I currently use a Loricraft PRC4 record cleaner but have recently become curious about the Audio Deck Vinyl Cleaner Pro. I realise it is an expensive cleaner but the automatic cleaning cycle and the ultrasonic cleaning which seems to do a better job than vacuum cleaning are appealing.
Does anyone have experience of this cleaner they can share?
Thanks
Graham
I have an Audio Desk Vinyl Cleaner Pro and I am mega impressed by it.
I owned a Keith Monks RCM before which was very good but the Audio Desk is just excellent in terms of how it operates and the end result… a definite sound improvement for many of my LPs!.
It also looks good and has a small footprint so fits nicely on top of my desk in my study.
One of my best Hi-Fi purchases!
Richard
Thanks Richard. That’s really helpful insight.
Graham
I have had one for at least a couple of years now.
They are expensive, but I don’t think I could be without it now.
Does a great job of cleaning and has never missed a beat, having now cleaned hundreds of records.
I am convinced virtually every album I clean sounds better than prior to cleaning - so much so that I have stopped even bothering to compare.
I would highly recommend.
Highly recommend! It definitely does a very nice job. I haven’t owned others however.
For you Audio Desk owners – I saw a post recently that you can buy replacement microfibre rollers from Home Depot for a fraction of the price Audio Desk charges.
Thanks Stan and Bart
I have one and use it on every new record before I play it, as well as older records in my collection when they need cleaning. It does an excellent job, and is easy and fast compared to using a turntable/vacuum-based RCM (I have an Okki Nokki).
I bought mine earlier this year as a dealer ex-demo. It’s a 2017 model or so and the motor failed last month. The dealer sent it back, and I was offered either a refurbished replacement free of charge, or a brand new unit for an upcharge. I chose the latter and now have a brand new 2019 model, which works more smoothly and is more quiet.
I am most impressed by the speed and level of customer service I received. I had my replacement unit within about two weeks of reporting the failure and dropping it off at my dealer.
A great looking system. Good to know that the latest version has more improvements.
I too have the older model. Works very well on new and used Vinyl.
Alan
I’m sure the Audio Desk units are excellent and the concept of ultrasonic cleaning seems intrinsically right to me, but these products are pricey . I see other less fancy ultrasonic cleaners advertised for around £400ish. Wondering if anyone has experience of these ?
Good to know. Thanks Alan.
My big complaint of the older model is it tended to leave water drops after cleaning and drying. I would dab them off with a microfiber cloth. So far, after cleaning 50 or so on the new machine I have yet to see droplets. Not that I won’t but it seems promising so far.
Do you think that’s because the rubber blades have been changed or because of something to do with moving the cleaning rollers away from the record?
I don’t know. I’m not sure what’s different about the blades other than color (white -> black). I still have a set of old blades and they are exactly the same size. The rollers work the same as my old unit too. The rollers didn’t touch the record on the old unit either. I think they’re just there to provide extra agitation for loosened particulates.
Others (in another forum) have also complained about the droplets with older units.
In any case, my 2019 unit so far is fantastic! I love that I ended up this way.
That’s a great endorsement for the newer model. Thanks
My model is from 2018 and I used to occasional get the odd water droplet left on one side of the LP. But then after getting a new pair of wiper blades (white ones) and inserting them very carefully to minimise the gap between them I have had no such issues again.
So my finding is that the blades need inserting just right and to help to do that I use a drop of washing-up liquid smeared on them to help sliding them in and out.
Hope that makes sense to those who have an Audio Desk Pro.
Richard
I did that too, but I still had issues with water droplets. No amount of adjusting the blades helped much. On another forum that same complaint has been mentioned, and others have said the 2019 model works better in that regard.
I asked my dealer about their 2019 model, and they have the same observation. While the earlier model had some issues, they say so far that using the 2019 model over the last several months water droplets remained after cleaning on only a few occasions.
Interesting… I do not suppose that there is an upgrade option for exiting users?
Maybe worth trying the new black blades at ÂŁ16 (I think), just in case they work better?
Richard
I still have a set of the wipe blades from my previous unit. Other than color I can not tell that there is any difference. When I wear out my current black blades I plan to use the white ones I have as a replacement, but it will be a while before I get there.
From a review I found…
You’ll also note that the wiper blades fitted in the vinyl slot, seen on the right as you look from the front, are black and not white. Apparently, they have a coating on them to extend longevity. I have no idea if that is true and by how much but I do know that they appeared to be more efficient in terms of wiping away excess liquid.
