Best way to organize 6000 albums?

When I was single I used to have dancing girls that took care of this drudgery for me. However my current plan of attack is to line a coat closet with shelves, install adequate lighting and then file the LP's alphabetically by the type of music. Since very few LP's are used in one sitting I have never found it necessary to locate them with the rest of the equipment. Having a "to be filed" bin is also a nice touch, with yourself being the only one who does the filing (anyone can pull them out of course). I have never cared for looking at walls of LP's/CD's in the home anyway, due to their repetative shapes, and much prefer to look @ books and art which have a cozy feeling about them. Perhaps I am a bit odd in this sense as I also tuck the electronics out of sight as well, but do draw the line @ in-wall speakers for stereo.

Wait a minute Dekay, didn't you once say that your electronics are in the closet too? I bet them there skeletons feel down right cramped.

I can't imagine 6000 LPs. Wow! When they are arranged on shelves, how wide are they, and how tall?

I think a nice deep wood stained bookcase or shelving system might look pretty nice exposed. I must be watching too much Trading Spaces.

I have about 5000 and they are first separated by genre as Albertporter does, but the genres are limited to Jazz, Rock and Classical, plus a catch-all catagory for those that don't really fit into those catagories, such as Walter Carlos, Tomito, etc. (I find it difficult to distinguish alot of Pop from Rock and visa-versa.) Then everything is alphabetized within each genre. In cases where there are multiple artists (ex. "Peterson and Pass"), I simply use the first one listed (Peterson). In cases where no artist is listed (ex. 'The Three", which is a one-time collaboration of Brown, Sample and Mann), those LPs are found at the beginning, before the "A"s. These exceptions to the rule are few and are easily remembered or reviewed if what one is looking for can't be found in the main catagory.

Also like Albert, I find that cataloging the collection is a waste of time- quicker and much more enjoyable to flip through the records and either come up with what is being searched for or stumbling across something that is appealing at the moment. However, each individual will find a way that works best for them depending on how their brain works to organize things- what works well for one may not work at all for another. (i.e.- I would have a difficult time finding an album by label at Albert's house and he probably wouldn't have a clue where to find the Shure test record at my house!)

As far as shelving, I am fortunate to have a utility room in which "bookshelves" were fashioned from 1x12's. (If you send an email, I'll give you the design details.) The utility room keeps everything out of sight. No paint, no stain, just $60 and a couple hours of work. I simply pull out a few albums and sit down to listen.

Good luck with the project-

Regards
Jim

I have always found spines facing out like books a neck
breaking orientation. We prefer to organize LPs the way that
record stores used to, flipping from front to back viewing
the face of the album. We use stacked bins which slide on
rolling hardware anchored to casework screwed to our wall
studs. Less elegant, but very inviting to peruse.

Have to agree that first breaking up by genre is critical, and then for me, alpha by artist name within each genre.