Is the time for affordable LPs over?

arnprasad

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Hi..as part of Amazon festival sale, got a vinyl player for a decent discount. The enthusiasm of buying quickly disappeared after i started reading posts on buying LPs. Just dont feel like paying 500+ for an LP I might play once for novelty purposes.

Before I put the player on sale (still in packed condition..haven't opened it) - is it a futile exercise to visit Balaji, Seethalakshmi and other stores and still hope to buy decent carnatic music LPs for 100-200? can visit today and tomorrow if its worth the expedition
 
congrats on the turntable, which one did you buy?
as for records, do not give up so soon, as there are plenty of members who have them from sale from time to time.
meanwhile you can start with a wanted thread in the wanted section which will create awareness for your requirements with members who want to sell their records.
be little patient
 
There are lot of used lp stores all over the india.
Have patience.
Once you got a taste of vinyl sound,you will start buying lp for rs.1500 and also 8000 as I do.
But try to get over with that turntable and save for atleast used technics,marantz ,kenwood,sony or any decent turntable.
Go for atleast shure m97xe cartridge with stylus.It will cost you around 8K inclusive of gst.
 
Owning lps is a rich mans game now. Same seller who sold at 200 rupees will now sell the same lp for 800 rupees because 800 rupees is considered peanuts for a few. The seller knows few people will still buy. Todays sellers are very much in tune with cost of lps. They get their rates from Ebay and discogs etc.

Tell him Paul anka he doesnt care. Ask him Rolling Stones or led zeppelin, prices start from 1500 to whatever.

For some, 1500 might be nothing. But that has now created a precedent in the market for sellers. The actual cost of the lp is 200 rupees. But rich buyers will buy them for 1500 rupees. Because they can afford it. I am also guilty of doing so. I too have bought overpriced lps because I wanted to and I could.

Discogs or Ebay. Best bet. Honest prices. Excellent and fair ratings of lps. Expensive shipping. Worth it.
 
Build relationships with the older generation and you may get something you'd never expect. Almost every upmarket Indian house-hold in the 60s and 70s had turntables and record collections. Not so much in the 80s and 90s. I have managed to collect quite a few LPs as give aways by nice old gentlemen who's children have no interest or dont care.
 
Ur lucky. All I got from the older generation is Beethoven and mantovani and some sound of mountains lps lol
 
There is one vinylsofindia seller on discogs..sent him a message. Says he ships from India and is charging around 10 dollars for most classical LPs...relatively affordable I would say. Thx
 
Discogs seems to be a revelation..I can see lots of records for less than 5 dollars..i was looking for western classical. Do you guys now how the shipping logic works?

say I searched for Mozart LPs with price being lowest to highest. There are many records below 5 with shipping extra. How does this shipping work if i buy it from various sellers but say from one country like US? its worth buying say 20 LPs of 2 dollars each and pay shipping of 10 dollars in total and have it shipped to someone in US

In one of the records it said 5 dollars for first LP and 1.25 for each additional...still makes sense to buy in bulk.. but not sure if we need to buy from the same seller. While I continue my research..would appreciate if someone who has experience can clarify. Thx
 
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@reubensm, so if u r an enthusiast, where does that leave us poor souls? ;-)

I know most people gave away their records either when they relocated or when they found no more use for them. They all ended up in the hands of the local junkyard dealers. And from them, into the evil hands of most sellers in India today.

Its now only discogs for me. I know what I want and I just buy that instead of piling on 100s of Records I dont need.
 
The max I have ordered from discogs is 5 lps. Any more and it attracts the attention of customs/ postal guys. Never had lps stuck this way. I order once a week.
 
Never ordered from the us. Always ordered from Germany France and uk.
 
For a US Shipment, how many weeks does it take pls?

US standard shipping to India takes anyway between 3-6 weeks. Priority(with tracking) 10-12 days.

I order max 8 records at a time and never had to pay customs. Paid customs twice for CDs/blurays. Have been buying online for last 15 years.
 
Discogs seems to be a revelation..I can see lots of records for less than 5 dollars..i was looking for western classical. Do you guys now how the shipping logic works?

say I searched for Mozart LPs with price being lowest to highest. There are many records below 5 with shipping extra. How does this shipping work if i buy it from various sellers but say from one country like US? its worth buying say 20 LPs of 2 dollars each and pay shipping of 10 dollars in total and have it shipped to someone in US

In one of the records it said 5 dollars for first LP and 1.25 for each additional...still makes sense to buy in bulk.. but not sure if we need to buy from the same seller. While I continue my research..would appreciate if someone who has experience can clarify. Thx

When buying from discogs/ebay, always check the seller's reviews. Some of the sellers give inaccurate grading, not intentionally of course. Majority of sellers do visual grading, and depending on lighting conditions, it's easy to miss scratches especially when done in a hurry. Also groove damage in records cannot be discerned without playing. Nothing more irritating than buying a record stated EX+ condition and then listening to the slow passages with distortion and loud pops:mad:. There are a few sellers on ebay that do play grading and give accurate descriptions on which tracks the pops and clicks are.
 
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Treasures are always hidden.You have to make contacts and hunt. That's what I do. I have collected a lot through contacts...over last 20+ years.

Marriage ceremonies, public or private functions , I just do not mind. Make men@50+ as prime targets. Do not hesitate, just open up,talk.Who knows, you might hit a bounty,all free.

Also, make your family comfortable with all these because today many people consider the records and the turntables as junk... :) . Somebody's junk is my treasure...that's a blessing to we,collectors .

Good luck.
 
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