Micro scratches with Sleeve city diskkeeper

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by 12" 45rpm, Mar 2, 2017.

  1. Preppyguy

    Preppyguy Member

    Location:
    O’Fallon, IL USA
    You are doing nothing wrong. It is 2021 and the issue persists. I purchased the 312NRPS Diskeeper Audiophile 50 Inner Sleeves a year ago for my Titanic OST Black Vinyl. These vinyl discs were in Mint condition without a single scratch. Since I have been using these sleeves, I now have hairline surface scratches that only appear under a desk lamp.

    It is true, the audio is unaffected. But that is not the point. The point is these sleeves are not vinyl friendly. That silky look that these discs had are now ruined. I paid $85 for this sound track. They no longer press onto black vinyl. The purchase was from Germany.

    The question is, which brand sleeves have a good reputation? And, is it possible to remove these micro scratches?

    (question for webmaster) why is this site not setup to add an picture as an embedded attachment instead of providing a link for pictures?

     
  2. Tony Plachy

    Tony Plachy Senior Member

    Location:
    Pleasantville, NY
    I said this before and I will say it again. Life is way too short to dwell on this. Vinyl is about music and that wonderful magic sound that comes from vinyl. It is not about micro scratches that you can only see if you have the right light and are NOT audible. Please, play your vinyl and enjoy it.
     
    mikemoon, jamespneal57 and curbach like this.
  3. Preppyguy

    Preppyguy Member

    Location:
    O’Fallon, IL USA
    That would be equivalent to driving a new car, and having swirl marks in the exterior finish. But as long as the car runs, it's ok. No, I don't buy it.
    However, I did find a resolution to this issue. One, the discontinuation of the Sleeve City Genuine Diskeeper sleeves, and the second, utilize the technique that I use to remove fine scratches from my turntable's tinted dust cover.
     
  4. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    Just get some poly lined paper sleeves. I find that all these type of inner sleeves have this issue to varying degrees.
     
    Curiosity likes this.
  5. Preppyguy

    Preppyguy Member

    Location:
    O’Fallon, IL USA
    Thank you richbdd01 for the suggestion.

    It is appreciated.
     
    richbdd01 likes this.
  6. Preppyguy

    Preppyguy Member

    Location:
    O’Fallon, IL USA
    Here is an actual clip displaying the many hairline scratches that I shouldn't worry about.
    This is a result of removing and inserting into a Sleeve City 312NRPS sleeve.
    Keep in mind ladies and gentlemen, these scratches will increase every time you insert or remove the LP from the sleeve.
    And, let's not forget that these horizontal scratches in time will also collect dust.
     
  7. BlueTrane

    BlueTrane Forum Resident

    I’m sure we’ve been through this a few times elsewhere on other threads, but any suggestions for poly lined paper?

    My own complaint with Diskeeper Ultimate is that they’re too bulky for me. If I use them on a boxed set, the contents in the box doesn’t fit anymore. They’re also an uneasy fit into single sleeve jackets sometimes.
     
  8. Hardcore

    Hardcore Quartz Controlled

    Location:
    UK
    That’s disgraceful. Who would have thought 220 grit record sleeves would be a thing.
     
  9. Jeremy B.

    Jeremy B. Forum Resident

    Location:
    NYC
    I get inaudible scuffs from MoFi sleeves as well. You can only see them if you hold them at the right angle in the light, but they’re there. Doesn’t bother me. I still use MoFi sleeves exclusively.

    It is impossible *impossible* to keep a record NM if you actually want to play it. It is, however, possible to keep a record EX/VG++ with proper care, even with frequent play. And that’s good enough for me.
     
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  10. Hardcore

    Hardcore Quartz Controlled

    Location:
    UK
    What are the benefits of these types of sleeves over poly lined ones?
     
    richbdd01 likes this.
  11. Hardcore

    Hardcore Quartz Controlled

    Location:
    UK
    I agree, however what was posted above is not something that should happen under normal use, that record is clearly being damaged.
     
  12. Tony Plachy

    Tony Plachy Senior Member

    Location:
    Pleasantville, NY
    I simply do not understand why anyone thinks that records should be graded on appearance. I have bought use records for $0.50 that looked like crap, but yet they played perfectly and sounded great. I have had brand new records that looked perfect right out of the album cover that cost $30 and up that played poorly and sounded terrible. Any modern stylus rides deep in the grooves. Surface appearance does not matter. Does anyone here watch the vinyl go round and round on the TT while you are playing it?
     
    curbach likes this.
  13. Jeremy B.

    Jeremy B. Forum Resident

    Location:
    NYC
    A play grade is always better. But surface appearance is definitely correlated to play grade most of the time. Sometimes you might get a record that looks bad but plays ok, but usually a record that looks bad also plays bad. The reverse is true too, in my experience. If a record looks great it’ll probably play great too, excepting anything pressed in the last twenty years, excepting a few great plants. Then it’s a crapshoot.
     
