clean connections

[Gregadd]

Some have postulated that some of the benefits experienced by "new" cables may in fact be caused by the cleaning effect of merely "breaking" the connection ans installing the new cable. Nevertheless there is definitely a benefit form cleaning the connection. If you still use RCA plugs you will definitely find these helpful.


They aer available at Music Direct for a modest price. You will also need some type of connection cleaning fluid. I guard against Isopropyl alcohol.http://www.musicdirect.com/p-9658-signet-rca-cleaning-tool-ea.aspx

 

[thedudeabides]

Good product. Get's to places you can't normally reach. And you can clearly "see" the results.

Got mine through Music Direct if I recall.

 

[treitz3]

....And you can clearly "see" and hear the results.

There you go, I fixed it for you.

Tom

 

[amirm]

Interesting. Thanks Greg. Did not know such a product existed.

 

[treitz3]

Hello Amir, this and Caig Deoxit work wonders. I usually do a yearly breakdown of the entire rig for connection cleaning. On my system, the results are easily heard. On a system that hasn't been cleaned in a long time, the results can, as mentioned, be seen. Highly recommended.

Tom

 

[amirm]

Thanks Tom. I always have Deoxit around so will pick this up at some point.

 

[TBone]

I've once used those cleaning plugs decades ago; a word of caution ... depending on rca type, be careful when turn/twisting em, they can really grip the inner female which could twist the inner sleeve/wires attached to the rca. I've seen this happen on a few occasions.

 

[Phelonious Ponk]

I've had "high end" plugs so tight that I was afraid of damaging an amp removing them. Give me the old school solution: Deoxit whenever plugs are pulled for some reason, and a plug that fits, not a vice grip. that can be turned about 1/8th of a turn back and forth every now and then. Works just fine.

Tim

 

[Jinjuku]

I've always had Naval Jelly around for clean, remove, prevention of oxidation.

 

[RayDunzl]

I've always had Naval Jelly around for clean, remove, prevention of oxidation.

I would think there are better alternatives for audio purposes:

Description

[Loctite] A registered trademark for a commercial rust remover. Naval Jelly contains water (65-70%), acid phosphoric acid (25-30%) and acid sulfuric acid (1-3%) in a gel matrix composed of a thixotropic polysaccharide (1-3%), alcohol isopropanol (1-3%), surfactant (1-3%) and silica (0.1-1%). The phosphoric acid dissolves the rust (iron oxide) and then reacts to form phosphate iron phosphate. The iron phosphate provides a thin protective coating to minimize further oxidation. For treatment with Naval Jelly , the pink gel is brushed on the metal surface, allowed to stay for 5-20 minutes, then rinsed off. The acids are then neutralized with a bicarbonate baking soda paste. In addition to removing rust, Naval Jelly is used to prepare iron and steel surfaces for painting.

 

[RayDunzl]

Deoxit is good on your mains consumer units circuit breaker etc plus worth looking inside your kit and treating there to. You can see results but might find hearing them more relevant

I use DeOxit.

The description of the Gold version indicates activity similar to (if not the same as) Stabilant 22, for which I've found approval and repair requirements for it to be used in some helicopter signal wiring applications.

http://www.bellcustomer.com/files/Storage/ASB_407-14-102.pdf

As for the bigger jobs, NO-OX-ID-A is what we used in Telco offices for all power connections. It wasn't just a "good idea", it was a requirement, and would be inspected before customer acceptance. I've got a triple-lifetime supply of that goo in the toolbox.

http://www.amazon.com/OX-A-Special-Conductive-Grease-Antenna/dp/B00HSW341A

 

[Fitzcaraldo215]

Some have postulated that some of the benefits experienced by "new" cables may in fact be caused by the cleaning effect of merely "breaking" the connection ans installing the new cable. Nevertheless there is definitely a benefit form cleaning the connection. If you still use RCA plugs you will definitely find these helpful.

View attachment 23434
They aer available at Music Direct for a modest price. You will also need some type of connection cleaning fluid. I guard against Isopropyl alcohol.http://www.musicdirect.com/p-9658-signet-rca-cleaning-tool-ea.aspx

If only there were a similar device for XLRs. I have this RCA device, which I think came with a Caig DeOxIt Kit years ago. But, I now have only XLRs on the interconnects in my audio path.

I guess the only thing for XLR females is a pipe cleaner.

As far as stunning differences go, I have yet to hear one. But, I "feel" better after the cleaning process, and it cannot hurt if done properly. But, then again, maybe increasing contact oxidation (on gold or rhodium which do not oxidize) is part of the improvement routinely heard in the "break in" process, belabored in another thread here.

Do astronauts periodically clean the gold plated electrical contacts all over their space stations, which might be in orbit for years? If it were a potential problem, it might lead to a life or death situation. But, no, they don't. However, as we know, audio is special and it requires super extraordinary measures.

 

[RayDunzl]

Do astronauts periodically clean the gold plated electrical contacts all over their space stations, which might be in orbit for years? If it were a potential problem, it might lead to a life or death situation. But, no, they don't. However, as we know, audio is special and it requires super extraordinary measures.

