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What to do with CDs?

I would say keep them. I still buy cds quite often. They can usually be had for less than $1( at least here in the U.S) .Or maybe donate them to a local library?
 
Milspec1 said:
Or maybe donate them to a local library?
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My OH worked for a public library in London for a while. Most donations go straight onto the Sale trolley for 10p because they don't have shelf space.

Though I believe some specialist libraries like the music library in the Barbican are happy to receive jewel cases to replace damaged cases in their stock.
 
What to do with a couple of thousand CDs?

I think the answer is determined by whether you are keeping the CDs for your own playback insurance - in the event that the (present) economy of streaming disappears - or whether you are intent on creating some sort of financial investment for the future.

If just for yourself, you will be shocked at how many CD discs - together with album art - you can store without the jewel case.

I know I was!

The trick - no big surprise - is making an effort to find a box exactly the right size. Then completely flatten all the album art.

If you make the effort to alphabetically sort them, it all actually comes together quite nicely.

As an aside, I know the original jewel cases can (presently) be seen as highly desirable to some collectors, but I believe that over time, the jewel case issue will evaporate.

For an example, a truly mint DAVID BOWIE | HUNKY DORY vinyl LP with the original album art can presently sell for more than 800 quid, with or without the original LP inner bag.

It's the media and the album art that will continue to be the key points of collectible value, IMHO.
 
My CDs (whittled down to about 2000) have been boxed up for about 5 years, waiting for me to rip them, which isn’t going to happen. I dug a handful out a few weekends ago when I had the house to myself, they sounded better than I remembered. They’ll probably still be in the garage when the kids are clearing the house when we’re gone!

Cheers BB
 
CDs are currently generally worth very little especially as job lots, but as a CD user (and a bit of a collector) I think we are seeing the first glimmer of that changing. In the last 12 months I have noticed when searching for specific CDs that the prices are now starting to nudge upwards. Same at record fairs, all CDs (of which there were few) were a £1.... now there are more CDs and they are individually priced, still cheapish, but not a £1 each any more. It maybe just co-incidence, but we've all lived through the time when vinyl was being slung out by the bucket load and could be had for 50p an album, now look at it... will the same happen to CD... I don't know if it'll ever be in the same league as vinyl price wise, but I do think it will come to a point where some of it will be quite sought after.

So... to the OP... while keeping the jewel cases is the ideal (see Tony's post) I do get that they take up a lot of space and that you may not have that space. If so, I'd dispense with the jewel cases, but keep the discs and artwork carefully stored and see what happens over the next few years.
 
I still listen to CD and don't stream, but I took a large chunk of my collection out of their jewel boxes and into thin plastic sleeves (together with the booklet). These all store in a couple of drawers (probably c1000 in there, when in their cases the capacity was way less than half that). I have stored all the jewel boxes (complete with the cover art) in a couple of sturdy boxes in the loft.
 
Pure_Carbon said:
Still prefer my CDs to my rips, into the same DAC.
No idea why, can't be a placebo because rips are easier than the effort of walking to the rack, then the CD transport, finding the CD remote....
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I found the same, connected a cd player to my Bryston and Chord Qutest Dac's and found the cd was better than the same WAV rip played back on from the Melco. So I traded and sold it all for my current cd player.
 
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I really don't know which of rips or CDs sound better or for that matter how streaming compares, but frankly I don't really care. I get the arguments for ripping and streaming, but personally I like the tangibility/collectibility of vinyl and CD and they both sound good enough to me.
 
tiggers said:
CDs are currently generally worth very little especially as job lots, but as a CD user (and a bit of a collector) I think we are seeing the first glimmer of that changing. In the last 12 months I have noticed when searching for specific CDs that the prices are now starting to nudge upwards. Same at record fairs, all CDs (of which there were few) were a £1.... now there are more CDs and they are individually priced, still cheapish, but not a £1 each any more. It maybe just co-incidence, but we've all lived through the time when vinyl was being slung out by the bucket load and could be had for 50p an album, now look at it... will the same happen to CD... I don't know if it'll ever be in the same league as vinyl price wise, but I do think it will come to a point where some of it will be quite sought after.

So... to the OP... while keeping the jewel cases is the ideal (see Tony's post) I do get that they take up a lot of space and that you may not have that space. If so, I'd dispense with the jewel cases, but keep the discs and artwork carefully stored and see what happens over the next few years.
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I won't speculate about whether there will be a revival of interest in CDs, but for selfish reasons I prefer that it doesn't happen. I like finding cheap CDs that nobody else seems to be interested in; they all prefer to pay a lot of for precious 'vinyls'.
 
hockman said:
I won't speculate about whether there will be a revival of interest in CDs, but for selfish reasons I prefer that it doesn't happen. I like finding cheap CDs that nobody else seems to be interested in; they all prefer to pay a lot of for precious 'vinyls'.
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Yes, I get and see what you're saying... I've been busy snapping up all sorts in the last 5 years such that I've just had to pare down my collection from around 15K to 9K.
 
tiggers said:
Yes, I get and see what you're saying... I've been busy snapping up all sorts in the last 5 years such that I've just had to pare down my collection from around 15K to 9K.
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I have a few hundred CDs and I cant get through them all. How do you listen to so many? Surely you have CDs you've never listened to?
 
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