Original Japanese pressings have held up very well over the years and are usually my best sounding records. Even the jackets and Obi Strips are usually pristine. Whoever bought these records as new probably got them at true audio shops and played them on very good gear back in the day. Of the 40 or so used Japanese pressings I have bought used, only 1 was ever a dog.
So where do I get mine? The Recent Arrivals section at Used Record Shops in my area. They are buying whole collections weekly from people who no longer have a use for them. Every now and then, I find a real high end gem. I also have gotten lucky at Used Record Shows as I attend about 6-7 per year. Got a mint Japanese pressing of the Doors LA Woman last month at a show. Its the thrill of the hunt.
I have never bought a used record off EBAY as I can't inspect them prior to purchasing. |
i like acousticsounds.com
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I like Acoustic Sounds for new pressings and have bought many. But for used original Japanese pressings, I have found them to easily be twice as high as what I have scored at records shops/shows. And again, you can't inspect a used record off the internet.
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I agree I had many! They were destroyed in a house fire so in reality I am rebuilding 30yrs work all over again.I live in the mtns far away from the big city now.lol So online is the only real option for me( the used records stores of which there are two within 2hrs are well lack luster and there vinyl always lets me down with conditon ,although i do make it down to San Fransico occasionally.
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I know this is unpractical advice, but if you can make the trip to Japan, you will be overjoyed and thrilled! As one who is particularly addicted to visiting Japan (I've been there 13 times!), I can highly recommend making the journey. If you are particularly fond of Japanese pressings, that will just add some icing to the cake. My two favorite shops for records in Tokyo are HMV Record Shop in the Shibuya Neighborhood and Discunion Music, which has several locations, but I've had great luck in the Shinjuku branch.
I was there once with my mom, on a vacation, dragging her to a boring record shop. She asked me how she could help. I told her to just browse, and see if she could find anything I may like. She came back 30 minutes later with Prince Purple Rain and Dire Straits Brothers In Arms, both Japanese versions, both in perfect condition. Shot got a gold star for the day!!
If you have not been there, I would add Japan to the list of possible 2 week vacation locations. Tokyo & Kyoto are magical places with outstanding food and culture, and an adventure for the senses. |
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You wouldn't recommend visiting Osaka? I heard it is a funky city, Japanese style.
I buy very few records, almost all original Japanese pressings. I take a risk on ebay, so far only a few records were a little overgraded. In one case the man who sold it to me said to keep the record and refunded what I paid for it including shipping. Shipping from Japan is expensive, about $15 for registered airmail. This is fine with me. |
Inna
I've never done it , thats a few week wait also correct?
As for japan , I have not my parents lived in okanowa in the 50s (Airforce)
I just get so nervous with used lp i have had just one after another be atleast one or two ratings below stated . Not always like I've stated before I am rebuilding what was an extensive lp ,cd collection lost in a fire ( cds just never seem to be replaced anymore) . I just get lp ,which is funny because i went nuts on cd collecting in the early 90s |
Oleschool, regular registered airmail usually takes about 10-14 days from Japan. I never tried economy airmail - this could be weeks. EMS express is usually $20-$25 and takes about 5-7 days in my experience. I don't buy pop music, only jazz and jazz/rock fusion. Often enough Japanese dealers specialize. They may not speak good English but usually understand English well.
I almost stopped buying from Americans, either dealers or not - they always overgrade. No reason for me to buy from Europeans. Bought just a few records from Canadians - was alright except one time. |
One more thing. Japanese original pro records sound better than regular, sometimes significantly better. They can be identified by an inscription in Japanese on the label. Usually sellers mention it but not always. |
Or it will say Promo not for sale and have white/black label. I got a few, what a sound. |
And yet another point, forgot it. There are Japanese early reissues, sometimes same year as originals , that also usually sound excellent but slightly different than the originals. They might be a little more refined but the originals often a little more dynamic. Both quite acceptable, still I almost always prefer the originals. |
Back in the late 70's, I scored a multitude of American jazz on Japanese reissues from Rhino Records in Westwood, California. Lots of French pressings were available there too. If I remember correctly, they were around $13.00 apiece. The vinyl is high quality and really quiet. Alas, Rhino Records has been closed for years. Some of my favorite Japanese reissues are of the Dave Bruebeck Quartet ... all in mono. |
Oregonpapa, all...
