Reliability of Discogs sellers?

Discussion in 'Marketplace Discussions' started by Samson7, Jun 8, 2017.

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  1. I always do.
    One time I bought a CD set from Musicstack, paid through paypal.
    It was a double Dylan set, cost me about 40 USD, just over half of that was shipping
    and the item came, this "like new" item,
    with the back cover completely trashed, inside and outside, bent, torn, worn out;
    they said at paypal that they sided with me;
    I just had to ship it back to England; it would have cost me over half just to send it. I ate the money, so to speak.
    Paypal offers little protection in reality. They suck.
    the only way to be safe is sadly buying from Amazon
    and avoiding doing any real collecting.
    not much of a choice there, really.
     
    dpg3 likes this.
  2. E.Baba

    E.Baba Forum Resident

    lack of photos of actual item is a long standing problem there.

    I really can do without having to enter into an extended discussion just to work out if they know what they're talking about when I could check in a sec with a photo.

    There's no returning anything from here with the postage prices applicable. Tried it a couple of times and they usually disappeared.
     
    patient_ot likes this.
  3. Raynie

    Raynie Hyperactive!

    Location:
    Snortland, Oregano
    Discogs is where people sell **** records. They do so because they can overgrade them and charge more for what they'd get on eBay. The converse is true also, that if seller has nice records, they are competing against junk records overgraded and priced a bit lower than that grade. So it's impossible to sell nice records there without dropping price, so people don't.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 25, 2017
    dpg3 and patient_ot like this.
  4. klockwerk

    klockwerk Forum Resident

    Location:
    Ohio USA
    I have had good luck with Discogs. I've made maybe 20 purchases and the worst thing that happened is the seller was very slow after I payed them. 98% of the transactions went very well. I do believe the horror stories above, but it hasn't happened yet to me. I would not buy something really expensive through them. Use Paypal and only pay the seller after you are invoiced through Discogs.
     
  5. GentleSenator

    GentleSenator what if

    Location:
    Aloha, OR
    sorry to hear about that. my experience with paypal disputes have always been positive. it may not be reasonable to expect shipping costs, especially international, to be "free" but it sounds like you've pretty much made up your mind that they "suck" based on that one issue.
     
  6. nolazep

    nolazep Burrito Enthusiast

    With Discogs it pays to take the due diligence to contact the seller to verify some information (or even request pictures), especially from overseas. I've bought stuff from Germany, France, the UK, even Russia off Discogs with no problems.
     
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  7. eddiel

    eddiel Senior Member

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    Paypal now covers return shipping. If this was a recent transaction I'd check the transaction details on Paypal as you should see an option to claim return shipping. I think they cover up to $30 per shipment. There might be a limit on how many times you can claim in a year but they might have removed that.
     
    Dave and Matt Starr like this.
  8. colby2415

    colby2415 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    On discogs I have had pretty good luck except for my latest order. Ordered a copy of "photograph" by ringo starr (single with the picture sleeve) advertised in NM condition. It is in NM condition, except for the fact that it skips halfway through. I just contacted the seller about it in hopes they co-operate. Will update if anyone is curious.
     
  9. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    I'm getting pretty disillusioned with Discogs. Everybody checks their LPs only with the naked eye on flattering light and advertises them as being NM. I check them with a bright white light and see *tons* of damage.

    It can get extremely frustrating. I've spent a crazy amount on shipping and end up eating the cost of it on items that are grossly misgraded. I will have to start leaving negative feedback. Getting real sick of greedy sellers.
     
    dpg3 and Raynie like this.
  10. mwheelerk

    mwheelerk Sorry, I can't talk now, I'm listening to music...

    Location:
    Gilbert Arizona
    I've made maybe 30 purchases (CDs) from Discogs and I have received the expected version I wanted. It's not a large sample size but I've had no problems to date.
     
    Dave likes this.
  11. Raynie

    Raynie Hyperactive!

    Location:
    Snortland, Oregano
    I see three general types of sellers. The first are guys who work in stores who walk away with the best, having access to really nice records for cheap. Those are one in several hundred. Then there are collectors selling things they've later upgraded or are just getting rid of. Either of those types are pretty reliable. Last are your flippers who comprise 90% of the market; they buy appropriately priced records and then overgrade for 30-50% profit. I see these guys constantly in stores with their phones, not looking up critical reviews on Joan Baez records.

    It's impossible to tell who is who on discogs because you can't see what you're buying. Also, bad feedback is rare, it gets removed automatically on returns and discogs removes it on request.

    I sell records on eBay for at least twice the amount of money I can get on discogs, because people see how good my records are. I don't even bother listing on discogs anymore.
     
    Last edited: Jun 25, 2017
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  12. socorro

    socorro Forum Resident

    Location:
    pennsylvania
    Not having photos of the item for sale is a big turn off. I've learned the hard way always ask for photos. A few times, I thought I got a bargain on a rare variation (based on the description and photos), only to receive a bog-standard version.

    This problem is at its worst when multiple sellers offer an item, and all of them recycle the same pictures and description of the rare variation I really want. Maybe one of them has the genuine article but trying to keep track of which pictures correspond to which listing is a hassle.

    On balance, if you're willing to put up with more transactional friction, you can get good results.

