Last products have been around for a long time. This essay concerns their Record Preservative and Stylast products. I have not used Last’s cleaning solution because I have developed my own which works very well. I have no reason to think that Last’s cleaning solution is not excellent but I don’t need it.
I am going to document an experiment I have conducted to attempt to confirm or deny Last’s claim that use of their products will increase stylus life. As a fall out from the experiment is conformation that Last also decreases record wear but that is not the primary point of the experiment.
I assume that the reason this experiment has not been seen in print before is because of the difficulty of obtaining definitive results. My experiment is dead simple. The only difficulty is being totally consistent. This is the crux of the experiment if one wants results that can be relied upon. I’ll describe the experiment below.
As a convention, in this essay when I write “Last”, I mean Last Record Preservative. When I am referring to Stylast, I write Stylast.
I have an advantage over most because I have been involved in audio for so many years. During these years I have operated two different High End audio repair shops for a total of thirteen years. I made it a point to examine every stylus that came into my shops under a Shure SEK-2 stylus microscope. I have examined literally thousands of styli. In addition, I have kept my own personal styli under surveillance using the Shure microscope since around 1980. The short of it is I have a huge amount of experience with styli and have determined how much use time that can be expected from a stylus.
From this, the basic question can be formulated. “Does Last Record Preservative and Stylast actually increase stylus life? Or not? If it does, how much?” The Last literature makes the claim that stylus life is increased. It does not specify how much. Is this snake oil? Actually, the Last literature makes other claims as well but here we will concentrate only on stylus life.
Last is applied directly to the record surface using the supplied applicator. Last is not a coating such as Gruv Glide or Soundguard that stays on the surface. Rather, Last combines chemically with the vinyl and alters its surface hardness. Once applied, Last cannot be removed. Since Last is now one with the vinyl, there is nothing to remove. Thus, there is nothing to which dust can stick. In fact, Last banishes electrostatic surface charges and static dust attraction is a thing of the past. Once applied, it is never necessary to reapply Last. Once is enough.
I have been using Last Record Preservative and Stylast since around 1980. The products must be used correctly. The Preservative and Stylast are designed to work together as a system. You will not get the full benefit unless you use both. And, you need a good RCM with a strong motor and a horizontal platter, such as the VPI models (I have a VPI 17), to apply Last. This will really fill out the tool set.
If used correctly, I believe the claims made by the Last Company. If not done right, you get less benefit or maybe, none at all. Read their web site. I know it seems like snake oil but it's not. I have been promoting Last for years but folks don't seem to believe me. I really don’t fault folks for their skepticism because the claimed benefits are pretty amazing. The only way to know is to try it.
I have run a careful, disciplined, long term experiment to either confirm or deny their claim of extended stylus life. I started with a brand new line contact stylus (a Monster Alpha Genesis 1000 cartridge). Without Last, one could expect about 1000 hours of life before wear forced replacement. This was my second cartridge of this type. So, I knew what to expect. Also, long experience told me 1000 hours is about the typical life span of all styli no matter what their shape. It does not vary much. After all, a diamond is a diamond.
I checked for stylus wear both by ear and, periodically, with my Shure stylus microscope. The microscope reveals the truth. I set up an hour’s counter to keep track of playing time. The experiment was simple but required some determination and discipline. With an experiment like this, it is vitally important to be totally consistent. Here is how I did it.
I NEVER played a record unless it had been thoroughly cleaned on my VPI 17 RCM and then treated with the preservative. I NEVER played a side without first treating the stylus with Stylast. There were no exceptions. Even if a friend brought a favorite record over to my listening room for a listen, I would not play it unless I first washed and Lasted it. Once, a friend got pissed but calmed down when I explained the experiment. I Lasted his record then played it. It was good!
Cleaning (washing) the record is very important. I believe the mold release residue that clings to all records must be removed in order to allow Last to form a chemical bond with the vinyl. The Last factory has not confirmed this though. So, the mould release may not inhibit Last. Cleaning solutions should contain alcohol which is the only solvent I have found that will remove the mold release and not harm the vinyl.
