Torontonians - what is your favourite store to special order LPs from? do you have a preference?

hello fellow torontonian vinyl lovers !

i'm looking to expand on who gets my brick and mortar special orders business. wondering what kinds of experiences folks have had at certain stores, special ordering LPs. prices, coolness, etc

i've in the past predominantly used amazon.ca and uk, and the marketplace sellers from both, as well, but i'm all for keeping the money flowing through the neighbourhood …… unless the price difference is ridiculous. (for instance i picked up siamese dream for $42 all in, online, where it was over $50 (+ 13% tax) at my local.

i've been able to get some great LPs special ordered, that were actually way more expensive online, so this method of buying is still something i'm keen on continuing to do.

curious about your experiences if you've got any …...
much appreciated !

 

Which record store is your local?

For new records I tend to stick to Rotate and Soundscapes. But I don't really special order anything so I can't really say what their service might be like in that regard. June Records is ok price wise and they now have an online ordering system as well. Although not all their stock is online. But they did tell me they take special orders.

 

i guess either kops or neurotica would be my local …. i've ordered from sonic boom too. in fact i just did today. sorry, in regards to 'siamese dream' it was kops i was referring to as my local, and it was actually $59+ tax. rather crazy, but then again, i picked up the uk XL pressing of 'king of limbs' there for ….. $14.99. my jaw dropped when i saw that price, as i was just about to order online for something like $37 all in. all of kops' radiohead stock is excellently priced. i find it's good not to generalize pricing at stores, some places have certain items a truly superb prices … and other items ridiculously high. kops has priced matched for me though. i'm glad spring and summer are approaching …. as i can get back to cruising and interacting with the stores i've neglected this winter ….. (there's no way i'm gonna pay $6.50 return ttc fare, during the winter, to return or pickup a record, considering how expensive they are these days.

 

Until recently I lived downtown, and would shop Sonic Boom, Rotate This, Cosmos, and June Records.
If none of them had it, i just ordered it on-line, using different places depending on what i was looking for.
www.northernvolume.com has been very good, ships from just west of Toronto, usually arrives in a day,
and free shipping if you order a couple of records. For audiophile records from the USA, my go-to place
is Acoustic Sounds, they seem to have a massive selection.