VPI 17 v VPI 16.5

Vinyl Asylum

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Recently I purchased a VPI 17 record cleaning machine. Previously I owned a VPI 16.5. I sold the 16.5 even though it seemed to removed 90% of the ticks/pops I heard on a recording as well as improving the noise floor on most records including new ones I didn't believe it worked well enough to improve the play grade of a record.
Recently it has become abundantly apparant that records I treated with Last in the early 80s still sound like new 25 years later. I decided I want to begin using this treatment again, this fact along with my increased record "trading" on the internet justified the purchase of a new record cleaning machine.
What I've found with the VPI 17 is that many of the records cleaned end up with no ticks/pops and the lowered noise floor. I'm finding records that visual and play grade as vg end up play grading near mint. I can't do a direct comparison but it seems that the VPI 17 works much better than the VPI 16.5. In fact almost every record that seriously needed cleaning when I owned the 16.5 showed such little improvement after the vacuum that I assumed they were "damaged". I haven't run into a single record no matter how poorly it has play graded that didn't improve at least a single grade after being cleaned with the VPI 17.

Give me rhythm or give me death!

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Topic - VPI 17 v VPI 16.5 - Don T 07:59:14 09/12/06 (9)

Has anyone tried the new $700 Clear Audio machine - mtodde 20:21:36 09/12/06 (3)

Re: Has anyone tried the new $700 Clear Audio machine - sboez23 20:30:13 09/12/06 (2)

Re: Has anyone tried the new $700 Clear Audio machine - plantsman 04:19:25 09/13/06 (1)

Re: It is still noisy... - sboez23 18:24:55 09/13/06 (0)

Re: VPI 17 v VPI 16.5 - Stargazer 16:54:33 09/12/06 (2)

Re: VPI 17 v VPI 16.5 - radiodaddy 08:15:52 09/13/06 (0)

Re: VPI 17 v VPI 16.5 - Don T 22:33:26 09/12/06 (0)

Re: VPI 17 v VPI 16.5 - Spun1 08:23:20 09/12/06 (1)

The HW-17 offers stonger vacuum and bi-directional cleaning. /nt\ - HenryH 10:55:26 09/12/06 (0)

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