wuzzzer Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 My wife and I went to the local County Fair today for lunch and to see the exciting farm implements and carnies. [] Spotted a garage sale on the way in and my wife wanted to stop on the way home. I reluctantly got out to look since I usually don't like going to garage sales and having to look through other people's garbage. Well, this one may have paid off. I spotted a box of records in the back that had dozens of 45s and several LPs. The 45s were marked 10 cents each and the LPs were marked $1 each. I looked through the LPs first and noticed they had two Boston - Third Stage LPs. One looked to be in better condition by the exterior. I opened it up and it was mint! The inside jacket and everything doesn't even have a crease or wrinkle. I couldn't remove the LP from the jacket which leads me to believe that it had never been played, the inside jacket is sealed. The outside is perfect as well. The other LP I grabbed as Boston's Boston LP. That one had a little wear on the outside jacket but the record itself looks mint. I looked through the 45s and noticed one thing about them - 99% of them were from the mid 1970s and they were all DJ promo 45s that were labeled with things like "Not For Resale" and "For DJ use only". I guess I have to imagine that those would be slightly rarer than the publically-released 45s? Anyway, I right away spotted Aerosmith's "You See Me Crying" 45. I looked through the rest and picked out the oldest one I could find - Johnny Horton's "North to Alaska" and "The Battle of New Orleans". That one is from 1959/1960. The Aerosmith one is from 1975. Neither of them had their original jackets unfortunately. So, how'd I do? Should I bother going back and picking up the rest of the 45s for 10 cents each?? I didn't recognize any of the other 45s with the exception of The Village People. Now I just need to get me a record player! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seti Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 The hardest thing about used vinyl is finding it in good collection. If you like the music and you plan on spinning it I would by more especially at that price. The not for resale doesn't make it that rare but it could have been someone in the radio business that took care of their collection. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 Thanks seti. I didn't think there was anything too rare but I'm not familiar with vinyl at all. The story of the guy from St. Paul who bought a 45 for 25 cents and sold it for over $10,000 on eBay did excite me however! I realized if I get a record player I'm going to have to get something to plug it in to - I don't have a phono input on my Marantz. Would something like this work? http://cgi.ebay.com/Cambridge-Audio-540P-Phono-Stage-Preamplifier_W0QQitemZ140338011241QQcmdZViewItemQQptZLH_DefaultDomain_0?hash=item20accc1c69&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14 I'm assuming the above item is designed to integrate a record player into a system that doesn't have an input for it? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seti Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 Those stories happen every know and then. If you really want a shocker look at what some rare early blues or country 78's go for. It has made me go through 78 stacks I normally would have passed on. Sure that or a NAD PP2 are just fine. Keep alook out in the classified ads and local thrift store for turntables. I just scored a nice Onkyo for $5. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted August 6, 2009 Author Share Posted August 6, 2009 seti, What are your thoughts about finding an old receiver/integrated amp that has a phono input and pre-amp outputs and using that? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
seti Posted August 6, 2009 Share Posted August 6, 2009 I picked up an old NAD integrated and used it for a while. It was ok and only $120 on ebay. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DU73 Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Excellent find wuzzzer. I must admit I’m normally not a garage sale person for the simple fact is that the ones that I have been to they are selling garbage.. But once in a while you just find that something extra. What makes my cup of cocco boil is that these receivers keep coming out with all these new bells and whistles that many of us never use but what many of us really want is a simple phono input… I remember my first vinyl purchase, i was about 10.. divo (you know the whi pit album) OT: Dexter season 3 comes out here in Oz on the 20th August.. so cant wait... so excited... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jtnfoley Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Jump in at audiokarma.org, Turntables forum, for all things black, shiny, and spinning. http://audiokarma.org/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=28 A VERY busy site... The while first page of the forum flushed about every 1.5 days. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheEvan Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 If you'd like a cheap starter, for $43.50 it can't be beat. http://www.phonopreamps.com/index.html Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheEvan Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 PS The Horton is a good find, I think. Don't you just love an album cover? In my son's words: "a CD is so temporary, but vinyl is forever" . Talk about turning the old marketing tag "perfect sound forever" on its ear... Keep looking. Maybe next time you'll score some good music.[] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
