New ultrasonic vinyl cleaner in the works: Humminguru

Saluki79 said:
I’ve been reading this thread with a lot if interest and just subscribed to it. I use a SpinClean but I’ve been interested in a ultrasonic cleaner but not the high cost of them. The HG hits a great price point which is why I’m following this thread.

I found this YouTube video posted a few months ago that I thought was interesting. It was on Ken Micallef’s YouTube channel. What I found really interesting were all the comments and answers from the speaker, Miguel Bario, Ken’s friend who is a physicist and audiophile . He uses a SpinClean, a HG and a Degritter. He debunked the video reviewers who dump their vacuum cleaner contents on a disk as a test saying that’s not what an ultrasonic cleaner is designed to do. He describes his cleaning regimen and answered a lot of questions regarding the HG. One comment that stood out to me was this one: “ You might think cleaning records is about removing ticks and pocks...Surely you'd want to get rid of ticks and pops, but what I have found (along with many others that have looked into this) is that the removal of some sort of coating on the grooves leads to a dramatically opened and more transparent sonic presentation. You really have to try it... What is it? I presume it is some chemical leftover or some such thing. The effect is noticeable in most records and remarkable in others, even new pressings.”

I’ve never used an ultrasonic cleaner but I might have to put the Humminguru on my short list and give it a try!
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If you're on a budget you could try the DIY route and get a generic ultrasonic cleaner with included parts to hold, spin, and dry the records for half the cost of a HG. That's what I did, and though it's bulkier and not as automated, it does a comparable job with cleaning. (btw, I use my SpinClean to rinse afterwards as I use a surfactant in the cleaning solution)
 
I just timed both auto modes since the first one seemed so slow.

Does this checkout with your experiences ?
1. 12 mins 30 secs
2. 15 mins 30 secs ?
 
BazookaTooth said:
I just timed both auto modes since the first one seemed so slow.

Does this checkout with your experiences ?
1. 12 mins 30 secs
2. 15 mins 30 secs ?
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I set a timer on my watch as I walk away for 15 minutes. Seems like it's pretty close for my liking. Maybe runs 10 to 15 seconds long. Maybe the water draining is adding some fluff to the 2/5 and 5/10 wash and dry cycles?
 
BazookaTooth said:
I just timed both auto modes since the first one seemed so slow.

Does this checkout with your experiences ?
1. 12 mins 30 secs
2. 15 mins 30 secs ?
Click to expand...

If you have drying set to 10 minutes that’s right. 2 and half minute clean is first and 5 is second. You can drop the drying time down to 5 mins with the little slide switch next to power button.
 
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I've probably run about 30 cleaning cycles and mine just stopped rotating the vinyl. I noticed one of the two "wheels" no longer spins. Anyone have this issue also? Any recommendations?
 
Academy said:
I've probably run about 30 cleaning cycles and mine just stopped rotating the vinyl. I noticed one of the two "wheels" no longer spins. Anyone have this issue also? Any recommendations?
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Only one of the wheels actually drives the record, the other is just free spinning. Or do you mean one is locked up? Does it happen with any record you try? Sometimes certain records need a little help to spin if they are too fat at the ends or I believe some have said it happens on theirs if too thin as well. If that's the issue try gently pushing against the front edge of the record and see if it will start spinning then.
 
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Hello everyone,

This is my first message. Long time lurker here, this thread has been very helpful and definitely helped me to pull the trigger on a unit today after a long wait. Now I can't wait to get my hands on it :)

To anyone else lurking here and worrying about deficiencies, I don't know how reliable the following reply from the support is, even though they seem to have been responsive and helpful to everyone here, but this is what they told me earlier in the month about the new units:
Thank you for your email. With all the feedback received, we have been optimizing our product inside out. Although the change won't appear to the customers, we have been continuously optimizing the performance, durability, and quality of the product. Hope this helps.
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To the HumminGuru early adopters, I have 4 questions:
  1. What tips would you give me to get started?
  2. Is there anything I should prepare or purchase to save time before delivery?
  3. I still have a bottle and a half of an Audio Technica AT634a record-care formula. Can this temporarily replace the G-Sonic Ultrasonic Concentrate wash formula which I've seen a lot of praise for here but haven't bought yet?
  4. I recently found this thread by someone very picky breaking down their cleaning process and would appreciate to hear your thoughts
 
Jeremy said:
Hello everyone,

This is my first message. Long time lurker here, this thread has been very helpful and definitely helped me to pull the trigger on a unit today after a long wait. Now I can't wait to get my hands on it :)

To anyone else lurking here and worrying about deficiencies, I don't know how reliable the following reply from the support is, even though they seem to have been responsive and helpful to everyone here, but this is what they told me earlier in the month about the new units:


To the HumminGuru early adopters, I have 4 questions:
  1. What tips would you give me to get started?
  2. Is there anything I should prepare or purchase to save time before delivery?
  3. I still have a bottle and a half of an Audio Technica AT634a record-care formula. Can this temporarily replace the G-Sonic Ultrasonic Concentrate wash formula which I've seen a lot of praise for here but haven't bought yet?
  4. I recently found this thread by someone very picky breaking down their cleaning process and would appreciate to hear your thoughts
Click to expand...
I don’t have answers for all your questions but all I can say is glad you found us. These are some of the best people around.
 
