New ultrasonic vinyl cleaner in the works: Humminguru

MikeH said:
ultimately it's not a HUGE issue for me since i can set and forget it. but i definitely wouldn't call it quiet. was almost wondering if something is wrong with mine with all the people here saying they have it on in the same room cleaning records haha. it's fine during the drying part--just the wet clean is where it's really high-pitched.
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Same I really can't stay in the same room when it's running. I have to close the door and put music on, otherwise I really can't stand it. The very first day I received it I had one too many drinks the night before and it started a headache. In my experience this is a normal sound as the sonicator we use in the labs have the same noise.
 
Russ I said:
Hmmm, interesting. Mine sounds great, and it's kind of important because it's an album for which the arrangements become gradually more simple as you move through the sides of the two records, with the final side just Lenker's voice and maybe some nature sounds IIRC. If it wasn't quiet, it would suck.
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revisiting this one for @kvetcha since I cleaned it and gave it another listen.

First off, the HG had trouble spinning it because it's a flat edge. so I had to kind of hand feed it into the machine. But listening to it now and it's real nice sounding. One track on LP 1 has a few whooshes for a few turns (almost sounds like non-fill but don't see anything on the disc). Otherwise, it's pretty dead silent and sounds awesome. About to spin disc 2. Forgot how beautiful this album is.
 
I have had mine for a couple of days now.

I have only used distilled water and most of my records were already cleaned with the Okki Nokki. I tried it on a couple of noisy records (Phoebe Bridgers Punisher and Kevin Morby Oh My God) and it really didn't do any wonders as far as I'm concerned. There was still quite some surface noise on both, but perhaps some sibilance had disappeared. Still, did they not sound a bit more open?

Then onto a couple I haven't washed in the Okki Nokki:

Steve Gunn - The Unseen In Between: More crisp and clearly a bit better than before

Stereolab - Sound-Dust (reissue): This is a great remaster and a very good pressing, and blimey if it doesn't sound even a bit better after a 5+5 cleaning in the HG.

Edit: Listening to Super Furry Animals' reissue of Rings Around the World (with headphones) which was a bit of a letdown when I bought it, also after a cleaning in the Okki. Gave it a 10+5 cleaning yesterday and it sounds better now. Still a bit crackly, but quite less so than before cleaning! And more details!

More A/B testing to come when there is time and space.

(Oh, and how neat is this machine! Even my wife commented on its good looks. She HATES the Okki Nokki...)
 
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TechMoan did a little Humminguru review on his Patreon feed. He likes it, although he did give it the somewhat tall order of cleaning an extremely gunky old record. Like some folks here have noted, the drying process can definitely produce a static charge on the record, so it needed a blast from the Zero-Stat to sound its best.
 
First biggest improvement in my life post HumminGuru...

I no longer have to set time away in my day for just cleaning records. The set it and forget it thing is bliss and I'm accomplishing things while a record is being cleaned. Really enjoying that first thing.

Secondly so far I've tossed some fairly dirty records I picked up today and they came out shiny and clean after one trip through. Decided to put my first pressing of Coltrane's 'Ballads' in there because it was noticeably noisy when I first got it (after a trip through a Squeaky Clean) and now the noise level is super low and near-nonexistent in many tracks. It sounds so damn good for a record that is nearing 60 years old.

It did not solve the issue I have with my first Danzig record. Mother still skips for the first minute really badly so I think that one is just a lost cause at this point. very unfortunate.

Now I'm going through my collection and trying to recollect which records were the ones with issues. Probably will spend the rest of the weekend dealing with those.
 
I was lucky enough to score myself an RSD Koyaanisqatsi a couple years back (or last year? COVID lockdowns have really fucked my perception of time) and when I got it I was super disappointed in the surface noise. I hand cleaned it a couple of times in my Squeaky Clean and hadn’t really got any improvement in it.

Earlier this week my Humminguru turned up and I thought that I’d dedicate my first clean on it in hopes of salvaging it. I decided not to mess around and give a deep clean straight off the bat. 10 mins clean and 5 mins drying. I lovingly took it out after the cycle and zapped it with my Zero Stat, both sides and the platter for good measure. Boy oh boy, it did absolutely sweet fuck all.

It was just as noisy as ever. I was super bummed but I knew it wasn’t going to be a miracle worker going in but was hoping for even just a minor improvement too much?

