Ortofon - Carbon Fiber Record Brush

Two rows of carbon fibre bristles in a conductive body, so the static drains away instead of building up on the record.

This is a better-designed object than a record brush needs to be, and the reason is that it was designed by Møller Jensen Innovation and Design — the Danish industrial design house behind several of Ortofon’s cartridge lines. It is a two-part construction: a body carrying two rows of tightly bound carbon fibre bristles, and a protective shield that slides and locks into place, serving both as the cleaning aid and as storage between uses.

The anti-static behaviour is a material property rather than a coating, which is what makes it work. The injection-moulded body is made from a conductive plastic, so charge picked up by the carbon fibre bristles as they sweep the groove has a path to drain away through the body and your hand — instead of accumulating on the record surface where it re-attracts the dust you just removed. Carbon fibre is the right bristle material for the same two reasons: it is conductive in its own right, and it is fine enough to reach into a groove without scratching vinyl.

The use case is simple and worth doing every time. Put the record on the platter and brush around the surface before you play. Ortofon’s own claim is that cleaning records before every use increases the lifetime of the diamond as well as improving what you hear, and that is straightforwardly true — dust in the groove is abrasive, and the stylus is what grinds it in.

Features

• Designed by Møller Jensen Innovation and Design, the house behind several Ortofon cartridge lines
• Two rows of tightly bound carbon fibre bristles
• Conductive injection-moulded body, so static drains away rather than building on the record
• Two-part design — the protective shield slides and locks into place and doubles as storage
• Fine enough to reach into the groove without scratching
• Extends stylus life as well as improving playback, by keeping abrasive dust out of the groove

Specifications

• Type: Carbon fibre record cleaning brush
• Bristles: Two rows of tightly bound carbon fibre
• Body: Injection-moulded conductive plastic, which prevents static charge building up
• Construction: Two-part — body plus a protective shield that slides and locks into place, used both during cleaning and for storage
• Design: Møller Jensen Innovation and Design
• Use: Place the record on the turntable and brush around the surface before playing
• Cleaning Fluids: Ortofon does not recommend solvents of any kind for cleaning either the record surface or the stylus. Its stated reason is specific: solvents may damage the stylus cement, and interior parts of the cartridge can be seriously affected by solvent intrusion. Ortofon adds that its warranty service will not be valid where such treatment has caused a cartridge to malfunction. For records specifically, Ortofon does permit lukewarm demineralised water with a dash of sulphonic soap, used in minimal amounts — but that is for the record only, never the stylus
• Origin: Ortofon A/S, Nakskov, Denmark
• Not Published: Bristle count — Ortofon publishes two rows but no filament number; dimensions; weight; bristle length or diameter; the plastic type or conductive filler used; any measured surface resistivity or quantified anti-static figure. Ortofon’s claim that the body prevents any static charge is qualitative marketing language rather than a measured specification