New ultrasonic vinyl cleaner in the works: Humminguru

Wife and I opened up our presents to each other last night since we're going out of town for Christmas. Cleaned 1 record before bed. Seems like it added a lot of static - are there methods to avoid that?
What settings did you use? I assume that the longer the dry cycle, the more opportunity for generating static. Having said that, though, I use the 5-minute drying cycle for all of my cleanings and it seems there is the occasional record that attracts dust to itself more than others, and I can't say why this would happen in only some cases. I also have noticed some light crackling on playback in some cases, and I've ordered a Zerostat 3 to see whether it is, as I suspect, static that is causing this. Short of a fully enclosed, climate controlled space for running the HumminGuru, I don't know how this potential might be eliminated. But maybe this is one of the reasons people use a surfactant during the cleaning cycle? Just spitballing here, but that seems like a possibility.
 
I haven't had too many issues with static and I live in about the same climate as you...

My house is always a bit dry, especially in winter, and the wife also just vacuumed so that may have contributed.

What settings did you use? I assume that the longer the dry cycle, the more opportunity for generating static. Having said that, though, I use the 5-minute drying cycle for all of my cleanings and it seems there is the occasional record that attracts dust to itself more than others, and I can't say why this would happen in only some cases. I also have noticed some light crackling on playback in some cases, and I've ordered a Zerostat 3 to see whether it is, as I suspect, static that is causing this. Short of a fully enclosed, climate controlled space for running the HumminGuru, I don't know how this potential might be eliminated. But maybe this is one of the reasons people use a surfactant during the cleaning cycle? Just spitballing here, but that seems like a possibility.

Just used the default 5 minute dry cycle. I may try a drop or two of spin clean liquid at some point.
 
My house is always a bit dry, especially in winter, and the wife also just vacuumed so that may have contributed.



Just used the default 5 minute dry cycle. I may try a drop or two of spin clean liquid at some point.
The static is 100% from the drying cycle. You could use a Zerostat or spritz and wipe gently, or just skip the auto dry and let the records dry on a rack without the fan.
 
Sorry if this question has been asked. Is it advised not to reuse the distilled water after it drains? Does it need to be new water for each record?
 
Last edited:
Sorry if this question has been asked. Is it advised not to reuse the distilled water after it drains? Does it need to be new water for each record?
Agree with @Joe Mac. I haven’t been cleaning many dirty records and have used the same water for full days of cleaning, in the area of 20 or so records. Even then, the water hasn’t looked very dirty. Filter, and top off as necessary, as Joe said. Best to dump it out, clean the tank and filter(s) after each round of cleaning as per instructions in the manual.
 
So… what’s the consensus on a fix for the water leftover on the albums? It does seem to be very hit or miss. Some come out totally clean and others riddled with water drops.
 
So… what’s the consensus on a fix for the water leftover on the albums? It does seem to be very hit or miss. Some come out totally clean and others riddled with water drops.
If/when it happens, I just dry with a cloth. But you're right, it appears somewhat random (though I suspect it's not--just haven't been able to figure out what makes the difference). I do find this to be more common with (jazz) records from the 50's, but it happens on the occasional newer record as well.
 
So… what’s the consensus on a fix for the water leftover on the albums? It does seem to be very hit or miss. Some come out totally clean and others riddled with water drops.

If/when it happens, I just dry with a cloth. But you're right, it appears somewhat random (though I suspect it's not--just haven't been able to figure out what makes the difference). I do find this to be more common with (jazz) records from the 50's, but it happens on the occasional newer record as well.
I also just do a quick wipe with a spin clean cloth...for me (before I started using the G-Sonic) it seemed to be more often on thinner, 70's-80's releases. Now that I add a drop of G-Sonic to the bath it's happening a lot less but still occasionally does happen.
 
Have a little more cash than expected post Xmas and thinking of taking the plunge on one of these. I’ve only ever used a spin clean. Trying to work through this thread but the consensus is still very positive, right? I’m a little confused reading about the different fluids folks are using. Did everyone buy the adapters?
 
Have a little more cash than expected post Xmas and thinking of taking the plunge on one of these. I’ve only ever used a spin clean. Trying to work through this thread but the consensus is still very positive, right? I’m a little confused reading about the different fluids folks are using. Did everyone buy the adapters?

