dreamover Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 I've noticed that suddenly, there's a ton of static electricity around my turntable. So much so that I can feel it when i put down a new record and it's starting to affect sound quality. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
randomfortunepa Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 Perhaps the air is too dry... I was having the same problem. If you live in an apartment and have had the heat on too much lately this could be a potential cause. Invest in a humidifier or make shift something to see if that fixes the problem. It also helps to put a mat over the floor if your setup is over a carpeted area. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 http://www.2spi.com/catalog/photo/zerostat.shtml Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trevorxramage Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 http://www.2spi.com/catalog/photo/zerostat.shtml I've been seeing this a lot lately, does it really work? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 I've been seeing this a lot lately, does it really work?Id like to see some other alternatives than a $100 anti-static gun.Would an anti-static brush like the $26 one at the bottom of this page work? http://www.tedpella.com/brush_html/brush.htm#51920 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 How about this brush? $40 http://shop.mapleshadestore.com/mobile/prodinfo.asp?number=SD-BRUSH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 Zero stat has been around for about 40 years. They work. Photographers use em to remove dust from their lenses. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamover Posted February 19, 2013 Author Share Posted February 19, 2013 How about this brush? $40 http://shop.mapleshadestore.com/mobile/prodinfo.asp?number=SD-BRUSH interesting... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bearchuck Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 I've always wanted a zero stat, but I can't convince myself to spend $100 on it. Here's a DIY ionizer you can make from a cheap piezoelectric lighter. Haven't tried it yet, but it seems relatively easy. http://www.fovegraphy.com/IonizerE.php Otherwise, cleaning your records with a wet solution will help, as will a cheap anti-static brush and storing them in mofi inner sleeves or something similar: http://www.sleevecityusa.com/12-inch-inner-record-sleeves-s/1879.htm Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 Zero stat has been around for about 40 years. They work. Photographers use em to remove dust from their lenses. Yeah no doubt they work. They're pretty much the universal go-to anti-static device. Unfortunately, I'd prefer not to pay $100 just for static removal. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shaizada Posted February 19, 2013 Share Posted February 19, 2013 The Zero stat gun works amazingly and perfectly well. I get a nasty static shock from my platter quite often if I DON'T use it. Once I use it, no more zaps from the table. I use the Audioquest carbon fiber brush, and though it does a great job of cleaning any dust before play, it doesn't seem to take care of those static zaps. I really think I'm going to try that Mapleshade brush as I've read good things about it. Also has a nice big handle to hold while cleaning instead of using two fingers around the Audioquest brush. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamover Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 anyone have experience with an anti-static slip mat? like this one? http://www.sleevecityusa.com/Anti-Static-Turntable-Mat-with-Strobe-Pattern-60-p/dm-300.htm at the price, i wanted to try it out, but they said it'll probably be backordered for 4-6 weeks. so if anyone has a specific recommendation, i'm all ears. knottydreadbr 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamover Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 How about this brush? $40 http://shop.mapleshadestore.com/mobile/prodinfo.asp?number=SD-BRUSH did you pick one of these up? i've been scouring the web trying to find some sort of review. all i can find is this: http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/vinyl/messages/80/802860.html from 2008. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zuck Posted March 15, 2013 Share Posted March 15, 2013 anyone have experience with an anti-static slip mat? like this one? http://www.sleevecityusa.com/Anti-Static-Turntable-Mat-with-Strobe-Pattern-60-p/dm-300.htm at the price, i wanted to try it out, but they said it'll probably be backordered for 4-6 weeks. so if anyone has a specific recommendation, i'm all ears. DO NOT BUY THIS SLIP MAT! Sorry I got so excited, but I bought it & it was actually worse than the felt mat it was supposed to replace. Not only did it cling hard to the records, it also left a shit-ton of white fibers when I was finally able to peel it off of them. Sleeve City ended up just giving me a refund when I asked to return it. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swemoll Posted March 15, 2013 Share Posted March 15, 2013 Audioquest Carbon Fiber brush or the Milty. Those are your best options. Obviously cleaning with a vacuum cleaning system helps as well, but if you don't want to spend $100, you won't want to spend $500 on a cleaning machine. The Audioquest does end up working better for anti static purposes if you are touching a metal surface with your other hand. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamover Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 Audioquest Carbon Fiber brush or the Milty. Those are your best options. Obviously cleaning with a vacuum cleaning system helps as well, but if you don't want to spend $100, you won't want to spend $500 on a cleaning machine. The Audioquest does end up working better for anti static purposes if you are touching a metal surface with your other hand. i have the audioquest and haven't felt it has helped much at all unfortunately. