Audiodesk Systeme RCM

[losenotaminute]

I really liked the look of this RCM and the reviews have been consistently good.

http://farm4.staticflickr.com/3799/8855820444_283e19b97c.jpg

It's a lot of money to spend on a record cleaner so I'm seeking feedback from anyone who has tried or owns one. Are there any issues that I should be aware of?

If I'm honest, I like cleaning things and having them nice and shiny :eek:.
Having said that I could try and justify the acquisition by the sonic improvement to my charity shop vinyl collection.
Plus I assume the RCM will hold some value - they don't seem to come up for sale 2nd hand very often....

So please talk me out of it because I'm very close to spending more on an RCM than I have on my entire vinyl collection or my turntable!

Lawrence

[Audio Al]

Have you seen the price of these :eek::eek::eek:

[losenotaminute]

It's less than a third of the price of a certain USB cable....

[Audioman]

Unless you have a vast vinyl collection I suggest you buy an Okki Nokki RCM. Spend the rest on records or a better record deck. The Audiodesk will likely be slightly better at cleaning but it appears to be the ultimate if you have everything else in place. A more modest RCM that requires a bit of manual skill as well will give you nice clean quiet disks and you will likely achieve at least 90% of what reviews claim of the Audiodesk. Michael Fremer reviewed it here-

http://www.analogplanet.com/category/record-cleaning-machine-reviews

BTW these have not been available long in all but limited numbers and I can't see many second hand ones ever being available. I also doubt there is a member on this forum that owns one. There are plenty however who can testify to superb results from Okki Nokki, Moth, Clearaudio etc. Even the expensive Loricraft is cheap compared to the Audiodesk.

[losenotaminute]

Hi Paul,

That review is one of the reasons I want one :)

To quote : "So how well does the Audio Desk Systeme work? It’s the most effective, easy to use record cleaning machine I’ve ever tried. I bought the review sample. I cleaned already vacuum cleaned records that were still noisy and the noise went away. "

Lawrence

[The Grand Wazoo]

I don't know anything about this except the price, but I'd agree with Paul and I reckon an extra £1300 or so is a lot to pay for ease of use and convenience.
As for this bit:

I cleaned already vacuum cleaned records that were still noisy and the noise went away.
...what's to say that cleaning those same records one more time on a vacuum cleaner wouldn't have done the same? And what's to say that they wouldn't have needed another whizz on the £1700 machine too?
I shan't be trading in my Moth just yet, but if you feel you can spare the cash, then who are we to stop you going for it?

[Audioman]

Hi Paul,

That review is one of the reasons I want one :)

To quote : "So how well does the Audio Desk Systeme work? It’s the most effective, easy to use record cleaning machine I’ve ever tried. I bought the review sample. I cleaned already vacuum cleaned records that were still noisy and the noise went away. "

Lawrence

Please note Fremer has a Continuum Caliburn (£110K) and a record collection of far greater value. Have you got an ordinary RCM? If not try one first so you have a basis of experience to work from. Also no RCM will convert worn or damaged records to minty dead quietness. This machine will likely put a gloss onto already mint / new well cared for vinyl. It is not intended as a saver of Charity Shop fodder. Buy a stack of decent vinyl first such as 45rpm Analogue Productions releases. A decent RCM is almost a must have if you buy used vinyl but no need to spend this amount to get them as clean / playable as near possible.

Also worth looking at the comments on Audiogon - reviewers tend to wax lyrical about relatively minor improvements. The machine is complicated and there have been some reliability issues.

http://forum.audiogon.com/cgi-bin/fr.pl?eanlg&1230884680&openflup&39&4#39

[Ammonite Audio]

How does the price compare to the posher Clearaudios, Loricraft etc?

[losenotaminute]

Please not Fremer has a Continuum Caliburn (£110K) and a record collection of far greater value. Have you got an ordinary RCM? If not try one first so you have a basis of experience to work from. Also no RCM will convert worn or damaged records to minty dead quietness. This machine will likely put a gloss onto already mint / new well cared for vinyl. It is not intended as a saver of Charity Shop fodder. Buy a stack of decent vinyl first such as 45rpm Analogue Productions releases. A decent RCM is almost a must have if you buy used vinyl but no need to spend this amount to get them as clean / playable as near possible.

Paul,

Thanks - that's good advice. I need someone to talk some sense into me!

No, I don't have an RCM at the moment. I also don't have a huge LP collection, although it's growing by a couple of LPs a week. For very dirty LPs I wash them in the sink with a soft sponge and washing-up liquid. To remove dust I vacuum them with a PC cleaning adaptor which has a soft brush. This technique works quite well but it is a huge faff. For example, I bought the Sir George Solti Decca recording of Wagner's Das Rheingold on Saturday from Oxfam, it's not scratched at all but there are a lot of LPs and they all need a good clean and I really can't be bothered to do it manually.

Lawrence

[losenotaminute]

How does the price compare to the posher Clearaudios, Loricraft etc?

The Audiodesk is £2,090. The other RCM that has been recommended to me is the VPI, of which there are three models ranging in price, but they look like children's toys compared to the Audiodesk ;).

Lawrence

[Audioman]

Lawrence if you are hand cleaning as described an Okki Nokki will surprise you by how much improvement it makes. Spend £400 on the Okki Nokki and £1600 on some quality records. Have used one for about 4 years. You have a certain control over the records in terms of applying cleaning solution and minimal risk of mechanical damage. I could easily justify the cost of the Audiodesk given my vinyl collection but remain cautious of any long term effects of the process used.