I was using straight distilled water but thought that I might try a different tact and order some Photoflo as @kvetcha had been using. I decided to try it out today. Additionally I warmed the water to about 40c/104f.

Guys…I found a massive improvement in the cleaning and much of the surface noise has disappeared. I was absolutely stoked. It still has some surface noise, minor cracks and pops but it is so much better than it was. That again was 10 mins cleaning 5 mins drying.

I just ran it through again, at 40c @ 15 mins cleaning 5 mins drying and it got even better. Some minor cracks are still present but I can listen to it now without feeling distracted by noise. I’m going to keep at it and see if I can’t get rid of some more of those cracks.

I’d suggest to anyone with stubborn records that are just not improving, to give this method a shot.
 
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I am interested in the convenience of the humminguru, but also having to refill after a single clean is a lot and leads to mostly long waits, also the issue of putting it on a carpet for example.

Spin clean works better for bulk even if it's so much work.. it's hard to think of which is for me
 
Lacubrious said:
I was lucky enough to score myself an RSD Koyaanisqatsi a couple years back (or last year? COVID lockdowns have really fucked my perception of time) and when I got it I was super disappointed in the surface noise. I hand cleaned it a couple of times in my Squeaky Clean and hadn’t really got any improvement in it.

Earlier this week my Humminguru turned up and I thought that I’d dedicate my first clean on it in hopes of salvaging it. I decided not to mess around and give a deep clean straight off the bat. 10 mins clean and 5 mins drying. I lovingly took it out after the cycle and zapped it with my Zero Stat, both sides and the platter for good measure. Boy oh boy, it did absolutely sweet fuck all.

It was just as noisy as ever. I was super bummed but I knew it wasn’t going to be a miracle worker going in but was hoping for even just a minor improvement too much?

I was using straight distilled water but thought that I might try a different tact and order some Photoflo as @kvetcha had been using. I decided to try it out today. Additionally I warmed the water to about 40c/104f.

Guys…I found a massive improvement in the cleaning and much of the surface noise has disappeared. I was absolutely stoked. It still has some surface noise, minor cracks and pops but it is so much better than it was. That again was 10 mins cleaning 5 mins drying.

I just ran it through again, at 40c @ 15 mins cleaning 5 mins drying and it got even better. Some minor cracks are still present but I can listen to it now without feeling distracted by noise. I’m going to keep at it and see if I can’t get rid of some more of those cracks.

I’d suggest to anyone with stubborn records that are just not improving, to give this method a shot.
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Interesting to hear. I was going to start with distilled water and a drop of Tergitol. Did you rinse it with distilled water after or just the one clean with the surfactant? I'm not sure I can be bothered to rinse every one...
 
Poly-Rythmo said:
Interesting to hear. I was going to start with distilled water and a drop of Tergitol. Did you rinse it with distilled water after or just the one clean with the surfactant? I'm not sure I can be bothered to rinse every one...
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I don’t bother with a water rinse; I’m using such a low concentration of surfactant it doesn’t feel necessary.
 
Poly-Rythmo said:
Interesting to hear. I was going to start with distilled water and a drop of Tergitol. Did you rinse it with distilled water after or just the one clean with the surfactant? I'm not sure I can be bothered to rinse every one...
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kvetcha said:
I don’t bother with a water rinse; I’m using such a low concentration of surfactant it doesn’t feel necessary.
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I haven’t bothered with rinsing either. The amount used is minimal compared to other cleaning solutions I’ve used previously with the Squeaky Clean and prior to that with the Spin Clean.

I had contemplated getting a second tank at the time of purchase for a rinsing option but didn’t get it. That might be a good option for people wanting to wash with a detergent and then rinse, if only just to remove residue from the machine.
 
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Lacubrious said:
I haven’t bothered with rinsing either. The amount used is minimal compared to other cleaning solutions I’ve used previously with the Squeaky Clean and prior that the Spin Clean.

I had contemplated getting a second tank at the time of purchase for a rinsing option but didn’t get it. That might be a good option for people wanting to wash with a detergent and then rinse, if only just to remove residue from the machine.
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I tried to get a second water tank to make it easier but they said they didn't have any. So think I'm just going to do what you and @kvetcha do...
 
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