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Major Record labels are killing it for collectors.


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I'm sure this has been brought up many times but this is getting out of hand. Repressing everything like they are has made me lose a lot of interest in record collecting these days. I have been selling off a lot of my collection over time(mostly this past year) due to this issue and really needing money(economy taking a dump). I Have been collecting records for over 15 years now. In all my years of collecting it has come to the point were I am not having fun with it anymore. Everything is so easy to get and the "HUNT" has been taken away from us. The internet(EBAY) has made it so easy for you to sit back and just have records sent to you. It's a shame really. I'm not going to go on and on but it sucks. I'm pretty over it. No Fun :'(

What is your take on all of these represses?

Ryan

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just because there are represses doesn't mean that finding the originals isn't still a nice surprise. It's still a hunt. I just got Sandinista OG the other day, and that was fun. There are still going to be records they don't repress or change the artwork for, so you just have to be a smart collector and hope that you can tell the good from the bunk. And some represses are desperately needed.

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Virtually nothing I listen to is on a major label. Most of the records I want are from defunct bands on small or defunct labels. I still have tons of fun seeking stuff out.

Agreed. Lucky for me there's allot of record shows where I live and I have great luck and allot of fun hunting there. I generally avoid ebay as it does take the fun out of it, nevermind the ridiculous prices on some lps.

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The hunt is overrated. I live in a hick town and the closest decent record store is about 2 hours away. I have no desire to drive to Toronto to find a record when I can get one on Ebay. I also have no problem with represses as music should be enjoyed by everyone, not just who got there first. If you collect variants, that's fine, but you can't complain about having to buy those records again because you're partially responsible for labels continuing to repress records.

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It bothers me to see records that I can easily find the original pressing of for 5-10$ on ebay repressed and sell for 35$. To me it gives the medium a bad name so to speak. I understand that no one on here would 'fall' for that, but those looking in might think negative thoughts on it or think its a ploy to take money.

If something is legitimately hard to find and gets repressed and they sell if for 10$ or whatever, then kudos to them. It still leaves the hardcore fans to track down the original pressings but casual fans can then just pick up the repress without loosing an arm and a leg.

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Guest falloutcollapse
...or you could just buy one copy of records and stop there and not worry about "collecting" and focus on enjoying the music.
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It sounds like you have let the accessibility of the world get you down. Accessibility, and its unwavering march forward, has been and will continue to change how we approach our entire lives - especially consumerism - and things are never going to revert back. "The hunt," in the classic B&M sense, is dead and has been dead for quite awhile. I think its time to stop taking that out on your record collection - its not its fault.

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I used to avoid represses, but now that I'm more interested in listening to the records than just collecting them, I'd rather have a sealed repress than a used copy of an original in most cases.

I like eBay. I used to dig through crates at record shows and flea markets until I was literally dizzy. I'd much rather let my computer do the bending over and flipping for me.

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this is coming from someone who deals with records all day, every day. I work for a well known record store and have worked for other record stores for about 10 or so years now. I have seen trends come and go in music...Money wise, yes, I am really bummed. Repressing shit and making it the same as the original is just crap(ex:the Refused-shape of punk). Value of original version drops big time. Not that I have either old press or new but I think that is shitty to do. Nothing at all different from the original pressing.

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I agree with you about making a repress different than the original, especially when it's been a decade since it's been in print, like that of the Refused LP.

A lot of the records that will go down in price were artificially high anyway. The millions of represses of the Minor Threat discography over the past 25 years have not negatively affected the price of the originals. Legitimately rare records will always retain their value.

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yea i simply like the idea of having this music on this format for when im older. and to have my favorite music on the best format.

this is the same for me, i want to have a physical copy of my music for when im older, and why not make it the best sound quality and best artwork/packaging.

i want my kids to see and hear what i listened to, i hope they enjoy it as much as me

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I have conflicting views.

The first you can compare to a piece of art. Sure anyone can go google and enjoy the art (downloading mp3's so to speak), but someone has the orignal (test presses), and then a limited run of the piece (1st press). So sure other people can still enjoy the product, but these individuals will own a special piece of it.

I guess where I conflict is that, I too would say I'm more about the music, and worry about collecting second. Oh well, it is what it is.

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I get your point, but think about this: I own a shit load of jazz records that I would never be able to afford if they weren't represses. I also cannot stress enough how awesome my copy of "Blue Train" sounds.

Also, and I've said this a bunch, we're all lucky to still be able to get records at all. Whatever people have to do to be able to put out vinyl is fine by me.

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i love threads like this. i am all for represses. ive always said, records are not for collecting they are for listening. i think everything should be repressed, and the "collector" market should just die out.

the only people who would complain about a repress are the people who arent buying the records to listen to them and enjoy the music anyway, and care more about the price/rarity of their vinyl more than the music on it.

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i love threads like this. i am all for represses. ive always said, records are not for collecting they are for listening. i think everything should be repressed, and the "collector" market should just die out.

the only people who would complain about a repress are the people who arent buying the records to listen to them and enjoy the music anyway, and care more about the price/rarity of their vinyl more than the music on it.

spot on

its always nice to have an rarity but to be honest, i would much rather pay a regular price for a repress than the ridiculously inflated prices of these rarities. aint got money to throw around.

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Represses are great in terms of being able to get records I thought I would never be able to get without spending silly money. It just sucks when some labels exploit them and milk extra cash out of the buyer. Take the Clarity repress, that was really bad. Because I had no way of getting to one of the shows in order to get the record I had to buy the package with the butt ugly t-shirt. Then because they were only selling it through their webstore I had to pay for shipping. And then because they didn't mark it as a gift the combined price of the record and t-shirt (which I didn't want) crossed the threshold for a customs charge. In the end the Clarity repress cost me $63!

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