Discogs...

Discussion in 'Marketplace Discussions' started by averica, Jul 15, 2020.

  1. Ctiger2

    Ctiger2 Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    Speaking of discogs I just received a NM or M- LP and VG+ sleeve that should've been graded VG/VG. The vinyl has at least 7 larger scratches along with a multitude of hairlines on it and the sleeve is worn. The seller has over 200 sales with 100% feedback. Thankfully it was a 5$ LP. But still... Grrr
     
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  2. Eric_Generic

    Eric_Generic Enigma

    Location:
    Berkshire
    Yes, I do find most items are over-graded, so I automatically allow for that when I buy. Then I will be pleasantly surprised if they're as good (or better!) than expected.

    EG.
     
    Alex Zabotkin, tmtomh and monte4 like this.
  3. quicksrt

    quicksrt Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    I've only been seller there for almost one month. So I might find negative issues later, but right off the bat I'm consistently getting 3 CD sales per every 2 day period. I know that sales will cool off when my best titles are gone. I'll then go in and lower prices on everything. I can also check to have "make offer" active after this good sales period is over. And I still have a ton of LP stock to load up.

    What I like best is that I feel it's a long term solution to selling off most of my collection. I can imagine that it's going to take a few years to get everything I have that is worth anything up and listed. But once that work is over and done with I can sit back and enjoy the incoming orders without too much work. I think Discogs will be around a long time.

    As a buyer, the "want" list feature is pretty simple and straight forward. But I am wondering if it only works for one exact pressing? Like if one wanted an original Badfinger Straight Up LP on US Apple. Is the potential buy required to go in and click that want check button on each of the pressing plants, like Los Angeles, Jacksonville, and Scranton? There are three different plants for this album and each is an original. So that is a bit of effort for that buyer. This would be needed if they want NM condition, and just want the original early 70s for the given record.

    So my experience is as a seller rather than a buyer. I am grateful that something good has finally come along besides the two big online retail sites.
     
    Last edited: Aug 6, 2020
    E.Baba likes this.
  4. uzn007

    uzn007 Pack Rat

    Location:
    Raleigh, N.C.
    Yes.
     
  5. quicksrt

    quicksrt Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    Then I am surprised that my copy of Wayne Shorter - Speak No Evil (CD, Album, Club, RE, RM) (Blue Note) went for $16.99. Because why would someone have a BMG club version on their want list. Unless they were holding out for a Mint / Mint copy which I claimed mine was. The buyer loved it and left me wonderful feedback for the item and my packing job. This CD is in the $5 - $6 range on ebay. I'm not complaining. They must have just looked at the entire list of this on CD and found one in M condition that was lower priced than the others, and grabbed it.

    I think that Discogs might be a higher-end buyer crowd that will pay more for a quality experience and knowing who the seller is exactly.
     
  6. quicksrt

    quicksrt Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    The make offer button is only available if the seller chooses to include it. I started all my sales without it for now. Later I will open my items up to offers. I see no reason to start with best offers when I am new there with fresh stock.

    The site is actually very easy to navigate and only looks confusing when you first go there. Eaby can look rather complex and messy pages when one first visits it.

    I think you can find things sometimes cheaper on ebay, but not every time. One must look at both sites before deciding on the purchase. Look at condition price, and feedback. Then if both are equal, I would choose a seller location that is closest to you for a faster delivery. If you just simply are not happy with what is available and for what price, or condition, then check back in a week or two. Don't click buy until things look right. One can always put the title on your want list and be notified when the next one appears.

    Like I said it is a buyers market, and no reason to spend a cent until the price and condition is right.
     
    Dave and Eric_Generic like this.
  7. greelywinger

    greelywinger Osmondia

    Location:
    Dayton, Ohio USA
    With sellers I'm dealing with for the first time, 100% positive feedback doesn't mean much to me.
    There is an option to only show the negative or neutral feedback (so you can read them).
    I read through all of these. If it's over a certain number I hesitate.
    Usually over 8-10 negative & 18-20 neutral.

    Darryl
     
  8. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    My main issue is US buyers not reading the Sellers Terms where the shipping fees are clearly listed and naively believing that international shipping will cost a mere couple of dollars more than Media Mail. I wish that were the case! I go through perhaps 1-5 cases like that every month.

    However, I will say it's usually newcomers who make that mistake.
     
    Smith likes this.
  9. quicksrt

    quicksrt Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    You can fill in the fields so that the shipping cost auto-fills in on their invoice to be paid. They don't need to read or understand - as long as they get hit correctly at checkout it's not your problem. Or is it?
     
    E.Baba likes this.
  10. timztunz

    timztunz Audioista

    Location:
    Texas
    I use them a lot, my preferred source for used or OOP actually.
     
