Tapes as collectibles

Discussion in 'Audio Hardware' started by Justme87, Dec 14, 2020.

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  1. Justme87

    Justme87 Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Belgium
    Hi

    I’m thinking about starting a small collection of official pre-recorded tapes (all limited edition)

    I won’t be playing them since I already have them on vinyl or CD. So i will keep them sealed.

    What’s your opinion about this? I consider myself a completist (only my favorite bands)
    Could sealed tapes be collectibles / even an investment for future generations because they where a very limited run)

    Thx in advance
     
    The Trinity likes this.
  2. RemyM

    RemyM Forum Resident

    I once got a couple of tapes from the drummer of Urban Dance Squad, familiar with you i guess as they did pretty good in Belgium and had Belgium management. Between them were a couple of WEEN tapes which are pretty expensive. I used to work with a band which was on a label that started with mainly cassettes. It's fun collecting them and my old Opel has a cassette player, i do prefer spending my money on vinyl though.
     
    The Trinity, Fruff76 and Justme87 like this.
  3. Uglyversal

    Uglyversal Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sydney
    I am sure tapes -some probably are already- will be sought after like lots of things are when they get old. However to pick the ones that will make you money is going to be hard.

    Most collectors of things do it because they have a genuine interest in what they collect. They might make money on some but they loose on a lot more on others. You might have more luck with some vinyl but even that is hard, generally the ones that are already expensive are the ones worth betting on, the rest are probably very bad as an investment.
     
    TarnishedEars and 12" 45rpm like this.
  4. Justme87

    Justme87 Active Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Belgium
    I would only buy tape version of my all-time fav albums. Or stuff that has never been released on another format.
    I won’t consider it an investment, but it would be nice to know the tapes are not worthless after some decades
     
    The Trinity likes this.
  5. Uglyversal

    Uglyversal Forum Resident

    Location:
    Sydney
    Sorry, I can't give you that assurance, the important thing is that they are valuable to you.
     
    Aftermath, The Trinity, WvL and 2 others like this.
  6. Hagstrom

    Hagstrom Please stop calling them vinyls.

    If the tapes are just going to stay sealed and never be used, I say skip this idea. Life is too short.
     
  7. vinylontubes

    vinylontubes Forum Resident

    Location:
    Katy, TX
    Sure they're collectible. But, I don't really see the point. People collect vinyl too without even owning a turntable. I also don't see the point. But, I don't see the point in collecting stamps either. To each his own.

    As far as being an investment, my thoughts about investments are that there are reasons people pay brokerage firms to hold onto their stock certificates. You could request the actual certificates and put them in a Safe Deposit Box, but then you'd have to send them back to your broker to execute a transaction with them. And people don't often visit their banks offices all that often anymore. Physical objects just aren't good investments unless you have use for them. Even a car collector's drive their cars, at least once. If you're going to invest, there are suitable means that don't require you to hold onto these things. Besides, collectible items require you handle the sales personally otherwise. You'll be luck to half of the value if you sell to a record store. A Stockbroker doesn't take a 50% commission, if they did, they'd go to jail.
     
    Aftermath, jusbe, Justme87 and 2 others like this.
  8. nosliw

    nosliw Delivering parcels throughout Teyvat! Meow~!

    Location:
    Ottawa, ON, Canada
    I wouldn't recommend it. Nobody has the foresight into the future if cassettes will go up in value.

    If you want to invest into something long-term, put your money into low-cost index funds instead.
     
    CDV, SamS, patient_ot and 6 others like this.
  9. Dave S

    Dave S Forum Resident

    My rule of thumb is don't collect anything that is designed to be collectable. Also, collect something you want to collect. If you are a completist of your favourite bands, then you will already have tapes. I remember someone posted their Pet Sounds collection. It was impressive.
     
    CDV, cleandan, majorlance and 5 others like this.
  10. Bingo Bongo

    Bingo Bongo Music gives me Eargasms

    Location:
    Ottawa, Canada
    I'm still trying to sell off my Beanie Babies. Interested?
     
    jusbe, majorlance, Fruff76 and 3 others like this.
  11. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Unless they have something unique on them I wouldn't bother (for investment reasons)
    I paid a pretty penny for a Second Voice 1988 cassette last summer, the album never received a digital/LP release. + I'm a fan.
    And some are just plain cool looking :laugh:
    [​IMG]
    I do however grab them for collection reasons for favorites of mine if I see em cheap :)
     
    CDV, negative1, patient_ot and 4 others like this.
  12. Dave S

    Dave S Forum Resident

    I kinda wished I bought that Men Without Hats tape. It sold quick. Mind you, so did the attacked with a stanley knife Talk Talk Spirit of Eden LP.
     
    negative1 and c-eling like this.
  13. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Freeways EP Dave?
    Some of those language versions are still MIA on cd/digital.
     
    negative1 likes this.
  14. Dave S

    Dave S Forum Resident

    Some still go for silly money, but most lost their value. A clear "designed" collectable.
     
