Audiophile LP's

Victor Feldman also worked as a session guy with the so-called LA rock mafia in the '70s-- he played with Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and also appeared on many Steely Dan albums. 

Back in the day were current sellers offering these truly superior records just trying a ripoff?

Personally, especially in contrast to current day sales and what some record labels are asking for reissues, I don't think so.

Case in point: Better Records

Considering the inherent mechanical wear on the vinyl itself, $100+ for a vinyl recording?  That's too rich for my blood.   Maybe I'm just not into collecting for collecting's sake. I wanna listen to my record purchases not let them sit unopened or played once in hopes of making a profit at some later date. 

IMHO, because of vinyl's resurgence, high demand and probably a bit of opportunistic greed, current day records labels are ripping us off. 

Tom Port of Better Records listens to dozens if not 50 to 100 pressings of an LP.  There may or may not be a hot stamper among them.  However, after 30 years in the business, he is knows which stampers, countries of origin and pressing plants have the potential to be a hot stamper.  Then he cleans and grades the record.  He has a full time staff doing this.  So, his hot stampers maybe expensive, but you generally get the best sounding performance on LP that is available.  If one has to purchase $100s of an LP to find one or two hot stampers, then there is a cost involved.  He dumps the less than hot stampers for sale for $1 to $5, often at a loss.  I've purchased many of his tossed LPs (Jazz reissues or late pressings, Classical issues that are just not exceptional sounding recordings). Although I'm satisfied with them, that doesn't mean I wouldn't prefer the hot stampers he sells.  They do sound amazing on my high end system.

I've had to do the same thing with some of my rare ethnic recordings where I buy every copy available to find a clean and hopefully good sounding copy.  It's expensive and time consuming.  E.g. I'm on my 9th copy of Israel Today on Capitol with Trio Aravah without finding a clean copy.  The CD reissue was made from an LP.   I'm on my 7th copy of Sounds with Marshall & Manne on Capitol, all good sounding but none better than VG condition.  I'd pay $50 for a clean copy.

P.S. The Sounds CD is listed at $67 and $70 on ebay.  Too much.

Analouge Productions does excellent work on all their pressings.