Knosti Disco Antistat

admin_exported

New member
Aug 10, 2019
2,556
4
0
Visit site
Prompted by the general chorus of approval, and following the purchase of some rather grubby vinyl on a recent day trip to Record and Tape I've just acquired one of these. Having read the rather er... esoteric instructions, I have a couple of questions for anyone who's used this.

Should I rotate the record both ways, or just in the direction that the needle follows in the groove when it's played?

How many rotations should I do?

Any other tips?

Thanks in advance for advice, I'll be doing some cleaning at the weekend so I'll report back on whether or not I do in fact enjoy "untroubled glesasure" from my records as the instructions suggest.
 

John Duncan

Well-known member
I personally do about ten each way.

Other tips - once the fluid runs out, make your own, plenty of recipes on the web - I use 1 part isopropyl alcohol (chemist or maplins) to 4 parts distilled water (chemist), with a few drops of washing up liquid (or if you can find it, Ilfotol wetting agent - specialist photographic suppliers). This helps the solution run off the record at the end.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
Thanks JD, before deciding to fork out for the Knosti, I actually went to Boots and asked for isopropyl alcohol and was met with incredulous stares. When I then asked if they at least had any distilled water, they started looking around nervously, for the security guard I think. What chemist do you use?

I've seen "deionised water" in Wilkinsons, for use in kettles and car batteries and the like. Is that the same as distilled?

Edit: That would be irons, rather than kettles. I'm not so handy around the house...
 

John Duncan

Well-known member
Not quite, but nearly as good, but I find distilled easier to get a hold of since my local Boots and independent pharmacy stock it nearly all the time. Isopropyl alcohol (or rubbing alcohol) is harder, I had to get my chemist to get some in.
 

russ74

Well-known member
Mar 6, 2008
23
0
18,520
Visit site
I've had a similar reaction when I've asked for both Isopropyl alcohol and distilled water at both major chemists and smaller ones so just bought a basic record cleaner and cloth. I would get a knosti if my record collection grows.According to the Maplins website they only stock the aerosol version. Decided to check on everybody's favourite (or hated) auction site and they list both, especially the liquid form of isopropyl alcohol. The largest size is 5 litres, enough to clean your records and sooth aching muscles.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
So, the weekend has finally arrived, and after reassuring the other half that yes, I would be careful, and no, I wouldn't make a mess, I was grudgingly given permission to do my record cleaning in the kitchen.

Filled it up with fluid, went to pick out some records, and come back to find cleaning fluid all over the worktop, dripping down the cabinets and forming a puddle on the floor. Closer inspection reveals that it has a crack in the base through which the fluid is leaking out. So, first impressions of this product are not very positive, and I'm in the doghouse for spreading slightly stinky fluid all over our nice clean kitchen.

Let's see how long it takes me to get a replacement sorted out.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
The weekend has rolled round again, and my replacement Knosti has arrived. So here's a mini-review if you will.

Unpack the various bits and bobs supplied and you're likely to be a bit underwhelmed. Your £45 gets you an array of flimsy injection moulded plastic components and a litre of cleaning fluid. Build quality does not inspire confidence. As a case in point, the two-part plastic screw-together clamp that holds your records and protects the label from getting wet looks like a prime candidate for shattering when it's tightened onto a record at some point in the not too distant future.

On the subject of the clamp, somewhat ridiculously it's actually a bit too small to fully cover the labels on some records, and rarely achieves a properly watertight seal - a rubberised edge would be an improvement here. Having said that, it probably makes no odds, as when you take the clamp off the residual cleaning fluid drips down onto the label anyway.

So, is it all doom and gloom for the knosti? Not at all.

Fill up the record bath with fluid, clamp your first record, insert, rotate a few times both ways, remove, unclamp and leave to drain in the draining rack. It's all quick and easy, although take the stated 7-minute drying time with a hefty pinch of salt.

The cleaned vinyl looks absolutely pristine, mint as the day it came off the press, and the wetting of the label appears to cause no cosmetic damage once it's dried out. Pop it on the turntable and things get even rosier. Yes folks, "it's like a veil has been lifted from the music."¸ Surface noise is greatly reduced, and you can expect greater definition and clarity throughout the dynamic range.

The used fluid can be drained back into the bottle using the supplied filter and funnel, and if your records are like mine (a bit on the dusty side but not covered in mould) your litre of fluid should be good for maybe 100 pieces of vinyl.

For:
* Does what it says on the tin (or the box, in this case) and does it very well indeed.
* A whole load cheaper than a proper record cleaning machine.
* There's a certain satisfaction in the repetitive process of manually cleaning a big box of records which lends a sense of purpose to an otherwise empty Saturday afternoon.

Against:
* Flimsy construction doesn't inspire confidence in its longevity.
* Record clamp could be better designed.

Verdict:
If you are Serious (with a capital S) about your vinyl collection, you'll already have an expensive vacuum record cleaning machine or the like. For more casual vinyl enthusiasts, the Knosti is an essential purchase. It may be the most expensive piece of plastic you'll ever buy bar a Radiohead box set, but it's cheaper than trashing your stylus with grubby charity shop records and then trashing your records by playing them with your trashed stylus. Thumbs up.
 
A

Anonymous

Guest
I second the Knosti.

I can't understand though why people are paying so much for it. Mine was £38 from Germany, admittedly a few months ago now

Try the Thomann website for cheaper knosti cleaners and replacement fluid.

I too am amazed that the simple cheap looking lump o'plastic works as well as it does, I love my knosti.

Kel.
 

TRENDING THREADS

Latest posts