garymd Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 A word of advice from someone who was in your shoes not too many years ago. Don't buy LPs just because they're in good shape. I've probably given away or sold over 2,000 LPs I either bought at thrift shops or yard sales that I thought were good purchases at the time. Don't get me wrong. I also have just as many that I will never let go and I'm not necessarily saying you made a bad purchase. Quite the contrary. I'm just saying if I had to do it all over again, I'd be a little more picky and only buy LPs I'd play more than once. JMHO FWIW. Also, if you don't have one already, get a good record cleaner if you plan to buy a lot of yard sale albums!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Also, if you don't have one already, get a good record cleaner if you plan to buy a lot of yard sale albums!! Good point! I've run a few used LPs under the tap and seen actual brown soil run off them and be visible on the cloth I'm drying them with. Those dirty records took a few more tries to get really clean, but they did finally clean up properly, before they got anywhere near my stylus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wuzzzer Posted August 7, 2009 Author Share Posted August 7, 2009 Thanks guys! It was fun looking through them. I'm a big Boston fan so I definitely bought those to listen to if I ever get the phono stage and turntable. Well, I'll probably never listen to the Third Stage LP since its brand new. I bought the Aerosmith 45 because I'm also a huge Aerosmith fan, plus the record came out in 1975 which was the year I was born. I bought the Johnny Horton 45 because it was the oldest of the bunch and I thought being the DJ copy it might be worth a few bucks at least. The records were all really dusty so I was wondering how to clean them when the time comes to play them. If I have a microfiber cloth and cleaning solution for my HDTV screen. Will that work or what exactly is a record cleaner? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLSamuel Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Thanks seti. I didn't think there was anything too rare but I'm not familiar with vinyl at all. The story of the guy from St. Paul who bought a 45 for 25 cents and sold it for over $10,000 on eBay did excite me however! I do have a Ritchie Valens 45 of La Bamba that I think my brother and I acquired along with a record player Mom and Dad bought for us from a cousin - she had just bought her first stereo from her boyfriend's father for $70.. I think it might have had a couple of tubes in it or at least had an older really beat up record player with functional AM radio we played in the hay loft while shooting hoops that Mom claimed she could hear from the corner about 3/8 of a mile away.... "you need to turn that down ..." From well back in the days when AM radios actually sounded good. The AM sections of even very pricey receivers are often a junky afterthought compared to the old radios or old AM car radios. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BLSamuel Posted August 7, 2009 Share Posted August 7, 2009 Wuzzer, At 10 cents a pop some of the 45s in good condition might be kind of fun or maybe even really good. I'm guessing promo copies, most of which are from total unknowns. If the LPs are minty it sounds like a DJ who probably took pretty good care of the vinyl. I've found some really good stuff for $1 on LP and CD. Nice score on the Boston!. I think there's a cleaning thread in 2 Channel audio and a recent few posts in Right This Minute in 2 Channel as well. Good luck and have fun.... but be forewarned, Dennie in Right This Minute has labeled his vinyl addiciton "Black Heroin" I can stop anytime, really, I can, ... Many swear by the Perfection Steamer that Walgreen sells or did sell for $30 along with microfiber cloths. PMSummer also posted a link for a nice carbon fiber brush for like $10 from sleevetown which is also a good source for inexpensive album sleeves, and I think the Mobile Fidelity too if you want what many consider the best sleeves Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Islander Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 I'm a big Boston fan so I definitely bought those to listen to if I ever get the phono stage and turntable. Well, I'll probably never listen to the Third Stage LP since its brand new. Records are more fun to listen to than to look at. Just my opinion... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DU73 Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 i enjoy vinyl 'cause it brings it back to where it all started,, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dennie Posted August 8, 2009 Share Posted August 8, 2009 I'm a big Boston fan so I definitely bought those to listen to if I ever get the phono stage and turntable. Well, I'll probably never listen to the Third Stage LP since its brand new. Records are more fun to listen to than to look at. Just my opinion... I completely agree! If it is already opened, then play away. If it is sealed, that may be a different story. Sealed records can hold greater value IF it is an album someone is looking for. But, it may have more worth to you for listening pleasure. Great find on the records. I stay away from 45's, because I do not have a record changer and I am not getting up every 4 minutes to change records. I do have a box of 45's that I have not looked at in a few years, but they will probably just stay in the box. Dennie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
colterphoto1 Posted August 9, 2009 Share Posted August 9, 2009 you got ripped off on those Boston records Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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