Anti-static CD cleaner

SteveR750

Well-known member
A friend recently showed me the effect of cleaning CD's wth some ridiculously expensive anti-static spray that i applied to the tops surface of the disc (i.e. not the data surface) made by nordost or ecosse or similar. It was around £85 per bottle which for me puts it into the category marked silly; however, you coldnt deny that there was a tangible improvement after aplication. So, that got me wondering if there was any mileage in cleaning CD's with a much cheaper anti-stat cleaner, such that might be used on vinyl for example, or even te pre-preg cleaning cloths used for LCD screens, camera lenses etc.......? Anyone tried this before I potentially ruin the servo in my cd player!
 

Tear Drop

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Apr 23, 2008
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Check out Maplins, RS and similar stores for anti-static sprays/wipes and so on. The one I get costs £5 and lasts for about 500 discs, and is far more effective than the grossly overpriced offerings from Russ Andrews, Nordost et al.

Also, I have been using anti-static sprays on the label side of CDs/DVDs/BDs for years and never had a single problem with either discs or players.
 

nads

Well-known member
chebby:
What purpose does any of this stuff serve?

Static is not a problem with CDs is it?

If so, can someone explain the 'problem' to me?

My thoughts aswell.

i could understand cleaning the underside but anti static on the top surface, is than just more likely to damage the print finish?

and static and lazer beams! thought is was very hard to bend light.
 

SteveR750

Well-known member
I too was very sceptical, till I heard the difference - sytem was an audiolab 8000 transport / DAC, ATC amp and B&W CM4 (?) anyway some large B&W florstanders of about 4-5 years vintage that were very capable. That said the sonic differences wasnt worth an £85 bottle of spray, but am willing to give a £5 box of wipes a go. It all reminds me of a what mst have been a hoax of several years ago with one of the reputable mags of the day - they included some free sticky back triangles that were supposed to be placed on the speaker bass driver dust cover, on the amp mains plus and on the label of the LP! I had them on my old AR 18BX speakers, my 3130 mains plug and on two of my INXS albums. Never made a jot of difference really, but sometimes I do wonder if half of the improvements we hear are delusional..
 

chebby

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Jun 2, 2008
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SteveR750:It all reminds me of a what mst have been a hoax of several years ago with one of the reputable mags of the day - they included some free sticky back triangles that were supposed to be placed on the speaker bass driver dust cover, on the amp mains plus and on the label of the LP! I had them on my old AR 18BX speakers, my 3130 mains plug and on two of my INXS albums. Never made a jot of difference really, but sometimes I do wonder if half of the improvements we hear are delusional.

Yes I remember those. One day a friend came around to our place with her little girl and the wee one had coloured pencils and paper and stickers to amuse herself while we chatted. I saw her stickers and remembered the free 'gift' and gave her the triangles to add to her sticker collection. I think they ended up as daisy petals or something in her drawing.

Bu#### all use for anything to do with hi-fi. Just like everything else that madman/mystic Belt channelled from the voices in his head!
 

SteveR750

Well-known member
But what was quite disturbing that a whole posse of journos actually believed they worked, or at least claimed to you and I the gullible reader that they did!!! And some of them are still preaching! (though posibly not in WHF as that kind of stuff is perhaps a little too esoteric for the hifi redtop)
 

chebby

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Jun 2, 2008
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SteveR750:But what was quite disturbing that a whole posse of journos actually believed they worked, or at least claimed to you and I the gullible reader that they did!!!

They were different times. You only have to listen to Ian Rankin's account of his time as an acting editor of a well known hifi mag back then. He is open about the fact that he only did it to get lots of free music and a superb free hifi!

One half of the industry back in the 1980s were despatching 'bully-boys' all over the place to dealers and reviewers to re-inforce the 'flat-earth' philosophy with whatever means at their disposal. I have personally witnessed this in a dealership in -------- when someone (who cannot be named, nor his original employer, because he still holds a very senior position in another well known company) used abusive behaviour and language to some hapless couple - potential customers - who had come in and inquired about Bang & Olufsen by mistake! (There was and is a B&O dealership in the same city.)

I asked the dealer on another occasion why he did not send the 'rep' packing after the incident and he explained exactly who the 'rep' was, and the consequences to his dealership if he upset this prominent personage in what was - at the time - a brand that accounted for a huge chunk of his turnover.

The other half of the industry were just taking the &^%$ and playing mind games. It was a bit more 'wild-west' (or even Sicilian) in British hifi back then.

More BADA-bing than BADA I would say.
 

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