It works great! I’ve been really impressed with it so far, especially upgrading from a Spin Clean.

You don’t have to use fluids, it works really well out of the box with distilled/de-ionised water. You can experiment with extra fluids if you want be so far the only one HumminGuru have tacitly approved is the GrooveWasher G-Sonic.

I got the adapters as I have a few 10 and 7s and you can’t clean them in it without them. If you aren’t so fussed with cleaning those you can skip
 
Have a little more cash than expected post Xmas and thinking of taking the plunge on one of these. I’ve only ever used a spin clean. Trying to work through this thread but the consensus is still very positive, right? I’m a little confused reading about the different fluids folks are using. Did everyone buy the adapters?
I also hadn't used anything other than the Spin Clean (which honestly, I wasn't so great at using) and really love this machine. I washed around 75-100 records before getting a bottle of GrooveWasher G-Sonic and now have about another 30-40 done with the G-Sonic. I've seen some improvement with it but honestly my results using just Distilled water was so much better than I could get with the Spin Clean. And while it's more time consuming it's WAY more convenient. Just set an album up to clean and come back 15-20 minutes later to a clean and dry album.
 
Have a little more cash than expected post Xmas and thinking of taking the plunge on one of these. I’ve only ever used a spin clean. Trying to work through this thread but the consensus is still very positive, right? I’m a little confused reading about the different fluids folks are using. Did everyone buy the adapters?
Agree with @Joe Mac. I have nothing but praise for this unit and its effectiveness. Also, it's amazing how many records you can get through if you have a few hours to just hang around your living space and do other stuff in between setting up the next record and then going back to it after the period of time you've allotted to the machine's cleaning/drying cycles. I haven't used anything other than distilled water. I'm not opposed to trying the G-Sonic solution, but I'm kind of waiting to hear from others about their experiences with surfactants. As has been mentioned in previous posts, it would be really difficult to objectively demonstrate that the surfactant improves upon what distilled water alone can accomplish. (My 34-year career centered around research methods and I'm hard-pressed to think of a design that would allow for such a demonstration.) That being said, I likely would be swayed by an abundance of anecdotal evidence! ;)

Anyway, the main message here is that there isn't any reason to hesitate on this. For me, it has been one of the best upgrades I ever have made to my hi-fi endeavors.
 
It works great! I’ve been really impressed with it so far, especially upgrading from a Spin Clean.

You don’t have to use fluids, it works really well out of the box with distilled/de-ionised water. You can experiment with extra fluids if you want be so far the only one HumminGuru have tacitly approved is the GrooveWasher G-Sonic.

I got the adapters as I have a few 10 and 7s and you can’t clean them in it without them. If you aren’t so fussed with cleaning those you can skip

I also hadn't used anything other than the Spin Clean (which honestly, I wasn't so great at using) and really love this machine. I washed around 75-100 records before getting a bottle of GrooveWasher G-Sonic and now have about another 30-40 done with the G-Sonic. I've seen some improvement with it but honestly my results using just Distilled water was so much better than I could get with the Spin Clean. And while it's more time consuming it's WAY more convenient. Just set an album up to clean and come back 15-20 minutes later to a clean and dry album.

Agree with @Joe Mac. I have nothing but praise for this unit and its effectiveness. Also, it's amazing how many records you can get through if you have a few hours to just hang around your living space and do other stuff in between setting up the next record and then going back to it after the period of time you've allotted to the machine's cleaning/drying cycles. I haven't used anything other than distilled water. I'm not opposed to trying the G-Sonic solution, but I'm kind of waiting to hear from others about their experiences with surfactants. As has been mentioned in previous posts, it would be really difficult to objectively demonstrate that the surfactant improves upon what distilled water alone can accomplish. (My 34-year career centered around research methods and I'm hard-pressed to think of a design that would allow for such a demonstration.) That being said, I likely would be swayed by an abundance of anecdotal evidence! ;)

Anyway, the main message here is that there isn't any reason to hesitate on this. For me, it has been one of the best upgrades I ever have made to my hi-fi endeavors.

All I needed to hear, I’m convinced. Put my order in, has anyone ordered recently? What’s the turnaround been?
 
Back
Top