I imagine the Audiodesk removes an extra amount of contamination from the bottom of the groove but all the improvements described apply to the cheapest RCMs given correct application of cleaning solution. The only dead quiet vinyl I have encountered was pretty much so new out of the sleeve and applies to a small percentage of pressings. I can live with the odd noise even if there is a possibility there is a machine out there that might remove it. It will never remove flaws that are pressed into the vinyl or noise caused by previous wear. A couple Lp's a week doesn't justify this much expenditure.

[doodoos]

I think this machine needs to be used for large quantities at a time as you have to fill the reservoir and the contents may evaporate over time. ie - not much use for single albums as you buy them.

[hifi_dave]

I've used many different RCMs over the years and not one has improved on the Moth. Not only that but the Moth is tough as old boots and will cope easily cleaning records all day, as we often have.

The Moth is 1/4 the price of the featured machine. Why pay more ?

[topoxforddoc]

I've used many different RCMs over the years and not one has improved on the Moth. Not only that but the Moth is tough as old boots and will cope easily cleaning records all day, as we often have.

The Moth is 1/4 the price of the featured machine. Why pay more ?

Well no need for me to change my 20 year old Moth then!

[hifi_dave]

Well, if it ain't broke etc...

I recently sold the one I bought for shop use in the 80's and that's still going strong, doing the job, despite cleaning many thousands of LPs.

[daytona600]

http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=24855&highlight=desk+systeme

sold my VPI16.5 myself

[losenotaminute]

http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=24855&highlight=desk+systeme

sold my VPI16.5 myself

Hi Scott,

You are not helping, I want to be talked out of it ;)

Do you offer a record cleaning service with your Audiodesk? I remember when I was young my father used to take his vinyl into a dealership and get it cleaned on some form of RCM.

Lawrence

[MCRU]

The record cleaning service I offer uses the autodesk, the machine is located in london. I agree with Dave though, the Moth is amongst the best value and built like a tank.

[twotone]

http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=24855&highlight=desk+systeme

sold my VPI16.5 myself

Scott do you do a record cleaning service?

Tony

[daytona600]

Tony did offer before if you want some records cleaned

[MartinT]

I use a Clearaudio Smart Matrix and it's a well built and sound unit. I would say that with all RCMs the important ingredient is the chemical fluid used and secondly is how thoroughly you clean the record. I've tried loads and I always return to Clearaudio Pure Groove as the best fluid for cleaning my records.

[Audio Al]

:stalks::stalks:

Take a look at this :eek::eek:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KkZBk0ZF22g


ONLY £ 3,569.36
.
.
.
.

[Audioman]

http://theartofsound.net/forum/showthread.php?t=24855&highlight=desk+systeme

sold my VPI16.5 myself

Sorry Scott but you are going to enhance our reputation as Shill central with this contribution. :lol:. The customers praising this do not indicate if and what cleaning regime they were using previously. I don't doubt it gives a small improvement over most other products and maybe due to automation is more consistent, but does the difference amount to £1500.

Using conventional RCM's much will depend on fluid application technique and the formula used. I have good results with Okki nokki concentrate and slightly better with a combination of cleans using L'Art du Son plus Okki Nokki. Difference is not sufficient to warrant the later regime on most records.

My recommendation to spend the difference on records or upgrades still stands. Even if I heard records cleaned by the Audiodesk I am unlikely to find it worth the difference especially as Lawrence has not experienced how good a 'budget' RCM can be.

Paul.

[twotone]

Tony did offer before if you want some records cleaned

Yes I remember Scott and thanks for that but was wondering if you do an 'actual' record cleaning service rather than an offer to a 'mate' as it were?

Tony

[daytona600]

Sorry Scott but you are going to enhance our reputation as Shill central with this contribution.

£ 70 for a spin clean RCM , sell dozens of these Shill over & out Paul

http://snvinyl.co.uk/epages/eshop943300.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/eshop943300/Products/SPIN

system desk still much cheaper than a monks , loricraft , hannl , clearaudio RCM & totally hans free automatic
cleans , scrubs , ultrasonic bath , air dried ready to play , both sides in 6minutes

people spend more on mains cables & i do have a lot of very rare & expensive records
.

Tony do not offer a record cleaning service myself but you can clean some of your vinyl if you wish

[twotone]

Sorry Scott but you are going to enhance our reputation as Shill central with this contribution.

£ 70 for a spin clean RCM , sell dozens of these Shill over & out Paul

http://snvinyl.co.uk/epages/eshop943300.sf/en_GB/?ObjectPath=/Shops/eshop943300/Products/SPIN

system desk still much cheaper than a monks , loricraft , hannl , clearaudio RCM & totally hans free automatic
cleans , scrubs , ultrasonic bath , air dried ready to play , both sides in 6minutes

people spend more on mains cables & i do have a lot of very rare & expensive records
.

Tony do not offer a record cleaning service myself but you can clean some of your vinyl if you wish

Thanks Scott, that machine is a total bargain and a no brainer for £70.

My son has loads of vinyl some of it very rare (all of that dupstep pish, LOL).

Can I pick one up from you rather than have it posted out?

Tony

[daytona600]

Tony no problem picking one up , just down the M74
tel 07934 617201

have loads of pish dubstep myself , some is excellent & a real system work out like burial

[twotone]

Tony no problem picking one up , just down the M74
tel 07934 617201

have loads of pish dubstep myself , some is excellent & a real system work out like burial

Thanks Scott, I'll be in touch but I've been told I'm not to spend any money until after next weekend (wedding invite):whistle:

PS, my son has started getting into 70s Soul/Funk, he's away with a load of my old Isley Bros vinyl:cool:

[daytona600]

will put one by for you

[twotone]

will put one by for you

Thanks Scott.

Tony