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Collectible Records no longer “Collectible”?

R

rssarma

New Member
I got into collecting vinyl about 8-9 years ago before the music industry hopped back on the bandwagon. I was trying to recreate the music collection I had as a teenager. Everything I owned back then was mostly on cassette and some on vinyl. One of my prized possessions though was Pink Floyd’s Pulse CD with the pulsing light. I loaned it to a friend and sadly it never came back home to me. Anyways, a few years ago I bought this album on eBay for nearly $400. It was the UK pressing and was in VG+ condition. Fast forward to 2018 and I bought the re-release last week for $80, just 1/5th the price! The re-release looks fantastic and I’m assuming sounds great too since it’s been mastered from the original tapes. I’ve had a similar experience with Tom Petty’s Greatest hits.

Question is, with all the new reissues are collectibles becoming moot and losing value?
 
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Here are the two releases side by side. Strangely enough the re-release seems to have lost a little weight and height!
 

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I think this is only a good thing. Records should be kept as affordable as possible, just like they were back in they day when I started buying them. They shouldn't be so expensive that the average Joe or Jill can't afford to drop a little cash on one or two each pay period.
 
Worried Man said:
I think this is only a good thing. Records should be kept as affordable as possible, just like they were back in they day when I started buying them. They shouldn't be so expensive that the average Joe or Jill can't afford to drop a little cash on one or two each pay period.
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Oh I totally agree, I’m all for records being affordable. I personally refrain from buying reissues of classics especially when they cost silly amounts. However, collectibility is a niche aspect of this hobby and I don’t mind it. For instance, a first pressing of a record can cost thousands of dollars, but that doesn’t mean that someone who can’t afford it shouldn’t be able to buy a reissue at a fair price.

I’m really trying to get a sense of how collectibles are appraised in this hobby.
 
rssarma said:
Oh I totally agree, I’m all for records being affordable. I personally refrain from buying reissues of classics especially when they cost silly amounts. However, collectibility is a niche aspect of this hobby and I don’t mind it. For instance, a first pressing of a record can cost thousands of dollars, but that doesn’t mean that someone who can’t afford it shouldn’t be able to buy a reissue at a fair price.

I’m really trying to get a sense of how collectibles are appraised in this hobby.
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We're on the same page. Nothing wrong with collectible records for those who can afford them. But, yes, there should good issues available for the average consumer as well.

I think what I'm seeing is an increase in the quality of reissues in the last couple of years. There are many by Rhino, for example, that rival original copies, maybe even improve on them. As quality becomes more prevalent among repressings, I think collectible prices are going to fall somewhat.
 
It all depends. Sometimes the availability of a reissue will bring prices down on a high-priced original pressing, as some people just want a copy, not necessarily a first edition. In other cases, there's enough demand from collectors to keep the original pressing prices at high levels.

The audience for a release makes a difference too. As baby boomers age and their belongings are liquidated, more copies of Pink Floyd records will probably be available as the demand decreases.

Do your copies have the blinking LED?
 
Worried Man said:
We're on the same page. Nothing wrong with collectible records for those who can afford them. But, yes, there should good issues available for the average consumer as well.

I think what I'm seeing is an increase in the quality of reissues in the last couple of years. There are many by Rhino, for example, that rival original copies, maybe even improve on them. As quality becomes more prevalent among repressings, I think collectible prices are going to fall somewhat.
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Yes, I’m noticing the same thing. It’s not just with reissues, I feel even new albums are being pressed at a much higher quality than they were just a few years ago. I’d like to attribute that to the knowledge that people get from forums such as this one. Some of my own friends and younger folks refrain from buying the cheap Crosley and get something affordable yet of higher quality. As a result they’re able to appreciate the better sound from their records and be more discerning when they get a bad pressing.

With regards to the value of collectibles falling, I have a different opinion from yours. I don’t think collectibles always hold value because they sound better, I think they hold value due to the rarity and age. Kind of like baseball cards or comics, you can always reprint but an original in mint condition will always be worth more.

The problem though is that there really isn’t a “blue book” appraisal for these so-called collectible records.
 
