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2nd Hand Vinyls - How to Choose

travellersol said:
in Malaysia to be precise. over here old records are not as commonly found and much less in high quality like in the West. About the Japanese pressings, I read elsewhere that some people have different opinion on them compared to US or European pressings. What is really going on?
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I don't have a lot of Japanese pressings, but the ones I have are simply excellent in every way. Especially the technical pressing quality seems superior, spindle holes absolutely spot on centered etc - often when I grab one of them, my first thought is this is how every record should've been done. But admittedly the sample size is rather small... still, I've yet to see a Japanese pressing that was substandard. As for mastering, I can't say I've noticed any significant difference in general, like sometimes I've seen it mentioned Japanese masterings tend more on the lean side compared to western, or in some other way aim for a different "sound". I can't say I've noticed anything like this. But I don't think there's a reason to go out of your way to hunt down a Japanese pressing for a record you can more easily find western pressings for, but I also can't think of a reason to hunt down western copies if Japanese are more abundant in your neck of the woods.

In terms of ultimate audiophilia and sound quality, I think often the country of origin of the music might have the edge because they get to use the original master tape, while in many cases pressings made on the other side of the world would've used a copy, so they'd have at least one more generation of tape loss. In any case every pressing is different and even every record is an individual, so there you go... I think there's a certain exotica to Japanese pressings that appeals to the western record enthusiast - while for Japanese / Asian hobbyists an US pressing of an US based artist would probably seem more authentic.
 
I would avoid ebay unless it is an established store,many vendors do not know how to grade correctly,as an example a Very Good grade is an item that has been played many times and has signs of wear, online I would stick to Discogs the vendors tend to have a better understanding of how to grade but avoid any that have only been visibly checked.
An earlier post mentioned that fingerprints are hard to remove,plain vinegar will do the job,rinse it off after with cold water,distilled if you have it.
 
Also, in addition to what others have posted as to visual inspection of records, ensure your turntable is functioning/setup properly and the cartridge stylus/needle is not worn. A turntable not set up correctly with a worn/damaged needle will cause even the most mint records to play like trash.
 
dcmfan said:
Here’s what I look for:

Under the best light you can find, hold the record at various angles. Best records have a kind of rainbow reflection off the grooves. Worn and dirty records will look dull.

Look for narrow scratches. Those often are deep and make a pop. Broad scuffs, even if the look bad are usually at the surface and don’t make as much noise, if any at all. Watch out for any scratch or scuff the runs parallel to the grooves. Those, I find, are more likely to cause a skip and in some cases cause the needle to get stuck.

Look at the area around the spindle hole. Wear in the label or marks where someone tried to find the spindle hole indicate how frequently the record has been played. All else being equal, I pick the record with less wear in this area.

Dirt and dust don’t eliminate a record for me, but I have some good cleaning options. Fingerprints are hard to remove, though, and indicate how well the earlier owner took care of their records.

I do tend to pass on records with no inner sleeve unless they look really clean otherwise. I also tend to pass on records that have water damage to sleeves.

I love my vinyls, records, albums, LPs no matter what people call em! Hope this helps!
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I agree with everything that "dcmfan" stated. Also, for visible deep scratches, I lightly feel with my fingertip and run perpendicular over to the visible scratch--if I feel it--it's a no-go. If I do not feel it, I further test it by running my fingernail flat and ever so gently to sense a ruptured ridge. If it has ridge--that will definitely make "pop" when playing--the LP or 45 is also disqualified. If I do not feel it, the surface noise would be minimal (if any)--and I deem it to be a calculated risk to buy. I tend to focus on Near Mint and Very Good Plus. On occasion, the Very Good and Fair rated LPs can be 'lil' diamonds in the rough, per se. Good hunting!
 
Its a gamble, that's why I only buy from reputable places. Even with this, sometimes you come upon a lemon. Any vinyl in very poor condition, with a lot of uncleanable scratches, warps, etc. would be unacceptable and I'd ask for a refund.

