SETfan Posted August 7, 2021 Posted August 7, 2021 Was looking to buy a used Record Doctor or Project record cleaning machine (ad in Wanted section) but have been informed of the option of an Saidi Audio machine which are on sale brand new for $350. Sounds a great price but I cant find any reviews or opinions online about them, so thought I would post here...anyone know this brand or machine, and care to comment?
Doppelganger Posted August 7, 2021 Posted August 7, 2021 Must be a generic model as it also goes under the moniker Amari RW220 which was reviewed positively. Certainly priced well. 1
audiofeline Posted August 7, 2021 Posted August 7, 2021 They were at the hifi show a few years ago. I was interested in some of their accessories and needed to check some dimensions first so I couldn't buy at the show. They gave me their card, and told me to email them at their website http://www.saidiaudio.com. I emailed them several times but they didn't reply. I noticed that their website didn't change for a few years, and had outdated "news" on it. Just checked it then and they have fewer turntables on offer and no RCM. I got the impression that they were aiming for the OEM market more than being a player in their own right. 2
audiofeline Posted August 8, 2021 Posted August 8, 2021 A brief discussion here: https://www.vinylengine.com/turntable_forum/viewtopic.php?t=88550 It seems like the discontinued items are being dumped in Australia again. I would expect that the Saidi RCM would work quite well (what I saw of their turntables at the hifi show suggested good engineering), but I would be concerned about how long it would work for and if generic parts can be used to keep it operational. 1
Pops110 Posted August 8, 2021 Posted August 8, 2021 It appears to be the same machine as the Musichall MCS 3. There are parts available from Elusive Disk. Cheap enough to take a punt on. I have it from a very reliable source that it does a great job. 1
Hydrology Posted August 8, 2021 Posted August 8, 2021 Used to have one - great build quality for the price and a solid machine which was ultimately bested by an $8000 RCM! 4
Pops110 Posted August 9, 2021 Posted August 9, 2021 On 07/08/2021 at 5:28 PM, SETfan said: Was looking to buy a used Record Doctor or Project record cleaning machine (ad in Wanted section) but have been informed of the option of an Saidi Audio machine which are on sale brand new for $350. Sounds a great price but I cant find any reviews or opinions online about them, so thought I would post here...anyone know this brand or machine, and care to comment? Mine was shipped today, very promp service. Hopefully gets here on Friday. They are still showing as in stock and parts do seem to be available, Mark said that he rates them. He knows his stuff so I’m pretty confident it should work quite well. 2
SETfan Posted August 9, 2021 Author Posted August 9, 2021 Thanks all, have ordered one of the Saidi machines today! Sounds like a real bargain, appreciate the help in this thread 3
SETfan Posted August 11, 2021 Author Posted August 11, 2021 Anyone know if the machine comes with a brush for the records, or do you need to buy that seperately? If a brush needs to be purchased, any recommendations that would work well?
PKay Posted August 11, 2021 Posted August 11, 2021 6 hours ago, SETfan said: Anyone know if the machine comes with a brush for the records, or do you need to buy that seperately? If a brush needs to be purchased, any recommendations that would work well? This will do the trick. I copied @Doppelgangeron this one. https://www.bunnings.com.au/shur-line-paint-edger-specialty-applicator_p1660577 1
williac Posted August 19, 2021 Posted August 19, 2021 Pops110, have you had a chance to play with this yet and if yes, what were your thoughts?
Pops110 Posted August 19, 2021 Posted August 19, 2021 Not a proper try yet, will give it a go on Sunday. External construction is very good, platter motor is nice and quiet, vacuum is pretty noisy. Will update when I give it a whirl.
Doppelganger Posted August 20, 2021 Posted August 20, 2021 I grabbed one as well and it works well. The vacuum suction level control is a nice feature. At lower suction level, which is all that’s needed, it’s way quieter than the Kuzma Vinvac I had before it. At maximum suction, it’s pretty loud. A couple of idiosyncrasies: 1. The puck is a two piece affair so a bit fiddly and to tighten the small knob, you turn it anti-clockwise. 2. The suction wand doesn’t quite reach the run-out groove so if your wet cleaning gets the cleaning fluid close to the label (which is fully covered), the vacuum won’t remove it so a wipe with a cloth or air dry before re-sleeving will be necessary. All in all, for $350, an excellent buy assuming it has decent longevity. 1
RNWau Posted August 20, 2021 Posted August 20, 2021 These are generics…I own a Watson branded one and have been delighted with the results for a couple of years now. I use a microfibre cloth to remove light dust etc from the surface before applying fluid and using the supplied brush to spread. After vacuuming I normally leave the LP’s in a drying rack for a few mins before sleeving as I think the vacuum only gets them 99% dry. Very good buy at the price! 1
Pops110 Posted August 28, 2021 Posted August 28, 2021 Had pretty much a whole afternoon cleaning records with the Saidi this afternoon. Just spinning a few tunes now. It really seems to do a very good job, has taken away a lot of noise on some records and seems to have got rid of some graininess if you want to call it that. I have been using Tonar cleaning fluid which seems to do a good job. I will clean some more tomorrow and try the Melody Mate on them ones. Can anyone recommend a decent brush to use, I’m not sold on the paint edger but admittedly haven’t tried it. Bloody bargain I think for the price we picked them up for, very happy. 3
Doppelganger Posted August 28, 2021 Posted August 28, 2021 1 hour ago, Pops110 said: Had pretty much a whole afternoon cleaning records with the Saidi this afternoon. Just spinning a few tunes now. It really seems to do a very good job, has taken away a lot of noise on some records and seems to have got rid of some graininess if you want to call it that. I have been using Tonar cleaning fluid which seems to do a good job. I will clean some more tomorrow and try the Melody Mate on them ones. Can anyone recommend a decent brush to use, I’m not sold on the paint edger but admittedly haven’t tried it. Bloody bargain I think for the price we picked them up for, very happy. I think you’ll change your mind about the paint edger if you try it. Dramatically better than any other brushes I’ve tried.
Hydrology Posted August 28, 2021 Posted August 28, 2021 2 hours ago, Pops110 said: Had pretty much a whole afternoon cleaning records with the Saidi this afternoon. Just spinning a few tunes now. It really seems to do a very good job, has taken away a lot of noise on some records and seems to have got rid of some graininess if you want to call it that. I have been using Tonar cleaning fluid which seems to do a good job. I will clean some more tomorrow and try the Melody Mate on them ones. Can anyone recommend a decent brush to use, I’m not sold on the paint edger but admittedly haven’t tried it. Bloody bargain I think for the price we picked them up for, very happy. Anything made of goats hair will do the trick nicely. Plenty on the 'Bay...
RNWau Posted August 28, 2021 Posted August 28, 2021 32 minutes ago, Hydrology said: Anything made of goats hair will do the trick nicely. Plenty on the 'Bay... For spreading cleaning fluid on an rcm, or for dust/static before playing?
derekcohen Posted August 29, 2021 Posted August 29, 2021 Which is the preferred machine for cleaning vinyl: vacuum (such as the saidi) or an ultrasonic (such as by Vevor)? Regards from Perth Derek
RNWau Posted August 29, 2021 Posted August 29, 2021 @derekcohen If you have deep pockets, then ultrasonic is best followed by a vacuum on an RCM to dry the album. i’ve been very happy for many years with a good cleaning fluid and a vacuum RCM plus the usual CF brush before play etc. but of there was an affordable Ultrasonic option that wasn’t DIY I’d probably switch. 1
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