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Vinyl record grading

Hi

I’ve recently acquired several 50’s jazz records in below-average condition. I’m not interested in keeping them, because my jazz tastes are from mainly 70’s and up and my collection is mainly VG+ to M-

The record labels are also desirable such as Atlantic, Verve, Prestige and Fantasy.

After cleaning with ultrasonic machine (hand-made by me) they sounded as if they would grade at least VG being visually graded not more than G+. Even those that grade as G play great with very minimal surface noise.

Would you price it to the sound-testing or visual testing?

czarivey
solypsa's avatar
solypsa
462 posts
 

Grading is about your reputation and buyer expectations. Personally I would rather have ugly records that sound great than pretty ones that sound horrible ( common ). 

tablejockey
3,906 posts
 

50's Jazz labels in good condition? 

Unfortunate, you're not a fan of the  golden era.

Collectors want the complete package. Maybe some music/audio  fans will be more interested in SQ over superficial scuffs.

Prepare to price on low end of Discogs scale.

I have my share of visually questionable LP's that play fine.

 

sns
3,244 posts
 

I too am curious about vinyl values. Seems to me audiophiles would be much more concerned with sound quality vs esthetics. So the question becomes who's purchasing vinyl these days?  Guess I assumed anyone purchasing older jazz recordings would be in audiophile cohort in which case these albums could be graded higher based solely on sound quality. Seems to me rock or popular music in equal condition would be rated lower, assuming non-audiophile market for these.

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