TP1 Posted April 9, 2017 Share Posted April 9, 2017 (edited) I bought this machine while my Audio Deske RCM was still operational. What interested me was that it looked like it had been built by people who really understand vinyl and the record cleaning process. It is built by the Chinese company Amari which turns out to be a company with substantial engineering capabilities. They make a range of turntables ( sold under the brands Hanss Acoustics and Amari) , a number of different record cleaning machines ( including an Audiodeske clone ) and they also do OEM production and engineering work for other audio companies. The RW-800 is not fully automatic but it is the fastest record cleaning system I have come across. Along with other machines that can dial in ultrasonic power and cleaning duration, it is capable of producing some of the best results that can be achieved from ultrasonic cleaning. My Audiodeske takes around 7 minutes to complete a basic cycle which includes 1 minute ultrasonic cleaning time, the rest is drying. I usually extended this to 2 minutes cleaning so the cycle was typically 8 minutes overall. With the RW-800, I use a standard 2 minute cleaning and adjust the power depending on the degree of cleaning required. Drying time is just one revolution of the record because it is vacuumed from both sides simultaneously . Of course with a fully automatic RCM. you can leave it and walk away and it will dry the record automatically. Except that with the Audiodeske if i left the record too long in the machine after the cycle had ended, there would be moisture condensing on the record which had emanated from the close-by wet rollers. Ultrasonic cleaning in progress. The record is turned by a direct drive motor in the support column and operated by a switch. Vacuum drying from both sides simultaneously - Just one revolution will do it. The machine weighs around 35 kg and is big. It has an industrial quality feel about it and you can quickly clean a few records in a row in no time. The tank is designed to be emptied in situ and Amari provide a tube system to direct the waste into a container. The cleaning and vacuum waste water is released via valves operated by switches on the front. Every component in the RW-800 is easily serviceable which is a welcome change, but there is little that can go wrong with it and the vacuum system has been proven through thousands of units already sold in the company's range of RCM's. I bought this at the same time as another Perth SNA member and we paid around $1500 each for the machine delivered to our doors. $280 of which was air freight from the Singapore dealer where we bought it from - this is a big , heavy unit. The dealer has visited the factory and was very helpful - useful in view of the very basic English manual provided with the machine. Edited April 9, 2017 by Tasso 18 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevoz Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) $1500........That's a lot of money........How many records could one buy with that? A collection of around 500 LP's, that's how many! It will also buy 35 bottles of Revirginizer, which would be enough to clean 200-300 more LP's than that 500 LP collection. I'd much rather spend my money on actual LP's and a bottle of Revirginizer, or even a bottle of Mont Marte clear gum and do a better job....ie; NO residue......yes, no residue. I just can't believe that a totally wet process leaves no residue. Sorry, I'm a non believer in RCM's as IMO it's not the best way to clean a record.........but it looks real nice. Edited April 10, 2017 by stevoz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
balk2117 Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 TASSO, thank you for taking the time to write up such a comprehensive review of a very interesting US RCM from China. Looks very interesting and much cheaper than the German equivalent. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EV Cali Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) 30 minutes ago, stevoz said: $1500........That's a lot of money........How many records could one buy with that? I'd much rather spend my money on actual LP's and a bottle of Revirginizer, or even a bottle of Mont Marte clear gum and do a better job....ie; NO residue......yes, no residue. I just can't believe that a totally wet process leaves no residue. Sorry, I'm a non believer in RCM's as IMO it's not the best way to clean a record.........but it looks nice. I all ready have a lot of records and there is no way I would be smearing glue on them and waiting for it to dry, now that Ultrasonic cleaners have become affordable $250 - $550. This machine is a lot of money but it will clean and vacuum dry a record in 7 minutes and if there was an Australian importer would probably be cheaper. Just because you do not believe something does not mean it is not true. IMO the days of cleaning records with glue are well and truly over. I have half a bottle of Revirginizer left and if any one wants to come and pick it up they can have it. Edited April 10, 2017 by EV Cali 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevoz Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) Well, at $250-$300......you've