Sometimes the vinyl is a bit dusty or even a tad dirty. If it cleans and then plays satisfactorily then your good. I deem used as just that; Its rare that a used lp will sail smoothly on your TT; I just draw the line at poorly warped and badly aged examples.
 
Visually checking out Vinyl is a skill set that comes with experience. You should look for an oil slick/rainbow appearance to the grooves .. when rotated at an angle (like video below). Check the spindle hole for tell tale signs of heavy use. Look for "grayish" appearance to the grooves (sign of well worn grooves). Carry an LED flashlight or bright light of some type with you to help in inspecting LPs.


The fellow in the video gives an idea of what to look for ... visually.
 
I support the idea of ordering from Japan. Easily the best in Asia.

You might want to think about some cleaning method. Just Search it online. Heaps of information.
 
muovimies said:
I don't have a lot of Japanese pressings, but the ones I have are simply excellent in every way. Especially the technical pressing quality seems superior, spindle holes absolutely spot on centered etc - often when I grab one of them, my first thought is this is how every record should've been done. But admittedly the sample size is rather small... still, I've yet to see a Japanese pressing that was substandard. As for mastering, I can't say I've noticed any significant difference in general, like sometimes I've seen it mentioned Japanese masterings tend more on the lean side compared to western, or in some other way aim for a different "sound". I can't say I've noticed anything like this. But I don't think there's a reason to go out of your way to hunt down a Japanese pressing for a record you can more easily find western pressings for, but I also can't think of a reason to hunt down western copies if Japanese are more abundant in your neck of the woods.

In terms of ultimate audiophilia and sound quality, I think often the country of origin of the music might have the edge because they get to use the original master tape, while in many cases pressings made on the other side of the world would've used a copy, so they'd have at least one more generation of tape loss. In any case every pressing is different and even every record is an individual, so there you go... I think there's a certain exotica to Japanese pressings that appeals to the western record enthusiast - while for Japanese / Asian hobbyists an US pressing of an US based artist would probably seem more authentic.
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would seriously consider the Japanese after reading this :)
 
petemcfc said:
I would avoid ebay unless it is an established store,many vendors do not know how to grade correctly,as an example a Very Good grade is an item that has been played many times and has signs of wear, online I would stick to Discogs the vendors tend to have a better understanding of how to grade but avoid any that have only been visibly checked.
An earlier post mentioned that fingerprints are hard to remove,plain vinegar will do the job,rinse it off after with cold water,distilled if you have it.
Click to expand...
great additional knowledge.......
 
ArDrakho said:
I agree with everything that "dcmfan" stated. Also, for visible deep scratches, I lightly feel with my fingertip and run perpendicular over to the visible scratch--if I feel it--it's a no-go. If I do not feel it, I further test it by running my fingernail flat and ever so gently to sense a ruptured ridge. If it has ridge--that will definitely make "pop" when playing--the LP or 45 is also disqualified. If I do not feel it, the surface noise would be minimal (if any)--and I deem it to be a calculated risk to buy. I tend to focus on Near Mint and Very Good Plus. On occasion, the Very Good and Fair rated LPs can be 'lil' diamonds in the rough, per se. Good hunting!
Click to expand...
good fingernail and fingertip tips........
 
Condorsat said:
Visually checking out Vinyl is a skill set that comes with experience. You should look for an oil slick/rainbow appearance to the grooves .. when rotated at an angle (like video below). Check the spindle hole for tell tale signs of heavy use. Look for "grayish" appearance to the grooves (sign of well worn grooves). Carry an LED flashlight or bright light of some type with you to help in inspecting LPs.


The fellow in the video gives an idea of what to look for ... visually.
Click to expand...
thanks very much for this video is worth more than 1k words....
 
What type of table do you have? In my early crude setups I thoroughly enjoyed albums that I (after many years and many dollars and many hours) wouldn't imagine listening to now.