No.

But the connections have to meet specific requirements.

http://nepp.nasa.gov/docuploads/E9217401-8544-4DD6-B67488D4410E9762/conn.pdf

 

[Jinjuku]

I would think there are better alternatives for audio purposes:

Description

[Loctite] A registered trademark for a commercial rust remover. Naval Jelly contains water (65-70%), acid phosphoric acid (25-30%) and acid sulfuric acid (1-3%) in a gel matrix composed of a thixotropic polysaccharide (1-3%), alcohol isopropanol (1-3%), surfactant (1-3%) and silica (0.1-1%). The phosphoric acid dissolves the rust (iron oxide) and then reacts to form phosphate iron phosphate. The iron phosphate provides a thin protective coating to minimize further oxidation. For treatment with Naval Jelly , the pink gel is brushed on the metal surface, allowed to stay for 5-20 minutes, then rinsed off. The acids are then neutralized with a bicarbonate baking soda paste. In addition to removing rust, Naval Jelly is used to prepare iron and steel surfaces for painting.

I've always went counter label and wipe on and leave for a minute or two and wipe off with moist cloth. It's what I used when refurbishing Macintosh computers back in the early 80's at a place I worked at.

To clean the internal floppy disk drives we would throw them in a dishwasher with de-ionized water and beforehand spray them down with simple green. Run them a cycle, let them dry and then apply lube again. Same went for PCB's.

 

[treitz3]

The management team at the WBF does NOT recommend placing any gear in a dishwasher or using Simple Green for any reason whatsoever.

Tom

 

[Jinjuku]

The management team at the WBF does NOT recommend placing any gear in a dishwasher or using Simple Green for any reason whatsoever.

Tom

We refurbed about 7 thousand macs in 3 years while I was there. Warrantied all of it. I didn't setup the process and didn't believe it at first but I'll be damned if it didn't work like a champ.

At least it isn't anecdotal.

A quick link: http://electronics.stackexchange.com/questions/141293/cleaning-pcbs-using-water

 

[Gregadd]

You might want to to try this advertising trick. Perform your normal cleaning retuine. Thin use the tools. As stated above results are visible.

 

[Gregadd]

If only there were a similar device for XLRs. I have this RCA device, which I think came with a Caig DeOxIt Kit years ago. But, I now have only XLRs on the interconnects in my audio path.

I guess the only thing for XLR females is a pipe cleaner.

As far as stunning differences go, I have yet to hear one. But, I "feel" better after the cleaning process, and it cannot hurt if done properly. But, then again, maybe increasing contact oxidation (on gold or rhodium which do not oxidize) is part of the improvement routinely heard in the "break in" process, belabored in another thread here.

Do astronauts periodically clean the gold plated electrical contacts all over their space stations, which might be in orbit for years? If it were a potential problem, it might lead to a life or death situation. But, no, they don't. However, as we know, audio is special and it requires super extraordinary measures.

Is there oxygen in space? i read somewhere that small errors in space are crucial. A trajectory that is a fraction of a degree off could cause you to sail right on by a palnet.

 

[TBone]

I've had "high end" plugs so tight that I was afraid of damaging an amp removing them. Give me the old school solution: Deoxit whenever plugs are pulled for some reason, and a plug that fits, not a vice grip. that can be turned about 1/8th of a turn back and forth every now and then. Works just fine.

esp those locking ground types, often brutal to remove, esp if torqued tight (they just need to be snug) Not my favorite rca's, although I still use em in certain situations where a tight connection is required based on non sonic issues.

 

[Jinjuku]

Another corroborative post at reddit:

"his cleaning process is practical and does work. Old guy I worked with used it routinely and placed boards in oven at 50degC to dry if there was no sun.

Many modern boards are aqueous cleaned so up to the task. Some are not well suited to it especially older boards with open frame potentiometers or other open components.

I should just mention a couple of things to keep in mind.

Rinsing with IPA or DI water is a good idea to get rid of any lingering dissolved salts by diluting them away.

Using oven, air or a centrifuge to speed up drying is a good thing. All water must be removed before restoring power. Connectors and any components with moving parts are at risk of trapped water.

If there are keep alive batteries then you should work fast or remove the battery. Water with salts will corrode under battery power pretty fast an keep working under ICs if water is trapped there. I do not think caps will usually be charged by the time you have a board out of a instrument but they will work like a battery if the water is conductive but for a shorter time. If DI water then the caps could remain charged and catch the unwary.

If dirt on the board is more than water soluble dust or mud then other detergents or solvents will be required. They are usually much more expensive. Clean Green or similar is a powerful surfactant that is required in small quantities. Certain board cleaning solvents use freon compounds that dry fast but seem to dissolve oily dirt but not conformal coatings. Acetone, thinners, methanol, ethanol are all options but carry the risk of dissolving some or other plastic or ink or crazing some plastics so should be used with caution and experience. "

So this goes along with my experience at a refurbisher. I guess the old guys running it knew a thing or two. Certainly learned a lot from them.