  11. andrewskyDE

    andrewskyDE Island Owner

    Location:
    Europe
    I remember adding a yet-to-be-released LP on Discogs (Pink Floyd's Saucerful in mono, RSD reissue) and people complained about what I did.
    So I had to delete the entry again. Usual rule is you can't add a record as long as you don't own it yourself.
    A bit later I saw someone else making an entry for a different yet-to-be-released LP, obviously also not owning a copy at that time, and the guy got no complaints.
    His entry wasn't deleted. Not fair, isn't it?
     
  12. Bradd

    Bradd Now’s The Time

    Location:
    Chester, NJ
    I’ve used them about half a dozen times and been satisfied with the results. However, my first choice tends to be eBay, more out of habit than anything else.
     
  13. timztunz

    timztunz Audioista

    Location:
    Texas
    They are one of the most reliable sellers on Discogs.
     
    E.Baba likes this.
  14. quicksrt

    quicksrt Senior Member

    Location:
    Los Angeles
    How dod you know that the person does not own it? They may have gotten an advance? Maybe they had pictures which is kinda convincing really.
     
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  15. andrewskyDE

    andrewskyDE Island Owner

    Location:
    Europe
    I remember it was Homegrown by Neil Young. Added at the day the LP was just announced. I don't think anybody had a copy at that time.
     
  16. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA
    The biggest problems with Discogs are mostly in the post-purchase part of the transaction.

    Unlike eBay, you don't need to provide shipping costs up-front. This is a drag.
    Checkout/shipping notifications/process is clumsy.
    Discogs does not support with disputes.

    And, as others have noted, not being able to provide pics is another negative.
     
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  17. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    Although most buyers I've had are in the US, cost will vary depending on where they're in the world. In October, Discogs will be unveiling a new addition making it mandatory to choose set prices per country but I do not believe that has been implemented just yet. Unless I can set up immediate shipping fees for 1 record, and making 2xLP albums count as 2 albums, I'll have to continue applying this manually. It would be a terrific time saver if that were automated, however.
     
  18. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    Pics are irrelevant unless you want to see how the jacket is.

    Plenty of eBay auctions where the seller says to message them prior to paying to calculate shipping costs.

    I disagree about the processes for shipping and notification being clumsy. It can be tailored to each user's preferences but far too many users don't bother exploring the options.

    Discogs has no power in disputes over financial matters as PayPal's authority supersedes Discogs' or any other selling platform anyway. They do have a process over mishandled feedback and such.

    My dissatisfaction with Discogs is the lack of, in 2020, a how-to video section for the simplest things for the uninitiated. It would save new users so much trouble and effort yet I still don't see anything like that implemented which is a shame and quite ridiculous, IMHO.
     
    Eric_Generic likes this.
  19. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA

    I do want to see what the jacket looks like, if I'm buying vinyl.

    I generally skip eBay listings without shipping listed, same with Discogs. The difference is that a large fraction of Discogs listings do not provide shipping cost, whereas most eBay listing provide the shipping cost.
     
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  20. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    That hasn't been my experience but then again, there are so many sellers on that platform that it can be difficult to have identical experiences. It's not a huge problem for me whenever I encounter that. A simple email asking how much shipping is takes care of it. Not good if you're looking to jump on something immediately but otherwise, it's OK.
     
  21. eddiel

    eddiel Senior Member

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    You'll be happy soon enough then as they are changing things. In a few months Discogs will enforce a mandatory shipping cost policy. Sellers will have to include their shipping costs and buyer will be invoiced immediately (no waiting for the seller to generate an invoice) and they will be able to pay right away as a result.
     
    E.Baba likes this.
  22. eddiel

    eddiel Senior Member

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    I find that on eBay almost every seller has a shipping cost listed because it's actually quite easy to do that on eBay vs Discogs IMO. eBay appears to be integrated with USPS and Canada Post so I can include shipping details like dimensions and weight and eBay does the rest. It knows your postal code so it can work out the cost for each buyer.

    Discogs is useless in that regard. It's all manual. Even with the upcoming changes the process will be a manual one as far as I can tell. Discogs shipping module isn't sophisticated enough to be as good as the one on eBay.
     
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  23. kwadguy

    kwadguy Senior Member

    Location:
    Cambridge, MA
    Now that I can get behind. Now they just need to add pictures.
     
    uzn007 likes this.
  24. R. Totale

    R. Totale The Voice of Reason

    CDs are all the same, but records sent internationally from the US can swing a few dollars either way depending on destination and a couple ounces of weight. So if you put in a flat price, it's likely either you or the buyer will get screwed for 10% or more. I put in a likely range ($20-25) and suggest international buyers contact me for an exact quote.

    I have no interest in calculating presumed shipping fees for packages I haven't packed up or weighed to go to countries I may never sell to.
     
  25. Strat-Mangler

    Strat-Mangler Personal Survival Daily Record-Breaker

    Location:
    Toronto
    I have no interest in taking pics of all albums I have for sale. So pointless and useless. If I offer a NM jacket, it hasn't been chewed by a rabid dog. If I have a NM LP, it's not in 2 pieces with huge gashes on it.
     
    Smith, cwitt1980 and GentleSenator like this.

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