Jeremy said:
Hello everyone,

This is my first message. Long time lurker here, this thread has been very helpful and definitely helped me to pull the trigger on a unit today after a long wait. Now I can't wait to get my hands on it :)

To anyone else lurking here and worrying about deficiencies, I don't know how reliable the following reply from the support is, even though they seem to have been responsive and helpful to everyone here, but this is what they told me earlier in the month about the new units:


To the HumminGuru early adopters, I have 4 questions:
  1. What tips would you give me to get started?
  2. Is there anything I should prepare or purchase to save time before delivery?
  3. I still have a bottle and a half of an Audio Technica AT634a record-care formula. Can this temporarily replace the G-Sonic Ultrasonic Concentrate wash formula which I've seen a lot of praise for here but haven't bought yet?
  4. I recently found this thread by someone very picky breaking down their cleaning process and would appreciate to hear your thoughts
Click to expand...
Welcome! I’d say just get a bunch of distilled water before your machine comes. When mine arrived from Kickstarter I went out to get distilled water and it was sold out everywhere near me! Also get some replacement filters. Don’t have the link handy but you can buy some rolls of fish tank filters that work and you can cut them to size. I use Tergitol as a surfactant. Can’t tell how much better it is for cleaning but the records seem to come out sounding great so I keep using it. Enjoy the machine!
 
@Jeremy I guess I have one thought on that guys regimen from #4.

That guy seems to be taking things to the extreme with no real testing to see if a simpler solution produces similar results. He basically cleans twice but says to buy two units to do so while also saying keep drying cycles to a minimum by using a drying rack. So what time saving was there? He also double filters the water but also replaces the HG filters. So what's the point of the HG filter then? The degassing to me is kind of silly. You need to pull a vacuum on it to truly degas. Just vibrating it a few times with the ultrasonic doesn't seem to pass muster with me.

I don't know man. Seems like this guy really likes writing anecdotal tech notes.

My two cents are the HG works great out of the box with distilled water. Works even better with a surfactant/wetting agent like the G-Sonic.

I run everything on the 5 minute clean and 10 minute dry because it's foolproof and I can spend those 15 minutes doing something else. Unless I am finding filthy dollar store records with mold or mildew (which I would never run through this machine in that condition anyway) that seems to be enough for everything I buy these days. I do run a clean tank of water through the machine to rinse any surfactant buildup that may be hiding in the pump and tubing, but this is jut an ounce of prevention with no expectation that doing otherwise would result in damage to the machine.

I highly recommend the adapters (at least the 7-inch), but this is coming from a guy with way too many Colemine 45s.

I'll echo Mike too, stock up on distilled water, clean inner sleeves, and get a big ole stack of records to clean because this thing really is that easy.

You'll get a ton of variation between how any records you can clean on one tank, but I can get may 10 cleaned before I run out of steam/focus on cleaning and move on to something else. After that I dump the tank and rinse up. I won't try and reuse water since it could harbor some funky stuff that I won't want in the next cleaning cycle.
 
MikeH said:
Welcome! I’d say just get a bunch of distilled water before your machine comes. When mine arrived from Kickstarter I went out to get distilled water and it was sold out everywhere near me!
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You weren't kidding. I've been on the look for distilled water for almost a week now but no luck so far. I received my unit today, and all I can do is contemplate it.
MikeH said:
Also get some replacement filters. Don’t have the link handy but you can buy some rolls of fish tank filters that work and you can cut them to size.
Click to expand...
I haven't even had time to focus on the filters yet because of the unavailability of water. I assume you are referring to this and that?
MikeH said:
I use Tergitol as a surfactant. Can’t tell how much better it is for cleaning but the records seem to come out sounding great so I keep using it. Enjoy the machine!
Click to expand...
Thank you for the tip, I will see which one is the easiest to find in Europe.
folsom_lives said:
That guy seems to be taking things to the extreme with no real testing to see if a simpler solution produces similar results. He basically cleans twice but says to buy two units to do so while also saying keep drying cycles to a minimum by using a drying rack. So what time saving was there? He also double filters the water but also replaces the HG filters. So what's the point of the HG filter then? The degassing to me is kind of silly. You need to pull a vacuum on it to truly degas. Just vibrating it a few times with the ultrasonic doesn't seem to pass muster with me.