only wasted $250-$300 eh? I guess that wouldn't hurt as much.......as for 'smearing' glue and 'waiting', if you had an LP you wanted to play now, it should already be clean shouldn't it? If you bought a 2nd hand LP and it needed cleaning, what's the hassle waiting til the next day to play it clean. You have other records you could play in the meantime don't you?.........it seems RCM's are for impatient people who have too much money and like 'gadgets'.......and don't knock RV or even clear gums, they'll still do a better job microscopically cleaning a record to the bottom of the grooves than an RCM will do..........and no residue, or water or 'vacuuming' or electricity. I had a feeling expressing my opinion here would be a bit of a grenade but hey, it's just my opinion but it's based on results over cost and I'm confident I'll always be in front there and have more money to spend on the reason we're here.......records. Edited April 10, 2017 by stevoz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TP1 Posted April 10, 2017 Author Share Posted April 10, 2017 17 minutes ago, EV Cali said: I all ready have a lot of records and there is no way I would be smearing glue on them and waiting for it to dry, now that Ultrasonic cleaners have become affordable $250 - $550. This machine is a lot of money but it will clean and vacuum dry a record in 7 minutes and if there was an Australian importer would probably be cheaper. Just because you do not believe something does not mean it is not true. IMO the days of cleaning records with glue are well and truly over. I have half a bottle of Revirginizer left and if any one wants to come and pick it up they can have it. This machine will thoroughly clean and dry a record in around 2 1/2 minutes. The full automatic machines take longer Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TP1 Posted April 10, 2017 Author Share Posted April 10, 2017 Size comparison between my 2 RCM's. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EV Cali Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) @stevoz If you are still happy to use RV that is fine. I have used both RV and Ultrasonic and I prefer US. My collection of LP's is around 4000. With RV costing $45 per 500ml bottle and "will restore up to 16 double sided 12" recordings" equating to $2.80 per record,it would cost me around $11,200 to clean my collection. Compered with RV, after the the first 90 records my Ultrasonic cost is all most nothing. Makes the $1500 for @Tasso Amari RW-800 quite cheap. Edited April 10, 2017 by EV Cali 6 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TP1 Posted April 10, 2017 Author Share Posted April 10, 2017 For those interested, I bought mine from this Hifi store situated in Singapore . I communicated with Alan, the owner, via the listed email address. His price was competitive compared to buying from China direct and he checks the units before despatching. http://giraffe-signature.com 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
metal beat Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 1 hour ago, stevoz said: $1500........That's a lot of money........How many records could one buy with that? A collection of around 500 LP's, that's how many! It will also buy 35 bottles of Revirginizer, which would be enough to clean 200-300 more LP's than that 500 LP collection. I'd much rather spend my money on actual LP's and a bottle of Revirginizer, or even a bottle of Mont Marte clear gum and do a better job....ie; NO residue......yes, no residue. I just can't believe that a totally wet process leaves no residue. Sorry, I'm a non believer in RCM's as IMO it's not the best way to clean a record.........but it looks real nice. LOL. depends what you are comparing with - Its cheap compared to the Audio Deske and KL Audio US cleaners. agree if you have 500 lp's it may not be worth while spending $$ on these machines. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colinm1 Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) IS ONE OF OUR SOUTH AUSSIE MEMBERS STILL MAKING HIS RCM ? AND THANKS FOR THE REVIEW..VERY INTERESTING Edited April 10, 2017 by colinm1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mtf Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 Thanks Tasso, great information. Is the vacuum process quite noisy on this machine? 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Stump Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 Great write up and machine Tasso.Ive met David who designed the machine and has done a good job.In regards to $1500 that's a lot of money Guy.Why buy records and a record player when you can get all the music for free on a radio!!!! Stump 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EV Cali Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) "...... A collection of around 500 LP's for $1500" Unfortunately I must be looking in different places to you. Edited April 10, 2017 by EV Cali 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
