Proper vinyl care or "OutsideEdges"

Hello everyone! As promised, I should start this chapter by reviewing basic album care. Vinyl is very sensitive to static as well as smudges from finger contact, dirt and grime. If smudges do not detract from the sound being reproduced, oils, dirt and grime will. So you ask, "how do I avoid ruining my albums? ... think Outside edges!!! Your album inner sleeve opening should be pointing upwards inside the cover thus avoiding dust to creep into the sleeve which can get "baked" into the grooves of your vinyl. When you pull the sleeve completely out of the cover, the album should slide out of the sleeve and be guided by your thumb until your middle finger can be positioned in the middle of the album label. From there the album should be handled at all times by the outer edges!!!. Avoid contac with the grooves at all costs, your cartdrige stylus and your ears will thank you for it! At the beginning I mentioned static as part of vinyl sensitivities. There are a couple of methods to deal with static ... yes just like clothes in winter, it is going to happen. Before we deal with how to treat static you are probably asking, "why do I care about static in my albums?".

Recall that vinyl is associated with "snap, crackle, pop". The reason you love CD's, MP3's and whatever other digital media you choose is the clean background, noise free, ease of operation of the source, esentially convinience for no background noise. Please remember, vinyl will sound better and just as clean as any digital recording, provided it is cared for. Vinyl will have clicks and pops if not cared for properly. There are a wide range of products that will deal with static at a wide range of price points. My intent here is to keep costs low relative to vinyl care products as well as equipment!

A Discwasher D4 kit will handle most of your vinyl maintenance needs. It is reasonably priced and available at some on line retailers, search "Needle Doctor, Acoustic Sounds, Elusive Disc and Amazon", for a starting price of about $15.00. Yes there are anti static guns available, (over $200.00), as well as several wet / dry cleaning systems at various price points, from $500.00 up to thousands of dollars. I personally own a vacume driven wet cleaning system by VPI, (a turntable manufacturer), where I use a three step cleaning process. I state the availability and price ranges just so you can see that, as with everything in life and technology, you can spend as much or as little as you like and can get great results. Just remember, follow the manufacturesr instructions to the letter, do not deviate and you will have great results. Do remember, are you listening to music, or is it background noise? BIG difference.

If you want to listen to the music, this blog will make sense, if you want background noise, this is not for you. Please feel free to post any questions you may have, I am here to help you enjoy the beauty of analogue sounds at a very reasonable price! In my next chapter I will begin to review vintage equipment. First up will be a pair of A/D/S speakers. Untill then, "Can you hear the music?"