Ramar Tina record brush
I first met Dean Butt of Soundstage Hi-Fi in Optimal Records in Munich, we had independently decided to escape the mayhem of the High End show and see what this well stocked store had in the way of interesting new tunes. I didn’t expect the meeting to result in Dean sending over the most beautifully made record cleaning brush I had ever seen but that was how things panned out, and I’m glad it did.
Ramar is a German company that has taken the art of the record brush to new heights with a range of seven brushes in beautiful finishes that are a joy to both behold and use. Ramar have decided to take the high end approach to this oft overlooked yet crucial piece of the record enthusiasts armoury and they haven’t cut any corners. Thus the Tina brush which I have been using has a case made of solid walnut, a dark hardwood that has been precisely machined to accept the Ramar bristles on the top piece and is carved out to protect those bristles and house a stylus brush on the bottom section. Each brush case is machined from a single block of wood, hence the perfect grain match between the two parts.
The case has a an oiled finish and the two halves snap together thanks to magnets in each corner of the box, or at least they do so long as the laser cut Ramar brand is at the same end as the stylus brush. Put it on the other way round and the magnets repel each other. It’s a very satisfying brush to get out and put back because this magnetic precision aligns the top and bottom so neatly with just a line of metal between the two parts.
I particularly like the way that the stylus brush has its own magnetic fixing in the lower box, placed centrally so that its bristles don’t press against those on the brush proper. This is just one of several small details that mark the Ramar out as a genuine high end piece of kit, it’s expensive yes but you try and find something audio oriented that’s this well made by craftsmen in Berlin for less.
And it’s not just about aesthetics, the brush itself is pretty comprehensively thought through. It consists of six double rows of carbon fibres combined with two rows of goat hair, an arrangement designed to ensure “excellent dust absorption”. The Ramar is supplied in a robust cardboard container, a tubular one at that, which also contains a circular cleaning pad made of cork and natural felt, this is used to remove dust from the brush. This is a neat idea because however good a brush is at gathering dust if you don’t remove it from the bristles that dust will end up on a vinyl record again. With previous brushes I used to use my trousers for this purpose but they probably added as many fibres as they took away.
I did wonder whether the inclusion of a serial number on Tina was taking attention to detail a bit far but apparently it can be used by Ramar to identify which fibres were used to make it and provide an overhaul or refurb service. I’m not sure how many records you’d need to clean before this might be required but I’m guessing it’s a lot.
A video guide shows how Ramar recommends the brush be used which is essentially a slight roll from front to back on spinning vinyl with a clean on the felt pad followed by the same thing again. I used it on a number of pretty clean looking records and was surprised at how much dust appeared on the brush after the first clean, it clearly works well and extracts more than most of its competitors manage. I even listened to the record before and after brushing and heard a clear improvement in terms of background noise and detail resolution.
If a record is properly dirty it will need a wet clean but as a rule dust is the main issue and the Ramar Tina does a very good of removing it, better than any other brush I’ve tried. It is also a work of art that ranks alongside high end turntables in terms of design, fit and finish. There are a number of different hardwood options to choose from plus metal skinned options in silver and gold, the most desirable model appears to be the Yakisugi with its laser cut aluminium case which is currently sold out.
Soundstage is now stocking the Ramar brush range with Tina coming in at £360. Put that in the context of what you would pay for a cartridge with a solid hardwood body and it doesn’t seem all that excessive. But this brush is about more than money, it’s a joy to use and looks fabulous sitting next to the turntable, even if like mine your turntable has no wood in it whatsoever.
Jason Kennedy