Cleaning and playing 78 RPM records?

[RetroSmith]

Hi guys.

I have a mini project coming up, and I will need to clean and transfer a few 78s to CDR.

When cleaning, i know not to use alcohol. Will a few drops of dish detergent suffice?

Also, any tips on transferring to CD. Should I sum the left and right channels from the TT to mono BEFORE I make the wav file?


Any help is appreciated!!

Mikey

[Pinknik]

The Disc Doctor fluid and brushes are safe on 78's, if you want to go that route. I usually DO sum a mono LP before making the wave, however, with 78's, it is sometimes preferable to use one channel or the other, if one plays quieter due to uneven groove wear.

[sgraham]

Please do use a proper 78 stylus (2.5 to 3 mil tip radius). Otherwise the stylus will rattle around loose in the bottom of the groove where it doesn't belong and sound bad, and potentially damage both stylus and record.

I know that alcohol will *erase* grooves on acetates. I believe, though I may be mistaken, that water can cause trouble on Edison disks (which are not "78's" in several respects). Also be careful when washing Columbia's. Many of them have a layered construction

I usually transfer in "stereo". It gives me more options for problem areas. If you plan to do a quick transfer without spending too much time doing fixups then you can go ahead and combine to mono first, if you have a good way to do it, and get a smaller file (faster processing).

As you probably know, many 78's use a different EQ curve than the RIAA which was standardized early on in the LP era. Diamond Cut software has a nifty preset for 1) reversing the RIAA curve that's in your phono preamp and then 2) applying one of the several older curves - you'll have to figure out which one is correct. It also has some presets for letting you play the 78 at a slower speed then correcting the speed and eq digitally. The original intention was to let you dub 78's even if you don't have a 78 turntable, but can also help with warped disks.

If the disks are in less than pristine condition, and you're not overly worried about damaging them, sometimes excessive tracking force helps. Also playing wet. (Let the user beware.) There's a discussion of wet playing somewhere else on here. You probably don't want to use your good cartridge for it.

If your disks are acetates, rather than shellac or vinyl pressings, be aware that they may deteriorate quickly with playing. Get a transfer on the first playing if you can. If it's not satisfactory for some reason you can always try again, but keep the first transfer around until your sure you have a good one.

[RetroSmith]

Steve, thanks for the advice!!

The disks themselves are RCA 78s in good condition.

Your comment about using a correct stylus is interesting. I dont think I can get a 78 stylus for my ADC cart!!

Is there a cheap cart that comes with a proper 78 stylus? Any other suggestions? I dont want to ruin my stylus on these 78s, but I need to get a good transfer.

[sgraham]

If you have an old Grado, Shure or AT kicking around you can probably get a 78 rpm stylus for about $30. Possibly Stanton and Ortofon too.

I can't find Lyle cartridges on the net, but Jerry Raskin's Needle Doctor is still alive:

http://www.needledoctor.com

Radio shack used to have a cheap magnetic cartridge that you could get a 78 stylus for. I don't know if it's still available - I haven't the patience to search their graphics-laden website.

If you have an old record changer with a ceramic cartridge it may work fine with shellac 78s (don't try it on your LPs) but the sound quality is uncertain. Some of the better Astatics, etc., were surprisingly decent sounding, but only if fed into the proper load (NOT the phono input on your preamp!)

[RetroSmith]

Thank you Steve!!

[Sckott]

Best cart I used for 78 transfers (Columbias) was a very cheap ceramic cart with a wide tipped stylus. I think it cost me all of $9 for the cart.

Bonus: You can use a line-level input. Don't use a nice cart for stereo LPs on 78's. :eek:

In other words, What Steve G. said!

[RetroSmith]

I wonder if Radio Shack carries a ceramic cart....

[Steve Hoffman]

Shure M44 cartridge with the green conical 78 RPM stylus is the ONLY one I recommend for this type of thing. It's cheap. Buy one.

[RetroSmith]

Once again, Steve-o to the rescue.

Thanks Boss!!!

[Steve Hoffman]

Mikey,

It plays the varying groove styles of the old discs the best. I've used one since 1975. Much better than even the expensive V15 78. It just sounds "right".

And, you can put the Shure conical tip in there as well and play all of your plastic 45's without tearing them up. (Old radio station trick)....

[RetroSmith]

Fantastic!! Thanks, Boss.