General vinyl talk here.

Moderators: lazyben, static14, texasvinyl

User avatar
By bansel
#3919
forgive me if this has been covered on here, or if it's just a noob question, but by what standard are sellers pricing their vinyl these days?
I understand supply & demand, and that rarity and condition are all factors, but how is it I can see the Phantasm soundtrack for $350 on Ebay, $150 on Discogs and $25 mint at a record convention?

I am also curious about the people that list The Fog for $400 on Ebay. Are they just hoping for a sucker or is there a legit reason behind the pricing? Do Goldmine pricing guides come into play anymore or is it just what a niche audience will pay for a niche product?

I admit I am not the savviest record shopper and I generally will pay highly (within reason) for something I really want. But it's tough sometimes to determine if I am paying fair value or being rooked.

Constructive answers please, I am very sensitive today.

By Re-animated Cat
#3920
Hey Bansel, I just posted a little about this in another thread, but think it answers your question (or at least gives my view on it):

I think a lot of sellers set the price artificially high to make things seem more valuable than they really are. It only takes one rich kid to actually buy it and after that, the whole market is set absurdly high.

Discogs is very bad for this, because sellers prices are often based on average sales of the same item. So if one single copy sells for an absurd price, it immediately has a knock on effect on subsequent copies for sale.

On the other hand, prices of rarer things also go down. Once one copy sells for a high price, you'll find that lots of other sellers will appear and flood the market, eventually forcing the price down. That's why it's never sensible to 'rush buy' a new release at an inflated price. Unless a release is exceptionally rare (which The Fog, for example, most certainly isn't), then you can bet there'll be a stream of copies on sale - you might just have to wait for a while. Furthermore, reissues etc will inevitably always push prices of the original down.

But overall, I wouldn't worry too much about pricing. It's how much a particular record is worth TO YOU that matters, not anyone else.
User avatar
By freshoj
#3921
Well said.

And I suppose when in doubt, this forum might be a good place to sanity check specific prices to see if they are inflated or not. You might even find someone with an extra copy of the record you want that they might be willing to part with...
User avatar
By bansel
#3922
Great guys, thanks for putting into perspective for me

Best

Brian
By ghostfires
#3923
The one thing I've learned with buying rare vinyl - just be patient. I've been extremely patient with tons of records, and they typically appear some where at some point within the price range I limit myself to.

Hell I just bought the first Cosmic Dead album on orange vinyl (the median price is $66, highest on discogs is $77...its been on ebay at times for over $150!), and I was able to get it for $30 on discogs. You just have to be patient, and eventually you'll come across a straight-forward seller.
User avatar
By texasvinyl
#107756
Discogs shows median price not average. But it can still be skewed by an outlier for stuff that sells infrequently.

As for the Phantasm, I have no clue why that auctioned so high. It's been valuable for a while, but like $100 valuable not $400. Maybe because someone just REALLY wanted a sealed copy? If you find a mint Varese Phantasm for $25 that's a killer deal!

You can search eBay completed/sold listings and search popsike for auction history.

As always, a record's value is what someone is willing to pay for it today...
User avatar
By ScoJo
#107759
texasvinyl wrote: As for the Phantasm, I have no clue why that auctioned so high...
As always, a record's value is what someone is willing to pay for it today...
Or, five years ago!

;-)
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User avatar
By Hatter313
#107791
There’s one of these at the store in CT I was talking about, if I make it up there again soon I’m curious as to what he’s asking for it.
User avatar
By static14
#107793
Hatter313 wrote:There’s one of these at the store in CT I was talking about, if I make it up there again soon I’m curious as to what he’s asking for it.
@Hatter check your PM’s!