I've found out that if you order records online do not order in the heat of summer especially if you live in Texas like me! I ordered a few LPs last summer and it was anywhere from 105 to 110 degrees outside and the UPS mail trucks, including FedEx and UPS don't have any air conditioning! I ordered 5 LPs last summer and all but one were extremely warped. So anyways, I'm trying to use some common sense and just not order online in the Summertime and just just buy from local shops and wait to do my ordering online during the cooler months. Wish I could afford this Vinyl Flat, money is getting tight these days! Looks like a great product! Great Video!
I've never had a problem with heat during transit. Most come from the warehouses warped due to heat in them. I also don't live where we get a lot of 100 degree days thankfully, so that probably helps too.
@@BriansVinylRecords Texas is a really HOT place in Summer, people can and do actually die from the heat in their homes if their electricity's cut off during summer. They got laws here that's suppose to protect people from this happening to them here!
Good video bud! Glad to see this had positive results. The purchase of this just climbed up my priority ladder! Too bad we couldn't hear audio samples of the records, but I totally understand all the RU-vid copy write issues. I've had mine blocked before myself. Thanks for sharing the results!
Thank you for posting this!! It’s exactly what I was hoping for in every way. Well done. I’m buying one as I have quite a few gems that need some love.
Great instructive video on how to use the vinyl flattener. I watch a few other youtube videos about the vinyl flattener. Switching them off as they were uninformative ego trips. Some I watched through to the end hoping I would learn something. But knew as much when they finished as I did when they started. Yours is top class. No nonsense. None of the sleep inducing needless waffle. I even learned what the die cut out foam was for. That information is not included in the instructions that came with the flattener. 10/10 for a great youtube video. One thing I’d like to know is, when putting the vinyl in the flattener do you put the warped side facing up or facing down? Perhaps it doesn’t matter. Once again thank you for a great video. I learned so much 👍🏼
Great vid, I've used one for years and it works just fine. I bought mine with the heated jacket which came with a digital thermometer. A very effective way to remove warps from records.
I just got one before New Years day and I've already fixed 3 records that's been bugging me for months. Temperature maintenance is extremely key for anyone having problems. I strongly recommend using a digital thermometer
My package came with a thermometer, and it works pretty well. Trial and error was the best thing for me, but I also use the groovy pouch and not an oven. Do you use the groovy pouch?
@@BriansVinylRecords nope I just use my regular electric oven. The hard part for me at first was that my oven only goes down to 170 so I have to use the warm and hold feature and open or close the oven depending on more or less heat lol
@@BriansVinylRecords my next experiment is leaving a record in it for 2wks to 1 month under a heat vent in my home office and see if it flattens perfect
Good video on the vinyl flat which I also have and also I just order the record pi flattener to check it out and see how it works keep up the good work.
I have Vinyl Flat and groovy pouch coming tomorrow, have 8 yard sale records to flatten out! Thanks for making this video! Will clean them (ultrasonic) before they go in the vinyl flat.
I don't believe I have enough records that are warped to warrant buying this but I definitely appreciate the review. I know one thing... this this would pay for itself with one fixed rare psych or jazz album that was bought on the cheap because of a warp.
For sure. I have quite a few warped records that play fine, but are not fun to watch spin on the turntable. I have a record coming next week that sells for good money that I got dirt cheap because of a warp. I am hoping to get a good flattening experience on it. Crossing my fingers.
@@turnover57 So far I have had very good luck flattening records. The only ones I can't flatten are the ones were there are multiple warps in a row like a ripple effect. Those just won't smooth out.
A refreshingly straight forward practical review of the kit and an honest assessment of its worth. Thanks for sharing your experience. I've decided to dig out all my old vinyl collection from the attic where its been stored for the past 20 years. It's in excellent condition apart from one box that somehow ended up with other stuff piled on top that has warped most of the albums. I'm hoping this method will be the answer to my problems...
I've seen a couple posts about the vinyl flat. I've also read up on it. Seems like a good product. Glad you had success with 3 records so far. Hope all of them turn out good.
I have a VinylFlat that i use often. I use it for 2hrs on a 100f for 2hrs, let it cool, then 2hrs at 125f, let it cool, then at max recommendation for for the vinyl thickness. have not had any failures or record damage. takes a while but it works well.
