SHORT REVIEW
It's effective. It works. Buy it. Buy a spare bath.
DETAILED REVIEW
I've a large collection of vinyl records acquired over the course of fifty-five years of record-collecting. Re-discovering them has also meant re-discovering years of accumulated dust and grime.
Though I wasn't overly-sure about the Knosti, dry cleaning cloths and pads had made little difference, and specialist record cleaning systems seemed very expensive, so I figured I'd give this system a chance on some records I could afford to risk.
I wasn't quite prepared for how effective it would be, especially after a lifetime of believing that wet and grooves should not mix ; for the prevaling lore at the peak of my record-collecting days was that to wet clean a record just turned the dust into mud.
If you trawl for information about cleaning solutions, you'll find a hundred opinions voicing a hundred and ten preferred home brews. I chose to stick with the supplied solution.
Setup and use is easy : pour the solution into the record bath, fit the label protector clamp on, then rotate the record through the solution between the built-in brushes. Different people have different ideas about how many revolutions are required ; I settled on ten revolutions in one direction, then ten in the other, before lifting the record clear for the drips to settle back into the bath, undoing the clamps, then letting the record air-dry on the supplied rack. The instructions say that air-drying takes about seven minutes, and I found that accurate.
The first record I tried was particularly messy, so the effectiveness is more evident, but you can see from the before and after pictures just how clean the Knosti got that record.
Encouraged, I did half a dozen or so more, all just as clean after the process.
There's a caveat.
Once the records were dry, I played them. The difference was audible ; and in one record, a favourite for many years (Palestrina, 'Missa Papae Marcelli', Kings College Choir), a rasping noise that lasted several seconds towards the end of side one, which I'd always thought a physical defect in the pressing and I dreaded the moment arriving, was simply gone. After forty years!
However, after a number of plays of more cleaned records, I began to notice a significant build up of 'fluff' on the stylus. This has been reported by others, and appears to be the anti-static layer deposited by the cleaning liquid drying out and being picked up by the needle.
I decided to address this by putting each 'cleaned' record through a second bath of distilled or purified water. A small drop of liquid detergent - just one, it's only to break water surface tension, not clean anything - is added to the water bath, and the record rinsed through that. It adds a lot to the air drying time, since the cleaning solution is alcohol-based and so evaporates quickly, whereas water takes longer, and I let the rinsed discs dry for several hours, usually overnight.
This did the trick perfectly. Records are clean, and the stylus is spotless too.
For ease, I bought a spare bath (available easily) so that I could have a two-bath process, one to clean, one to rinse. Once you get your own workflow established, it's easy, just a little time-consuming.
I've avoided putting Knosti-cleaned records back in the sleeves they were originally in. Instead, I bought several batches of good quality replacement inner sleeves (I've found Spincare products to be good), and cleaned records are re-bagged in these before going back into the original outer sleeves.
I daresay an ultrasonic record cleaning machine will be a bit more effective, at around ten times the price or more. But this system works, and I'm glad I bought it.
Recommended.
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Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 1 August 2019
It's effective. It works. Buy it. Buy a spare bath.
DETAILED REVIEW
I've a large collection of vinyl records acquired over the course of fifty-five years of record-collecting. Re-discovering them has also meant re-discovering years of accumulated dust and grime.
Though I wasn't overly-sure about the Knosti, dry cleaning cloths and pads had made little difference, and specialist record cleaning systems seemed very expensive, so I figured I'd give this system a chance on some records I could afford to risk.
I wasn't quite prepared for how effective it would be, especially after a lifetime of believing that wet and grooves should not mix ; for the prevaling lore at the peak of my record-collecting days was that to wet clean a record just turned the dust into mud.
If you trawl for information about cleaning solutions, you'll find a hundred opinions voicing a hundred and ten preferred home brews. I chose to stick with the supplied solution.
Setup and use is easy : pour the solution into the record bath, fit the label protector clamp on, then rotate the record through the solution between the built-in brushes. Different people have different ideas about how many revolutions are required ; I settled on ten revolutions in one direction, then ten in the other, before lifting the record clear for the drips to settle back into the bath, undoing the clamps, then letting the record air-dry on the supplied rack. The instructions say that air-drying takes about seven minutes, and I found that accurate.
The first record I tried was particularly messy, so the effectiveness is more evident, but you can see from the before and after pictures just how clean the Knosti got that record.
Encouraged, I did half a dozen or so more, all just as clean after the process.
There's a caveat.
Once the records were dry, I played them. The difference was audible ; and in one record, a favourite for many years (Palestrina, 'Missa Papae Marcelli', Kings College Choir), a rasping noise that lasted several seconds towards the end of side one, which I'd always thought a physical defect in the pressing and I dreaded the moment arriving, was simply gone. After forty years!
However, after a number of plays of more cleaned records, I began to notice a significant build up of 'fluff' on the stylus. This has been reported by others, and appears to be the anti-static layer deposited by the cleaning liquid drying out and being picked up by the needle.
I decided to address this by putting each 'cleaned' record through a second bath of distilled or purified water. A small drop of liquid detergent - just one, it's only to break water surface tension, not clean anything - is added to the water bath, and the record rinsed through that. It adds a lot to the air drying time, since the cleaning solution is alcohol-based and so evaporates quickly, whereas water takes longer, and I let the rinsed discs dry for several hours, usually overnight.
This did the trick perfectly. Records are clean, and the stylus is spotless too.
