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Talk About Static Cling...

..and, no, not from the clothes dryer! This is a frequent occurence to which I hope someone can give me a "why?" answer. Taking a clean LP, using a Zerostat gun and then applying GruvGlide, I supposedly would have eliminated static from the LP. After such treatment, the styrofoam test chip provided with the GruvGlide slides right off and no static appears present. After a one-side play, removing the record makes the hairs on my arms stand straight on end. So much static that if I don't "mute" the preamp, the built up charge will sometimes make the preamp "trip" and shut down as my arm passes in front of the cartridge. What is causing the static to build up so RAPIDLY, and what might I do to eliminate the problem. (MM cartridge, wall mount, no problem with cables crossing).
motdathird

Showing 1 response by mwilson

mwilson
430 posts
 
It could be the slippage of the record against the mat. Record clamp makers claim that the record travels less rotational distance than the platter/mat does during playback, because the record slips slightly if not firmly coupled to the rotating platter. With a felt mat, especially, this sort of friction might be a considerable source of static electricity buildup. Does a sorbo-gel mat provide better traction for the disc? I've never used or touched one, so I don't know. I know they are primarily sold for absorbtion dampening characteristics, but maybe they provide better traction at the same time.

Have any of you with record clamps or sorbo-gel mats experienced less static as a result of using these tweaks?
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