Vinyl & Turntable Care

Setting the Record Straight: Proper Vinyl & Turntable Care

Handling your record player and vinyl collection with care is essential for preserving sound quality and longevity. Taking a mindful approach not only enhances your listening experience but also protects your records and equipment for years to come.

Unlike digital music, vinyl requires regular maintenance to ensure optimal playback. From properly leveling your turntable to positioning your speakers, small adjustments can make a big difference in sound quality and prevent unnecessary wear on your records and stylus. This guide will go over proper turntable and vinyl record care.

Leveling Your Turntable

Before dropping the needle, check that your turntable is on a level surface. An uneven setup can cause the stylus to sit at the wrong angle in the grooves, leading to distortion and unnecessary wear on both the record and the stylus.

Many turntables come with adjustable legs to help with leveling, but if yours doesn’t, you can use small shims like folded paper or a thin coaster to balance it out.

Speaker Placement & Vibration Control

Speakers come in various sizes, and while some are compact enough to fit near your turntable, vibrations from loud music can cause unwanted skipping or even damage your records and stylus.

To prevent this, keep your speakers at a safe distance from your turntable. This ensures a smoother playback experience while allowing you to crank up the volume without risking damage to your setup.

Protecting Your Vinyl & Stylus

A few small habits can make a big difference in preserving your vinyl collection and ensuring the best sound quality. Before dropping the needle, take a moment to check these finer details of record player maintenance.

Dust Covers & Protection

Dust is the ultimate enemy of vinyl, affecting both playback quality and the longevity of your records. When preparing to listen, remove or lift your turntable’s dust cover (depending on the model). But always place it back when not in use to protect your setup.

Stylus Inspection & Replacement

Your stylus is responsible for translating the grooves of a record into sound, so keeping it in top condition is crucial. Before playing a record, check for any chips, bending, or black residue buildup.

If you notice sudden static, skipping, or bouncing during playback, it may be a sign that your stylus needs replacing. A worn or damaged stylus can scratch and degrade your records, so routine inspection is key.

Record Mats & Sound Quality

Before placing a record on your turntable, ensure there’s a record mat on the platter. Mats come in different materials such as cork, leather, acrylic, and silicone, each affecting sound quality in unique ways.

While there’s no single “best” mat material, having one in place helps grip the record, reduce static, and minimize friction, preventing unnecessary movement during playback.

Proper Handling and Playback

Now that your turntable is ready, it’s time to enjoy your vinyl collection! Let’s walk through the steps to ensure the best experience while protecting your records.

Handling Your Vinyl

First, carefully remove the record from its sleeve, holding only the edges. Touching the grooves can transfer oils and dirt from your fingers, which may affect sound quality. Always handle your records with clean hands or use gloves to keep the grooves pristine.

Identifying A-side and B-side

Before placing the record on your turntable, check for the “A” and “B” sides, which are usually indicated by a sticker near the center. This label tells you which songs are on each side. Carefully align the record with the metal spindle in the center of the platter.

Using a Record Weight

Once the record is spinning, you may notice that not all records are pressed perfectly flat. Some may have slight warping, which can affect playback. Using a record weight can help reduce warping by adding gentle pressure to the disc. While not necessary, it can make a noticeable difference in sound quality.

Cleaning Your Record

Before playing each record, always clean it. Cleaning not only removes dust but also reduces static, which can create pops and unwanted noise during playback. Use an anti-static brush to gently sweep the grooves as the record spins. Hold the brush at a 45-degree angle after a few rotations to avoid static buildup.

Setting the Correct Speed

Ensure that your turntable is set to the right speed: 33 1/3 RPM for most 12-inch records, 45 RPM for 7-inch singles, or 75 RPM for special formats. The speed ensures your record spins at the right rate for optimal sound quality.

Dropping the Needle

Finally, carefully lower the stylus onto the edge of the record. Many turntables have a cue feature that allows you to gently drop the needle in the right position without any risk of skipping. If you don’t have this feature, drop the needle slowly by hand, and you should hear that satisfying “pop” as the music begins.

After the record finishes, be sure to remove the needle, flip the record, and clean it before playing the other side.

Aftercare

After enjoying your vinyl, proper storage and care are key to ensuring the longevity of both your records and your turntable.

Protecting Your Records

Once you’ve finished listening, storing your records correctly is essential. Many new records arrive without proper protective sleeves or only have paper sleeves, which can cause damage over time. Paper sleeves often create static and can scratch the vinyl, so it’s important to replace them with anti-static plastic sleeves. These sleeves reduce static buildup and offer better protection for your precious records.

For extra protection, consider adding an outer plastic sleeve that fits over the entire record jacket. This will further safeguard the cover and prevent wear and tear.

Proper Storage

How you store your records is just as important as how you handle them. Avoid stacking records directly on top of one another, as this can lead to warping and pressure damage. Instead, place your records vertically on a shelf, ensuring there is enough space between them for easy access. Do not overstuff your collection. Allowing a little wiggle room prevents your records from getting bent or damaged.

