Counterfeit CDs on Amazon and other sites: has this gotten worse?

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by RubenH, Apr 3, 2021.

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  1. RubenH

    RubenH Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    S.E. United States
    Greetings.

    Twenty-year Amazon customer here. Musical taste all over the place. As far as I can tell, I've never received counterfeit CDs, but in the last 2 weeks have received two classical CDs that were obviously not the real thing. Both were directly from Amazon, not Amazon 3rd-party sellers. It took about 6 seconds after opening the shipping envelope, as the shrinkwrap as well as the printing was obviously of amateurish quality. Another recent purchase from Naxos was also not the real thing.

    My question to the forum here is whether anyone else has experienced a recent increase in fake CDs, and if so, from which online retailers?

    Thank you.
     
  2. The Hud

    The Hud Breath of the Kingdom, Tears of the Wild

    I am kinda nitpicking, but these are "Official CD-Rs", not counterfeit CDs, but either way, they aren't factory pressed CDs, and most of these on Amazon are not labeled as official CD-Rs, so you don't know what you are getting until you get it.

    When they send me a CD-R, I send it back. I am not paying full price for a copy.
     
  3. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    I try to check if the item is a CDR... if so, I don't order it...
     
  4. pool_of_tears

    pool_of_tears Searching For Simplicity

    Location:
    Midwest
    Amen!
     
    Michael likes this.
  5. Chauncy

    Chauncy Well-Known Member

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Be careful, you don't want to be banned by Amazon.
     
  6. Old Fred

    Old Fred Forum Resident

    I quite buying CDs on Amazon.

    I don't have the time nor patience for counterfeits, mis-matched listings, incomplete descriptions, wrong descriptions, etc...

    I buy on Ebay.

    I know exactly what I'm getting.
     
    Last edited: Apr 3, 2021
    E.Baba, aravel, ClassicalCD and 3 others like this.
  7. I am kinda nitpicking, but all CDs (whether CDR or not) are copies ;)

    Just kidding, I do get your point.
     
    The Hud likes this.
  8. Trader Joe

    Trader Joe Forum Resident

    Location:
    New Hampshire
    No, not at all. I am a very frequent buyer.
     
    RubenH likes this.
  9. Maurice

    Maurice Senior Member

    Location:
    North Yarmouth, ME
    Yes, it seems with Amazon it’s becoming more and more of a crapshoot on whether or not you’ll get an actual, factory-pressed silver CD or on Amazon on-demand CD-R with lower quality manufacture. Unless it’s a brand-new, new-release box set at a very good price, I tend to avoid them for CD purchases these days.
     
    Last edited: Apr 3, 2021
  10. The Hud

    The Hud Breath of the Kingdom, Tears of the Wild

    True, I don't, but if it happens I could buy stuff on my wife's account. I would stop buying CDs though.
     
  11. Solly Bridgetower

    Solly Bridgetower Elton is my golden God of music. Deal with it.

    Location:
    Ontario, Canada
    I bought the Glenn Gould and Leonard Bernstein disc back at Christmas (the live performance, not the studio album) and I was surprised to see that it was a CD-R. But apparently that's how Sony now circulates some its more obscure classical titles: "on demand", or whatever it's called. I don't mind; physical format is still physical format, and a CD-R is better than nothing.
     
    JosepZ, Chazzbo13 and Mark_TB like this.
  12. Mark_TB

    Mark_TB Forum Resident

    I agree, as long as the listing is clearly marked as CD-R.
     
  13. Marty T

    Marty T Stereo Fan

    Location:
    NM - North of ABQ
    This is a timely post as I received my first counterfeit ordered on Amazon yesterday. In the many years and many CDs ordered, this was the first for me. I have had discs that Amazon prints on order and they are clear about that. This one was not that. It has what appears to be legit commercial printed material and was sealed but the disk is a CD-R with poorly printed graphics. The seller was Decluttr (sic). On the plus side, the price was low at 6 clams for a disc that was normally at least 14 clams and out of print. I see no indication that it was a CD-R given on the Amazon order page.
     
  14. Solly Bridgetower

    Solly Bridgetower Elton is my golden God of music. Deal with it.

