The cheapest upgrade was a $10 level I already owned

I picked up one of those spin clean brush kits from the local shop near Cincinnati last month, not expecting much. My used copies of older albums always had that crackle no matter what I did. After one pass with the solution and the brush, I put on a 1977 pressing and it was like someone lifted a blanket off the speakers. The highs came through clearer, and the bass actually had punch instead of mush. Turns out my stylus was just dragging through years of dust and grime I couldn't see. I spent years avoiding these kits thinking they were snake oil, but now I wish I had bought one back in 2018. Has anyone else noticed a bigger jump from cleaning than from upgrading a cartridge?

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rodriguez.cora2mo ago

Man, I read somewhere that most surface noise is just dirt, not scratches.

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harper_wells2mo ago

Is dirt the main culprit in your experience, @rodriguez.cora? I see it a bit differently, sure cleaning helps, but I've swapped needles on a spotless record and heard a way bigger difference than any wash ever gave me.

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