SA-708 said:
It all depends. Sometimes the availability of a reissue will bring prices down on a high-priced original pressing, as some people just want a copy, not necessarily a first edition. In other cases, there's enough demand from collectors to keep the original pressing prices at high levels.

The audience for a release makes a difference too. As baby boomers age and their belongings are liquidated, more copies of Pink Floyd records will probably be available as the demand decreases.

Do your copies have the blinking LED?
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That’s a very good point. I believe the Pulse LPs were expensive just because there weren’t enough copies to go around. Unlike say a Beatles record which fetches a higher price depending on the age of the pressing not because of a dearth of copies.

I don’t think the LPs were released with the pulsing light, that was something only the first set of CDs came with. Subsequent releases didn’t have the LEDs.
 
rssarma said:
Yes, I’m noticing the same thing. It’s not just with reissues, I feel even new albums are being pressed at a much higher quality than they were just a few years ago. I’d like to attribute that to the knowledge that people get from forums such as this one. Some of my own friends and younger folks refrain from buying the cheap Crosley and get something affordable yet of higher quality. As a result they’re able to appreciate the better sound from their records and be more discerning when they get a bad pressing.

With regards to the value of collectibles falling, I have a different opinion from yours. I don’t think collectibles always hold value because they sound better, I think they hold value due to the rarity and age. Kind of like baseball cards or comics, you can always reprint but an original in mint condition will always be worth more.

The problem though is that there really isn’t a “blue book” appraisal for these so-called collectible records.
Click to expand...

All true. The true value is all in the eyes of the beholder. And I totally agree. Out of nostalgia alone, I'd much rather have original copies of the records and other things I grew up with. Case in point: I lost a LOT of great comic books, a good half-decade's worth of DC and Marvel titles, when I was a kid, back in the so-called golden era of comic books. I kept them in the basement of our house, where my parents had set up my bedroom. And then our basement flooded one stormy summer day! They were all lost. Today, I could spend my retirement savings on old original copies of all those things. Or I could buy reproduced in versions in all the books that have flooded the market, and I've spent no little money on those. I like having some kind of copy of the comic books I used to read, but believe it, the books of reprinted versions will never be like having those old comic books.
 
Worried Man said:
All true. The true value is all in the eyes of the beholder. And I totally agree. Out of nostalgia alone, I'd much rather have original copies of the records and other things I grew up with. Case in point: I lost a LOT of great comic books, a good half-decade's worth of DC and Marvel titles, when I was a kid, back in the so-called golden era of comic books. I kept them in the basement of our house, where my parents had set up my bedroom. And then our basement flooded one stormy summer day! They were all lost. Today, I could spend my retirement savings on old original copies of all those things. Or I could buy reproduced in versions in all the books that have flooded the market, and I've spent no little money on those. I like having some kind of copy of the comic books I used to read, but believe it, the books of reprinted versions will never be like having those old comic books.
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Yes! I couldn’t agree more. Sadly I had a similar experience, except the flood that hit my comics was my own dad. When I moved out, he decided to throw away my comics and cassettes because they got a little moldy. I’m still not over it!

Truth be told, I’m not really a collector, whatever high priced items I have are because at the time there weren’t low-priced options. How I wish I’d known then that Pulse would be reissued! In fact I distinctly recall being on an online forum somewhere having a similar conversation and there was an almost unanimous agreement that Pulse wouldn’t be reissued. I really wanted it only because I love the album, not because I wanted it as a collectible.
 
rssarma said:
Yes! I couldn’t agree more. Sadly I had a similar experience, except the flood that hit my comics was my own dad. When I moved out, he decided to throw away my comics and cassettes because they got a little moldy. I’m still not over it!

Truth be told, I’m not really a collector, whatever high priced items I have are because at the time there weren’t low-priced options. How I wish I’d known then that Pulse would be reissued! In fact I distinctly recall being on an online forum somewhere having a similar conversation and there was an almost unanimous agreement that Pulse wouldn’t be reissued. I really wanted it only because I love the album, not because I wanted it as a collectible.
Click to expand...

I came home for the holidays my freshman year to find my mother had tossed my Beatles singles (picture sleeves!) because she thought I was past those childish things. Mom. No. Mom, please, no, you didn't.
 
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