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Toying with selling my vinyl collection
- Thread starter wilberthenry
- Start date
I have about 3000 records, but am slowly selling ones off that I have not listened to in a few years.
When I am working in my garage, I put out a couple of crates of records on a table on the sidewalk, and inevitably, some folks will start flipping through them and I sell 3 or 4 records for $10, enough to buy some beer or a burrito. I'm always buying records, but now I am always selling, too, so trying to make room for new stuff. Picked up a record from Otis Redding & Little Joe Curtis the other day, and it is SO GOOD!
When I am working in my garage, I put out a couple of crates of records on a table on the sidewalk, and inevitably, some folks will start flipping through them and I sell 3 or 4 records for $10, enough to buy some beer or a burrito. I'm always buying records, but now I am always selling, too, so trying to make room for new stuff. Picked up a record from Otis Redding & Little Joe Curtis the other day, and it is SO GOOD!
A buddy of mine basically gave away his music collection - 800-1000 records and hundreds of CDs - probably 10 years ago when he decided he had too much stuff and needed to divest. I talked to him last week and he said, "I got a new hobby, want to guess what it is? Collecting vinyl!" He had just received a package from Tower Records with 12 albums (all of which he used to own on vinyl and probably CD too).
I have a few hundred records and well over a thousand CDs. All of the CDs are downloaded to a music server, so I wouldn't mind getting rid of them but can't see just giving them away. Some are valuable but I'm not interested in putting in the work right now.
I have a few hundred records and well over a thousand CDs. All of the CDs are downloaded to a music server, so I wouldn't mind getting rid of them but can't see just giving them away. Some are valuable but I'm not interested in putting in the work right now.
Have been buying and selling records since the 70's. Still own quite a number of LPs and 45s, many rare. There are several ways to sell these days -
Discogs - works well, particularly for record collectors. Will be a lot of work on your end and you'll need to make sure that you grade all of your items accurately, both vinyl and cover. You'll essentially be running a virtual store.
eBay - like Discogs with a wider reach but even more work
Record Store (lots) - most used record stores will buy collections. Expect pricing to be lower than what you would get if you sell them yourself.
Record Store (one at a time, for money or credit) - credit will get you the most value, but you'll only be able to use it at the store which is useless if they don't have anything you might be interested in.
Flea Markets etc. - If there are weekly flea markets in your areas that attract record collectors (and most good flea markets do), you could get a table and sell your collection. You'd probably get higher value than a record store but lower than Discogs or eBay. 45's seem valued less at Fleas than at record stores.
I'm kinda record collector myself, but I've been around very serious collectors most of my life. If you're in the US and need someone to price your collection in your area I could message some pals.
FWIW, I use Discogs all the time, although almost exclusively for buying. Pretty nice service imo.
Discogs - works well, particularly for record collectors. Will be a lot of work on your end and you'll need to make sure that you grade all of your items accurately, both vinyl and cover. You'll essentially be running a virtual store.
eBay - like Discogs with a wider reach but even more work
Record Store (lots) - most used record stores will buy collections. Expect pricing to be lower than what you would get if you sell them yourself.
Record Store (one at a time, for money or credit) - credit will get you the most value, but you'll only be able to use it at the store which is useless if they don't have anything you might be interested in.
Flea Markets etc. - If there are weekly flea markets in your areas that attract record collectors (and most good flea markets do), you could get a table and sell your collection. You'd probably get higher value than a record store but lower than Discogs or eBay. 45's seem valued less at Fleas than at record stores.
I'm kinda record collector myself, but I've been around very serious collectors most of my life. If you're in the US and need someone to price your collection in your area I could message some pals.
FWIW, I use Discogs all the time, although almost exclusively for buying. Pretty nice service imo.
Haven't listened to vinyl in over 20 years, and left my collection with my brother in another state, along with my turntable. Every album I had on vinyl that I wanted to keep I long ago repurchased on CD (mostly jazz). Never did like having to regularly clean vinyl and the turntable cartridge to get the best possible sound and avoid crackles and pops.
I still remember my final straw with vinyl that made me get a CD player as soon as I could back in the 80's - I had a new album that had a song with a dramatic crescendo that briefly went to silence before resuming the music to finish out the song. Right in the middle of the silence, out of nowhere, my album somehow developed a loud Pop! despite my taking great care of it.
I don't miss vinyl at all.