The Importance of Taking Care

By following these basic aftercare steps, you’ll help your vinyl collection stand the test of time. Many collectors overlook these small but important tasks, but investing in the protection and storage of your records ensures they continue to deliver great sound for years to come. Remember, when it comes to vinyl, patience and care go a long way

counterweight on a turntable — To set the counter weight, first turn the knob until the tone arm is balanced. Then use the fine adjustment knob with reference to your needle cartridge.

antiskate on a record player — Antiskate is a mechanism on a record player that helps to keep the stylus from skipping on the record and from wearing unevenly by counterbalancing the inward force that pulls the tonearm towards the center of the record as it plays.

a record player platter — The platter on a record player is the rotating disc that holds the vinyl record in place and spins it at a consistent speed, this allows the stylus to track the grooves and produce sound. Platters come in many different materials.

vinyl record cleaning supplies — Cleaning supplies for records and record players are tools and solutions used to remove dust, dirt, and other debris from vinyl records, stylus, and other parts of the record player. These may include brushes, microfiber cloths, record cleaning solutions, stylus cleaning solutions, and other specialized cleaning tools. Proper cleaning of records and record players can improve sound quality, reduce wear and tear on the equipment, and prolong the life of your vinyl collection.

an anti-static brush — An anti-static brush is a tool used to remove static electricity from vinyl records before playing them on a record player. The brush typically has soft carbon fiber bristles that help to discharge static electricity from the record surface, reducing pops, crackles, and other noise in the audio playback.

a brush to get debris out of a record — A brush for a record player is a tool used to clean the stylus or needle of the record player. It is typically made of soft fibers or a velvet-like material that gently removes dust, dirt, and debris from the stylus.

the post where you stick your record onto — The record player post is the spindle-like component on a record player that holds the vinyl record in place while it spins.

cleaning a vinyl record — To clean a record with a brush, use a soft brush and sweep gently in the direction of the grooves as it spins.

Setting The Record Straight

When it comes to handling your record player and vinyl records. It’s important to slow down, it not only helps you be more in the moment with your music, but you are also taking steps to care for your collection!

This isn’t like digital where you can instantly pull up any song. There are various maintenance steps you’ll want to take to ensure your record player is properly prepared to play a record. I’ll also touch on some handling tips for your records as well.

You first will want to make sure your record player is level. An unleveled record player can mean the stylus is contacting the grooves of the record in an unwanted angle. This could cause wear on your style or record, or even distorted noise.

Luckily, many record players have adjustable legs. However, torn paper or other material can provide an alternative to help level.

Speakers come in many sizes and some are small enough to rest close to your record player. We all love playing our music loud, but it’s important to ensure our speakers are not close enough to our record player where it might shake it.

If your speaker is shaking your record that could damage your stylus, record, or experience some skipping. It’s better to keep your speakers at a safe distance that way your records are safe and you can enjoy your music as loud as you want!

The Finer Details

When you are ready to listen to your music remove your dust cover from your record player. Some dust covers are able to simply be lifted up and others need to be removed entirely.

Dust will be your worst enemy when it comes to records, so using your dust cover is just another way to help keep your collection protected.

Take a look at your stylus. See any chips or bending? Any black residue from records? These are some things you’ll want to check to make sure your stylus is still functional.

If you begin to play a record and it skips or bounces, or having sudden static are audio cues that your stylus needs replaced. Taking care of your stylus is vital. This what is generating the noise you hear. A damaged stylus will lead to your records being scratched or worn down.

Before we pull out our records make sure there is a record platter. There are a number of different types of mats such as cork, leather, acrylic, and silicone. What makes them interesting is that each material affects the sound different.

There is no wrong answer for the type of material you use as long as you have a mat. They help grip your record and reduce friction so your record isn’t having any unnecessary movement.

The Needle Drop

Now lets grab our record! Open up the sleeve and carefully put it out. Be sure to only touch the edges of the record. The oils on our skin can seep into the grooves and create issues when we play it.

Check which side is A side or B side. This will be indicated at the center sticker typically with which songs are on each side. Place the center of the record through the medal rod in the center of the platter.

Turn your turntable on and let your record spin. Getting eye level will show you that all records are not created equally. Some are pressed extremely flat and others not so much.

Using a record weight that goes right on top of your record through the metal rod will apply some pressure to reduce any warping. A record weight is not completely necessary, but having warping could lead to trouble.

Every time you are about to play a record it is crucial you clean the record. There are two things you need to be aware of when you do clean, we are getting rid of the dirt found within the grooves, and we also want to avoid creating static.

Anti-static brushes are great for getting within the grooves and removing static. Hold the brush just enough for the bristles to tickle the record. The record is doing all the record since it’s spinning, so after a few spins move the brush at a 45 degree angle off the record. Static can cause excessive pops and noise during play and could also lead to your mat sticking to your record.

Next, set your record speed. The speed is determined on the number of rotations are around the record. 33 1/3, 45, or 75. A typical 12 inch record will be spinning at 33 1/3 while a 7-in single will spin at 45 RPM.

Now it’s finally time to place your stylus on your record. Our hands shake and can be imprecise so many record players have a cue feature. This will allow the needle to slowly fall in a precise location without the fear of a last-minute shake.

Slowly drop the needle on the edge of the record. You should hear a pop then your music! Once the record is finished take the needle off, flip the record, and repeat the cleaning process.

Aftercare

After you’ve played your record it’s important your records are stored safely. New records are often shipped either without record sleeves or paper sleeves. That is no good!

Anti-static plastic sleeves will reduce static build up and offer more protection. The paper sleeves are a static creator and can leave scratches. (You could even can an extra step and get a outer plastic sleeve for the entire record.)

Where we place our records is also important. Staking records on top of one another will lead to warping and damages. They get heavy fast. Instead, place them vertically without over stuffing them on a shelf. Leave some wiggle room. You want to avoid packing the records too tight.

That’s all for some basic handling and care of your record player and records. There are a lot of easy care that can be overlooked or ignored, but if you want your collection to last then it’s important to slow down and really be in the moment with what you are doing.