Excellent video, thank you. I purchased one and just received it today and will be working on two albums, including Bob Seger's Greatest Hits. Came to me brutally warped, I got a refund so there's no worries if it gets damaged. Will be a good test run 👍
Great demo! Since it's been a while since you posted this, have you noticed any of your fixed vinyl re-warping? So many methods seem to work at first but then the vinyl slowly returns back to its orignal misshapen condition after a period of time.
I would think that's the case too it helps relax the vinyl relieving the stress causing the warp, I'm not the smartest guy in the world but it makes sense to me. Certain items like picture tubes were heated at far lower temperatures for extended periods to relieve stress in the glass from the processing. I'm sure they did this process because they had some tubes crack either in the factory, during shipping or even worse happen after the set was sold and in a customer's home.
About 20 years ago, I was given a box of 78's and at least two of them had an incredible bad warp to them!! They were almost completely bent in half!! They looked like Pringle's potato chips, times 2!! I got two sheets of tempered glass and a pair of picnic benches that we had in the back yard. Cleaned the glass REALLY well, took the glass outside in the sun and laid one sheet down on the benches, that were side by side, put one of the 78's on the bottom glass and then put the other glass on top of it and left it there in the sun for a while. I don't recall how long but, it DID flatten the record! I brought the record sandwich in the house to let it cool on the kitchen table and, when I took the glass off, the record was flat and in perfect shape, again. Second record, same results!
@@BriansVinylRecords True, but, it was an experiment and, other than putting it in the oven (the other route suggested), I had no other option. As for this device, as great as it seems to be, up until a year ago when I bought a few thousand 45's, I only have about 3 to 5 mildly warped records. There might be twice as many in that bunch I bought last year. So, it's hardly worth my blowing over $200 for something I might use a dozen times.
@@RedVynil I have fixed well over 30 records with my vinyl flat. Sadly newer pressed records are coming out warped way too often these days. QC is a major issue that hasn't been fixed. To me it was well worth the investment.
@@BriansVinylRecords I'm wondering if they're using a cheaper vinyl! I've been noticing for the past few decades that, even if you get a record that's on ordinary black vinyl, if you hold it up to a light, you can still see through it! You can't do that with older black vinyl! There's also a few that I've got that are black but, when you hold it up to a light to look through it, it's red. I lost my blacklight about 20 years ago so, I haven't had the chance to check them out under that but, some cheaper records, under a blacklight, turn various colours! In normal light, they're black but, under a blacklight, they turn orange or yellow or red, possibly even brown, and have a swirly looking pattern. Mostly that's on cheaper records, like the ones from the New Jersey area. I don't know why but most records from that area are very badly made!
SO, I paused you for a bathroom break, and I came back to my 20 lb. fat cat standing on top of EXCILE ON MAIN STREET Album..it looks okay..but I have 3 more albums that melted on a hot weather move..Lucky for the cat..The Stones are good!!😻
Thank you, Brian, for the video. I plan on purchasing the Vinyl Flat. It really seems to work fairly well. I can't say I have any severely warped records. The worst would be similar to the record you flattened at the end of the video, which I do have a few of those. I am hopeful that the Vinyl Flat can help with those. Quick question: Some of the records that I would like to flatten are colored records. Should I be concerned with that, or should I proceed as if it weren't a colored record? Thank you again for the video. Blessings!
Hey Brian, do you think this is able to fix a record that has some heat warping damage? It looks mildly wavy in the external part, like a water-damaged paper. Nice channel, buddy. Subscribed!
Unfortunately no. I have not found a flattening system that can fix that kind of warp. I have a couple records like that I would love to find a way to fix, but no luck.
Have been very interested in this product for quote a while now. Great review and I think I just need to take the plunge. Stupid question: Can you do one long round (say 4-6 hours) instead of multiple rounds (2 hr) of heating and cooling?
Yes you can. I have done as long as 4 hours, but never tried more. I have found that most warps are solved with one 2:45 session. If you did 6 hours I would recommend the lower heat setting.
Love it, I got some warped records I would love to straighten. But, what I don't understand... what 'pouch' you talk about? Where do you put it in/on to heat? (Maybe because English isn't my native language I don't understand it).
I bought one but the pouch could never maintain 130 degrees even on the highest setting. Company has been great to work with but surprised they didn't just send me another pouch. I'm in the process of returning it and will have to try something else.
The pouch is not the problem. The problem is probably the heat source. I'm surprised they didn't just send you a new heating pad to try first. Sucks you weren't able to get it working right.