I don't know man. Seems like this guy really likes writing anecdotal tech notes.
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Well, thanks for taking away the anxiety I had reading this guy's whole thread 😅
folsom_lives said:
I run everything on the 5 minute clean and 10 minute dry because it's foolproof and I can spend those 15 minutes doing something else. Unless I am finding filthy dollar store records with mold or mildew (which I would never run through this machine in that condition anyway) that seems to be enough for everything I buy these days. I do run a clean tank of water through the machine to rinse any surfactant buildup that may be hiding in the pump and tubing, but this is jut an ounce of prevention with no expectation that doing otherwise would result in damage to the machine.

You'll get a ton of variation between how any records you can clean on one tank, but I can get may 10 cleaned before I run out of steam/focus on cleaning and move on to something else. After that I dump the tank and rinse up. I won't try and reuse water since it could harbor some funky stuff that I won't want in the next cleaning cycle.
Click to expand...
I really appreciate you sharing your cleaning routine; it's actually what I'm looking for most before getting started. I won't lie, no matter how carefully I read the manual several times, I always feel overwhelmed at the moment, especially with the maintenance tasks.

I wish the manual was written with more passion and recommendations like the Vinyl Flat's for instance. Would love to read more cleaning and maintenance routines from the other OGs of this thread (like @Joe Mac seeing your achievement with the HG). Btw, @Russ I, is there anything in your DIY system that has changed since January, please?

Also, did any of you deal with off-center labels on records using the HG? I have a few ones with this problem so I'm curious how you managed to keep the labels dry while making sure to always clean the records with enough water? Finally, I was wondering if there is any improvement with non-fill records after cleaning or does it sound even worse since the playback is quieter after cleaning?
 
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Jeremy said:
Also, did any of you deal with off-center labels on records using the HG? I have a few ones with this problem so I'm curious how you managed to keep the labels dry while making sure to always clean the records with enough water? Finally, I was wondering if there is any improvement with non-fill records after cleaning or does it sound even worse since the playback is quieter after cleaning?
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If you fill to the 12 mark on the water tank, it shouldn't touch the label. The water usually barely touches the deadwax.
 
Jeremy said:
Also, did any of you deal with off-center labels on records using the HG? I have a few ones with this problem so I'm curious how you managed to keep the labels dry while making sure to always clean the records with enough water?
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I've gotten labels a bit wet from overfilling the reservoir and possibly from off center application. Being distilled water it dries right out with zero impact to the label. It's not in there long enough to do anything.
 
Jeremy said:
You weren't kidding. I've been on the look for distilled water for almost a week now but no luck so far. My only hope is my pharmacist who might get a 5 liter tank for me soon so I am waiting for her call, All this for water o_O. I received my unit today, and all I can do is contemplate it.

I haven't even had time to focus on the filters yet because of the unavailability of water. I assume you are referring to this and that? So, this is for both water and air if I understand correctly? Should I also look for something special for the damp cloths for cleaning the water basin?

Thank you for the tip, I will see which one is the easiest to find in Europe.

Well, thanks for taking away the anxiety I had reading this guy's whole thread 😅

As I was telling Mike, my pharmacist might get a 5 liter tank for me soon. How many tanks would you and @MikeH recommend I ask her for? I haven't quite figured out how long the water has to be changed or reused but I have a collection of 300~400 records FYI.

I really appreciate you sharing your cleaning routine; it's actually what I'm looking for most before getting started. I won't lie, no matter how carefully I read the manual several times, I always feel overwhelmed at the moment, especially with the maintenance tasks.

I wish the manual was written with more passion and recommendations like the Vinyl Flat's for instance. Would love to read more cleaning and maintenance routines from the other OGs of this thread (like @Joe Mac seeing your achievement with the HG). Btw, @Russ I, is there anything in your DIY system that has changed since January, please?

Also, did any of you deal with off-center labels on records using the HG? I have a few ones with this problem so I'm curious how you managed to keep the labels dry while making sure to always clean the records with enough water? Finally, I was wondering if there is any improvement with non-fill records after cleaning or does it sound even worse since the playback is quieter after cleaning?
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I don't think I've changed anything in my DIY system, and I'm happy with how it's working.

Regarding cleaning routines, I'm cleaning mostly relatively clean records, either just-unsealed, relatively new, or older records that already have been cleaned with a vacuum system, so keep that in mind. I double-tap the cleaning button, and have the drying cycle set to 5 minutes, so I'm cleaning for 5 and then drying for 5. There was a point when some records were completing the cycle with a few drops of water still on them, and I found it didn't matter whether I dried those for 5 or 10 minutes--same result. So I'm good with 5 and 5, and it's working well. I put 1 drop of G-Sonic in the distilled water. I clean between 20-30 records per session (same water throughout).
 
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