2. analog
  3. 1394259610

Kl Audio LP200 ultrasonic record cleaner insights

I did a bit of research a few months ago on the Audio Desk ultrasonic cleaner and thats where I found out about the KL Audio CLN LP200unit. I was attracted to the much more powerful motor, no rollers to replace and using distilled water rather than a cleaner.

Let me start that I have a Loricraft and used the Walker 4 step program but shortened it to a clean\rinse setup. Still ten undivided minutes of your time a side to clean. After a while I didnt bother with mint or new records.

Table Galibier Gavia, Triplanar Arm, Zyx Universe cartridge

I have quckly and efficiently cleaned more records in 3 weeks than I have for the three years I have had the Loricraft. And it was hardly an inconvienance, not a major chore

I have cleaned a number of Walker\Loricraft records again with the KL Audio. The results are jaw dropping. Dead quiet, no static pops (sometimes dont even zerostat). The biggest issue is resolution, getting down and removing that last bit of material and the resolution, body, separation of instruments, timing, passion and air around the notes is enhanced. Modest pressing sound like audiophile. I have ran into a few noisy records, probably dug out by the last stylus but most everything else has been so overwhelming. Low level detail is to die for.

The machine is a tank. Everything impeccably manufacturered. You can set the ultrasonic to 1-5 minutes and the drying 2-4 minutes I spit out a record every 5 minutes while I watch tv from the next room. It drys very effectively but isnt that loud

This machine is not cheap at $4k but what it does is like a very serious component upgrade. Highly recommended for someone with a serious vinyl collection and setup
128x128audiotomb
jtimothya
612 posts
 
One thing I did motice is that Klaudio does not remove oil or finger print easily from the record. When I was cleaning the tecords, my finger soiled the record and I could see the big finger print that looks oily. I cleaned that record four times again and the finger print was still visible.

This is where I wonder if the Audio Desk Systeme might do a better job cleaning than the KLAudio because the ADS unit uses a cleaning agent (surfactant?) and scrubs the record with its rollers.

Without claiming any science nor wanting to start a foodfight, it just 'seems like' cavitation + soap + scrubbing would do a better job than cavitation alone.

Who knows if that amounts to a practical difference.

 
syntax's avatar
syntax
2,193 posts
 

06-06-14: Almandog
Update:

Before cleaning the records I bought at The Show, I emptied the water from KLaudio. I took a clean piece of tissue to clean out reservoir and I could not believe what I saw. The tissue looked like mud was all over it. There was a lot of residue and brown muck in the reservoir. This means that the KLaudio is doing its job in getting muck from inside the recors groves.....

I will use Spin Clean for finger print and oil from now on and Klaudio for deeper cleaning....


The best results (and also most reliable from the technical view) you will get the way you did describe. The mold should be removed with a machine which is able to do a good job, best is a point nozzle design. Then you can do a final Ultra Sonic clean. When I do it that way, the main gunk is in my Monks and when I do an additional run of that "pre-cleaned" Record in the Klaudio there is no more dirt in the reservoir.

But even when you are lazy and use the Klaudio only, deskilled water is cheap, a change of the fluid is easy. Btw. Fingerprints are uninteresting, that is a visual disturb only. The diamond of the cartridge tracks the inside the grooves, not their top. Of course, the ADS has advantages, but the time showed, it made too much problems and some did choose the Klaudio because they want something reliable. I am one of those. And the combination of a point nozzle + Klaudio is simply the best when you are serious in records.
jtimothya
612 posts
 
Fingerprints are uninteresting, that is a visual disturb only.

Whether from fingerprints or otherwise, grease and oil are not unique to a record's surface and both attract dirt.

For the sake of balance, what I read is the current Audio Desk is quite reliable.
 
whart's avatar
whart
3,037 posts
 
I use both methods- AIVS No. 15, plus lab water on an old VPI using MoFi
brush/pads, then into ultrasonic (I have the AD, which I bought just as the
KL was announced). I buy mostly used, older vinyl and have found that the
enzyme/agitation/lab water is necessary for records that have been
'handled' for 40 or 50 years. So, what started as a 'man, this is easy'
revelation when I first got an ultrasonic cleaner has now turned into an
even more involved, time consuming cleaning process, but my records
seem to be really clean, no static, no residue (following others, I've reduced
the amount of surfactant in the AD). I have a pretty good work flow, and
while one is in the US, I'm 'pre-cleaning' a couple more. I try to do 'batches'
of records, so i'm not constantly interrupting my listening to do record
cleaning.
syntax's avatar
syntax
2,193 posts
 
Btw. I use below my Klaudio an isolation Platform....the serious mod for the haunted audiophile :-)
More to discover