Quick Tips for Shopping on Discogs

I'll always go to my local record shop first. If I can't find what I'm looking for there I'll check Discogs. Discogs can be a bit difficult to navigate if you're not familiar with it. Hopefully some of these tips will help.

Written & Produced by Rick Coste

[patricksbennett]

Even if you get a 40 year old warped record, its still nice to have a classic version in your collection. If it's your favorite band from your childhood, then I think that's worth to have a vintage copy.

[PataPoufFrance]

Totally agree with you on all points 😎

[neilfisher]

Thanks for the advice. I haven't bought anything through Discogs yet, but I have looked for a few things on there. I have been trying to find a copy of Scorpions Unplugged live in Athens. It's hard to find, so I may give this a shot.

[airgunnersc]

Your video was very informative, Thanks

[edwardosborne]

Mint or near mint is always the best but occasionally some of the rarer records I will go down to VG + I have made the mistake of buying VG. Look forward to the next video.

[mat.b.]

I see no problem buying from someone with 100% and low count - In your example the user has 22 sales...is that low? Compared to a store, sure, but as a person? It means he went through the process of listing, shipping, and getting the stamp of approval a whole bunch of times without issue That sounds good to me, and I trust an individual seller who is consistent to put more care into not screwing up than a store with 5000 reviews because they just ship stuff all day.

[verndebes]

Personally I find buying from discogs a horrible event! Nothing wrong with most of the sellers! The trouble lays with the app itself, almost every time I get to the point to pay all hell breaks lose! It is almost impossible to pay with PayPal and no matter what questions you have with discogs they never answer and at 75 years old I lose my cool rather quickly and that adds to the problem so I give up and go back to eBay and local sellers!

[leon]

This method would never work for me. When I shop, I want to find specific pressings, not just any pressing of an album. I much prefer to look for the right one first and then look at the copies for sale of that pressing alone.

[Mason.]

Just the video I was looking for 🙏🏼
I’m a complete noob lol

[koont]

All over it like a rash, but always check other scorces, because now and then you can pickup tunes at a fraction of the discogs price too many greedy new sellers, but read the sellers description and rating because some sellers are very fussy which is good for the buyer, I've bought at VG but couldn't have been a VG+ or EX depending on how the seller is paranoid about a downgrading, so they are extra cautious, good news for us buyers, it's minefield, so yes a good tutorial which could go deeper but I suppose you wouldn't give away all our tricks 😂on my second account ( first one had a couple of negatives) because of inpatient sellers and I was new to the site in 2017 which is not the easiest for a newcomer, but I've set up a new one with nearly 500 positive (100%) out of 900 because people are lazy and don't leave buyer feedback all the time, nearly 50 %in my case, but I always leave good feedback, if I have a problem I Inbox them and sort it before marking down It works and I've had some good deals because I did this, remember they need the buyers so we have the bull by the horn, in a nice way, 😁🇬🇧🍀👍🏼

[carolecavallaro]

When you purchase from discogs, do you pay with a regular CC? I notice a lot of sellers want PayPal, and I don't want to go that route. Any advice???

[elcroz]

Hi Rick, I came across you on YouTube and really enjoy your content.
I am a reasonably new collector (male, early forties, makes sense!)

I have a quick question and potentially something that could be covered in one of your shows?

Case example, if I went to buy a brand new copy of Queens Greatest Hits it would be a double LP.
Yesterday I bought a second hand 1980’s pressing and the album fits on to a single record.

The new double album has say 3 or 4 songs on each side, which is not a long play before having to flip the record.

The 80s version is more convenient in terms of you get more songs before having to flip the record from side A to side B.
My question is, does having less songs on the side of a record make it better quality? Or is it a marketing scam?

Is the 80s pressing arguably worse quality because more songs are compressed onto a single side?
I can’t find a definitive answer. Although I think I have just answered my own question ‘compression’. However I would be interested to hear your thoughts. What would you buy given the choice? Queens Greatest Hits as a double LP or as a single LP?

I have bought a couple of albums recently (White Stripes - Elephant and Oasis - Definitely Maybe) which are both double LP and, in my opinion at least, both could easily fit on to a single record.
Thank you in advance and good luck with your shows. Long may they continue.

[delta]

Is there a grading if a record how much static it produce when played?

[delta]

Any recommended reputable seller from Discogs?

[NoEggu]

I have never used discogs.

Are their rating based strictly on visual aesthetics? Are there any ratings on sound quality?

I am asking, because I buy records strictly for getting the best sound quality. If the record has so-so sound quality, I see no reason to take the extra effort if cleaning, mounting, not being able to conveniently skip songs, unmounting, sleeving, unsleeving, when I could easily play a decent sounding digital copy (by the way, I seek out the best digital copies, too).

Also:
A record could be mint in appearance, and yet sound lifeless.
A record could be scuffed, and have outstanding sound quality.

Sealed records, no matter how meticulously kept, can sound bad. Some records simply sound bad, even if you were handed one directly from the pressing machine.

What, if any, part of Discogs helps a buyer determine the sound quality of a pressing?

I have mostly purchased my records from eBay, and it would simply be a roll of the dice. Once in a while, one of my purchases sound fantastic -- and usually for only one of the two sides (rarely will both sides sound fantastic). I end up purchasing multiple copies of the same album, crossing my fingers that eventually one will sound great, and it rarely pays off. And with today's much higher prices, I cannot afford continuing this practice.