Downsizing the Collection
pointman
1,042 Posts
So I'm getting ready to move into a new house with the old lady and I've been busy packing records all week. While packing, I've come across records I've owned and easily not listened to in at least a couple years. I've never been that guy who's trying to die with the fattest stack of vinyl, if you're not listening to them, what is the point of owning them? I've got tons of soul jazz and school band lps I'd be lucky if I could even tell you what they sound like. That just doesn't sit well with me as some other collectro could be rocking out to these records and it could be a little extra green in my pocket.So what are your guidelines for trimming the collection? How do you decide what to purge? I'm scared of regretting selling some records but I'm thinking this really needs to happen too.
Comments
I got rid of a bunch of stuff before my last move, and after hauling it all up four flights of stairs, I think even 1500 records is too much. I'm aiming for 1000.
Or more people to help me move next time.
I didn't bother to digitize anything I dumped - though I could have. I think my general policy was that if it wasn't worth digitizing, then it definitely wasn't worth holding onto.
Then I had a sidewalk sale which ended up including two buyers who wanted me to put together 100-LP packages - *sight unseen no less!* - and they had friends pick them up and ship.
I was kind of amazed that anyone would do that without even looking at what they were buying but far as I was concerned, it was a great and easy way to earn some extra record cash.
It was more a case of
Just 'cause you own a record doesn't mean you gotta listen to it every day, all damn day. Like a radio station, your tastes change rotation every now and then. You might wish to give your fave records a rest or something. Hell, you yourself might wanna not listen to records at all so you can go off and do something else! :-)
There are records I bought 10-15-20 years ago that I don't listen to that much these days. Not because my tastes have changed, but more because I've played them so often, I don't feel the need to hear them all the time, I have newer records I wanna hear, yadda yadda yadda. It just be's that way sometimes.
ON THE OTHER HAND...if it just flat out doesn't sound good to you anymore, and there's no sentimental value, let it go!!
It's about "the essentials", and for me it's what I think I will want and/or listen to a few years down the line. Sometimes I'll hold on to something "just in case" but as time goes on I want to trim things down and get rid of what I really don't want or care for. Itemizing and typing titles that can go on for sale does take time, and I don't make time to do everything so for years it will sit. Now, I want to get rid of a lot so hopefully within the next few months I can start trimming again.
The sentimental stuff isn't going anywhere. But there's the stuff I've just outgrown. Then there's other stuff like my hiphop 12s which I don't have many of honestly but I don't listen or DJ with them either. Do I really need those NWA 12s that are collecting dust? I can't express my love for Eazy and crew but I don't think I need the vinyl these days.
I just moved about 20 of those Uhaul small boxes of records from one 3rd floor to another 3rd floor. Didn't help that our heat was stuck on about 80 degrees throughout the move.
One thing I learned is that packing those 16 inch boxes full
Another thing I learned is that I need to use my new patio space for some serious tag sales to trim the fat [Providence, RI folks who just love that smooth CTI magic yer in luck].
i need to go through my records sooner than later, especially the hiphop 12"es.
but my problem is i dont think i can sell many of them. there are a lot of mid 90ies underground stuff i just wont listen to ever again. so much of it sounds boring to me nowadays. i will hold on to most of the early nineties stuff though since i can dj some of that stuff.
my only gripe is i doubt that anyone will buy this stuff for more than 2??? a pop.
Hee hee. I think she tried to grab one of those heavy bastards but I resisted. Not that she couldn't handle it, but I wouldn't put her through that arm destroying torture for the sake of my music nerd tendencies.
The truth hath been spoken.
I never thought my collection was that big, but it sure seemed fuckin' huge when I had to move it all out of my old spot and into my second-floor apartment.
My collection has gotten smaller over the past year or so as I've sluffed off things I have no use for anymore. I'm sure I've got a bunch more stuff I could unload as well...maybe a spring purge is in order.
Man, I would NEVER ask my girl to move a box full of records for me. Even if she offered I would try stop her.
Although she does offer to carry my lightest bag(the laptop bag) when I dj out. I wish i would have bought a house FIRST, and THEN start collecting records....shit.
Nor would I. And I would never "make" her carry anything at all. She tried to grab one and found it to be quite ridiculous. I told her all along that I'd bear the burden of those heavy bastards. My point was that next time I don't think I'll fill those boxes all the way. Mind you, I still won't ask her to carry my horribly heavy habit regardless of the weight of the boxes. I just want to save my own arms and knees some trouble next time around.
But there is plenty of mid-90's underground stuff that is worth money....get googling.
b/w
For the really precious stuff that you're not sure about, sell to friends. You can buy back.
i am about to get this done again moving in a new place
my trick
i boxed all my records according to genre
so one box a week you review in comparison with others of the genre and you purge
ebay,setsail,store,dollarbinsidewalk and voila
The goal is to return with NONE of them.
NONE.
An obvious place to start when purging all your raers and non-raers alike, before you hit th ebay, is listing them up in the CLASSIFIEDS Section of Soul Strut!!!
Who doesnt love a set sale?!!!
how do you hope to accomplish that?
I was just gonna sell em on the street sometime... but i really dont wanna sell all the shit record by record.
How much will stores give me for random junk?
By the end, take the CRAP (and I had two boxes of CRAP that went through a house fire) and put it aside and write, "FREE TO GOOD HOME!" Someone gave me $20 for it at SoI's yard sale.
If that didn't work, I was going to throw it away.
You can ALWAYS get rid of it if you want to.
I'm realizing alot of you have around 1000 or mabye 2000 records.
WHich is good. I know one dealer with around 20,000 records and it took him close to two months to move.
I feel like I'm already at the "all killer, no filler" stage, but I'm sure I could pick out some tepids.
Probably nothing. if you are lucky and they desperately need to fill their dollar binds maybe twenty in credit.
b/w
Are you really asking that question?
This was just a quick cut and run i had to do, but the logic I think is there. In the end if the record hasn't got a song you would play on it...then really its not worth keeping, just sample the shit you want and toss it.