I didn't bother with the oven. I prefer not to use that method as I have a gas oven and it can't keep the temperature low enough to safely use the vinyl flat
@@BriansVinylRecords I agree and think it is safer to use the groovy pouch over the oven method which is easy to overshoot the required temp.. ps I wonder if there are other editions of vinyl flat?? my says to start with an hour then 1 hour 15 minutes. my controller is just on and off and came with no thermometer???
It's flat but I see the arm and cartridge jumping around. Which means that the groves are distorted. Not good for reproduction. Makes you wonder if it's worth it to try and flatten a warped record. I've only got 2 or 3 really warped ones out of about 1000 records. More economical to just get better copies.
As long as you monitor the temp, you are good. They use different heating elements in the groovy pouch and some get hot at low, some don't unless it's high. I have to set mine to medium and haven't ruined a record yet!
I bought this years ago when it came out and I had trouble with the heat couldn’t stabilize the heat on the pouch Did they make improvements on the pouch with the heat temperature ? My friends had better success with it than I did
Hi Brian, you mentioned you had it on "Low" heat with the groovy pouch. I own a groovy pouch as well, but it doesn't give me the option on the level of heat (Just an On or Off button). Am I missing a piece for the groovy pouch? Thanks in advance.
You may have a different heating pad in yours than I do. Mine has a low, med and high option. They might have changed that between when I got mine and you got yours.
Hello! Yes, I have flattened quite a few since this video. The only failures I have had pertain to albums where they have a ribbon like effect. Several lip warps one after another. It doesn't seem to be able to fix that issue. Otherwise, I have been very successful in flattening out my albums that come warped.
i regretfully bought one of these. it didn’t improve the warp. very disappointed. tried numerous heat levels and durations. the warp was localized to approx 20 deg of circumference whereas the example here the warp looks less severe over 1/2 the circumference. so maybe not good for localized warp?
Is it more of a crease than a warp? If there is any sort of creasing it is very hard to get those out. Lips warps as well are near impossible to get out. But anything where the warp is smooth the vinyl flat fixes very nicely.
I bought the first version, and it didn't work very well at all. A bad warp turned in multiple ripples, no temperature probe, over heated and ruined a couple records. Best thing to do most of the time is use a turn table center weight that will hold the record mostly flat as you play.
Mine just Arrived today. So the Medium setting for 2 hours at a time sound right? I know it all really depends on the warp but low setting definitely didn’t get hot enough!
It really depends on your heating element. I used a thermometer to see what the temp got to for the one I have and so I do 2.5 hours on high because mine doesn't get as hot as others do. Takes some practice to get the right settings, but once you do you are good. Start on medium for 2 hours. Then see how it did. Follow the directions. Add another 15-30 minutes if it isn't completely gone and run a second cycle for 2 hours 15 minutes. Good luck!
Can I send you a couple albums, of the jazz musician , maybe you could do a RU-vid...RJ LAXVESPA-LOSANGELES - first release - Chris Kelly's Black & White New Orleans Jazz Band - Don't Go 'way, Nobody... there's another one that has a pink cover it's a dedicated Album 2 a long gone black musician...
It depends on what you consider dished. If you mean bowed from the center, yes that works great. If you mean ribboned like the bowl people make out of old records (just not that extreme) this method does not work.
I was wondering if that was an option! Should think it would have some degree of success and without setting my nerves on edge using heat to melt and destroy the vinyl!
You need the vinyl flat for sure. The groovy pouch is just a heated pouch to heat up the vinyl flat. Instead of using an oven, you can buy and use the groovy pouch. I chose that method and am very glad.
Actually $5.00. I had two copies when I got a second one free. Worked out well and now two DLR fans are happy. Obviously you weren’t the buyer since you appear to have disdain for him, but to each their own.
They no longer offered on Amazon, Amazon customers are crazy they have the most liberal return policies.. I bought two boxes of a dead Jazz musicians releases.. sealed might be warped... I'm planning on buying one along with the groovy blanket... it's a business write-off... they appear to have their own website... there are some really expensive overseas models available on eBay for several thousand dollars , I think they shipped from Japan.. at least the sealed ones are clean... many of the records I have from Acquisitions are not clean... some of them are so obscure they don't even appear on discogs...
