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How do you discharge static?

friendlyvolc said:
It’s not like I’m working on electronics all day long. I’m just flipping the record over every 20 minutes or so. I probably won’t invest in fancy footwear for casual listening. But check this 80s video on ESD starring a very young Steve Wozniak:

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Thx for this. Folks need to watch and rewatch this. Maybe it will start to sink in we ARE the isolated conductor that shocks things and when it comes to crappy new gear, post 1974 imo, it can be as little as 100 or less volts. We don't want to get shocked so we think humidifiers solve things. Not.

I use the ultraStat or VersaStat 2000.20200329_180213.jpg 20200329_180352.jpg
 
McGowdog said:
Thx for this. Folks need to watch and rewatch this. Maybe it will start to sink in we ARE the isolated conductor that shocks things and when it comes to crappy new gear, post 1974 imo, it can be as little as 100 or less volts. We don't want to get shocked so we think humidifiers solve things. Not.

I use the ultraStat or VersaStat 2000.View attachment 1811012 View attachment 1811015
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Humidifiers do reduce the amount of charge generated by the separating surfaces, but not eliminate it.

When I was being educated on static control I read an interesting (to me) story. In a laboratory there was a problem with dust collecting on some of the plastic bottles, but not all of them. They determined that a static charge on the bottles was attracting the dust, however some identical bottles did not attract dust. They went around and around trying to find a difference between the composition of the plastic, to no avail. They finally were reduced to looking at the handling processes as the bottles were used and reused. It turned out that the guy who was washing the bottles sometimes had so many to wash he skipped the rinse process on some of the bottles. The un-rinsed bottles had a very slight amount of soap residue on them. That, combined with the humidity from the air, was just conductive enough to drain any static charge off the surface and stop the dust collecting on them. That is basically the same reason that fabric softener stops static cling on clothes.
 
Fabric softener is a cheap and effective antistat.

This stuff works better, to give you an esd flooring to match your esd shos or you're just still an isolated conductor. Ionizers work, humidifiers suck.

15855310671661513230567.jpg
 
I don't think static is gonna hurt my Tung Sol 6550s much. My OppO's that garbage could probably use an ESD tickle once and a while. They lock up all the freaking time. My Audio Technica 120, another complicated PiTa. I would like to torture it with esd once in a while too.
 
FauxHall said:
I wear rubber-soled fuzzy slippers around the apartment. If I touch the tonearn, that can send a jolt of juice through the TT to the amp and out the speakers.

So what I try to remember to do is take off one slipper and step on the tile floor before touching the TT.

Like so!
View attachment 1808788
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Where did you get those slippers? I have the same ones and they are my favorite ones. Mine are worn out and I cannot find new ones anywhere.
 
peerson said:
Where did you get those slippers? I have the same ones and they are my favorite ones. Mine are worn out and I cannot find new ones anywhere.
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I have a pair that look just like that from Cabela's. They carry plastic sole and all leather sheepskin lined moccasins. The all leather ones do not create static charges.
 
peerson said:
Where did you get those slippers? I have the same ones and they are my favorite ones. Mine are worn out and I cannot find new ones anywhere.
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Got them off Amazon.

MIXIN Mens Slippers Moccasins Slippers for Men Warm House Slip on Flats Shoes with Cozy Memory Foam for Men Indoor
 
Last winter (2019) I blew up three phono preamps and a Project Classic turntable with ESD. Two of the four items were replaced under warranty. I was lucky--one of them was a Sutherland phono preamp. I wrote about my experience extensively in this forum. The only solution that worked was to order from this place:

https://www.americanfloormats.com/static-dissipative-mats-esd-mats-conductive-mats/

Make sure you order the grounding cords for each mat that you purchase. The rubber runners work great and the anti-static carpet mats are excellent. I have a carpet mat under my mixing/mastering desk. Put the rubber mats on the floor in front of all of the gear that you touch. Run the cords to a wall socket and screw them into one of the plate mounting screws (careful!). Get the heel grounder if you wear rubber or synthetic soled shoes in your listening area. Otherwise, barefoot or socks are fine with the mats. You'll discharge yourself every time you step on the mat as long as you don't have rubber or synthetic souls. Forget about the sprays and gadgets. This is the best way to go. I have completely eliminated ESD issues. Do it asap. You may have already damaged op amps, capacitors, and resistors without even knowing it.

Feel free to thank me by sending me a Lyra Atlas:)

Oh, and the runners don't need to be very large. Mine are 1' by 2'. I have four of them. You have to spec the length smaller than the width to get sizes that small.
 
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billyz said:
I wash all my lp’s , disk doctor and a record vac. Afterwards no static , ever.
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I wash all my records and vac them as well. It does help with static. That's where the I think there's two subjects intertwined here.

I'm talking mostly about the static that can fritz your gear, not affect the record's playback. ESD is a real problem with electronics that rely on semi-conductors. My Garrard 301 is all mechanical with a bakelite or plastic switch. My SP-10 is stuffed full of delicate vintage semi-conductors that can't be replaced easily. ESD may be more unpleasant than fatal for you and me, but it can be a quick death sentence to vulnerable equipment.
 
Oh ok, all my gear is tube except for the cd player that i seldom use.

But i have used static discharge procedures for working on computer components.
 
friendlyvolc said:
I wash all my records and vac them as well. It does help with static. That's where the I think there's two subjects intertwined here.

I'm talking mostly about the static that can fritz your gear, not affect the record's playback. ESD is a real problem with electronics that rely on semi-conductors. My Garrard 301 is all mechanical with a bakelite or plastic switch. My SP-10 is stuffed full of delicate vintage semi-conductors that can't be replaced easily. ESD may be more unpleasant than fatal for you and me, but it can be a quick death sentence to vulnerable equipment.
Click to expand...

By the way, I'm not an electrical engineer, but I can say with certainty that grounding all of your gear will not protect it from ESD damage (unless you build Faraday cages around each component). When you touch--say your metal tonearm--the ES charge from your body is going to look for the fastest path to ground. The current is going to travel through your system from the tonearm wires to the TT output to the preamp and zap the input stage on its way to ground. The black mat in my photo will direct the ES energy from your body safely to ground before your components attempt to do the same thing. It works all the time, every time. If you look closely, you can see the ground cord heading though my records to the wall socket hidden behind them. Yes, you will feel it when the ES energy exits though your feet--a small price to pay for protecting your gear!
 
Get a lot of static here in colorado during the winter. I blew out a phono preamp on my carver preamp because of it. Would like a good solution. I usually touch something metal not connected to the system im using.
 
How do you discharge static?

I don't do stuff to create it in the fist place.
Like sitting in my chair rolling back and forth on a hardwood floor/Ikea plastic floor protector.
Why would I try to find another solution to fix a problem I am making for myself in the fist place? Simply stop the problem at the source and it's no longer a issue.
 
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