For those vinyl users, what online vendors do you use and trust? This would be for mostly new releases, I've got a few places around here that have bargain used bins but mostly the older stuff. 

It has been a few years since I purchased any wax, but when I did, I got some from new stuff from acoustic sounds and ttvj


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Bandcamp (so basically directly from the musicians)

I've also seen records in Books-A-Million, Barns & Noble, and Guitar Center.

Last one I got was that Animals 180G 2016 remaster I mentioned recently.

Isn't the point of vinyl nostalgia to reconnect with the old way of doing things? Laurie's Planet of Sound is 2 blocks from Garcia's ...

http://chicagoist.com/2014/08/20/the_best_record_stores_in_chicago.php

 

for me vinyl's not about nostalgia, but about slowing down.  I don't want to slow down my shopping experience, I want to slow down my listening experience. 

Yeah, not sure why you threw that word, 'nostalgia', in there, didn't seem like what the original post was about.

A - I was giving Ryan a hard time in a friendly way (hence the suggestion to go to the store 2 blocks from one of his favorite restaurants). B - call it what you will, but for me, vinyl is about experiencing music in a way that has been lost with digital and streaming. Slowing down listening is certainly one part of it, but so is being able to dig through record bins, talking to people at record stores, holding a large physical object with real cover art, etc.

I miss spending hours in record stores.

I totally agree that flipping through record bins and checking out what other fans are buying is very satisfying. I always wished that someone like Amoeba had an attached coffee house.

I'm blessed with a wealth of local sources so most of the time I "buy local".

And even though I've been known to say that I refuse to buy albums from someone who has less than 3 visible body piercings, I have bought from Acoustic Sounds and Music Direct. I also buy from Bleep and Third Man Records every once in a while.

For the most part, all these guys are great at packing and shipping their records so IMHO, that's a non factor.

It is fun to browse local stores for used stuff, but in my experience, other than the chain stores mentioned already above by Peter, not much in a way of "new releases" found in the shelves of local record stores.

 

Like I said, I'm lucky.

http://www.theanalogroom.net/

That's where I buy most of my new stuff. 

I have to watch my pennies so it's great to be able to ask the guys who hang out there what the "must haves" are. Most of the time, there's something playing on one of their systems that makes it onto the list.

the various curated lp of the month clubs I was part of were interesting, but I stopped them because I couldn't keep up.  Even 1 new record a month is often too much.  But now I have a LOT of stuff to listen to now that I'm mostly living on my own in a strange town

Amazon.com

Local record shops are great for you old fucks, but for we whippersnappers looking for nostalgia, it's hundreds and hundreds of dollars (just ask @postjack,) or reissues. Going through bins is basically pointless for me, as the stuff we wanted was limited on vinyl, if at all, and mostly on CD/cassette.

At least we can get some Colin Approved music at your door by the time you get home on Tuesday.

**BRENT**

 

7 hours ago, grawk said:

for me vinyl's not about nostalgia, but about slowing down.  I don't want to slow down my shopping experience, I want to slow down my listening experience. 

This basically captures where I am at with this whole vinyl journey that is about to start.  It's less about nostalgia and it's definitely not about audiophile-ishness or sound quality, but more the listening process and experience.

With that said, today I was able to get away from the house a bit to check out a record store in downtown wheaton which is a very close suburb to where we are currently at.  Wheaton/Glen Ellyn is a more affluent suburb generally speaking and the prices this place was charging for their new stuff was reflective of that lol.  Even their used "vintage" stuff was somewhat outrageous, but I was able to score clean used copies of McCartney/Wings Speed of sound, Ringo's debut solo album, and Steely Dan's Gaucho for a few bucks.  Was able to check out quality on their listening station and make sure things weren't all warped or beat up, and they were super clean and quiet, but a few others I pulled were terrible lol.  I will say I did enjoy this process but it's something that I normally do not have the time or energy to do consistently.

I ended up going on soundstagedirect online and got me some new radiohead vinyl, moon shaped pool and Kid A (both were $10-$15 more expensive at the store, ouch) and a coldplay album for the wife (yeah I know).  

tl;dr I bought some vinyl!

 

Get a good record cleaner -- you'll be surprised how much a noisy record can clean up.

True  a decent record brush should do the trick, no?

8 hours ago, dsavitsk said:

Isn't the point of vinyl nostalgia to reconnect with the old way of doing things? Laurie's Planet of Sound is 2 blocks from Garcia's ...

http://chicagoist.com/2014/08/20/the_best_record_stores_in_chicago.php

 

Bookmarked! All those places look and sound great, I've been to Reckless before but that was a while ago.  And yes Garcias.

2 hours ago, recstar24 said:

True  a decent record brush should do the trick, no?

Er, no, ...I mean, you don't need to invest in a $700 VPI record cleaner, but at least get the cheap equivalent, I forget what it's called.  Doctor something?

2 hours ago, Dusty Chalk said:

Er, no, ...I mean, you don't need to invest in a $700 VPI record cleaner, but at least get the cheap equivalent, I forget what it's called.  Doctor something?

Disc Doctor record cleaner system. Their brushes are very good, the fluid can be easily and cheaply made.

14 hours ago, MexicanDragon said:

but for we whippersnappers looking for nostalgia, 

The only thing whippersnapper about you, is the fact that you still need training wheels on your bicycle!

And so it begins...from my wife's grandma's attic, RIP

I mostly buy NM vinyl from the 60s, but I also mostly listen to jazz.  Discogs is great.  I clean records by hand. You can get great results,  once you get the hang of it, though it's slow and messy.  You basically just have to do it once, though.

Edited January 10, 20179 yr by EdipisReks1

I've been using the record doctor 2, cheapest cleaner with vacuum. The vacuum makes a big difference.

8 hours ago, robm321 said:

I've been using the record doctor 2, cheapest cleaner with vacuum. The vacuum makes a big difference.

Yeah, that's probably it.

Ah technology. I remember cleaning records in the kitchen sink.

Anyone familiar with this, or cleaners that are similar?

https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B002UKSZUU/ref=mp_s_a_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1484451252&sr=8-4&pi=AC_SX236_SY340_QL65&keywords=record+cleaner&dpPl=1&dpID=51tIhDTsASL&ref=plSrch