Interesting thoughts of an owner on audiogon. The downsides is of interest to me - who wants to lose the leading edge of music?
As for sonic results, like any record cleaner it depends on the shape of the record and the nature of it's noise. Obviously this machine won't get rid of pops and ticks caused by actual damage to the record, only if it's caused by debris that can be scoured out. Overall I'd say I hear an appreciable difference with every record after cleaning - smoother, less hash, somewhat less pops and ticks. There have been the occasional jaw-dropping difference. One record went from sounding like it had been taken directly from a trash compactor - hard to even hear the music through the noise - to sounding almost brand new after a wash in the Degritter. I hadn't thought such a thing possible until I heard it.
Downsides? Sometimes I'm not sure I prefer the sound of the washed record to the unwashed record. It can sometimes make a record sound in a way a bit more CD-like than vinyl. Can sometimes seem to lose a little bit of life/air/leading edge after a wash.