I still remember my final straw with vinyl that made me get a CD player as soon as I could back in the 80's - I had a new album that had a song with a dramatic crescendo that briefly went to silence before resuming the music to finish out the song. Right in the middle of the silence, out of nowhere, my album somehow developed a loud Pop! despite my taking great care of it.
I don't miss vinyl at all.
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Not true. CDs are 16-bit/44.1 kHz. There are definitely higher quality streams and downloads available such as 24-bit/96 kHz.
I put all my music collection (cd's and vinyl) on a designated external hard drive then sold/gave away afterwards. Now they take up no room and I can listen when I like. I've dumped a bunch of the stuff on my phone so I can listen in the car. Don't miss them at all.
gave the bulk to friends who are into vinyl, no remorse. if/when i find more = to friends if they want them, to the trash if they don't.
FWIW: i stopped caring about vinyl when vinyl was still de rigueur: tape > CD > wav files.
Sure, that's the sampling rate. But CD bit rates are 1411 kbps, which directly affects audio quality. And no streaming services actually stream High Resolution Audio (9216 kbps). Max for Spotify is 320 kbps, which is considered their "high quality". That's also the max bit rate for iTunes downloads.
I would say sell the really expensive ones which you could make some decent $ out of.
If the $ is not worth much or maybe its not THAT important to sell then I would just keep. I have a small collection from my grandfather and I like to keep them around and display the covers like decoration. I have thought of framing some of them because those old album covers can be rly cool sometimes.
If the $ is not worth much or maybe its not THAT important to sell then I would just keep. I have a small collection from my grandfather and I like to keep them around and display the covers like decoration. I have thought of framing some of them because those old album covers can be rly cool sometimes.
I'll keep the few Blu-Rays I have, but as for the standard def disks...wouldn't I just prefer to free up the space in my house, and fork over the $3.99 rent for an HD experience if I want to rewatch Memento or Sling Blade (for instance) down the road at some point?
As for vinyl...I love the convenience of streaming and enjoy just having a smallish collection of desert-island records I can reach for when I want that active experience of playing one. This cabinet holds about 220, I think, and I figure I'll be done when I fill it up.
SirMjac28
Patiently Waiting For The Next British Invasion
I own vinyl starting from 1964 and up to the late 80's. I was 14 when I bought the first Rolling Stones album in '64. So, for that sentimental reason, every time I play that record, I'm 14 again. That's priceless. Fast forward to the present. Many younger service techs that come to my home for maintenance, etc are drawn to the large 600+ LPs I have organized. That is pure magic...to witness them drooling over the many classic titles. The younger people remind me what I have...something old, now new again.
You're are being a little narrow in your services. Check Amazon Music HD, for example. Lossless at minimum CD quality and up to 24-bit/192 kHz. Check out Tidal, too. Etc.
All of the music I've purchased in the last couple years has been available for download lossless at better than CD quality.
I'm just saying that holding onto CDs because online audio quality is not better is no longer true. Even higher quality is now easily available online.
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I've tried to get rid of mine incrementally over the years, but somehow still have a drawer full. I haven't had a turntable for at least 5 years. Maybe when I die my kids can sell all my Bob Marley records and make bank.
Very true. And again, you're quoting sampling rates vs bit rates, which are very different. Anyway, per my original post, audio quality isn't the only reason I still buy CDs. To each their own.
Spinning vinyl is a whole different experience than listening to digital music.
For some of us boomers it brings us back to our youth. (Okay boomer... eye roll
)
In high school it took three hours wages at the gas station to be able to go to Tower Records and pick out one album. We'd listen to he whole thing from start to finish, unlike these days when you just push a button to get to the next song. I can pull out an old album and remember spending an hour at the record store forty five years ago trying to decide if I should buy it.
For me it's just a more satisfying experience than streaming or CD's, iPod, etc.
Even with the hisses, pops and occasional skips.
For some of us boomers it brings us back to our youth. (Okay boomer... eye roll
)In high school it took three hours wages at the gas station to be able to go to Tower Records and pick out one album. We'd listen to he whole thing from start to finish, unlike these days when you just push a button to get to the next song. I can pull out an old album and remember spending an hour at the record store forty five years ago trying to decide if I should buy it.
For me it's just a more satisfying experience than streaming or CD's, iPod, etc.
Even with the hisses, pops and occasional skips.
- Sep 4, 2010
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