Gruv Glide

[PHC1]

Originally Posted by MC352

My findings -
Easy to use - Yes
Improves Fidelity - not to my ears
removes static - yes
Cleans records - yes
Improves tracking - not sure about that claim
Records and stylii last longer - Records and Stylii last longer if you care for them and keep them clean - not sure their stuff is better at it then other brands
One Application - yes
Treats 150 records - I lost count before I ran out

Overall I think it does a good job of cleaning the records, and it does seem to remove some of the static on some of the used records I have purchased.

Thanks for sharing your findings. I also got a can just to try, I'll share my findings as well.

[gregswaim]

Is that like Armour All for records or something?

[jdandy]

Trust me gentlemen. Once your vinyl is clean, Last Record Preservative is the product you want to use. I am playing albums tonight that are 26 to 30 years old. They sound brand new, quiet, clean, and dynamic. I'm not kidding. Last is what you want on your vinyl. I would not stir you wrong.

[cmalak]

Serge...I remembered seeing your thread on Gruv Glide and I just came upon an answer on Agon on record cleaning that mentioned that using Gruv Glide is not necessarily a great thing because it actually ends up reducing microresoultion because it glosses over micro groove modulations which the stylus normally would interpret as a musical signal. I don't know if you still use the stuff but you may or maynot agree with this conclusion. Here is the piece on it:

"Effective cleaning before the LP's first play is indeed essential, both for best/quietest sound and for the longevity of the LP, whether new or used.

The stylus of a phono cartridge, depending on the model, may have a contact radius as small as 3-4 microns. As the groove spins along the stylus is deflected by obstacles too small to see without an electron microscope. The cartridge doesn't know whether any particular deflection was caused by a groove modulation ("music") or some speck of crud ("noise"), it generates a signal regardless. Quiet backgrounds require eliminating those specks of crud.

Non-solid contaminates like pressing mold release agents or lubricants like Gruv Glide also degrade the signal. They may make the background quieter by lubricating some of the microscopic specks, but it's a false quiet because that lubrication also prevents the stylus from seeing small groove modulations. Assuming a sufficiently resolving system, the sonic result is an attenuation of HF's (modulations of small wavelength) and low level details (modulations of small amplitude). Accurate reproduction of everything cut into the groove requires the removal of everything between stylus and vinyl before you play.

Regarding LP longevity, as Jaybo mentioned it takes an effort. Always remember that you're sliding a microscopic plastic groove beneath an extremely sharp diamond - under pressure. Any hard particulates will be scraped between plastic and diamond. Care to guess which surface loses? (Actually the answer is "both", but that's another topic.)

Play a dirty record even once and you've surely damaged it. The only question is, "How much damage and is my system good enough to detect it?"

Dougdeacon (System | Reviews | Threads | Answers)"

By the way Dan, I have seen nothing but positive praise for the LAST products, so I will certainly invest in their record cleaning and record preservative solutions once I am off and running.

[PHC1]

I tried it on a few records and didn't care for it. It seems to diminish the microdynamics and low level resolution.

What I found to be the most effective and with an audible difference is using Audio Intelligent Vinyl Solutions products. The 3 step cleaning process using Osage brushes and last step being the "Ultra Pure Water". This is by far the best process that I have discovered so far that results in an increase in low level resolution with blacker background and decreased floor noise.

Audio Intelligent Vinyl Solutions 16 oz. Ultimate Cleaning Kit 1

[cmalak]

Excellent. Will check their products out, Thx.

[Jerome W]

Dan,

thanks for the great post about Last products.
I'm ordering it now.
For someone who is not much involved in vinyl, you bring us so much, I just cant' imagine what it would be if you were not 95 % digital !!!
Thanks again,
Jérôme

[MC352]

I have used Audio Intelligent Vinyl Solutions, Enzymatic Formula on some used LP's I purchased, and it works really well.