    Location:
    Ontario, Canada
    Yes, true. But I guess my point was that, while Amazon's CD marketplace is indeed flooded with fakes and counterfeits, a legitimately issued "on demand" CD-R isn't the same as a counterfeit, even if the listing doesn't state that it's an on-demand product.
     
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  15. Ham Sandwich

    Ham Sandwich Senior Member

    Location:
    Sherwood, OR, USA
    CD-R is just the sneakernet version of a download. I'm not paying full CD release and packaging price for a sneakernet download.
     
  16. The Hud

    The Hud Breath of the Kingdom, Tears of the Wild

    I don't either.
     
  17. Michael

    Michael I LOVE WIDE S-T-E-R-E-O!

    hassle free!
     
  18. RubenH

    RubenH Forum Resident Thread Starter

    Location:
    S.E. United States
    No, I am not referring to CD-Rs, which I'm well aware that Amazon sells and lists as "on-demand."
    These are CDs sold as new/factory pressed (which is really the default situation when no other information is given) but that are real (no irony intended here) counterfeits.
     
  19. jimod99

    jimod99 Daddy or chips?

    Location:
    Ottawa, ON
    I have have bought hundreds, if not closer to a thousand, CDs off Amazon over the years and have never received a “counterfeit” cd.

    I did knowingly buy an “on demand” cd once!
     
  20. Crimson Witch

    Crimson Witch Roll across the floor thru the hole & out the door

    Location:
    Lower Michigan
    can we please be accurate in differentiating a counterfeit CD from a MOD CD-R ?

    it may sound like nitpicking, but a CD-R is not the same thing as a CD and the two ought never be conflated.

    A counterfeit product may be either a CD or a CD-R. Likewise an official, legitimately licensed product may also be either CD or CD-R.

    Part of the problem with Amazon is that they ARE NOT differentiating between the two, calling what is actually a CD-R a “CD”, so let's be sure not to be part of the problem.
     
  21. Dave S

    Dave S Forum Resident

    I have seen counterfeits from time to time (the last one being Death Angel's The Ultra-Violence), but who on earth counterfeits Naxos releases.
     
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  22. eric777

    eric777 Astral Projectionist

    I have never received a counterfeit CD or a CD-R from Amazon. I know that most (maybe all) internet sites do come with risks so I'm cautious. First of all, before I order from Amazon the page has to say "sold by and shipped from" Amazon. If it says that it's sold by another company and shipped by Amazon then I will not purchase it. Often times the companies that use Amazon to store and ship their product are not always honest. Amazon does try to weed out these companies but it is difficult. I know this because I use to work there and this was a known issue that they were trying to prevent. It's easy to say that they should know better but when you actually see how it works you realize that it really is difficult. I will not rule out the possibility that counterfeits could still be there even if Amazon is the actual seller and not just the shipper but it's far less likely.

    As far as getting a CD-R is concerned, if you pay attention you will know if that's what it is: Amazon.com: Fetch The Bolt Cutters: Music

    Notice that it says CD-R underneath the album title at the top. It use to say something like "print on demand" and an explanation of what that means but I guess they stopped that. It's always possible for Amazon to mess up ;however, I have never had that problem.
     
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  23. Chauncy

    Chauncy Well-Known Member

    Location:
    New Jersey
    eric777 likes this.
  24. eric777

    eric777 Astral Projectionist

  25. Ham Sandwich

    Ham Sandwich Senior Member

    Location:
    Sherwood, OR, USA
    It could be an official made on demand CD-R authorized by Naxos. But why?
    If you go to the Naxos web site and look for a particular CD there is a link for each CD that shows you where to buy it. There are choices for CD and download and streaming. If the CD is out of print then why do a MOD CD-R? Just direct people to the download options. Some of the download options are also available in high-res, better than CD. Plus the Naxos web site already links to PDF files for the booklet and cover.

    If I ordered a CD from Naxos and ended up with a CD-R I'd be upset. I've ordered CDs direct from Naxos and always have gotten a proper pressed CD with properly printed booklets and cover art. If the CD is no longer available then just tell me and I'll buy the lossless download and get the PDF files for the booklet and cover art.
     
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