Moth Record Cleaning Machine MkII review

This wet record cleaner keeps your vinyl clean

Moth Record Cleaning Machine MkII
Although noisy in operation, the MkII is a very good way of keeping records clean

TechRadar Verdict

A cost-effective way of renovating old vinyl, with ease of changing fluid a big plus. Noisy operation is the drawback. Recommended

Pros

  • +

    Good cleaning

  • +

    Quite fast

  • +

    Easy to change fluid

Cons

  • -

    Noisy

Why you can trust TechRadar We spend hours testing every product or service we review, so you can be sure you’re buying the best. Find out more about how we test.

There are considerably dearer and fancier record cleaning machines on the market, but the Moth Record Cleaning Machine follows the same basic principles as all of them.

You spread a cleaning fluid over the disc then vacuum it off together with all kinds of dirt.

There are various reasons why this machine is cheaper than most, and if £450 is too much, you can save a couple of hundred by building it from a kit.

One of those reasons is that you have to apply cleaning fluid to the disc manually. This means pouring some from the supplied dropper bottle onto the disc surface and spreading it around with the supplied brush.

It's less convenient than simply pushing a plunger but with practice doesn't take much longer, and it has the advantage that experimenting with different fluids is much easier.

Dirty fluid is vacuumed off from below as the disc rotates slowly, and this takes about the same time as most machines – a minute or so per side. The vacuum pump, which sounds a lot like a domestic vacuum cleaner (and probably is – heck, that's what I would use!), provokes my one reservation about the machine: it's so noisy, at about 92dB, that one should wear ear defenders while using it.

The suction tube needs a little prompting to lift up and stick to the disc's underside, but this soon becomes habit, and results seem to me every bit as good as other machines I've used over the years.

With an efficient workflow, 20 discs per hour can be cleaned – about average for most machines.

Follow TechRadar Reviews on Twitter: http://twitter.com/techradarreview

Latest in Turntables
Pro-Ject A1.2 in black, playing a vinyl record in a hi-fi listening room
Pro-Ject's new fully-automatic turntable could be the buy of Record Store Day 2025
Vertere DG-X turntable on a pink/white TechRadar background
Vertere's elite DG X turntable is modular, expensive, and hugely desirable
A close up of the limited edition vinyl turntable wrist watch from AndoAndoAndo
This limited-edition timepiece turns the iconic Technics SL-1200 turntable into a watch, and I want one
Victrola Stream Carbon turntable playing David Bowie, with the tonearm being operated
Victrola adding Bluetooth and Roon to its Sonos-only turntables is the hi-fi equivalent of ‘I think we should see other people’
Bang & Olufsen Beogram 4000C Saint Laurent Rive Droite Edition
Bang & Olufsen's latest reworked turntable is a masterpiece of retro revival, in a breathtaking wooden presentation box
Waiting For Ideas PP-1 turntable
This wild turntable plays vinyl without a tonearm, automatically detects the RPM, and is a solid lump of aluminum
Latest in Reviews
Product shots for the Xiaomi Poco X7 Ultra review
I spent a month testing the Xiaomi Poco F7 Ultra, a top-end mid-ranger that masquerades as a flagship
The Kiwi design K4 Boost Battery strap being worn by Hamish
I test VR headsets for a living, and this affordable headstrap is the first Meta Quest 3 accessory you should buy
Both Kiwi design G4 Pro Performance Controller Grips
I thought VR controller grips were pointless until this Meta Quest 3 accessory proved me wrong
The Kiwi design H4 Boost Halo Battery Strap
Want to upgrade your VR headset? Look no further than my new favorite Meta Quest 3 headstrap
WithSecure Elements EPP and EDR main image
I tested the WithSecure Elements EPP and EDR - read how I rated this Endpoint Protection for small business
The RIG M2 Streamstar.
I wanted to love the new RIG M2 Streamstar, but this pricey gaming microphone fails to deliver