Cassette/cd grading

Discussion in 'Marketplace Discussions' started by Ben12345, Sep 4, 2021.

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  1. Ben12345

    Ben12345 Member Thread Starter

    Location:
    Pennsylvania
    Hello, What do Y’all think of a Grading company that grades and encapsulates cds and cassettes, Like sports cards and comics? All feedback is appreciated
     
  2. Cryptical17

    Cryptical17 Forum Resident

    Location:
    New York
    Definitely records !

    CDs and cassettes never seem to me as collectors items. So no grades really needed
     
  3. no.nine

    no.nine (not his real name)

    Location:
    NYC
    Not true. There absolutely are collectible CDs, it's just that the proliferation of monetarily worthless, dime-a-dozen titles obscure that fact. But if you think about it, it's the same with LPs. I'm not talking about current LP releases, which are deliberately limited, with the effect being that their real or perceived value is inflated.

    When one goes hunting for used LPs, there have always been titles which have no demand and therefore aren't worth anything. CDs are the same. Some are worth nothing, some sell for good money. In my collection, I have two CDs which have sold for almost $400 each. That's SOLD, according to Discogs stats, not merely listed for those prices, destined to be sitting unsold forever. Yes, that's only two titles, and they're definitely extreme examples. But if CDs weren't collectable at all, there would be no such examples.

    Much of my collection is worth little to no money, to be sure. And I can't cite any others I own which have sold anywhere near those amounts, but I have others which have sold for more than $50 or $100. I'm not even talking about box sets, of which I've never had any interest. I'm talking individual titles. So yes, a collectable market exists for CDs.

    Cassettes, I can't really speak about. But my impression is that a few selected ones would sell for good money to the right people. In fact, I've seen it happen on ebay. My instinct is that this market is much more limited than for collectable LPs or CDs but it's not non-existent.

    Oh, and: yes - grades count for CDs. Probably cassettes, too.
     
  4. vinylontubes

    vinylontubes Forum Resident

    Location:
    Katy, TX
    I tend to think services like this are generally bad for collecting. Rather than allowing the free market to determine the value of something, it sets a standard for things that don't need to be set. For recorded media, the standards for the media have always been in relation to the performance of the playback. While the sleeve and physical condition have always been part of grading records or other music media, it's a secondary consideration. If you want to look at that Grading companies that are similar to figuring out which are the absolute best records look at Better Records and their hot stampers. I'm not going to go as far as to say that Better Records doesn't provide what they promote. But selling a for a copy of used records that can be found for less than $5 at $200 is beyond anything I'm willing to pay for. I do agree that better grading should increase the value of recorded media. But the tendency is to double the price with each grade increase. So a NM copy should cost $40 for something that is probably VG and priced at $5. This isn't what Better Records is selling. They are taking things to extreme and putting things at an ultra premium. I think there might be a place for Better Records, as rich people need things to spend their money on. But if I'm buy a record, CD or cassette tape I'm too frugal to buy an extremely expensive record when I could buy a bunch of records.
     
    Man at C&A and mr.datsun like this.
  5. GungaLagunga

    GungaLagunga c̶r̶u̶n̶c̶h̶ lunch time

    Location:
    Uptown
    Pissed that I bought a Mint CD from my youth on discogs and was told that it was graded Mint because “it had never been played” and not because it was sealed. Anyway…
     
    Michael likes this.
  6. Michael

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

    I always ask questions of the seller when in doubt...
     
    GungaLagunga likes this.
  7. Michael

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

    I have two CDs which have sold for almost $400 each.

    titles?
     
    GungaLagunga likes this.
  8. no.nine

    no.nine (not his real name)

    Location:
    NYC
    Michael likes this.
  9. Michael

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

  10. GungaLagunga

    GungaLagunga c̶r̶u̶n̶c̶h̶ lunch time

    Location:
    Uptown
    Yeah…guess we need to start. Hoping to always use a modest grading system myself and be clear when I’m asking for a slightly more pricey purchase…like the “mint” one I bought. Mint means sealed or opened and unreasonably perfect. Since the latter is next to impossible, just sealed. Rant over. :)
     
  11. Michael

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

    Indeed...sealed is an honest description as assumed by the seller...and of course we can enter at our own risk with a sealed product...ie; hopefully no shenanigans like a RESEAL!
     
  12. GungaLagunga

    GungaLagunga c̶r̶u̶n̶c̶h̶ lunch time

    Location:
    Uptown
    Aye. What misery.
     
    Michael likes this.
  13. Michael

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

    oh yea!
     
  14. Oscar Calero

    Oscar Calero Member

    Location:
    USA
    yes cassettes and Cds are collectable and need to be graded it like a record
     
  15. How do you grade a cassette? You can't really tell if it works or by looking at it. I've bought many used cassettes that were physically mint, that squealed, and some of the worst looking ones with the letters worn off that end up playing great.
     
    Dave likes this.
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