Needles & Grooves

I'm literally in conversation with a Discogs store in Italy right now regarding a purchase that was listed as NM "vinyl never played". It's about VG at best. I asked if they, you know, actually LISTENED to the album before grading it... they did not. They visually graded it, it's clear vinyl. They visually graded clear vinyl which is absolutely impossible to do... sigh...

So we can have our records in between 2 pieces of glass and never play them? No thanks im good.

@DJSJ not so much that as an independent and trusted grading authority. Maybe it can even be a consignment type of thing like COMC.com

I'm surprised this doesn't exist. I am guessing a lack of cost effectiveness and the nature of it being unopenable afterwards, but there's plenty of records sold not to be opened that a Beckett or another grading company could get in on it I guess.

So you can encase your record and never play it again?

I'd argue that none of these grading services are a necessity for collectors. Flippers, maybe, but not collectors.

Listen, you submit a card to service one, you get a 9.0. You submit that same card to service two and get a 8.0. You can even possibly submit the same card again to service one and get a 9.5. What this tells me is that it's all made up and the points don't matter.

"it's all made up and the points don't matter"

-takes huge haul from comically massive joint-

"That's just like... life maaaan..."

-coughs until unconscious-

FUCK THAT SHIT

@Hhabelt I understand it for cards, especially vintage ones because they authenticate the cards. If PSA says your 1920's card is real then it's real as far as other collectors are concerned. But for something like video games? Nah.

Forget the whole encapsulated thing. What I'm saying we need is an authority on record authenticity and more importantly condition. A way that I can be certain an album I buy will be in the condition I require. Very few sellers even follow the current grading metrics and even if they do it's way too subjective. A singular authority for this would be worth paying a premium for.

@bdm105 Authentication is an entirely different discussion, I think.

BUT

*takes Mather's joint*

What even is authentic?

@Tys1 But if Jack is grading on Tuesday and Jenny is grading on Wednesday, isn't it still a bit subjective?

I like me a good return policy.

Of course, but their would be trained company standards. Look, I'm not gonna fund this idea so I don't have all the answers to how it would work. I'm just sayin, I'd happily pay a premium for a rare used album from somebody with trusted grading standards. It's a clear need within the industry that we all complain about, and it's a problem that I feel CAN be fixed.

@Tys1 You're right. Vinyl doesn't cost nearly enough.

@Hhabelt I would say it already costs too much. I keep paying $30 for an album I don't listen to because it's condition is shit. That's a $30 loss. I'd much rather pay $35 and get something I can trust I would enjoy.

I mean we have companies putting out $400 records for people with $30,000 systems, there's a market for this kind of thing. The issue is whether it's big enough probably - a company that verifies authenticity and then has their own Goldmineish system applied consistently could make bank

@Tys1 FIVE DOLLARS?! Yo, the cost of grading is wild.

And the time it takes?

And with it not being entombed, you play it once to check the grade, the grade changes.

Check the return policy.

@Hhabelt are you familiar with COMC? You mail them a box of sports cards and they high-res scan and catalogue them for you for a reasonable fee. Then once it is catalogued they let you put your own price on it. There's a small storage fee for every month that goes by in which it isn't sold.

Once it sells they ship it for you and give you the full amount of the sale, which you can use to buy another card without any fees involved. If you want to cash out and get a paypal deposit though, it'll cost you 20%. You can also pay a significant up charge to get your card graded, or in this case play tested. It's a good way of doing consignment and I think it'd work well for vinyl.