LP source

Posted by: Steve G on 14 November 2001

Where are you folks getting your LP's from these days? Anywhere decent online? I'm restricted to picking up 2nd hand stuff as and when I see it but there are quite a few modern albums I wouldn't mind getting on vinyl as well.

Cheers
Steve

Posted on: 15 November 2001 by von zipper

I tend to buy from a few specialist shops in London, although I don't have as much time on my hands to vist them so often nowdays.Seeing that you're in Edinburgh, this probably isn't much use to you but I'll list my faves for those nearer to the Smoke.

Stand Out/Minus Zero in Blenheim Crescent,just off Portabello Road:
A true haven for anyone interested in 60's rock/psych,punk,New wave plus modern Americana & power pop.They stock a wide range of vinyl,new and s/h plus a huge choice of CD's.The shop is split into 2 with Bill from Stand out specializing in all that is psych and rock while Bill at Minus Zero leans towards
Americana/Alt.country & Power pop.Heaven!Minus Zero have a mailing list.

Intoxica -Just round the corner on Portabello Road.They stock new & s/h vinyl ranging fom Blues/Jazz/Rock to Exotica- well, just about any category apart from Classical.Again,a great shop which leans towards specialist collectors records - It's the place to go to find that rare Ananda Shankar Indian pressing that you're missing.They do mail order too.

Rough Trade -again,just opposite on Talbot Street.All new vinyl,RT cater more for the dance/ambient/trip-hop field nowdays but also stock a varied selection of other vinyl including most new mainstream and indie releases.

Music & Video Exchange - Notting Hill Gate - A bargin bucket of just about anything.I never seem to turn up much here though - I think the local vultures tend to have the pick of the racks.

Moving back into the West-End,you just need to head towards Berwick Street.Selectadisc and Sister Ray both have a good selection of vinyl plus Reckless Records where you can pick up the occasional s/h bargin.Selectadisc is particularly recommended for it's wide range. Also HMV on Oxford St. just opposite Berwick st. keeps a limited amount of vinyl and sometimes stock a few surprises.

On-line wise, I've used a couple of good sites.

www.diversevinyl.com keeps a wide range although they aren't the cheapest around.

www.freakemporium.com are specialists in all that is 60/70/modern rock/psych/head music.A good company (actually part of delerium records)I can recommend them as very helpful and well priced too.They have an eclectic selection of Blues,Jazz and folk too.

www.sundazed.com & www.nortonrecords.com are both US companies who specialise in top quality re-issues of rare old 50's & 60's music - mostly rock and blues.They both do mailorder.

www.redlickrecords.com are specialists in Blues and Folk.They have some vinyl,new & 2 nd hand.A good site run by true enthusiasts.

These are just my favourite shops and sites, and obviously reflect my musical tastes but I hope it helps some of you to find some good new stuff.

Posted on: 15 November 2001 by Steve G

Thanks for that - I'd no idea so much vinyl was available for order via the web! Of course my colleagues won't that you as I've just lost an hour or so of work time, and my wife won't thank you as I'm now about to spend a fortune on vinyl...

Cheers
Steve

Posted on: 15 November 2001 by Steve G

I've order a couple of LPs from Diverse Vinyl (Ghost of Tom Joad by Springsteen & Protection by Massive Attack) - both of which I have on CD already. I'll be intested to see how the formats compare.

I'll give Sugar Ray a try next.

Cheers
Steve

Posted on: 15 November 2001 by von zipper

Record Collector is probably the best place to find 2nd hand vinyl although quality grades tend to vary dramatically from dealer to dealer.Plus theres nothing worse than finding some long sought after treasure,only to be denied when you ring & find it's already been sold.

Forgot another couple of sites to try

www.keymailorder.com

www.heyday-mo.com

both have a varied mix of stuff and are reliable.

Posted on: 16 November 2001 by David Stewart

in the UK - I've bought from

Simply Vinyl - http://www.simplyvinyl.com/
Vivante - http://www.vivante.co.uk/

in the USA

CD-Now - http://www.cdnow.com

CD-Now have some very competitively priced stuff, but it's generally not 'audiophile' quality.

David

Posted on: 16 November 2001 by von zipper

David - That Simply vinyl link doesn't seem to be any good- I tried it the other day and it didn't want to work then.I've looked for a new address without any luck.

Posted on: 16 November 2001 by von zipper

Looking at some of these sites I can't help but feel that their profit margins are slightly high.
Vivante are charging up to £21 for some of their Sundazed titles which is outrageous as they are $12 - $ 14 direct from Sundazed themselves.Rip off or what?! Direct Vinyl also are guilty of overcharging, especially when you have to add postage charges. As for Simply Vinyl, that arguement has already taken place on a previous post - up to £20 for a repressing that you can't even guarantee has come from master tapes?!I'd advise you to shop around to avoid getting ripped off.

Posted on: 16 November 2001 by count.d

I've bought a couple of Simpley Vinyl lp's and found the sound quality very poor.
No surface noise, but you can hear that they havn't used original master tapes.
Disapointing considering they get sold as "Audiophile" quality.
They're not.

Posted on: 16 November 2001 by von zipper

Count.D,

Simply Vinyl has been dicussed in depth on a previous post some time back. One point that was raised was the fact that, although the overall packaging(180gm virgin vinyl,card sleeves etc) make their releases appear as though they are Audiophile quality, they don't actually make any claims to this effect on the records. They don't even mention the source of the recording so you don't know if it's from Mastertapes or not(SV can't guarantee to use 1st generation mastertapes due to costs involved).I believe their intention is to make a wide range of music available on vinyl for people to enjoy, but I can't help but feel that they are misleading and certainly overcharging people. Especially when most their releases can be found as original pressings for a similar price.

Posted on: 31 December 2001 by Steve G

quote:
Originally posted by von zipper:

On-line wise, I've used a couple of good sites.
http://www.diversevinyl.com keeps a wide range although they aren't the cheapest around.

Thanks for the advice. I've been buying new LPs from diverse vinyl and while I'd agree they're not cheap the service is good and they do have a good range. I received The Ghost of Tom Joad this morning (I'd back ordered it a while back) and it's absolutely superb on vinyl. I've bought a few LPs which I also have on CD and in my system this is the first one which has been comprehensively better on vinyl - which probably just indicated that my turntable isn't setup properly.

I've also been buying a fair bit of used vinyl from Ebay - mainly classical.

Regards
Steve