I deep clean the stylus with a short stubble brush and isopropyl alcohol…about every 20 records. This removes a varnish-like residue that builds up on the stylus. I’m not sure of its origin. It is easily removed with a stylus cleaning brush and alcohol. Its presence is revealed with a stylus microscope. Be careful!
The result? After 4000 hours the stylus still sounded new and the microscope revealed no wear at all. The stylus just appears to be beautifully polished. The experiment is still under way. From all indications, the stylus will last indefinitely. Probably, the stylus suspension will fail before the diamond wears out.
I think Last products are fantastic. They do what the manufacturer says they do. They have other benefits that I can confirm. Rather than repeat them here, check out Last's website at:
http://www.lastfactory.com/Products/...servative.html
The improvement of stylus life has an interesting and important side effect on cartridge economics. I’m not a rich man. The idea of spending multi-thousands on a cartridge which will need replacement in a thousand hours is not attractive to me. I can’t afford it. But, if the stylus life can be extended significantly the cost per hour drops precipitously. For example, if a $1000 cartridge requires replacement in 1000 hours, the cost of use is $1.00 per hour. However, if stylus life can be extended to 5000 hours, the use cost drops to $0.20 an hour. Another way of looking at it is using a $5000 cartridge as an example. If stylus life is 5000 hours then the use cost is $1.00 per hour or the same as a non-Lasted situation with a $1000 cartridge. For me, this brings the $5000 cartridge into play. I think this is a pretty amazing and significant result from using Last.
I realize that one experiment on one cartridge does not constitute a statistical truth. However, my long experience (over 45 years) with cartridges and my long term use of the Shure stylus microscope adds to the body of evidence that lends credibility to Last products and my experiment. I will continue the experiment because I am convinced that my records and styli are better off with Last than without. The experiment has become my normal record playing practice.
Afterword:
To show that I believe the results of my experiment I recently bought a Lyra Skala. I fully expect the life of this cartridge to extend at least to 5000 hours. This makes the $3500 Skala cost effective.
Do understand that 5000 hours of stylus life expectancy may actually be significantly conservative. The experiment continues…………..
Sparky
I am going to document an experiment I have conducted to attempt to confirm or deny Last’s claim that use of their products will increase stylus life. As a fall out from the experiment is conformation that Last also decreases record wear but that is not the primary point of the experiment.
I assume that the reason this experiment has not been seen in print before is because of the difficulty of obtaining definitive results. My experiment is dead simple. The only difficulty is being totally consistent. This is the crux of the experiment if one wants results that can be relied upon. I’ll describe the experiment below.
As a convention, in this essay when I write “Last”, I mean Last Record Preservative. When I am referring to Stylast, I write Stylast.
I have an advantage over most because I have been involved in audio for so many years. During these years I have operated two different High End audio repair shops for a total of thirteen years. I made it a point to examine every stylus that came into my shops under a Shure SEK-2 stylus microscope. I have examined literally thousands of styli. In addition, I have kept my own personal styli under surveillance using the Shure microscope since around 1980. The short of it is I have a huge amount of experience with styli and have determined how much use time that can be expected from a stylus.
From this, the basic question can be formulated. “Does Last Record Preservative and Stylast actually increase stylus life? Or not? If it does, how much?” The Last literature makes the claim that stylus life is increased. It does not specify how much. Is this snake oil? Actually, the Last literature makes other claims as well but here we will concentrate only on stylus life.
Last is applied directly to the record surface using the supplied applicator. Last is not a coating such as Gruv Glide or Soundguard that stays on the surface. Rather, Last combines chemically with the vinyl and alters its surface hardness. Once applied, Last cannot be removed. Since Last is now one with the vinyl, there is nothing to remove. Thus, there is nothing to which dust can stick. In fact, Last banishes electrostatic surface charges and static dust attraction is a thing of the past. Once applied, it is never necessary to reapply Last. Once is enough.
