Modern vinyl a few queries and observations

That’s what I’ve traditionally done, but did have some in an alcove once which was part of an outer wall, and a few got a bit damp.

The worst thing that happened was when I was renting a flat in the 90’s, had LPs on shelves next to the rear door of the living area where I had my LP12 - a cat came in and decided to use the bottom shelf of 50 LPs as a scratchpad, so there were scratches/gouges on the spines of maybe 30. I was not amused. From memory many were probably more novelty/naff secondhand LPs, but not all :scream_cat:

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@Alley_Cat , I’ve had a few new albums of late that have been below par and it is very frustrating indeed, the worse case being a copy of an Abbey Road remaster of Wings first album, where the disc was badly warped, there was an audible scratch across side 1, and embedded debris in side 2, making it totally unplayable. The second copy had terrible surface noise (post three cleaning passes) and at that point I gave up and returned it.

Likewise, I retain the outer hype sticker and re-sleeve them in a Blake style sleeve. The ones from Packlinq are very reasonably priced, but the new-ish range from ‘Vinyl Storage Solutions’ in Canada look like they could be the very best quality out there - he’s really done a deep dive into the best archive materials and construction techniques. I’ll be ordering from him once my Packlinq pile are used up.

@Mike_S . Re sealable plastic sleeves obviously help keep card outers in great shape, but they also help keeping moisture (as Alley_Cat states) and dust at bay.

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After 30 years of not buying Vinyl, I have come back into the fold and have bought about 110 new albums over the last 6 months. I’ve only sent 3 back, 2 of which were the coloured vinyl for Dylans last album. I have another 2 that are quite warped but playable so overall I’m pretty happy with vinyl and find a lot on heavy vinyl, minimal clicks & pops with good gatefolds etc so don’t buy into the quality of new vinyl is poor.

I’ve been throwing away any outer sticker’s and just replace the inner with a anti-static, I have not bought any outer sleeves as I buy vinyl to just enjoy and don’t care if they get a few marks as they are just for my enjoyment.

However, I do have to carry out some research whenever I do buy new vinyl which I never do with downloads or CD’s so it differently takes a lot more time up but I’m learning all the time.

I was in HMV the other day and could’t believe the amount of people looking at the Vinyl isles while the CD aisles were empty. How long will this last?

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I’ve noticed the same - I think it just goes back to us enjoying browsing through racks of LPs, though my HMV store stuffs far troo many in a rack making this far more difficult.

I just don’t think CDs or downloads lend themselves to browsing as easily as the larger format LPs - cover art is also an appeal for many of us I suspect, I certainly buy certain things on a whim if I like the cover art.

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Some very good advice and observations here. In general I try to avoid the trend for new pressings, particularly heavyweight vinyl as they’re inevitably expensive and whilst there is a lack of surface noise, I have found they sound “flat” and are buggers for static. In any event, they will always get a clean in my RCM to remove any residue from the manufacturing process and put into MOFI sleeves. I tend to purchase from UK-based sellers on Discogs and eBay who take the time to grade accurately and write detailed comments about a given record’s condition. Agree on the comments about shrinkwrap and stickers.

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Make sure there is no PVC in the sleeves… In the past was very common to find PVC sleeves known to be the best… but there are plasticizers inside that can react to heat and UV rays to the point it can seriously damage the records… I learnt it the hard way myself, unfortunately. Since then only polypropilene or polyetilene.

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@Alley_Cat Covers 33 is a good site for poly inners and resealable sleeves. Only thing is the sticky strip is on the flap. I’ve never had a problem with them though

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Thanks for the suggestion, will check out what they have. I have a few purchased albums with adhesive on the flap of the thin cover which I found to be a bit disconcerting but maybe I’m just cackhanded!

I’ve always tended to use Nagaoka inners but the 102 replacements are slightly too long I find. Worth looking around I think.

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I never liked those older PVC sleeves which is probably why most of my LPs either have no cover (remember when they came bare without shrink wrap!) or are still in shrink-wrap, I’ve only recently started thinking the shrink-wrap needs to go - protects the album cover but seems to be implicated in warping. Shrink wrap also prevents you opening gatefold covers to enjoy the lyrics/artwork within.

I always used Nagaoka inners, I still think those are the best but lately the price is a bit too high and I turned to Tonar, not at the same level of the 102 but still a good q/p ratio.
As to the sleeves I nowadays use those in polytene from McDaison. Since last year I changed all of the sleeves to those and they also sell a specific version for gatefolds. Light (90 my) but not so crystal clear as some of the old, nevertheless these are safer then most of my old ones.

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Good point. Any damaged sleeve could have a price sticker over the damage.

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When I can and if the shrink wrap isn’t to tight I leave it on I then store the cardboard outer and the record (in a new anti static inner) together but separated in a poly sleeve this way I don’t have to handle the cover at all when I want to play a record. I have stored them this way for the best part of 10 years and have never had an issues at all with warping.

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I avoid Amazon UK, ordered new copy of film soundtracks - Chinatown, The Ninth Gate and Eyes Wide Shut all came with free scratches and scuff marks! Made an order for for Eyes wide Shut and Kubricks 2001 direct with Mondo Records in the US I am waiting to see the vinyl arrive. Purchased Lee Ritenour music spending £135.00 from Presto Music sent it back and had to pay my own postage without a refund on P&P! more scuff marks and pitting on surface. The only dealer so far found that supplies good/mint pre owned vinyl for me is Interrecords based in Germany.

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In short, yes. I do have plenty of new issues that are good, but far too many have needless faults, mostly related to handling before being packaged I suspect, but some clearly the fault of the packaging. Shrink wrap, yes, cardboard inners, yes, packed before cooling sufficiently? Probably. I also think the fetish for thick gauge heavyweight vinyl contributes significantly to problems. I have so many old records that are wafer thin, but none are warped and I detect no effect either way on sound quality. Like French Rooster, if I want a 70’s or 80’s album, I’ll look for a good original wherever possible. They’ll sound duller and have a few scratches, but mostly will sound more natural. More like the LP’s I grew up with.

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Bit late to the party here but what’s the problem with PVC sleeves?
I’ve got some LP sleeves that must be 40 years old …

Under certain conditions such as higher temperatures they can supposedly affect the vinyl within. Otherwise flip back sleeve can glue themselves to the PVC which means a delicate operation to separate.

I still have loads of PVC covers and gradually I’m replacing them with Blake sleeves. I’m storing the old PVC covers while I decide what to do with them.

Thanks for the quick reply Can’t say I’ve noticed any adverse effects, even on my oldest vinyl.
It’s probably going to make me switch though just to be on the safe side.
How much are 2000 Blake sleeves out of interest?

They’re around £20 per 100. You may be able to get cheaper if you order 2000 up front. However, you’ll need to see how many gatefold LPs you have as they need a slightly bigger size.

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This is what PVC can do to our records… It’s a letal combination between heat, UV rays and the plasticizers in the PVC…

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Just had a look at the Spincare website and they seem to have a range of outer covers available, including polypropylene ones. Presumably, this isn’t PVC?

They also have re-sealable covers and ones for gatefold LPs.