CD collectors. Jewel case matter?

If I burn a disc, I like to make a full Jewel case insert. I even did a fat box for the Suzanne Vega Close Up vol 1 - 4 series. I eventually bought the deluxe book edition, but found the fat box more convenient for listening.

 

I won't go that far, but now when I buy a new CD with a hype sticker I will carefully try to peel the hype sticker off the plastic wrap (I have about a 50/50 success rate at this). IF the sticker comes off intact, cleanly, I will then apply it to the case or the digipack.

 

Was a bit annoyed when this turned up last year with puncture "wounds" in the external packaging to reveal both the front jewel cover and OBI had been cracked/damaged.



To further rub salt into the wound, it was a case that I've only ever seen on these discs where there is an internal corner to protect the booklets from corner wear. Not happy. Just turfed it and replaced it with a current thin front case cover.



On the whole though I'm just happy to replace old cases with new if they're damaged. I loathe digipaks though because if they have damaged teeth, you're stuck with them. This happened on my first ever Amazon order that included The Cars deluxe self-titled release on Rhino that arrived with broken teeth.

 

All this talking about Jewel cases...

How many types of Jewel case are there ?

The older CD cases are great. Heavy, solid and well made. Good to handle.
Later cases not so good and recent cases worse still
I bought some cheap ones as a test from a supplier that are so weak and light they wave around in a draught.
As I was buying many blank CDRs and cases I was able to add my test items on for the low cost

I see around 4 then in terms of build (ignoring the edges)
What others are there chaps ?

 

I prefer the originals. Fine to replace with a generic unless the original is special. The green Ryko mentioned are hard to replace and it annoys me when one arrives with a broken case or the wrong CD back plate.

I like to remind sellers to pad the inside of the jewel-case with a patch of bubble-wrap when they post, to protect the front and the inner hub.

The idea, I keep seeing described here, of dumping the jewelcases putting my CDs into poly sleeves is a complete turn-off.

 

I found plenty of old classical CDs with brand new smooth sided cases for peanuts in clearance sections.

 

For me it depends on the jewel case itself. If it is a generic jewel case that has nothing unique or distinctive about it then it's not important to me. If it has something unique or special like the green Ryodisc jewel cases then it is important to me. However, I had no interest in CDs that are sold in a digipack or a cardboard sleeve since they are not replaceable if they get damaged.

 

Replace it. I want dust and dirt to stay off the disc. That's what's most important to me.

 

Is it possible to float a hype sticker off, undamaged, with lighter fuel? Then reapply to a new jewel, or simpy insert it inside.

A fantasy(?) option. Cut the old jewel carefully around the hype sticker with a jig-saw, leaving a small margin. Then you either keep it (with polished edges), or you meticulously insert it into a new jewel with an exact shaped hole in it. Glue carefully in place and polish.

 

The mighty Jewel Case, which seems to be losing ground more and more every day, is my favorite way of storing music. Countless are the numbers I have replaced with new inners or fronts after dropping. I got my first cd’s in the mid nineties and they look better than most of the digi packs I’ve got from the last few years. Those digi packs, which vary in size, look ridiculous in my cabinet and don’t seem to like long vacations in the car. Whereas a jewel case is as good as new.

But, I hate jewel case with dots in stead of bars to hold the booklets. Man, those dots tear up my booklets pretty bad!

What about the Super Jewel Case with the rounded corners that was short lived in the early 2000’s?

 

Good question, Super Jewel Cases are (or were?) a pretty decent option to modern standard cases. Today if you care about "cases" IMO the worst option is cardboard sleeve, because it is fragile and has a very small spine, bad for shelves.

 

I confirm that also WG Aladdin Sane has this.

 

10 years ago, I moved from a 3 bedroom house into a 1 bedroom flat and we had a kid on the way, so I had no real option but to downsize the CD collection. 9 recycling bags of jewel cases went out the door. I ripped all the discs to HDD and have them safely archived in a slipcase-flightcase. I now sort of have room to drag them out again but if I did, I'd go the poly sleeve route. I always figured that most CDs are never going to be valuable enough to care about the case and that they were more or less interchangeable packaging rather than part of the design. Clearly not everyone feels that way! I've got several cases full of digipaks, boxed sets, mini-LP sleeves and weird shaped cases - plus the occasional cool collectibles like this one - Autechre – Quaristice (2008, CD) - and I rather like them tbh. I always hated the basic jewel case and especially the fat boy cases.

 

Doesn’t bother me at all. In fact, I’ve purchased a bunch of CD’s on Discogs that were listed in good condition that had mint discs and paperwork. Presto, chango- now they’re in mint condition with a new jewel case. The seller could have made more money if they spent $1 on a new case.


Great thread. Now we know the SHF members who really have OCD.

 

For those of you using the poly sleeves from Bags Unlimited or Space Saving Sleeves, is that material safe from scratching to sticking to the cds? Or are you storing the playing side of the disc against the artwork? Or using rice paper inners in addition to the poly sleeves?

 

I buy a lot of used CD’s and I’m not too picky about the jewel case. As long as the disc is in good shape I can replace the jewel case. A lot of times the case is in decent shape but I will still replace it just to have a cleaner one.

 

Depends on the quality of the jewel case, what condition it’s in. Originals were thicker and could take wear and tear. New jewel cases are crap. At the end of the day it’s just plastic.

 

There's quite a few 1984 discs with Patent Pending cases (most are classical) identical to the one that came with Now 4.

 

no it does not matter if it's a standard replaceable Jewel case...specialty items ...yes!

 

I do the same but it’s a pain to go through them. They almost stuck together. I kept all of the trays in boxes in my garage. I may put them back but they take up so much space.

 

I've actually bought used Ryko CDs with the green case (if the price is cheap) to replace missing ones. Especially for my Bowie collection, I have all his Rykos.

 

Unless there's anything special with them like Pet Shop Boys Very or a tinted front I'm binning mine for UK made Slim Disc Media savers that store from at and rear with a insert for the actual discs having a good proportion of broken in transit cases and a extensive collection. easy to get disc and booklet out when I need to.

 

If I was selling CDs on eBay and replaced the old jewel cases with new ones, I'd expect to receive a steady stream of Hallmark Thank You cards from the grateful buyers!

 

I have an Austrian pressing of Santana's "Abraxas" that's in a jewel case with a red tray... looks very cool since the album cover artwork is dominated by red.