I also lived in Westwood, CA, (wife at UCLA, me, working in Hollywood) but in 80's, boy, I loved Rhino Records, and many other places, but, sadly now all just fond memories. Back then it was Thorens 124 turntable and my first introduction to KEF speakers. Good times. Later, I lived close to Princeton, and the Princeton Record Exchange was a haven for used records, including Japanese pressings. Huge collections, great for trade, as always the hunt was exciting; you never knew what gem would pop up. Best, Rob
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For imported pressings totalrecall.de -- Everything is in German there. Google translator does the trick mostly.
Purchased quite a few records from there because prefer German and Holland vinyls:
Stan Getz "Apasionado" holland original 1990
Michael Jackson "Thriller" german press
Pink Floyd "The Wall" and "Animals" both German originals
Marillion -- 5 albums
Barclay James Harvest 5 albums Holland and UK pressings
Yes and Jethro Tull albums on German and Holland pressings.
... I'm their customer since 90's
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I stick to two local dealers in Eugene, Skip's CD World and House of Records. Both have a great selection of preowned and new vinyl and if something goes wrong such as a non-listenable defect, even on used records, they have always stood behind my purchases to find a way to make it right. These businesses continue to succeed as brick and mortars in this sleepy little city because they simply enjoy music and want their customers to be happy and come back for more.
Marketing 101. |
Also, when in Japan there is an excellent stereo store in Akihabara that has a wide selection of Japanese pressings. |
Cz
your speaking my language
tull ,marillion ,yes ,floyd oh ya seen them many times live .. This world is totally fugazi👍 I will check it out |
Ole-Are you asking only about Japanese pressings or pressings made in various parts of the world? And I’m assuming you are talking about older pressings, right? Or new releases as well?
I buy records from all over the world, I’ve gotten UK pressings from the Mid-East, German pressings in the States, and even the odd New Zealand copy of one old, rare Vertigo.
Assuming you know what pressing you are after, you’ve got to work the Net. I’m not just talking about the usual places, like E-Bay, Discogs (through which I’ve gotten more than a few nice records), but, depending on genre, searches that will reveal record shops that may have the odd, the obscure or the highly desirable. Some of these dealers are not necessarily listed on the aggregation platforms. And if you develop a relationship with them through a positive purchase or two, you can often get them to help you track down other things you are after- that alone saves some on the shipping cost.
If it is a valuable record, I’ll pay the tariff for the shipping- in fact, I’ll usually insist on the more expedited, "signed-for" shipping to minimize the amount of time the record is in transit. The UK, France and the Netherlands tend to be more expensive for shipping than Germany, at least in the past 6-12 months. If the UK pound is still down (I haven’t checked in the last couple days), what you pay for in shipping may be offset by the lower price of the record, given the exchange rate.
The problem with high shipping costs, for me, is usually the less collectible, relatively inexpensive stuff that I want from places like the UK. Then, the shipping can exceed the price of the record!
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Thanks . I have always had good luck with japaneese pressing and imports from holland ,germany etc . I stopped in the only record (lp) store within 75 miles of my house it was dismal .the used lps were cruddy with dishwash fluid (guy says " if i told you they might not need to be cleaned i'd be lying ) etc and were priced at 6-10 bks new was half speed 180s ( which have been lack luster for the most part ) or U.S print remaster crap . My music goes from Brubeck to Mayhall to Genesis to Herbie Hancock Zappa to Nora Jones . My mainstay is progressive rock and classic rock .. Thanks for the tips.I am aware that many here have very deep pockets which is great I do just fine but 50-60 for an lp certainly changes my order lol
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I buy only about 10 records a year, sometines fewer, so when I do I don't really care if the record plus shipping costs $30 or $90. I try not to go over $100, so far I was successful. I'd say, it's $50 for a record on average for me. But I chase the highest quality, it's worth it.
German, UK, Dutch pressings are usually okay, I won't pay much for them unless it's a very rare record. |
Ole- for some prog reissues, reach out to Ken Golden who has a company called Laser's Edge (LP and CD). He has vast knowledge of older prog, especially the obscure Italian and German stuff, and can help you source reasonably priced reissues as an alternative. He also knows most of the folks dealing in progressive rock records, old and newer, and is a great resource for information. He is near Philadelphia, so shipping won't be a big deal.