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamover Posted March 15, 2013 Author Share Posted March 15, 2013 DO NOT BUY THIS SLIP MAT! Sorry I got so excited, but I bought it & it was actually worse than the felt mat it was supposed to replace. Not only did it cling hard to the records, it also left a shit-ton of white fibers when I was finally able to peel it off of them. Sleeve City ended up just giving me a refund when I asked to return it. thanks for the tip! Edit: http://www.amazon.com/Phonograph-Turntable-Record-Player-Static/product-reviews/B005KR7EK2/ref=dp_top_cm_cr_acr_txt?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=1 these are the reviews i found. someone mentioned what yuo have to do so it doesn't shed. also, apparently there's a US version and a EU version that don't work the other way around. it seems like it could help. and $15 isn't much to blow. we'll see... i'm really considering the zero stat. the amount of static electricity on my table right now is INSANE. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swemoll Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 It's really tough to get rid of a lot of static without something like the Milty. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 did you pick one of these up? i've been scouring the web trying to find some sort of review. all i can find is this: http://www.audioasylum.com/audio/vinyl/messages/80/802860.html from 2008. I did get one. It came in earlier this week and Ive only had the opportunity to use it on a few records. Bristles are very very soft. Hasnt left a mark on any of my records when applying low to med pressured brush strokes. Ive been using it in combo with my "in the groove" record cleaner (which adds static to records unfortunately but is excellent at getting all surface dust and hairs off) and it seems to work pretty well. Though before I give a final go ahead judgement on the mapleshade brush, Id like to combo it with a wet clean first as I cannot determine yet how effective it is at getting dust out from in between the grooves. Id suspect it basically has the same effectiveness as a carbon fiber brush in that regard. I dont have a zero-stat to compare it to, so the extent to which it gets rid of static in comparison, I cannot determine either. From the eyeball test, i dont feel static on my records, nor hear it through my stylus as I remove and put them onto my records. Ill update further when I get a chance to combo it with a wet clean. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 Another thing I was thinking about trying was a clothes steamer (like one you can buy for cheap at Target or something). Everytime I use it on my clothes, any static cling i had before goes away. Maybe this is a question for our resident chemist, when water turns to steam, does it lose much of its additive impurities (i.e. could I try this with tap water, or do I need to steam it with lab grade distilled?). Now as far as the heat of the steam is concerned, Ive read up on people using steam as a record cleaning method and have not read a reported issue of warping as a result, though my guess is you would need to figure out a technique as to not introduce steam to your labels. Im sure steaming records isnt a very efficient way to get rid of static but its cheap, especially when you may already have one lying around the house. As with any record cleaning experiment, ALWAYS test your records on any cheap bargain bin records you have lying around. If you dont have any, buy a couple at your local record store to use as test records. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
swemoll Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 Another thing I was thinking about trying was a clothes steamer (like one you can buy for cheap at Target or something). Everytime I use it on my clothes, any static cling i had before goes away. Maybe this is a question for our resident chemist, when water turns to steam, does it lose much of its additive impurities (i.e. could I try this with tap water, or do I need to steam it with lab grade distilled?). Im sure steaming records isnt a very efficient way to get rid of static but its cheap, especially when you may already have one lying around the house. Does anyone else find this to be a bad idea? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 Does anyone else find this to be a bad idea? Have you tried it? From what I read steam only gets up to 140 degrees farenheight, which will not damage your records if used properly. Give it a test on some crappy bargain bin records. Mapleshade actually sells a steam cleaning record product that they give a money back guarantee that their cleaning method works even better than a vacuum cleaner. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ajxd Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 Steamed water is how distilled water is made. So yes there will be less junk in it. I have heard many people using a steamer before and I've always thought it was crazy. Only wet methods to clean should be used with a vacuum type system. As wetness can cause molding. swemoll 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbrh2001 Posted March 16, 2013 Share Posted March 16, 2013 Steamed water is how distilled water is made. So yes there will be less junk in it. I have heard many people using a steamer before and I've always thought it was crazy. Only wet methods to clean should be used with a vacuum type system. As wetness can cause molding. I dont think its too crazy. Its not like youre isolating one area of your record for long periods of time. Im gonna give it a shot. My wife has a hand-held clothes steamer which would be perfect to test things out on. Ill probably dry whatever is left over with a microfiber cloth and see if the static disappears. Hell, whats there to lose? Ive got 100 throw-away records that are worth little to nothing in value that I can test this out on. Im sure most people have these types of records lying around too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dreamover Posted March 16, 2013 Author Share Posted March 16, 2013 I feel like most of the static electricity is coming from below the platter itself. Last night, I switched out the rubber slipmat for a regular felt one and it definitely seemed to help a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.