    I've had a few duds, but my experience has basically been positive.
     
    Dave likes this.
  13. jimbutsu

    jimbutsu WATCH YÖUR STEPPE

    It's a mixed bag. I bought something a while back that was supposed to be like new and was clearly not as mint as advertised, but over the weekend I received one of my grails for a price I was all too happy to pay vs. the risk of disappointment, and if anything, the seller understated the quality of the disc and the sleeve, so I was over the moon. Just be careful, stick to reputable sellers with a history, and it evens out at the very least.
     
    Myke likes this.
  14. spencer1812

    spencer1812 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Fullerton, CA
    I'm about to move my Amazon Store over to Discogs...

    Amazon unlisted most of the items I had for sale this afternoon. I'll let you know how that works out.

    I'll keep the really cool stuff right here though.
     
  15. jon9091

    jon9091 Master Of Reality

    Location:
    Midwest
    Well, I like Discogs because they are required to use Discogs grading system, which is the Goldmine grading system. eBay sellers continually create their own grading system, and some of these are comedy gold. You have to read the feedback on Discogs seller, and very importantly, who is that feedback coming from. Someone with a perfect 500 rating leaving a good review carries a lot of weight. Once I have great experience with a seller, I will add them to my friends list....and then I shop their records every week or so. It's worked out quite well for me. Yes, I've had a few disputes. I've won every won (thanks to PayPal), but the good far outweighs the bad. Also, negative feedback will only get removed if you veer off into personal attacks. If you stay strictly to the details of why the record was over graded....the bad feedback will stick.
     
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  16. slop101

    slop101 Guitar Geek

    Location:
    So. Cal.
    Instead of making a new thread, I guess I'll ask here. I just bought a fairly expensive LP from Germany through Discogs. It arrived damage (water seeped in from the corner - sleeve still wet, falling apart, with water stains on the LP). Obviously this was the carrier's fault - but what carrier? It came from Germany all the way to LA - it went through multiple carriers, and my post office said they can't do anything about it.
    But it's also the fault of the seller who packaged it poorly, unsealed at the edges in thin cardboard, allowing the water to get into the sleeve and the record.

    I guess I'm the one that's screwed here, huh?
     
  17. colby2415

    colby2415 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    I mean, if it was me I would contact the seller. If they aren't co-operating and you paid with paypal, you might be able to file a dispute. I never personally had to do this, and i found contacting the seller is usually enough to get a full or partial refund. Haven't had any horror stories like this yet, but I always worry when ordering from overseas.
     
  18. slop101

    slop101 Guitar Geek

    Location:
    So. Cal.
    I did, he just passed the buck, saying he did the best he could and it's the carrier's fault. I don't want to go through the rigamarole of shipping it back all the way to Germany and then not have the dispute work out.
     
  19. colby2415

    colby2415 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    Well fair enough, that definitely sucks though especially if it was something expensive like you said.

    Sorry I couldn't be of more help.
     
  20. Matt Starr

    Matt Starr Forum Troglodyte

    Location:
    Los Angeles, CA
    You may not have to ship it back to him at all and you will likely get a refund if you file a claim through PayPal for an item damaged in shipping. PayPal guidelines dictate that it's his responsibility to get merchandise to you safely. I would do it, especially since he's passing the buck.
     
    GentleSenator likes this.
  21. colby2415

    colby2415 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Canada
    I mean if it was me, I'd try and do everything to get some kinda money back. I am not 100% familiar with how the claims work anyhow.
     
    Matt Starr likes this.
  22. eddiel

    eddiel Senior Member

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    Make a claim through paypal. Paypal will cover the cost of return shipping up to a certain amount. In Canada it's $30. I imagine the US would be similar. But, like Matt Starr said you might not even have to return it. Besides, once you start the claim you can always close it if it turns out returning it, even with Paypal covering some of the cost, is too much.

    It really is up to the seller to ensure it arrives in the condition he sent it and to mitigate against any damage either with packaging or by taking out insurance. Your post office can't do anything because you aren't the sender and you didn't post it. The seller has to file any claims for damage.

    File a claim and see where it goes. You really have nothing to lose by doing so.
     
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  23. slop101

    slop101 Guitar Geek

    Location:
    So. Cal.
    Thanks for the advice guys. And I may have gone through with it, but after a thorough cleaning of the records (it was a 2xLP), they sound perfect. So the only issue is the water damage to the sleeve, which I took a blow-dryer to. It's dried out, but a little tattered.

    So while it's certainly not the "near-mint" record I payed for, the records themselves are outstanding now, and just the outer sleeve is crinkled with some frayed edges (I used my own poly-lined sleeves for the records themselves). Afraid I'm not gonna do much better. Though it would've been cool to get a bit of a discount, as just a bit of extra care in packaging would've prevented all of this.
     
  24. Mirror Image

    Mirror Image 200 Years Of Anton Bruckner

    Location:
    United States
    I have just bought some recordings on Discogs and I’m hoping my experience goes well. Wish me luck guys! If I’m satisfied with my experiences, then I’ll definitely be coming back and buying more.
     
  25. I deleted my Discogs account today and am never shopping on that site again as long as I live, for what they are doing to it now.
     
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