simo8989 Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 Thanks Tasso, Good review considering the machine is two in one, a Ultrasonic and Vacum plus it looks well built $1500 landed is a pretty good price. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hergest Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 $1500 if the quality is there is an excellent price. I think some people also make the mistake in thinking a record only needs cleaning once and then it remains pristine. Alas a record will need cleaning often if it's played a lot so a good machine is paramount. Steveoz, I'd love to know where you're buying records at $3 each? You must have a mighty collection of the Best Of Kamahl you've picked up from op shops. 13 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevoz Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) @EV Cali I get 25 LP's cleaned per bottle ($1.80/LP and as clean or cleaner than any RCM will get them), obviously the manufacturers of RV would like us to use too much so we buy it more frequently,.......and not everyone has a spare $1500 or more floating around, that would buy a TT better than most of us have now. Priorities must be set by those of us who haven't got money to waste........much like restricting oneself to not spending more than $30 per LP and avoiding overpriced new vinyl. You said "Unfortunately I must be looking in different places to you." Maybe you are, or you just lack self control. Edited April 10, 2017 by stevoz 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TP1 Posted April 10, 2017 Author Share Posted April 10, 2017 2 hours ago, mtf said: Thanks Tasso, great information. Is the vacuum process quite noisy on this machine? Yes- the vacuum is noisy but its not required for long. The only sound emitted during ultrasonic cleaning is the normal US buzzing sound. The motor turning the record is itself dead quiet and there are no gears etc. 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Midori Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) The best part of this machine is that the motor unit is the top add on part. If ever the motor requires service, it can simply be a drop in replacement. in addition, the reservoir size is shaped in semi circle pool. It requires only around 1litre or less of solution each time. This means less wastage of cleaning solution compared to a cubic shaped us pool. Edited April 10, 2017 by coeuslee 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
t_mike Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 8 hours ago, Hergest said: You must have a mighty collection of the Best Of Kamahl you've picked up from op shops. Why are people so unkind? 5 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stevoz Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) @Tasso @EV Cali I just want to apologise to you two and everyone else for my negative crap earlier today. It was quite petty and ill thought. Post rising from a bad sleep is not the ideal time to post my 'opinions'. I really should delay them until after I've had my evening 'medicine'. Anyway, it looks a great machine and I hope it's all you want it to be. Cheers... Edited April 10, 2017 by stevoz 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex32 Posted April 10, 2017 Share Posted April 10, 2017 Hi Tasso, I've been looking to get myself a Clearaudio Smart Matrix Professional RCM , I don't know if you have any experience with this unit. If you do, how does it compare with RW-800? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TP1 Posted April 10, 2017 Author Share Posted April 10, 2017 (edited) 52 minutes ago, Alex32 said: Hi Tasso, I've been looking to get myself a Clearaudio Smart Matrix Professional RCM , I don't know if you have any experience with this unit. If you do, how does it compare with RW-800? The Clearaudio unit works much the same as the VPI 16.1 unit which I originally owned before acquiring the Audiodeske. IME, the ultrasonic machines give a better and more consistent clean that the VPI/Clearaudio types. The latter rely on you manually stirring the crud with a brush and hoping that the vacuum will take 100% of all the micro particles deep in the grooves. They only do one side at a time although clearaudio also has a double sided unit that costs $$$. They do clean records but the results I have achieved with both ultrasonic RCMs has been consistently superior. Edited April 10, 2017 by Tasso 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TP1 Posted April 10, 2017 Author Share Posted April 10, 2017 [mention=105453]Tasso[/mention] [mention=138993]EV Cali[/mention] I just want to apologise to you two and everyone else for my negative crap earlier today. It was quite petty and ill thought. Post rising from a bad sleep is not the ideal time to post my 'opinions'. I really should delay them until after I've had my evening 'medicine'[emoji3]. Anyway, it looks a great machine and I hope it's all you want it to be. [emoji6] Cheers... No worries Steve, been there myself. The question of how much to spend on gear is nevertheless something that everyone struggles with. 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alex32 Posted April 11, 2017 Share Posted April 11, 2017 Thanks @Tasso for your in depth reply, much appreciated I recon that I will have to start saving some coin to get me one of these! 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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