I have been using Last Record Preservative and Stylast since around 1980. The products must be used correctly. The Preservative and Stylast are designed to work together as a system. You will not get the full benefit unless you use both. And, you need a good RCM with a strong motor and a horizontal platter, such as the VPI models (I have a VPI 17), to apply Last. This will really fill out the tool set.
If used correctly, I believe the claims made by the Last Company. If not done right, you get less benefit or maybe, none at all. Read their web site. I know it seems like snake oil but it's not. I have been promoting Last for years but folks don't seem to believe me. I really don’t fault folks for their skepticism because the claimed benefits are pretty amazing. The only way to know is to try it.
I have run a careful, disciplined, long term experiment to either confirm or deny their claim of extended stylus life. I started with a brand new line contact stylus (a Monster Alpha Genesis 1000 cartridge). Without Last, one could expect about 1000 hours of life before wear forced replacement. This was my second cartridge of this type. So, I knew what to expect. Also, long experience told me 1000 hours is about the typical life span of all styli no matter what their shape. It does not vary much. After all, a diamond is a diamond.
I checked for stylus wear both by ear and, periodically, with my Shure stylus microscope. The microscope reveals the truth. I set up an hour’s counter to keep track of playing time. The experiment was simple but required some determination and discipline. With an experiment like this, it is vitally important to be totally consistent. Here is how I did it.
I NEVER played a record unless it had been thoroughly cleaned on my VPI 17 RCM and then treated with the preservative. I NEVER played a side without first treating the stylus with Stylast. There were no exceptions. Even if a friend brought a favorite record over to my listening room for a listen, I would not play it unless I first washed and Lasted it. Once, a friend got pissed but calmed down when I explained the experiment. I Lasted his record then played it. It was good!
Cleaning (washing) the record is very important. I believe the mold release residue that clings to all records must be removed in order to allow Last to form a chemical bond with the vinyl. The Last factory has not confirmed this though. So, the mould release may not inhibit Last. Cleaning solutions should contain alcohol which is the only solvent I have found that will remove the mold release and not harm the vinyl.
I deep clean the stylus with a short stubble brush and isopropyl alcohol…about every 20 records. This removes a varnish-like residue that builds up on the stylus. I’m not sure of its origin. It is easily removed with a stylus cleaning brush and alcohol. Its presence is revealed with a stylus microscope. Be careful!
The result? After 4000 hours the stylus still sounded new and the microscope revealed no wear at all. The stylus just appears to be beautifully polished. The experiment is still under way. From all indications, the stylus will last indefinitely. Probably, the stylus suspension will fail before the diamond wears out.
I think Last products are fantastic. They do what the manufacturer says they do. They have other benefits that I can confirm. Rather than repeat them here, check out Last's website at:
http://www.lastfactory.com/Products/...servative.html
The improvement of stylus life has an interesting and important side effect on cartridge economics. I’m not a rich man. The idea of spending multi-thousands on a cartridge which will need replacement in a thousand hours is not attractive to me. I can’t afford it. But, if the stylus life can be extended significantly the cost per hour drops precipitously. For example, if a $1000 cartridge requires replacement in 1000 hours, the cost of use is $1.00 per hour. However, if stylus life can be extended to 5000 hours, the use cost drops to $0.20 an hour. Another way of looking at it is using a $5000 cartridge as an example. If stylus life is 5000 hours then the use cost is $1.00 per hour or the same as a non-Lasted situation with a $1000 cartridge. For me, this brings the $5000 cartridge into play. I think this is a pretty amazing and significant result from using Last.
I realize that one experiment on one cartridge does not constitute a statistical truth. However, my long experience (over 45 years) with cartridges and my long term use of the Shure stylus microscope adds to the body of evidence that lends credibility to Last products and my experiment. I will continue the experiment because I am convinced that my records and styli are better off with Last than without. The experiment has become my normal record playing practice.
Afterword:
To show that I believe the results of my experiment I recently bought a Lyra Skala. I fully expect the life of this cartridge to extend at least to 5000 hours. This makes the $3500 Skala cost effective.
Do understand that 5000 hours of stylus life expectancy may actually be significantly conservative. The experiment continues…………..
Sparky
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