Magnetization & Demagnetization any conclusions?


Does the furutech improve sound? Does a record have the potential to become magnetized- and how easily??
I am planning on adding magnets to the bottom of my platter and the top of my plinth to take some weight off of the bearing. Then it occured to me, am I going to start introducing a magnetic charge to my records and cartridge?
Anyone have an idea how far is safe for a magnet to be before it starts to influence other materials? At this point I have 4 3/4 between the magnet and the record.
Thanks
pedrillo

Showing 4 responses by dougdeacon

It is certainly possible to magnetize a record. That's why de-magnetizers like the Furutech and Walker Talisman work so well (and they do). I'm speaking from daily experience, not just what I think.

Putting strong magnets that close to records or expensive cartridges risks magnifying the former or - much worse - demagnifying the latter.

If your TT bearing can't handle the weight of the platter without wear or audible bearing noise, don't risk the health of your cartridges or the sound quality of your records. Buy a better turntable.
Our experiences match those of Rushton, Dan_Ed and James1969.

Our LP's reveal greater dynamics, extended HF's with less distortion and a markedly lower sound floor (more low level musical detail, ambient space information, etc.) This has been consistent across hundreds of LP's.

CD/SACD/DVD-A sound is also improved.

The gray scale and color rendering on DVD's are measurably more accurate, so the PQ on most discs is visibly improved. (Demagging can make it easier to see digital "airbrushing" surrounding some CGI images. As with any resolution enhancement, flaws in poorly constructed source material become more apparent even as the quality of good source material improves.)

IME demagging does not involve or affect static electricity at all. The Zerodust is still needed for that.

The improvements with the Walker Talisman are subtle, as Rushton reported, but always audible - although you do need to demag before each play. The improvement with stronger, AC-powered demagnifiers is notably greater and repeat treatments seem unnecessary to date (~6 months), much as claimed by Furutech.

If an LP sounds "bright" after demagging, as SirSpeedy heard in some cases, I suggest there's something out of whack in the playback system. Demagging does not add anything to an LP that would cause brightness. All it does is reduce stray magnetic fields that can interfere with the native magnetic fields in the cartridge. Distorting those fields alters the behavior of the cartridge away from what the designer intended.
SirSpeedy,

I have used the Talisman. It works, though probably not as well as the (more powerful) Furutech.

I used it as instructed by Walker and described by Rushton. It would indeed work just as well away from the TT and I agree that would be safer. Good suggestion.

I now use an AC-powered machine tools demagnifier. It's vastly more powerful than a Talisman and notably more effective too. Probably similar to a Furutech, since it's the same technology. Mine's a bit tricky to use and it would destroy a cartridge in a heartbeat, so I'm reluctant to recommend it on a public forum.

As Mothra said, you don't want to use these high powered magnetic devices anywhere near a cartridge (or other components). We demag our discs in another room, well away from the system. It's no hardship since with a field this strong they apparently need treating only once, as Furutech also claims. We demag before cleaning so there's really no time spent at all. I demag several discs while one is on the RCM.

Doug
SirSpeedy,

For a demagnetizer to work it must start close to the LP and be moved away slowwwly. Holding it at a constant distance wouldn't accomplish anything, and removing it quickly would actually re-magnetize and make things worse.

De-magnetizing the motor inside your RCM might not be a good idea either. ;-)

As I said before, in our setup it really takes zero time. I demag multiple LP's during a cleaning session while one is on the RCM soaking. No music time lost at all.