Some setups are more tolerant of damage to the vinyl. Some of my greatest musical discoveries were trashed!

I still have a specific table to play more beat up albums on. Lots of good adadvice here
 
Panamafred said:
What type of table do you have? In my early crude setups I thoroughly enjoyed albums that I (after many years and many dollars and many hours) wouldn't imagine listening to now.

Some setups are more tolerant of damage to the vinyl. Some of my greatest musical discoveries were trashed!

I still have a specific table to play more beat up albums on. Lots of good adadvice here
Click to expand...
It's an old Rega Planar 3 with RB300 arm. Any characteristics that I should know about this table?
 
1Pick music that your interested in or looks like it's interesting .
2:condition condition condition.
Sleeves can indicate the life it's led but not always.
3: Take the record from the sleeve holding it in two hands by the edge and move itup and down round and round in good light taking note of scratches scuffs dirt and label wear around the spindle hole, if it's shiny it's been played to death, you can also tell which side of the album was the better side by the spindle wear.

Warps, warps will show up as you move it around in the light,broad warping can be acceptable but short ripples on the is not, and is unplayable

I think everything has been covered by previous posts.
Follow the advice given.
You will make mistakes and we all still do .
Another bit of advice, just make sure that the record is the one that goes with the cover.
 
thomo57 said:
1Pick music that your interested in or looks like it's interesting .
2:condition condition condition.
Sleeves can indicate the life it's led but not always.
3: Take the record from the sleeve holding it in two hands by the edge and move itup and down round and round in good light taking note of scratches scuffs dirt and label wear around the spindle hole, if it's shiny it's been played to death, you can also tell which side of the album was the better side by the spindle wear.

Warps, warps will show up as you move it around in the light,broad warping can be acceptable but short ripples on the is not, and is unplayable

I think everything has been covered by previous posts.
Follow the advice given.
You will make mistakes and we all still do .
Another bit of advice, just make sure that the record is the one that goes with the cover.
Click to expand...
yes, your last piece of advice is really good!
 
couple of points. no matter how "clean" it looks, it may not be. I suggest you start your
collection journey by cleaning each and every LP you buy. builds up a great habit.

if you don't clean then through a water system, then buy a record cleaner that grabs the
dirt off the record. or even look into glue to pull the garbage out of the record.

since you are in Malaysia (I love KL), its humid and subject to mold. try alcohol
to clean.

then if you have room/money, try a second cartridge on your turntable to play all your
second hand stuff, to ensure they are in good playable condition. you can do this
once a month or as needed to minimize the swapping.

I use three TTs (they are cheap here in the US 'cause everyone throws everything away)
one for playback of the good records, one to test how good or bad the used records I
buy are, and one to clean record on.
 
travellersol said:
I wish to but sadly I am in Asia, so no point joining.
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Actually if you were a member with a paid subscription and bought something from Bartertown, those members who you bought things from would ship the equipment to you. All you have to do is make sure the equipment you buy comes in the original boxes with the original packing materials that ensure the equipment does not get damaged. The quality of the equipment on Bartertown is better because many of the members are experts at rebuilding stereo equipment and the price you pay will be cheaper than used equipment that doesn’t sound as good. I lived in Shanghai for a couple of years, and the problem in Asia is too many people fixing equipment by using the cheapest parts ruining the sound of great equipment. There are many members of AK shipping to buyers all over the world....
 
Please visit the link in my sig for all we know about washing otherwise good records.

Worn and heavily damaged (warped/heavy scratches) I avoid. Look for that rainbow sheen. Usually, that won't steer you wrong.

Good luck!
 
Lots of great tips here, with which I agree.

I must say that when I am looking at used records I am always aware that it is a slight gamble, Therefore, I evaluate how it looks against how much I am willing to bet it's good. In other words, the price is how much it will cost me to find out if it's good or not. I have passed on a lot of questionable discs with this reasoning, and have purchased a lot of great ones that didn't look so great.
 
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