ALL THIS CRAP TO TRY AND RESTORE AN LP? CDS MADE ALL THIS NONSENSE IRRELEVANT NEARLY 40 YEARS AGO. NO CONTEST BETWEEN CD AND LP. CDS SOUND BETTER AND CLEANER AND DON'T DEGRADE AFTER EVERY PLAYBACK AS VINYL DOES -STYLUS VS LASER-AND NO NEED FOR DUPLICATION AS CDS CAN BE PLAYED IN THE CAR OR ON THE GO. STORAGE SPACE IS A NO BRAINER. 1000 CDS VS 1000 LPS. CDS HAVE BETTER GRAPHICS AND LINER NOTES AND WITH PROPER CLEANING AND HANDLING WILL LAST FOREVER. NOSKIPS POPS OR CLICKS. THEANALOG VS DIGITAL DEBATE IS IFF UNLESS YOU HAVE THE HEARING OF A DOG. THE REST IS A NO BRAINER. JUST NOSTALGIA FOR OLD SCHOOL LUDITES AND A NEW TOY FOR KIDS THAT NEVER EXPERIENCED THE UPS AND DOWNS OF LPS IN THEIR HEYDAY.
LOL - a "Luddite" is someone who isn't downloading/streaming now. But I'm honestly good with how anyone chooses to collect and listen to music. There are good practical reasons to go with vinyl besides "nostalgia". 1) There are multitudes of vinyl releases and cuts of songs that never made it to CDs or downloads. Of course, if you must have it in a newer format, you can transfer and put the vinyl on the shelf. 2) Per 1, the analog vs. digital "debate" isn't the point when you consider the real debate is mastering here vs. mastering there. Some vinyls have superior mastering and some CDs have shitty mastering. Digital doesn't automagically mean "perfect to everyone's ears". 3) CDs degrade, get scratches, skip, etc. One can take care of vinyl or CDs and maintain a decent collection. Or one can handle either roughly and end up with trash. The only real difference is that it takes real skill to handle/play vinyls well and keep them in great condition. Having a vinyl collection in great condition demonstrates an audiophile with no real comparison. 4) Quite obvious, but LP covers are larger and sometimes considered as art. I know folks who hang them up as such.
@@BriansVinylRecords I have vinyl as well but pisses me off how these new releases have crap quality. Parlaphone maiden albums. 3 out of 4 dish warped wtf?
@@tiborosz1825 Oh I agree. Quality control has been a big issue. Thankfully it appears to be getting better as I haven't had a warped new vinyl in a while. I bought this for used ones. You can get used records for cheap if there are fixable warps in them.
Please for the love of God can someone tell us why we still use vinyl records. A scratch and it’s done. Let’s stick with cds or Spotify and call it a day. I spend so much on vinyl and still sounds Like shit. And yes I do know to setup a record player.
Back in the day, RCA would include on their record sleeve, instructions on how to preserve your records. One of those was, NEVER store records on their EDGE. Always lay flat. They also explained how to properly clean your records. Yes, we called them Records back then. Your generation is making the hobby so complicated and aftermarket product heavy for some unknown reason. 🙄
Well thankfully I don’t have RCA telling how to store my records because storing them flat is a terrible idea. The weight of the records on top would damage the ones on the bottom over time. Glad my generation finally figured that out. Thanks for watching and taking the time to comment. Rock on!
@@BriansVinylRecords Please explain what kind of damage. I've done this my entire life. No damage at all. But, I know not to stack them 8 foot high as well. On the other hand, I've seen friends records end up bent like a Pringle potato chip when side standing them. I'm just curious 🤔. Thanks 😊
@@GeemailMailboxx if ur generation did it so well then how come so many of my 60s-70s records look so jacked up? Stacking them on their side is silly. You can't easily grab a record on the bottom of the stack, the weight leads to warp, and it's a great way leave ring wear on all ur records.
@@__Diavolo__ I guess it really didn't matter back then because they were a dime a dozen at that time. Think about it, I would run the hell out of Chevy Chavelle back then, today, I wouldn't think of doing that. Records are a gimmick now for the new kids. They are plentiful and overpriced. Look at the rooms full of Records you youtubers have, thousands of them. Hardly a rare commodity, just an overpriced hobby now. 😏
@@GeemailMailboxx not for me man. I keep good care of my records because they are important to me. I don't buy overpriced modern garbage, 99% of mine are old pressings which in many cases aren't dime a dozen. I'm also not a RU-vidr, not rich, and don't have thousands. I don't get being so crochety over people enjoying the same media format u used to.