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Best source for valuing vinyl/CDs

docstocker

pfm Member
My brother in law died suddenly recently. He was a great music enthusiast and had a huge and varied collection of vinyl and CDs.
My sister and his children are tasked with the job of collating and selling this collection (and hundreds of books)
Which is the best source for valuing vinyl? He was very keen on jazz especially `Charlie Parker.
NB they live in Maastricht in the NetherlandsJohn
 
Just go on ebay put the info in & look down the left hand side click completed listing & any prices that are green have sold at that price. It will give you a good idea of average value without getting too involved. You don't need an account so not too complicated.

If you sell them as a whole collection to a dealer/collector you will lose on some & gain on others the rough with the smooth as they say.
 
There is no easy or quick way to do it, not least if the collection isn't yours and you have little or no interest, which is presumably the case here, as the collection is up for sale.
Just think how many issues of some jazz LP's, and many others, there must be. To use Discogs, you'd have to accurately identify exactly what the LP was, and assess it's condition.
FleaBay prices are a random collection of what some jammy bar steward paid, what some other daft bar steward paid, and reality.

If a realistic possibility, catalogue everything, including label, year, and some comment about condition, and find a genuine and honest dealer.
 
For any one who is unfamiliar with the value of records and CDs, using Discogs or ebay to figure out prices is pretty hard. There are too many variables and prices can be all over the place. It is also very time consuming and effortful to price and sell each item.

The most sensible option IMO is to find a decent dealer (or collector) who will offer a reasonable sum for the whole bunch.
 
Its a lot of hard work and time consuming but having done so myself, Discogs is the way to go.

Once done it will give you a minimum value, average and maximum value based on sales on the site for each item and automatically the same for the whole collection
 
As Engels says, be sure to look at the average sales values info when checking Discogs, as many of the prices of items for sale are wildly speculative. Then check popsike to get records of actual sales on ebay.
 
You also need to consider the condition & be able to make a judgement on both the sleeve and the record.

Something may have sold for a tenner that is mint or still factory sealed & your copy being used could be worth nothing if it's a bit moth eaten or record scratched.
 
As above, though is it really worth spending days or weeks trying to value each item?

The true value of any product is - what someone else is prepared to pay for it.

If you find a collectable item valued at say £ 500 it may then take you weeks/months trying to sell it for that price.

My condolences for your loss.
 
Alternatively find your nearest record shop that deals in used discs and give them a listing and see what they offer to take the lot
 
I'd echo the other members suggestion to use Discogs. Be sure however to look at the values of what records have actually SOLD for though (click next to where it says 'last sold') - there is some very 'optimistic' pricing.

Checking a specific pressing isn't normally hard as you can search using the catalogue number.

Note that a dealer will give you a fraction of what you'll get on a private sale but it should help you get an idea whether any records are particularly valuable.

As Andrew suggested, https://www.popsike.com/ is also handy as is http://collectorsfrenzy.com/
 
I found it very difficult to value high value items,Discdogs was probably the go to site,but would guess many of the items and the prices asked would mean waiting maybe quite some time for a buyer to come along.

I recently sold a few rare LP's on here,trying to set a fair price for these was a nightmare,but I guess I must have got it right as they all sold quickly and the buyers were happy with what they received.
 


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