Rival11

Ya know X, your avatar is really effective on mobile devices, yes, I swatted at your ant until I remembered. I really thought I had ants in my house for a second lol.

X

Unfortunate, perhaps you should get some Terro just in case. Hmm…I wonder how long it would take to load a cockroach or black widow spider gif?

Hey, Toby Dramit, did you ever get that Who’s Next box set? If so, what do you think?

Toby Dramit

Toby Dramit here ... I did get it but haven't listened to it yet. After I pick up a few more albums on Record Store Day, I'll be giving The Who and about a dozen other vinyl LPs a thorough cleaning first before settling in and dropping the needle. Looking forward to it ...

cultshock

Speaking of cleaning LPs, what methods do you all use? I used to always run my albums through a Spin-Clean, but I never felt that it was doing a through job. I've been thinking of trying an old school record cleaning brush and some cleaning solution and using some good old elbow grease, anyone have any good cleaning tips? I'd love to try one of those HumminGuru ultrasonic cleaners but not sure if their performance is worth the bucks.

Toby Dramit

I use a Spin-Clean (but it's the clear, fancy 45th Anniversary Edition and not the ordinary, regular yellow one, don't ya know) ...



I'll use a good anti-static brush followed by a once-over with an adhesive roller to pick up any remaining debris before I listen to an album, as well.




Those ultrasonic cleaners look pretty tempting, though. I don't know if they'll be able to remove the fingerprints and smudges that I'm finding quite often on some of the newer vinyl that I buy ...

slop101

The good thing about the yellow one is that due to the yellow color of the container, you can better see the black gunk that came off your records than you can in a clear container - some have black containers, and those make seeing the gunk difficult as well.

Though I have found that just using a simple brush (with just a tiny big of formula on it) then just playing the record and cleaning your needle and wiping the record again with the brush tends to do a better job overall cleaning records than running them through these contraptions.

cultshock

Good point on the yellow Spin-Clean, it's ugly, but I definitely see the dirt floating around at the bottom. I do use an anti-static brush everytime before playing a record, I'm been thinking of getting one of those adhesive rollers too.

Geofferson

I have a Record Doctor VI vacuum. It's a manual turn and flip, but it comes at a cheaper price as compared to a few others. I've had good luck with it.

Toby Dramit

Anyone else heading out for Record Store Day tomorrow? I'll be lining up early at one of our local record shops looking to pick up The Tragically Hip: Live At CBGB's, as well as a few Jazz albums I have my eye on ...

Paff

Gonna do my usual mid morning (10AMish, they open at 8) trip to M-Theory Records, hope the line isn't too long by that time, and go for the punk and new wave options (Ramones, Talking Heads, English Beat, Dead Milkmen, Replacements). Last few years I was told that I was the first person to pick up a lot of those types of titles, hoping that'll hold true tomorrow. Gotta be at my film festival no later than noon, so this is really my only shot at it.

cultshock

There was nothing really for me this year, so I just slept in today instead.

Toby Dramit

Not me! I was up early and first in line to grab a copy of The Hip ...

Picked up a few albums from the Mahavishnu Orchestra as well (The Inner Mounting Flame, Birds Of Fire, and Visions Of The Emerald Beyond). All in all, a pretty good haul!

I enjoy meeting and talking with people while we're lined up waiting for the store to open. Some good people in the record community. It passes the time nicely, too.

Paff

M Theory was absolutely insane. 10:30, line stretched the length of the block and I had to be at the film festival by about 11:45.

Guy in line in front of me asks what I was looking for, when I told him Ramones, he said Folk Arts Records had 10 copies and no line. Bop over there, no line as he said, got Ramones, Replacements, and the No Hippies Punk comp. Buddy of mine was there too and sniped the last Talking Heads so I'm still on the search for that. Might try M Theory again this afternoon

Chrisedge

I went to my usual local store, got U2, The English Beat, and Garbage. I wanted the G.B.I. 7", but missed out by a person or two. No biggie.

emanon

I picked up GBI, but couldn't bring myself to spend $15 on a 7", so I left it behind and just grabbed the Neil Young I was after, and not one but two variants of Dark Matter instead, which I swore I wouldn't do.

Toby Dramit

Finally dropped the needle on this. I thought the studio album sounded okay ... albeit a little dirty (even after cleaning). I didn't realize the vinyl was pressed in the Czech Republic, which may have something to do with it. The album is slightly warped as well, though I thought it played fine. Just a little underwhelming sound-wise, IMO, but no major problems like you had with that one track. The concert itself, OTOH, sounds fantastic (though I've only listened to one side so far). Some great audio here! Enjoying the on-stage banter between Townsend and Moon, as well ...

Geofferson

I've mostly been over RSD releases for the past couple years now as my focus shifted to original pressings. That said, I did hit up a couple places because there was live music playing and some used collections were put out. Big crowds but still had a fun time.

cultshock

So pressed by GZ then? Their stuff tends to be hit or miss, I've had great pressings and crappy pressings from that company.

Toby Dramit

Yeah, their quality control can leave a lot to be desired unfortunately. At least the concert portion sounds great from what I've heard so far.

X

I've also read that the Czech pressings are hit-or-miss. Mine is very quiet except for one remaining annoying click. I'm able to get rid of it after recording though. Keith Moon's drums sure come through. I don't think I've ever heard them so pronounced. He was a madman.

I do need to find a solution for cleaning records. I've run into some real old ones that need more than the Discwasher brush and fluid that I normally use. Ultrasonic cleaning sounds interesting, I used to work with them, but I've read that it could also cause some damage depending on the ultrasonic frequency.

slop101

I ended up getting the one RSD I wanted (Faces at BBC) the next day online from an indie store in San Francisco.
The $7 I paid for shipping is totally worth not having to line up at one of my local stores for the possibility that it wouldn't be sold out by the time it'd be my turn. I did have a search few different stores Sunday morning to find one that wasn't sold out - but found it on the 4th try.

Toby Dramit

The more I look into the Record Doctor X, the more I'm impressed. Not crazy about the price tag, though, so I'm going to continue with the Spin-Clean for now. Unless the Otter community would like to chip in and send me one, of course ...

Toddarino

Was able to snag the two Hives releases and the rsd version of the new Neil Young & Crazy Horse album. I missed out on the Ramones demos though.

Geofferson

the high cost of the RD X is largely in the automated motor. If you are fine rotating the disc manually, the RD VI is half the price. I have the VI and am perfectly happy with it.

jpcamb

Looks like I missed out on the RSD Doors release and Bull Moose which is my go-to for these things wants double the cost of retail. Ordered it from TheDoors.com and am not a fan of their website. 11 bucks for shipping seems steep and I could not find a free shipping code. Bit the bullet and bought it and then got an email from the website saying I left something in my cart and they sent me a 10% off code after I bought it and got no confirmation aside from the money coming out of Paypal.