Ejlif, a few ideas...
Try RRL solutions instead of DD. With RRL a distilled water rinse is unnecessary and in fact counterproductive. RRL is actually purer than most distilled water, and it never foams or leaves any residue. On my Loricraft RRL gets about 70% of the records clean enough so that no further wet cleaning is necessary.
For the stubborn 30%, I try Buggtussel's Vinyl-zyme or Paul Frumkin's AIVS. Enzymes will remove stuff that surfactant-based cleaners can't.
Still, vinyl is rarely perfect. Of our 3,000+ LPs only a minority is "totally" quiet. But as Raul said, once the number of extraneous noises is reduced to just a few per side you learn to listen through them. And yes, it is possible to get the noise down to that level.
I agree with all that Lugnut said regarding better equipment. Loricrafts and Keith Monks clean better than VPIs. Better tables are quieter. Better arms and arm wire are quieter. Better phono stages are much quieter. Better cartridges are quieter and I second his vote for ZYX, which are the quietest I've heard and also the most neutral and natural.
Visitors who hear our system with a CD/SACD/DVDA (rare unless they ask) are more or less impressed, depending on what other systems they've heard. When we switch to vinyl they are invariably overwhelmed. No one has ever asked us to lift the tonearm and go back to digital. When I ask if they'd like to hear another format comparison the answer is predictable, "Shut up and play another record!" The only visitors who aren't genuinely shocked have top quality vinyl setups of their own.
If done well, vinyl can provide an enthralling musical experience that no digital source can match at any price. A good vinyl rig will stomp an Ayre. It will stomp a dcs. It will stomp a Meitner. It will even stomp my Denon. ;-) Will it cost more money than you've spent to get there? Yes. Does it take significant effort and constant TLC? Absolutely. Is it worth all that? Only you can decide.
If you live near someone with a topnotch rig it would be worth a visit. Hearing what's possible, and what it costs in dollars and time, might help you decide whether to pursue this nuttiness or go back to the remote control.
Regards,
Doug
Try RRL solutions instead of DD. With RRL a distilled water rinse is unnecessary and in fact counterproductive. RRL is actually purer than most distilled water, and it never foams or leaves any residue. On my Loricraft RRL gets about 70% of the records clean enough so that no further wet cleaning is necessary.
For the stubborn 30%, I try Buggtussel's Vinyl-zyme or Paul Frumkin's AIVS. Enzymes will remove stuff that surfactant-based cleaners can't.
Still, vinyl is rarely perfect. Of our 3,000+ LPs only a minority is "totally" quiet. But as Raul said, once the number of extraneous noises is reduced to just a few per side you learn to listen through them. And yes, it is possible to get the noise down to that level.
I agree with all that Lugnut said regarding better equipment. Loricrafts and Keith Monks clean better than VPIs. Better tables are quieter. Better arms and arm wire are quieter. Better phono stages are much quieter. Better cartridges are quieter and I second his vote for ZYX, which are the quietest I've heard and also the most neutral and natural.
Visitors who hear our system with a CD/SACD/DVDA (rare unless they ask) are more or less impressed, depending on what other systems they've heard. When we switch to vinyl they are invariably overwhelmed. No one has ever asked us to lift the tonearm and go back to digital. When I ask if they'd like to hear another format comparison the answer is predictable, "Shut up and play another record!" The only visitors who aren't genuinely shocked have top quality vinyl setups of their own.
If done well, vinyl can provide an enthralling musical experience that no digital source can match at any price. A good vinyl rig will stomp an Ayre. It will stomp a dcs. It will stomp a Meitner. It will even stomp my Denon. ;-) Will it cost more money than you've spent to get there? Yes. Does it take significant effort and constant TLC? Absolutely. Is it worth all that? Only you can decide.
If you live near someone with a topnotch rig it would be worth a visit. Hearing what's possible, and what it costs in dollars and time, might help you decide whether to pursue this nuttiness or go back to the remote control.
Regards,
Doug