Good luck,
bill hart |
mikirob ...
Did you ever shop at Arron's across from Fairfax High School? Lots of DJ's used to sell their promo copies to that store. For awhile, they had tons of "used" jazz recordings on the Pablo label in the bins. I cleaned up on those at $3.99 a pop. They are among some of my most favorite records in the collection. |
My gold standard is Analogue Productions closely followed by Speakers Corner and ORG. The 45 rpm APOs are something else again. I have their 45s of Ry Cooder and V.M. Bhatt's "A Meeting by the River, Nat King Cole's 1957 "After Midnight" and the RCA Living Stereo's "The Power of the Orchestra" doing Moussorgsky's "Pictures at an Exhibition" and "Night on Bald Mountain". |
Thanks to all im a checkin😁
Hey whart .
I grew up in Baltimore in the 80s in a serious prog crew . Why? Just was , we had some killer selections locally ..I lost a serious ,I mean serious prog collection to a house fire ..
German prog like -
Eloy
Camel
Italian like -
le' orme
Banco
Goblin
english like -
Genesis
van der graff
etc etc
i'm going to look onto this ... |
Hey Johnny I hear the Dire Straits and Fleetwood Mac 45 releases are great |
Hey Johnny I hear the Dire Straits and Fleetwood Mac 45 releases are great That sure wouldn’t surprise me. The Analogue Productions’ 45s’ clarity, smoothness, dynamic range, and in-the-room sensation definitely raises the bar. Even the 1957 recording of "After Midnight" puts Nat King Cole in the room. It's one of my very best records for doing that even thgouh the original recording date was 59 years ago. It turns a stereo system into a virtual reality device and from there to a time machine on these old recordings by long gone artists. |
I am going to order them rumours too |
Yes, Rumours and to a lesser degree S/T are both great sounding reissues. Cheers,
Spencer |
oleschool, please let me commiserate on your lost collection (and house!), here in Malibu I go nuts each time temp in the Valley reaches 100 and I realize that one flick of a cigarette butt by a passing asshole or a "friendly citizen" starting another fire, and thats it for my collection!
If I may, does anyone have enything nice to say about Soviet-era pressings from Melodiya? Thats all I had when growing up, totally hated it for warped records, learned that LPs can be totally and consistently flat only after visiting Poland in late 80-ies and bringing back Jethro Tull, Genesis, DireStraits, PF... Was totally stunned when John Schwarts from Chicago ProMusica mentioned that Melodiya made excellent-sounding records!??!!? John is like God to me, but this one statement goes against all my personal experiences! Maybe he just wanted to make me feel better about my x-citizenship? |
Also, check Art Dudley ramblings in a Stereophile few issues back about a lady from England who sells used LPs making notes how many pops/clicks there is. |
servs- I have a couple of oddball Beatles records made in the Soviet era that sound pretty good. One is an early comp w/ Taste of Honey. It’s probably a 2 dollar bin record. I do have a fair number of Melodiya classical records that I acquired over the years, and never thought they were outstanding, but it's been quite a few years since I listened to any of them. Some interesting music, early modern piano, e.g. Scriabin, was recorded in Russia, and while interpreted by others, some of the better renditions are only on old Soviet records. (I have yet to bite the bullet on those). What is interesting is that some of the uber records- Vertigos, obscure prog records, etc. got scooped up by wealthy or smart collectors in Russia, and they became market makers for those records. |
Hmmm
I dont think I ever had any Russian pressing.Well there ya go i thought i had 4 of everything lol...The part the sucked most about losing my collection in the fire besides the obvious,is that you have to go back and
A) find it...some being sooo pricey now
B) Buy the same dam lp you heard a million times and had 4-5 pressings of .
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Here is the link to Art Dudley article about spiralclassics.co.uk : http://www.stereophile.com/content/listening-160#VzYbU35pzuhwdsqi.97the very idea of counting pops and clicks is new to me, but for those who already know what to expect from the specific LP in terms of surface noise and mastering quality, such info is a must, I guess... I left all my LP collection back in Ukraine, and I agree that the pain of choosing which albums should be replaced can be numbed only by buying and restocking 'em all!! ;-) |