For ease, I bought a spare bath (available easily) so that I could have a two-bath process, one to clean, one to rinse. Once you get your own workflow established, it's easy, just a little time-consuming.
I've avoided putting Knosti-cleaned records back in the sleeves they were originally in. Instead, I bought several batches of good quality replacement inner sleeves (I've found Spincare products to be good), and cleaned records are re-bagged in these before going back into the original outer sleeves.
I daresay an ultrasonic record cleaning machine will be a bit more effective, at around ten times the price or more. But this system works, and I'm glad I bought it.
Recommended.
Verified Purchase
Far better than expected
By Alex MacPhee on 1 August 2019
SHORT REVIEWBy Alex MacPhee on 1 August 2019
It's effective. It works. Buy it. Buy a spare bath.
DETAILED REVIEW
I've a large collection of vinyl records acquired over the course of fifty-five years of record-collecting. Re-discovering them has also meant re-discovering years of accumulated dust and grime.
Though I wasn't overly-sure about the Knosti, dry cleaning cloths and pads had made little difference, and specialist record cleaning systems seemed very expensive, so I figured I'd give this system a chance on some records I could afford to risk.
I wasn't quite prepared for how effective it would be, especially after a lifetime of believing that wet and grooves should not mix ; for the prevaling lore at the peak of my record-collecting days was that to wet clean a record just turned the dust into mud.
If you trawl for information about cleaning solutions, you'll find a hundred opinions voicing a hundred and ten preferred home brews. I chose to stick with the supplied solution.
Setup and use is easy : pour the solution into the record bath, fit the label protector clamp on, then rotate the record through the solution between the built-in brushes. Different people have different ideas about how many revolutions are required ; I settled on ten revolutions in one direction, then ten in the other, before lifting the record clear for the drips to settle back into the bath, undoing the clamps, then letting the record air-dry on the supplied rack. The instructions say that air-drying takes about seven minutes, and I found that accurate.
The first record I tried was particularly messy, so the effectiveness is more evident, but you can see from the before and after pictures just how clean the Knosti got that record.
Encouraged, I did half a dozen or so more, all just as clean after the process.
There's a caveat.
Once the records were dry, I played them. The difference was audible ; and in one record, a favourite for many years (Palestrina, 'Missa Papae Marcelli', Kings College Choir), a rasping noise that lasted several seconds towards the end of side one, which I'd always thought a physical defect in the pressing and I dreaded the moment arriving, was simply gone. After forty years!
However, after a number of plays of more cleaned records, I began to notice a significant build up of 'fluff' on the stylus. This has been reported by others, and appears to be the anti-static layer deposited by the cleaning liquid drying out and being picked up by the needle.
I decided to address this by putting each 'cleaned' record through a second bath of distilled or purified water. A small drop of liquid detergent - just one, it's only to break water surface tension, not clean anything - is added to the water bath, and the record rinsed through that. It adds a lot to the air drying time, since the cleaning solution is alcohol-based and so evaporates quickly, whereas water takes longer, and I let the rinsed discs dry for several hours, usually overnight.
This did the trick perfectly. Records are clean, and the stylus is spotless too.
For ease, I bought a spare bath (available easily) so that I could have a two-bath process, one to clean, one to rinse. Once you get your own workflow established, it's easy, just a little time-consuming.
I've avoided putting Knosti-cleaned records back in the sleeves they were originally in. Instead, I bought several batches of good quality replacement inner sleeves (I've found Spincare products to be good), and cleaned records are re-bagged in these before going back into the original outer sleeves.
I daresay an ultrasonic record cleaning machine will be a bit more effective, at around ten times the price or more. But this system works, and I'm glad I bought it.
Recommended.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 21 January 2018
Verified Purchase
Amazing record cleaner.
By Mr. R. M. Mitchener on 21 January 2018
I bought this item from joe audio and it was delivered free within 2 days.ltems is of good quality and at half the price of a well known USA competitor. This is German made need l say anymore. I was skeptical about this product after reading all the reviews.The lst lp l cleaned was a 1967 pressing of Days of Future passed by The moodyblues that l got from a charity shop for £1.l manually cleaned it as suggested on YouTube and l sounded rough to say the least.l then cleaned it on this machine and all l can say is WOW what a difference it plays like nèw. All l can say don't believe the bad reviews. These guys must be ham fisted.As suggested by a reviewer fill the bath about 10mm below the label. Turn record 3 times in both directions. Lift up and drain record above bath spinning at the same time to remove excess fluid.The rack does take 15 lps and they are ready to play in 30 mins in a warm room.
By Mr. R. M. Mitchener on 21 January 2018
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 5 May 2019
Verified Purchase
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 23 February 2019
My only advice is to perform the cleaning in a well ventilated area unless you want to create a punk glue-sniffing vibe!
Once the supplied fluid runs out I recommend using Vinyl Shelter - cheaper. just as effective and your stylus stays clean.
Verified Purchase
Amazing results.
By garryj99 on 23 February 2019
No more Rice Krispie snap, crackle and pop!. My LPs are playing as siently as CD, including some albums that are 40 years old.By garryj99 on 23 February 2019
My only advice is to perform the cleaning in a well ventilated area unless you want to create a punk glue-sniffing vibe!
Once the supplied fluid runs out I recommend using Vinyl Shelter - cheaper. just as effective and your stylus stays clean.
Images in this review
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on 15 November 2017
Verified Purchase
