Many of us are reflecting on our vinyl collections and how they have evolved throughout 2022. And...
Originally published April 4, 2019
No one thought it would ever happen, but vinyl came back with a huge resurgence! Now there is nothing more satisfying than digging dollar bins at local thrift shops and witnessing the rebirth of record stores. Turntables, accessories, and best practices for the hobby have been the headlines of user forums and blogs all over the 'internets' with many...MANY opinions that are available on many...MANY subjects.
But, what does this all mean?
Easy... the vinyl lifestyle is here, and we're living it! And now what? Where to go from here?
In nature, we invent, build, and protect what we have. That's just what we did with the vinyl record. We started listening to records again (some of us never stopped), had tons of fun doing it and built a massive community of vinyl record collectors and enthusiasts! Now we must protect what we have; the relationships that we've made, the hobby itself, and the thrill that we get while spinnin' that wax!
There is a threat to the vinyl castle that we have built around us. A giant, ominous dragon called the 'economy of scale' looms above us, circling, ready to attack. Yes, as we continue to buy out collections from the basements of estate sales, pick the thrift store bins, and find our "grails" out in the wild, the market slowly experiences a shift in the supply-and-demand ratio. Such an upset in balance could cause the value of our collections to plummet. While we will still have fun, we would have spent a lot of money on our vinyl with nothing to show for it.
Don't get me wrong, we want records to become affordable. But we want the stuff that is hard to find, to retain value even though reissues are lurking around virtually every corner.
In the comic book world, grading companies have been able to rescue the comics with specialized preservation techniques. But just as important, they have been able to help retain the comic book's value, and in some cases, increase it substantially. Such grading enables the collector to place a value on the book without relying on their own opinion of the condition of the item. A collector can buy the piece without wondering if they are going to be a victim of seller's bias.
In the vinyl record world though, it's not that easy. "When in doubt, buy from sellers with good reviews on reputable sights!" they say... If you really sit down and read the reviews though, you still find occasional blips where buyers receive records that weren't appropriately graded.
Let's continue to work toward protecting what we have built. Let's work to keep the vinyl lifestyle alive and kicking for many years to come! In the meantime, keep playing the good stuff!
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