Cleaning valve pins

[Marco]

I just wondered who else does this as part of their hi-fi 'housekeeping'.

Once a year I dismantle all the cables from my system, from mains leads to speaker cable and clean all the plugs and connections with cotton wool buds and Isopropyl solution. It always amazes me the difference it makes to the sound when I plug it all back in and listen!

But valve pins, especially on old used NOS valves, they're usually bloody filthy! Does anyone else apart from mad old me bother to clean the pins (and valve sockets on amps) before using them? If not, you should...

I simply took some fine sandpaper and gently buffed away any 'baked on' tarnished bits on all my valves until the pins were clean and completely free from any corrosion, then finished the cleaning process with some cotton wool buds and isopropyl solution, and sat back and listened. I was rewarded with a much cleaner, 'fresher' sound with what seemed like a lower noise floor and less distortion. In short, the difference was not subtle.
Not bad for a free tweak and an hour or so of elbow grease!

I would recommend all users of valves to go through the ones in their system and clean them as I have described. I guarantee you'll be pleasantly surprised at how good your system sounds afterwards

Marco.

[Ali Tait]

Yep,would agree with this Marco.I've known dirty valve pins not only to degrade sound,but actually cause problems regarding clicks and pops, and I've even cured a small hum problem by cleaning them.I use a fibreglass pen I liberated from work,used to clean contacts on high-voltage switchgear.I also use a contact enhancer that we use at work called Darathene,which removes oxidisation and progressively lowers resistance over time between contacts.It is probably just as good if not better than the pricey commercial stuff like De-oxit.It costs pence for a large aerosol of the stuff,and as I have several,I've probably got more than a lifetime's supply! I find it makes a quite a difference after I've applied it.I've even noticed a difference spaying it on the circuit boards of cd players etc.I recall taking my girlfriend down to Leeds for the first time,and being eager to show off my system,as you do,I plonked her down in front of it.She was very impressed,but I thought it sounded pants.I stripped all the cables,valves and plugs and sprayed some on.She was looking at me as if I was mad,but her face when I fired it up again was a picture! She was gobsmacked,which is good as it shows I haven't descended too far into the madness of hi-fi I recommend this stuff if any of you can get hold of it,it's cheap and does what the pricey snake-oil stuff does for a fraction of the price.

Regards,Ali.

[Marco]

I'm glad you agree, Ali. The procedure is just basic common sense, but sometimes in the quest for great sound we get bogged down with changing this and that component and forget about the basics such as ensuring things are tight and clean and that therefore the signal is getting through properly to all those lovely components in our equipment!

I went through all the valves in my system from my preamp through to my power amp and I'm quite shocked at the overall improvement in sound brought about by simply cleaning the pins.

That 'magic' stuff of yours sounds good. Can I buy a can from you?

Marco.

[Ali Tait]

I'll try and get hold of another can and it's yours gratis mate.They haven't got any more for quite a while but I'll try and get hold of one for you.

[Mike]

Fibre glass pen and Deoxit is what I use. Yep, the Deoxit is a bit on the pricey side but it goes a long way. I've just bought my second tin in four years.

[Marco]

Nice one, Ali - much appreciated

Where does one obtain fibreglass pens?

Marco.

[Mike]

All over the place Marco, try Maplins, ebay etc.

You're looking for something like this:

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Fibreglass-Abr...d=p3286.c0.m14

[Ali Tait]

Yep thats exactly what you need.Cheers for the link Mike,may be of interest to a few here.

[Marco]

Cheers, Mike. I just bought that very one

TBH, I'd never even heard of a fibreglass pen until now!

Marco.

P.S Your thingy arrived today - ta!

[Mike]

There are other types of fiberglass pens around too.

This on is no good for cleaning valve pins (or much else for that matter) though.

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/New-Marlen-Rac...d=p3286.c0.m14