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Here’s a little secret you should know as you dive headlong into your new vinyl hobby, whether it’s for the first time or you’re just getting back into it: you know how everyone’s always talking about how those little crackles and pops you hear as the needle glides across the record are so “charming” or whatever? Well, they’re not. They’re the worst.
People who extoll the virtues of these little imperfections are missing the point by accepting this notion that vinyl is inferior in terms of sound quality, but that it makes up for it with these old-timey quirks. In fact, what’s so charming about vinyl, and why it’s a hobby that can quickly become an obsession, is that it can sound better than any other format, but it takes a bit of extra work.
If and when you get more seroius about acheiving great sound from your vinyl setup, you’ll start freaking out over things like isolation and wondering if that $5,000 integrated amp will totaly change your life. But before you get into any of that, there is one simple thing you can do that will improve your listening experience more than anything else: be dilligent about removing dust from your records and your stylus.
How do you go about doing this? Easy. You pick up a very cheap carbon fiber record brush and an even cheaper stylus brush. Conveniently, World Wide Stereo offers a $30 bundle that includes both items. There are greather lengths you can go to on this front, like buying record cleaning machines and anti-static guns, but when it comes to best bang for your buck, these brushes are going to make the single biggest impact.
Consider yourself charmed.
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