    Bingo Bongo likes this.
  15. Dave S

    Dave S Forum Resident

    I think it was just their standard Rhythm of Youth cassette on Statik. I saw it in a charity shop, so it was only 20p or so. I never see their releases nor anything else on Statik.
     
    c-eling likes this.
  16. dennis1077

    dennis1077 Forum Resident

    I'm amazed at the prices heavy metal cassettes are commanding on eBay. I wish I still had my extensive collection of tapes.
     
  17. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Noticed prices jumping as well.
    I dumped most of mine in the late 90's. I did quite a bit of traveling and with around 200+ they were a pain to carry along :sigh:
     
  18. Cyclone Ranger

    Cyclone Ranger New old stock

    Location:
    Best Coast USA
    Cassettes?? It’s all about wax cylinders now.

    #more-hipster-than-thou
    .
     
    PB Point, showtaper and 2trackmind like this.
  19. Javed Jafri

    Javed Jafri Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toronto
    I have one sealed tape that I know of and that is this reel to reel copy of Love's da capo. I don't buy to keep things sealed but have made an exception with this one, at least at this point. Last week I also discovered that I had a sealed LP copy of Gene Clark's No Other on the questionable label Four Men With Beards and I may leave that one sealed as well because of the label.

    [​IMG]
     
    c-eling likes this.
  20. ANALOGUE OR DEATH

    ANALOGUE OR DEATH Forum Resident

    Location:
    HULL ENGLAND
    Anything can become collectable/valuable in the future.Tricky cove cassettes.It's noticeable that the new releases that are getting a cassette release generally seem to be via small indie labels specialising in the electronic/ambient/drone areas.Whether these bands/artists become collectable in the future is a big risk.Let's face it most of them will have limited success in the 'biz ' and therefore the appeal of their product to a wider audience in future is very uncertain.

    This is not to say of course that if they obtain a cult following and these cassettes are in demand by that following that they may well become collectable/valuable.But it's a crap shoot,as with all media be it vinyl or whatever.

    Another thing to consider with cassettes is that they will never be attractive to your hard-core audiophile.Also,they are susceptible to tape damage quite easily,so require very careful storage if kept for long periods.

    Also if you are buying used vintage cassettes it's very hard to determine the audio quality without actually playing.
     
    c-eling and nosliw like this.
  21. nosliw

    nosliw Delivering parcels throughout Teyvat! Meow~!

    Location:
    Ottawa, ON, Canada
    Or if you come across cassettes that are FUBAR'd, such as the infamous sticky shed syndrome or just plain sticky to the point that it stops working when playing them back on any deck. I own a handful of them that are rendered totally useless in my collection, unfortunately.
     
    cleandan and c-eling like this.
  22. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Which is odd, they were really trying to market them over there. Living In China, I had to import the 12 inch.
     
  23. c-eling

    c-eling They're made of light,We never would have guessed

    Same here Nos, that New Order I can only get to play on my Denon tray load, my other decks it keeps 'stopping'- may be due to the excessive length :yikes: :laugh:
     
    nosliw likes this.
  24. nosliw

    nosliw Delivering parcels throughout Teyvat! Meow~!

    Location:
    Ottawa, ON, Canada
    I own that cassette, too! I played this for a while a long time agi and my copy didn't have that problem. I should give this a play again and see if it's still okay.
     
    c-eling likes this.
  25. DRM

    DRM Forum Resident

    I own over 200 Beatles cassettes from various countries. And cassettes of all of my favorite albums. A small minority have had issues and most were fixed by transplanting into a new cassette shell or replacing the felt pad. The type of cassettes that are the most difficult to fix are the ones where too much music was crammed onto the cassette. They can get stuck and stay that way.

    I'm one of the few people in the world who prefers the sound of analog cassette.

    I once heard that a true collector never sells their collection.
     
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