Cleaning cds

[BigH]

Is cleaning cds a waste of time and money? Does it make any difference?

 

[Al ears]

That would depend on what type of cleaning you are talking about.

Mine never get that dirty and a quick wipe with an e-cloth soon sorts them out.

If you have badly soiled ones then they are extremely hardy and will withstand a mild detergent wash and rise.

What else are you going to do if not clean them? Throw them away?

If you mean that £50 a bottle special magic cleaning fluid then i would say forget it.

 

[floyd droid]

What else are you going to do if not clean them? Throw them away

Beer mats ?. Class reply Al, lol.

 

[Al ears]

What else are you going to do if not clean them? Throw them away

Beer mats ?. Class reply Al, lol.

One tries one's best.

Beer mat? They are not very absorbent and have a hole in the middle! Bird scarers, now that's another matter.

 

[BigH]

Thanks for the answers. I just wondered if any of these cleaning products actually produced an improvement in sound quality?

The other part is I have some cds i bought used that are a bit dirty, fingerprints etc, they play OK so no need to throw them away.

 

[BigH]

Yes I have read reviews that say they are an improvement but I'm not convinced, did they do blind tests?

Anyway what would be the best way to clean cds if you needed to?

 

[Al ears]

Thanks for the answers. I just wondered if any of these cleaning products actually produced an improvement in sound quality?

The other part is I have some cds i bought used that are a bit dirty, fingerprints etc, they play OK so no need to throw them away.

I can see why you asked. There was a review, in another well known hifi magazine recently, that said all the products they looked at offered an improvement. Personally I have my doubts and sometimes think these reviewers do not have the b**ls to say the a product is rubbish.

That's me being cynical by the way.

However if you think a special fluid and a green marker pen are going to make dramatic sonic improvements then don't let me stop you spending you hard-earned, I think, somehow, that if the green pen made a difference, that the manufacturers of CDs might have cottoned-on by now.

 

[floyd droid]

Bird scarers, now that's another matter.

How d'ya mean. Hang em off string like a girlie or skim em like Odd Job ?.

 

[floyd droid]

Yes I have read reviews that say they are an improvement but I'm not convinced, did they do blind tests?

Anyway what would be the best way to clean cds if you needed to?

Being serious now for a change. Prolly wash up liquid and under the tap will be near enough , cant really see anything damaging those slivers of devils spawn tbh.

 

[chebby]

Yes I have read reviews that say they are an improvement but I'm not convinced, did they do blind tests?

Anyway what would be the best way to clean cds if you needed to?

A soft lens cleaning cloth if absolutely necessary (used from the middle of the disc and wiping outwards, like spokes, and NOT wiping in circles around the disk).

Then address the reason the thing got dirty/dusty/marked in the first place so you don't have to do it again.

 

[Al ears]

BigH, as I said CD are pretty hardy things and unless badly scratched are usually recoverable. Best to use a damp e-cloth or good old soap and water to remove any greasy deposits.

I would not recommend anything harsher than that.

Oh and if you read the reviews in that magazine you will have seen it was one man's opinion. No blind tesats or even triple-blind!

 

[BigH]

No need for bird scarers but would they work as cat scarers?

 

[Al ears]

Only if thrown very accurately.

 

[MajorFubar]

Then address the reason the thing got dirty/dusty/marked in the first place so you don't have to do it again.

Best piece of advice in this thread, that. I've bought used CDs and looked at the playing-surface in sheer disbelief. I really don't know what people do with CDs. I think they eat off them. Some of my CDs are over 25 years old, they've been played so much that if they were records they'd be knackered, yet most of them have never needed cleaning, ever. Partly I blame slot-loading mechanisms!

 

[shooter]

Cleaning CD's? I thought they were good for smearing jam on?

 

[Al ears]

Only if you spread it from the middle out 'like spokes' :rofl:

 

[markvh1]

For the used CD's I have been buying from our local Oxfam shop recently, I have been using Specsavers spectacle lens cleaner solution sprayed onto a spectacles cleaning cloth then wiped out from the centre to the outside. Hope thats OK and doesn't do them any harm.

 

[BigH]

Lens cleaners are usually alcohol based so should be OK I would have thought.

 

[floyd droid]

Not all of them but I concur, if they dont knacker a lens up then a ceedee should be pretty safe.

 

[Overdose]

Clean with a soft cloth and water/mild detergent.

Polish using a plastic polish for minor scratches, toothpaste can also work.

More severe damage can be dealt with using one of THESE. These tools are used by CD resellers to give that 'new' look, but will leave very faint tell tale swirls. Good for bulk polishing.

No amount of polishing will ever improve on the sound quality of a CD in perfect condition. Errors will manifest as skipping, or simply not playing at all.

 

[Electro]

I use Servisol computer care disc cleaner , formerly known as Servisol CD150 Cd cleaner .

It cleans Cd's perfectly and one can will clean several hundred Cd's .

http://www.rapidonline.com/mechanical-fastenings-fixings/servisol-computer-care-disc-cleaner-cd150-200ml-87-1162

I buy probably a couple of hundred second hand Cd's a year and this spray is perfect for cleaning off all the gravy and jam that for some reason some people feel the need to smear on their Cd's before they sell them ,not to mention nicotine and other unidentified deposits . :shame:

 

[VoodooDoctor]

I use isopropyl alcohol. When I rip new CDs using dBPowerAmp I occasionally end up with it deciding to re-rip thousands of frames despite the disc being fresh out of the packet and in pristine condition. I find that cleaning it with the alcohol and a soft cloth usually solves the problem.

 

[simonlewis]

Try putting your cd's in the microwave & watch the light show.

 

[floyd droid]

Now theres a new slant on 'kill em all with fire'. Must try that , bit like defrosting the foil wrapped butter without the mess.

 

[BigH]

I use isopropyl alcohol. When I rip new CDs using dBPowerAmp I occasionally end up with it deciding to re-rip thousands of frames despite the disc being fresh out of the packet and in pristine condition. I find that cleaning it with the alcohol and a soft cloth usually solves the problem.

Thanks I think I have some for cleaning lenses, I will check.