Vinyl Asylum: REVIEW: Moth RCM Mk2 kit Accessory by Hergest Ridge

Model:	RCM Mk2 kit
Category:	Accessory
Suggested Retail Price:	225 pounds
Description:	Record cleaning machine kit
Manufacturer URL:	Moth
Manufacturer URL:	Moth

Review by Hergest Ridge ( A ) on August 17, 2002 at 03:39:35
IP Address: 211.28.96.5

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I was looking for a record cleaning machine that wasn't bodged together out of an old turntable and a length of hosepipe connected to the Hoover with a sock on it and that didn't cost the earth importing it into Australia, so on a recent trip back to the UK i picked up a kit from Moth of their Mark 2 machine. It comes in a big box full of polystyrene blobs with a couple of small boxes inside perfect to smuggle in with the duty frees in the suitcase.
Any fool can make this kit into a proper working and looking record cleaning machine with just a bit of patience and a few tools. Sealing the box with silicone when it's constructed is of utmost importance for the vacuum to work correctly. The kit comes with easy instructions although a couple of typos leads me to think whoever built the original is Scottish (we are told to push the turntable firmly hame for instance). I made mine out of 15 mm MDF , the thickness is important for the whole thing to mate together correctly once the 8 panels are cut.
Wiring too is simple but the wires on the turntable motor are rather short which makes things a tad difficult for those of us with gorilla fingers but i managed with patience.
In use the machine works the same as the Nitty Gritty design as in the vacuum tube works on the underside of the record. I quite like it this way as opposed to the VPI method in that it allows you to clean one side while the other is being sucked off. Because there is only a small turntable that the record sits on which is the width of the label it means you can't push down hard into the grooves with your brush as you can on a VPI but unless you buy cheap and nasty and dirty lps from charity shops this should never be a problem. Disgracefully dirty lps should be washed in the sink first if you're foolish enough to buy an lp that someone has allowed to get in to such a state in the first place. For a new record that needs a clean to get off the layer of whatever it is that manages to get on it during production or a record that accumulates a bit of grime through normal use then the Moth cleans them up perfectly. I find i can clean both sides with in a couple of minutes with no dramas.
The Mark 2 differs from the Mark 1 i believe in the motor being able to work clockwise and anti clockwise. I'm not sure if the slight extra cost for this is worth it as i find just working with it turning anti clockwise is enough. If your records are dirtier then you might find bi-directional is a plus.
That's it really. It's relatively cheap for a proper machine with a quality and strong vacuum and high torque slow rotating motor. It's not hard to build and it works as good as it should do on lightly soiled records. In the UK there is no postage i believe. Postage overseas might be quite high because of the box it comes in is far too big. There's a lid too i nearly forgot to add. Whether you use it or not is up to you, you could always use it on a Rega turntable as it's nearly the same size and comes with the same type of hinges.
Anything i've forgotten just ask.

Product Weakness: Too short wires on the turntable motor. Delivery box too big if you're paying postage, be better to ditch the unneccesary lid.
Product Strengths: Cheap and it works and is easy to build.

Associated Equipment for this Review:
Amplifier:	None
Preamplifier (or None if Integrated):	The
Sources (CDP/Turntable):	Vacuum
Speakers:	Is
Cables/Interconnects:	Too
Music Used (Genre/Selections):	Loud even For Motorhead
Room Comments/Treatments:	Banished to the kitchen
Time Period/Length of Audition:	Made it yesterday, used it today.
Type of Audition/Review:	Product Owner

Product Weakness:	Too short wires on the turntable motor. Delivery box too big if you're paying postage, be better to ditch the unneccesary lid.
Product Strengths:	Cheap and it works and is easy to build.