  14. Hardcore

    Hardcore Quartz Controlled

    Location:
    UK
    QUOTE="Tony Plachy, post: 26487864, member: 1886"]Does anyone here watch the vinyl go round and round on the TT while you are playing it?[/QUOTE]

    Constantly, I’m a DJ lol.

    I take your point, I have plenty of records that look battered but sound great. I don’t think that excuses what a supposedly audiophile sleeve seems to have done to that record.
     
    BrettyD likes this.
  15. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    I use sounds wholesale on eBay, but really I would just look for any good quality poly lined paper sleeve over one of the disk keeper, QRP type sleeves any day. I think they are far more practical and actually work better.
     
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  16. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    I totally agree. But if you are a collector, what a record visually looks like is pretty important, no?
     
    BrettyD likes this.
  17. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    They look nice and you can see the whole record...that’s literally it. Oh...and probably that it’s branded.
     
    Hardcore likes this.
  18. Uglyversal

    Uglyversal Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sydney
    That record looks dreadful and if anyone having a problem doesn't notice the record is being scratched until the record gets that way, they should go straight into streaming.
     
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  19. Hardcore

    Hardcore Quartz Controlled

    Location:
    UK
    +1 for Sounds Wholesale. They’re nothing fancy but are well made and certainly don’t cause any damage like that.

    Maybe the issue is that in order to be completely see through they need to be made of tougher material, the poly sleeves would collapse without the paper backing giving them their structure.
     
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  20. Barnabas Collins

    Barnabas Collins Senior Member

    Location:
    NH
    Absolutely. I don't understand why someone would make an excuse for (allegedly) premium quality sleeves that are doing a number on the surface of the vinyl. I had the exact same issue with Mofi and Diskkeeper. These sleeves were making brand new vinyl records look like garage sale items from the 70s in no time as you can see from the Youtube clip above. I no longer buy these products and haven't even thought about looking back. Meanwhile, I have records in poly lined sleeves that I've had for decades that still look pristine. I guess if the abrasions don't bother others, great. But I was horrified when I saw what they did to my records. Never again.
     
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  21. Fractured

    Fractured Forum Resident

    I switched to MA Recordings inner sleeves about 18 months ago and,l -– about 600 sleeves in – I'm extremely pleased with them.

    New discs (that didn't ship in a MoFi or QRP sleeve) no longer have these scratch patterns, and the discs that I previously had stored in MoFi sleeves are not getting new scratches. I had over 300 MoFi inner sleeves and I am slowly replacing them all, as nearly ever record that was in these has these marks.

    In bulk, the MAs are not significantly more costly than the MoFis or Sleeve City Ultimate Inners. The only negative I can name is that they are less rigid than poly-lined sleeves or the Ultimate Inners (though better than the MoFi/QRPs), and I occasionally get a folded corner when the jacket is a bit tight or when the inside has a rough texture. I am working on a solution for that, but in any case, I don't think it's worse than I encountered eith the MoFis. Just a tiny bit fussier than poly-lined. Still very happy with them.
     
  22. Preppyguy

    Preppyguy Member

    Location:
    O’Fallon, IL USA
    Shouldn't, but did. No, the record is not damaged. In fact, there is little to no surface noise. In reference to my record caring ability. I have a Steely Dan Album, "Aja" that I purchased new in 1977, there is not more hairline scratch on it. I have kept the record in it's original sleeve. Which happens to be a stock paper in construction. But every new record that I have purchased last year, and used those Diskeeper Sleeves have hairline scratches. I have twelve inch maxi singles from the late eighties, early nineties and they all came with the clear, soft plastic sleeve. None of those records have hair lines scratches.

    You can say, I have my work cut out for me in riding those micro abrasions.
     
  23. Preppyguy

    Preppyguy Member

    Location:
    O’Fallon, IL USA
    Would you mind sharing the brand name with us. We would appreciate it. I have removed all my albums from the Diskeeper Sleeves and return them to their original sleeves until I have a different brand.
     
  24. Hardcore

    Hardcore Quartz Controlled

    Location:
    UK
    I wasn’t criticising your record caring ability, merely the sleeve. I assume you’ve done all you can to be careful. I would argue that record is damaged, if you came to sell that it’d have to be graded at VG looking like that.

    It’s sad to think many people will be buying these to use with their most beloved and rare records.
     
  25. richbdd01

    richbdd01 Forum Resident

    Location:
    London
    I have posted on the thread about MFSL sleeves (which is currently 34 pages long). Those sleeves are not as bad as the diskkeeper, but they will do essentially a similar thing. The plastic, however, on the MFSL sleeves appears to be better. But they still damage the record over time and more subtly. I even posted pictures of a brand new record yesterday and still some don’t believe it. Since I swap out these sleeves with the regular poly lined sleeves, the records have stayed pristine.
     
    mikemoon likes this.

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