Brand new vinyl - what’s acceptable to you?

The newer AQ carbon fiber brush is OK. The old ones, which were endlessly rebranded everywhere, are terrible. But I prefer a mix of carbon/conductive fibers and something more rigid to actually knock off the more stuck-on particles. I like AcousTech Big Brush for that.

And yes, once a wet clean and new anti-static HDPE sleeve is applied (MoFi’s are OK but other alternatives are to be had that are either better or cheaper), the record is very easy to maintain with a quick brushing per play.

I've been using my Destat II in conjunction with my Giotto air bulb. Works great on previously cleaned records. Haven't used a brush in a while.

Welcome to the reality of vinyl. Outrageously priced, unpredictable and often poor quality. If I have 100 records, almost all 180 gram I'd estimate that only 30 are truly "Great" and another 40 are average to below average in sound quality with surface noise, clicks etc. that can't be removed and the other 30 are / were a complete waste of money due to highly compressed recording, overall poor sound. I decided to stop wasting money on vinyl- it was too frustrating - and prices seem to go up very few months. The average is approaching $50 for an album of questionable quality. Overall, despite what the vinyl zealots scream, vinyl does NOT automatically sound better than streaming and yes, I've got a 5k turntable with a 2k cartridge set up correctly going into a 3k phono preamp into a 10k ARC pre amp into a 20k ARC amp into 30K Martin Logans in a dedicated room. 

Vinyl isn’t my preferred medium.  I actually just ordered my first LPs in months, a set of Colin Davis and the Boston Symphony Sibelius Symphonies, because the standard CD transfer sounds muffled and I want to compare them to the original LPs.  However I realize that excellent results can be obtained with vinyl.

   
  I think it’s ridiculous that many new premium issues of decades old recordings on new vinyl arrive with significant flaws whilst brand new.  There was a Facebook page of someone posting pictures of the DG premium releases with huge, obvious defects in the vinyl.  These are going for roughly $60 per LP.

  Any CD, SACD, or Blu-Ray that charged a huge markup and had this kind of QC issue wouldn’t survive in the marketplace.  I realize that vinyl listeners are much more tolerant of noise and defects and occasionally even embrace the rituals and expense required to minimize them.  However I don’t think that there should be any tolerance for expensive crap right out of the gate.

  Just my two cents as a listener that greatly prefers digital 

@speedthrills ​​​​@mahler123 

You both make very good points. Prices are getting steep and the quality control isn’t there. I will note that vinyl isn’t my preferred medium as I have significantly more invested in my digital source, and more than I should in vinyl. But they can both be satisfying mediums and disappointing mediums at times. So, I’d prefer to not let this discuss devolve into what’s better. 

The question I originally posed has been answered: not much noise is acceptable. It’s an imperfect medium but close to silent is achievable. 

That said - as I noted earlier, even silence may not be the only goal. The Norah Jones album I purchased (and am returning as it had too many defects) also sounded poor. Why there are so many remasters of so many greats is bewildering. I am becoming ever more skeptical of anything with a “remastered” in its name.