Before I bought a Melco, I played CDs in an Audiolab 8200. I was given (so no expenditure expectation) when I bought the player, some Russ Andrew’s Relees and Reveel. It seemed to have some effect, but apart from squirting some Relees on a microfibre cloth when I have dusted the Hitachi/LG drive that I use for ripping it was put away, too time consuming with 1000 discs to rip.
Since getting involved in the Poundland adventure there has been a lot of ripping. There have recently been more failures. Nothing obvious with the discs. When I open the case I look for dust or finger prints and carefully clean using a soft brush or spectacle microfibre cloth. Anything else washing up liquid and warm water then pat dry.
Today I had a charity shop find still in the original wrapper. It ripped, but on playback there were drop outs, clicks, pops. I checked with a bright light, not a mark or pinhole. So I washed and dried, ripped again, still clicks and pops.
Then I played the CD in the Audiolab. Nothing but music.
So I did the Reveel and Relees, ripped again.
It now plays cleanly.
What I was not prepared for was the change in sound. Four singers clearly separated, odd noises, foot taps finger clicks, one female voice clearly a head voice, Male voice with chest resonance.
I know memory plays tricks, I know I cannot go back and compare, I know this was at least the sixth time I listened to the track. I’m sure I heard an improvement.
So tonight I have Reveeled the half a dozen discs that would not rip. Every one a success.
I think there are benefits from CD cleaning/washing. As you say, a simple visual inspection doesn’t suggest to one’s eyes there’s anything awry. You have prompted me to clean some of mine now using the same product you’ve used.
You’re probably aware that there are some more aggressive (more effective?) cleaning tools out in the market e.g. something which looks like a section of sewer pipe joint, which has brushes and motor. IIRC this isn’t cheap but I’ve read media reviews which suggest it’s very effective - the unanswered question though is does it reduce the lifespan of the CD?
There’s also the CD-lathe cutter, which trims edges off - it seems many CDs are not 100% circular.
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