Time to own up how many unplayed box sets

[Barbirollians]

I was rather horrified to count 22 unplayed box sets containing 150 CDs on the shelf from the complete Bruno Walter Beethoven symphonies to a box of Martinon's Chicago SO recordings via that EMI Verdi operas set .

I am pledged to not buy another CD until I am through them - own up are you as bad or worse than me or do you listen to them religiously as soon as they arrive ?

[vinteuil]

.

... are the CDs we acquire to be considered as perishable goods, things for immediate consumption - or can we not rather consider the purchases as being part of building up a Library, a resource into which we will dip and plunder over (we hope) many years to come?

So - no guilt here that there are still works unopened / untapped among the CDs and boxed sets : in the same way that I feel no guilt at not having read every word of the Horace Walpole, Hazlitt, de Quincey, Ruskin, Sainte-Beuve, Léon Bloy etc on the shelves behind me as I write...

[ferneyhoughgeliebte]

I've played through all the discs in my boxed sets, just to make sure there aren't any flawed items. But, yes, some have only been played the once - like vinty, these are saved for the time when I'm ready for them (but I think it's unlikely that the Bernstein Mess will ever feature regularly on my player). About a third of my books are patiently waiting for me to get round to them - I'm delighted that my ideas of gradually enjoying them one by one in my leisured hours of retirement is proving to be a highly enjoyable reality.

[pastoralguy]

I have a few unplayed box sets that are still in their cellophane wrapping but, I await the happy day when I'll have enough time to release their delights to my, hopefully, still functioning ears! I think it's worth remembering that some of those boxed sets are produced in limited quantities so snapping them up whilst they are available is no bad idea.

I've actually sold a few for considerably more than I paid, not least duplicate sets of RCA's Mr. Heifetz edition that I bought in Milan. The shop had about a 100 of them and were selling them for what I assume was cost price. (Had someone over-ordered?) So, despite having one, I bought two at bargain price and promptly forgot about them. Years later, the price on Amazon had gone from about £80 to £150 so I sold the two sets I had bought for about £55 for £130!

I think the current price is about £300.

[richardfinegold]

I was rather horrified to count 22 unplayed box sets containing 150 CDs on the shelf from the complete Bruno Walter Beethoven symphonies to a box of Martinon's Chicago SO recordings via that EMI Verdi operas set .

I am pledged to not buy another CD until I am through them - own up are you as bad or worse than me or do you listen to them religiously as soon as they arrive ?

Let us know when that pledge is broke, Barbs
I just received box 2 of Sony Vivarte label yesterday. Based on my few disapointing brief forays in to the box, I suspect that this will gather a lot of dust. I also haven't made significant inroads into two J.P. Rampal boxes of Erato recordings. I also haven't had much time to explore the combined Hogwood/Brueggens Haydn Symphony box but I defini9tely intend to rectify that.
The Phillips Complete Brendel box is due to arrive. That will take some time to digest

[pastoralguy]

I waited patiently, (or not so patiently!), for Santa to bring me the two volumes of 'The Menuhin Century' that I'd lusted after since they were released. Well, they are sitting beside me now. One, 'The Recordings with Hepzibah Menuhin', is still in its plastic wrapping and the other, 'Rarities and Unreleased Recordings' has had three discs out of 22 played. Although I did play those 3 a number of times.

[Zucchini]

... in the same way that I feel no guilt at not having read every word of the Horace Walpole, Hazlitt, de Quincey, Ruskin, Sainte-Beuve, Léon Bloy etc on the shelves behind me as I write...

And when you sit at a different desk in the library, you feel no guilt about not reading The Complete Macramé Course, Knitting Baby Clothes by Numbers, The Handbag Manual 2016 and Flatten that Tummy on the shelves behind you as you write?

[vinteuil]

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... so it was you who was snooping about the other day!

[Alison]

Hope you've played at least some of your new Mahler box Vinters

[Petrushka]

I have no boxed sets at all of which I've not played a few of the discs. On the other hand, many of said sets have had only a small number of discs played. Holding down a full time job makes playing music a lot more difficult than I would like and while I'm sometimes in panic mode at the large number of unplayed CDs I comfort myself with the knowledge that after retirement in 2 years time I'll hopefully be able to do them justice.

I've been buying some of these boxes in the certain knowledge that this is the right time to buy them while many are, or have been, at ridiculously low prices.

[MickyD]

I'm still only about a third of the way through the Maria Callas box, due to my busy schedule at work. But then, I suppose like a fine wine, such a box should not be rushed.

[Dave2002]

How impolite of someone to have asked the question!

Many, many.

Unfortunately I didn't bite on the Julian Bream set - so it's now out of reach. I might try the currently available John Williams set - but I really did fancy the JB.

I note the suggestion that some boxes actually increase in value - so maybe I'll order the recent Mozart set after all - even at the rather higher price which it has now settled to.

I do have quite a number which haven't been unwrapped yet, and more which have only had a few CDs played. If I lived totally by myself I'd probably play more of them, but with others around I just do what I can. When "others" were away not so long ago I got through a modestly substantial part of one of the Living Stereo boxes. OK - those particular ones have short CDs, but even so I played several (sometimes 5-6) a day for several days.

One possibility which some may have noticed if they are interested in reselling, is that by buying from Amazon one frequently gets the MP3 versions as well. While they aren't as good as the CDs, it might enable one to sell on a completely unwrapped boxed set after a few years - having of course deleted the MP3s at higher prices - assuming there's a demand - which is largely unreliable as a means of making money, I'd suggest.

[ARBurton]

I feel I`ve done quite well as there are only two which have not even been in the player - Draeseke`s "Christus" on about 5 cds, and Blomdalh`s "Aniara", both bought in the last century....

[Richard Tarleton]

Unfortunately I didn't bite on the Julian Bream set - so it's now out of reach. I might try the currently available John Williams set - but I really did fancy the JB.

I gave this serious thought - but realised there was a fair bit I was unlikely ever to listen to (too much has happened in the lute and consort world since the 60s) and that I have all my favourites on LP and CD already....I was quite happy after listening to the review on RR that I didn't want the JW.....

If you haven't already, Dave, treat yourself to JB's last 4 valedictory CDs on EMI - the Bach and Nocturnal are some of the best things he's ever done, IMV.

[Dave2002]

Hi Richard

Looking at the JB collection it's only 42 CDs, and that would have been about £2 per CD at the original price - now totally out of reach. Also, like you, I have quite a few JB LPs and CDs already. I also have quite a number of JW recordings - but there are more CDs in the JW box and at the current prices it works out at not too much more than £1 each (maybe £1.25).

I note your recommendation for the EMI CDs. Added to my "investigate" list.

I'm not a guitarist, and I find that too much gets a bit tiresome, but having a set to dip into from time to time is quite a nice thing to have around - as with most of the other sets discussed here.