I'm glad I ordered my Szell box from JPC Germany - impeccable service and even better, extremely sturdy packaging. jpc.de: Musik und Filme auf CD, LP, DVD und Blu-ray online kaufen
I’m not that interested. I already own a huge amount of it. For instance I own the Suzuki and Gardiner Cantatas already. It would also sit for years before I opened it. If I saw it for $176, the price I got the Mozart box for, I might buy it. The Mozart box is still unopened.
Are these even approaching mega-set size? Are there any jazz sets that top 20-CDs? I have a few 16-20 CD and LP sets, but that's it. I think classical music has jazz beat as far as volume goes. EDIT - I'd say Duke Ellington might be the winner:
There were a few ‘label’ box sets that came out (OJC, Impulse are the ones I seem to remember). However, they don’t seem to have stuck like classical sets. There was the Miles Davis Complete Columbia collection, of course. The one I like best and still go back to quite a bit is the Jazz on Disques Vogue (35 CD) set. Not sure how available it is now.
"The World's Greatest Jazz Collection" coming in at 500 CDs https://www.amazon.com/Worlds-Greatest-Jazz-Collection-Encyclopedia/dp/B001G8P3KW
This is what I wrote in the dedicated Bach 333 thread: They actually paid for shipping. I put in a lot more bubble wrap so it would not be damaged on the way back (I had the same seam split plus the base was deformed).
I had a similar problem with Amazon.de I had to pay for the return shipping (over $100) but Amazon reimbursed me for that upon showing them a receipt. I complained and they also credited me back for most of the original shipping charge as well And they sent a replacement which somehow arrived undamaged. It was a hassle and took a while to complete everything although using Chrome made it easier for the translation it provides. At this point, having ordered many large box sets, I would tend not to order from Amazon Europe any large box sets unless the price is so good that I don't mind a damaged box. The return hassle is - a hassle. However, if you are saving 30% or so - as I did - then the hassle may be worth it. For large box sets now, I am sticking with Amazon.com where returns are no charge and no hassle; or Presto Classical or jpc.de where they know how to package and appreciate their customers. I have not ordered the Bach box but I do have the Mozart box. If that had come with any damage to the box, I would have gone through the hassle of getting a replacement and getting some credit back for shipping. However, there is no guarantee the replacement won't be damaged as well of course. I have decided that for some boxes, if there is minor damage, a slightly pushed in corner which seems common, that I can accept it if the price is good. I got the recent Piatigorsky set from Amazon.fr for $48 or so with shipping. So, I was willing to accept that with a slightly pushed in corner because the price was so good.
Literally only yesterday I received the new Art Ensemble Of Chicago boxed set from ECM, which is 21 discs. The problem with big sets in Jazz is that few bands managed to keep one label for a long time so the licensing becomes a headache that just isn't justified by what in most cases is a very small marketplace. Even this Art Ensemble Of Chicago set only contains a small fraction of the albums recorded under that name, offsetting the shortfall by including albums by associated acts.
Coming in February 2019 https://amazon.co.uk/Berlioz-Comple...1541849004&sr=1-3&keywords=box+sets+classical
I think you did an excellent job of describing the situation-detailed, knowledgeable and the right tone. These sellers should take the time to educate themselves on proper shipping method and especially resolve to keep the full extent of the double layered package intact.
I admire your patience. I will not except damage. Perhaps some of these sellers could post an announcement-“ Our prices are low because we use the absolute cheapest, flimsiest shipping packaging”. My solution is to buy from sellers with exemplary shipping practices and look at price as a secondary consideration.
I certainly do not want the thread to include jazz boxes, but I think comparisons between classical mega-sets and other mega-sets (jazz or even popular music) might be close enough in subject matter. For example, I've noticed - through either label acquisition or label sharing - classical music sets have more to draw upon. The jazz equivalent to some of the classical sets I see would be a Miles Davis complete Prestige-Columbia recordings box or a John Coltrane Prestige-Atlantic-Impulse set.
We're at 254 pages ... I don't think that jazz boxed sets should be a forbidden subject here (after all, there's a fine line between some jazz and some classical) but it would be false advertising indeed to try to entice jazz fans with a new thread title!
Posts that are clearly off-topic are cluttering up the thread, which makes it even more opaque than it already is with all those shipping/packaging posts. But if the thread starter is OK with that, who am I to say something about it...
I am considering this box but read that total playing time is just over 900 minutes, and that the 32 cd's are in jewel cases. Can anyone confirm whether this is accurate. Thanks!
I don't have this but it would seem that if it had 32 cds in jewel cases, the box would much wider that what the picture shows.
The opening thread post said nothing about rigid distinction in styles of music to be allowable for discussion. He actually seemed to be interested in the favorites and must-haves of a group of people he calls "classical fans". At any rate, sometimes an argument that a group of composers, such as The Art Ensemble of Chicago, is NOT "classical" while some other group of late 20th century composers IS classical seems just downright trivial.