need cleaning. I currently just brush them with Record Research fluid. So I guess I should buy a machine. I don't mind all of the manual labor part. Actually I kind of enjoy it. Would the basic machine from Audio Advisor be ok?

Besides the convenience of being less labor intensive, the more expensive machines do a better job because they have more powerful suction. I had the entry level AA machine and it never got all of the fluid off the record no matter how long I spun it around. The VPI I have now gets it off in a couple of revolutions.