Evidence of the vinyl craze decline....again.

Meanwhile back at the ranch I was going thru a box of garage sale finds and happened on this. Not a album I ever bought so i put it on to see whats on it. Thw whole thing went by and I was thinking maybe Ebay it then the last song came on. How I missed it reading the list is just impatience. I have a original press 1972 Frankenstein. I'm elated!!!!IMG_4871.JPG
 
Is it the middle of winter here?

Alright, back on topic. I think the reason for the slowdown is because the styli and belts of all those new tables have worn out and the clueless owners don't know what to do. I sense an imminent uptick at the thrifts of cheap record players and hopefully newer albums.
 
Meanwhile back at the ranch I was going thru a box of garage sale finds and happened on this. Not a album I ever bought so i put it on to see whats on it. Thw whole thing went by and I was thinking maybe Ebay it then the last song came on. How I missed it reading the list is just impatience. I have a original press 1972 Frankenstein. I'm elated!!!!View attachment 1008399
Look in the dead wax for RL
 
Where I live in the USA, record retail seems pretty stable these days. A few chain retailers (such as Target and Best Buy) tried vinyl sales and then clearanced out what few titles they had. The local indie record shop continues to have a good selection of new and used records. The local indie bookstore only had used CDs, DVDs, blu-rays and vinyl, but recently added some new records to the mix in a growing section; the only other new media they carry are books (weren't e-readers supposed to kill the new book market?). As far as chains, both Books-A-Million and Barnes & Noble have kept records in stock for a couple years now and seem to be doing OK with it. BAM switched their section from a few wooden crates on a table to a larger rack designed for records this past year.
 
I know there are a lot of people who dislike the vinyl being pressed today be it because of quality of pressing, the mastering, etc, but I personally still appreciate the aesthetic of handling and playing vinyl (and I concede there is probably a nontrivial psychosomatic effect). As such, I am happy to see that prices have been dropping over the past decade (there are some new albums that can be bought for $19 as opposed to the $28-30ish range it was), and I attributed that more to production catching up, balancing that supply/demand dynamic. I will be sad if production declines and the number of releases decrease (though there are plenty of examples where the vinyl release was very much delayed. Beyonce's Lemonade released 23 April 2016 but the vinyl did not come out until 15 September 2017!).
 
About three years ago I decided to get back into vinyl when I decided to get back to vintage receivers etc. It was slow for me because I have the heretical view that CDs sound better......but I thought it would be nice to play some old records and actually have a turntable in case I found something interesting. I have been buying slowly along with used CDs since they are so cheap, but all that slowed almost to a stop about four months ago when I went to premium Spotify. It sounds so good and is so convenient that it seems like a huge effort to get out a CD and play it......a record even more. I just want to hear the music and when I have access to hundreds of thousands (if not more) songs and artists available to me in seconds the turntable just seems a pain. When my 20 year old step son came over with his girlfriend last week she wanted to hear a record because it was such a novelty and I am glad I had it. I am sure I will always keep one and I will continue to grab a good buy in a record but it will never be more than a novelty for me.
 
Some interesting views so far guys, thanks for sharing. Thanks also to the admins for clearing up the off topic nonsense, I was about to ask for the thread to be locked.
 
I'm one of those who dumped records and now getting back into it slowly.

Same here. Also agree with bodyblue's post above.

I have found though that on the second go-round I am more selective in my choices. Lots of Mofi stuff, more careful selection.

But then, my tastes have changed too, since when I used to be a record buyer in the late 70s/80s.
 
Same here. Also agree with bodyblue's post above.

I have found though that on the second go-round I am more selective in my choices. Lots of Mofi stuff, more careful selection.

But then, my tastes have changed too, since when I used to be a record buyer in the late 70s/80s.

+1. And I buy an occasional old sealed favorite just for the heck of it.
 
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Meanwhile back at the ranch I was going thru a box of garage sale finds and happened on this. Not a album I ever bought so i put it on to see whats on it. Thw whole thing went by and I was thinking maybe Ebay it then the last song came on. How I missed it reading the list is just impatience. I have a original press 1972 Frankenstein. I'm elated!!!!View attachment 1008399

That looks like it could be part of the Game Of Thrones soundtrack. Edgar 'Night King' Winter and his undead hoard who only come out at night. Creepy.
 
We have only one little record store in my town.
Decent records pop up now and then but the owner has taken advantage and jacked up prices 2-3x in only a few years.
I actually kind of hope it goes back to being "unknown" again and everybody forget about records and stick their earbuds in.
Liked it better having the whole beach to myself.
 
I think that the price should start to come down within a few years, supply will eventually outreach demand. Too many uncertainties.....but I don't think that anyone will ever be giving their turntables away ever again. The return of vinyl has proved itself to be a norm in society.
 
Is there much ripping vinyl and then recirculation? I personally rip all my vinyl I get my hands on and then so far the lp's go out to the shed.
 
Is there much ripping vinyl and then recirculation? I personally rip all my vinyl I get my hands on and then so far the lp's go out to the shed.

Interesting. Personally I wouldn't bother ripping the vinyl because part of the fun is actually playing the record on the turntable. I know that ripping helps to preserve the original if you want to preserve it but I just think it's a bit sterile.
 
I'm fortunate to have some very cool stores close to me that have a ton of old and new vinyl. I like the sound of the new vinyl. Everything I've gotten so far has been really good. It doesn't appear that vinyl sales have taken a dive around these parts other than the fact than flea market dealers have lost their minds on what they think some of their stuff is worth.
 
I always thought that the album selling burst was partially a novelty sell, i did not take it seriously partly due to first timers that thought they wanted to get into vinyl, bought their first turntable, realized you needed a little patience and work to use it right to get the most enjoyment and sound quality, adjust, clean, not mess up the needle exc, then in some millennials fashion, the table sets unused, the i phone remains their music source , so sure its possibly declining or should, just like used broken entry level turntables have increased on CL, and Ebay . I have never purchased a new album, but am trying to narrow down 3-400 clean used keeper albums from a batch of 3000 recently received. That takes some time and work also. the record sales will drop and level out, selling mostly to the vinyl lifers. just my opinion of course.
 
We have only one little record store in my town.
Decent records pop up now and then but the owner has taken advantage and jacked up prices 2-3x in only a few years.
I actually kind of hope it goes back to being "unknown" again and everybody forget about records and stick their earbuds in.
Liked it better having the whole beach to myself.

I think one's attitude about this tends to be a function of whether you're typically buying or selling. ;)

In the 90s, people were dumping their records, and it was a great time to be buying LPs. Now that LPs are back in fashion, the pre-owed CD market currently tends to be priced as LPs were in the 90s . . .
 
Interesting. Personally I wouldn't bother ripping the vinyl because part of the fun is actually playing the record on the turntable. I know that ripping helps to preserve the original if you want to preserve it but I just think it's a bit sterile.
I can see the enjoyment, the cleaning rituals (mine involve the vacuum ) but vinyl isn't new to me and being age 62 now I am sorta lazy at the end of the day and like listening to music with playlists always randomized.

As for sterile I don't hear it from the original analog that's been digitized at home here.. What I do often hear is music that is more dynamic than the CD version (on the few that I have both) and have to think there is more to vinyl than just the analog sound , because when I listen to ripped vinyl it sounds very good, perhaps even better than when I listen to it analog with the TT because when I digitize vinyl I also clean up pops and crackle.

My reason for asking about people who are ripping vinyl, if they really are selling it again at flee markets, online or just dropping it off at a Good will, they are essentialy putting it back in circulation again and if enough people are doing this then it could have effects on the market for vinyl.
 
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