Storage revisited - and price hike!

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  • Dave2002
    Full Member
    • Dec 2010
    • 18010

    Storage revisited - and price hike!

    I've just been reviewing my CD storage.

    Sadly (or otherwise) we seem to have about 12 of these Benno units - http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/pr...310/#/87305207

    I have been trying to rationalise my CDs by ripping them to hard drive, with the intention of putting the CDs, once ripped, in some safe but less accessible place. However this seems to fail for a few reasons. One is the time taken to do ripping, though that's not too bad. I do in fact now hardly play CDs at all, since it's very easy to play them using the Squeezebox and to control them using software running on my iPad. The other reason is that actually we don't seem to have too many accessible tucked away places which really would be good. I don't really want to have to go rummaging around in the backs of wardrobes to find CDs, and I still balk at the loft which does sometimes get damp because of condensation.

    I am beginning to think that the only solution is simply a combination of the following:

    1. Dispose/sell/give away some duplicate CDs, and maybe some which I really don't want (that's probably not too many).
    2. Buy more Benno units - I can easily find space for 4 or 5 more!
    3. Put box sets in separate storage areas.

    In the meantime it seems to me that I missed an opportunity a year or two back to buy the extra units, which were cheap.
    Now there is a significant price differential between white/black units and wood veneer - £17.99 versus £29.99.

    http://www.ikea.com/gb/en/catalog/pr...310/#/07305310 [white]

    Ah, well - spending about £150 for 5 new units might actually be a lot less hassle, even with the time spent making the things (I can do these pretty quickly now), than trying to find other solutions.

    Partly this is due to the "joy" of living in a chalet bungalow (much extended over the years, sideways and upwards, though not by us), where storage upstairs is more or less useless, even though there is space in the rat runs (well, usually mice anyway) under the eaves. The local council seems to favour these pretty useless forms of domestic dwelling, probably because it actually wants to constrain people to live in small houses, rather than larger ones - which is an interesting, and perhaps questionable, aim, and has been known to deny planing permission to those who put in requests for decent, proper houses which then get sized back to chalet style buildings to gain approval.

    Another factor, is probably our cutural interests - we also have books, and various other artistic things around the place, unlike some homes/families it seems - http://www.thisislondon.co.uk/standa...ook-to-read.do I don't know what the average number of books/household is, but assuming it could even be as high as 100 (possibly doubtful), then I think we must be pulling that average up considerably.

    Oh to live in a place without any books, CDs, computers, and other junk! Do I mean that? Perhaps not!

    Bit sad really, but I think others may have similar problems.
  • Flosshilde
    Full Member
    • Nov 2010
    • 7988

    #2
    I realise that one accumulates CDs over the years, but I do wonder at what people with such large collections do - I mean, do you spand all your waking hours listening to them (& do you live alone, so that you have total control over your time & what you do, or does your partner, if you have one, not mind if you are listening to CDs all trhe time?), or are there large numbers you don't ever listen to? I have the equivelant of about 3 such units, & there are CDs I haven't listened to in a long time. Most of my music listening is from Radio 3 or live concerts. I couldn't afford to buy so many, anyway - I doubt if I buy as much as one a month.

    So maybe the answer to your storage problems is to stop buying & concentrate on the ones you have.

    Comment

    • amateur51

      #3
      Originally posted by Flosshilde View Post
      I realise that one accumulates CDs over the years, but I do wonder at what people with such large collections do - I mean, do you spand all your waking hours listening to them (& do you live alone, so that you have total control over your time & what you do, or does your partner, if you have one, not mind if you are listening to CDs all trhe time?), or are there large numbers you don't ever listen to? I have the equivelant of about 3 such units, & there are CDs I haven't listened to in a long time. Most of my music listening is from Radio 3 or live concerts. I couldn't afford to buy so many, anyway - I doubt if I buy as much as one a month.

      So maybe the answer to your storage problems is to stop buying & concentrate on the ones you have.
      Ah the rational voice! I know you're right, Flossie but ....

      Comment

      • mathias broucek
        Full Member
        • Nov 2010
        • 1303

        #4
        Originally posted by Flosshilde View Post
        So maybe the answer to your storage problems is to stop buying & concentrate on the ones you have.
        That's the rationale answer but that's not how many collectors think. I used to feel bad about how many discs I have that I've only heard once but have lately come to accept that I really like buying and hearing new stuff and that it's OK to be that way (subject to affordability and storage).

        I too have been to IKEA lately for Benno. They used to do a nicer, slighlty wider rack in a darker wood but no more, sadly.

        Comment

        • Chris Newman
          Late Member
          • Nov 2010
          • 2100

          #5
          I think one problem with the narrow Benno type units is that the actual timber/MDF uprights take up almost as much space as the CDs themselves. A wider type of shelf would be more economical with space and money. I made my own with pine which are about three foot wide and at six foot high take all my CDs. That way I only have two uprights. My little DIY shop was able to get me some thinnish planks for the actual shelves as standard pine is rather thick. With a sheet of plywood on the back I hopefully avoid sag in the middle. If that does happen I shall just turn the unit upside down and let it bend back again.

          Comment

          • remdataram
            Full Member
            • Mar 2011
            • 154

            #6
            Like you Dave, I've ripped our CDs onto our home network and we listen via Squeezebox Duet and DAC. Similarly, we store our CDs and DVDs on IKEA 'Benno's.

            The practical advantages of listening to music this way are well worth the effort, but we need the CDs to be reasonably to hand in order to access the notes with each CD.

            We'd rather shell out the money on more Benno's and retain access to our CD notes - I suspect you, too, will miss the notes if you take the separate storage option.

            Comment

            • ferneyhoughgeliebte
              Gone fishin'
              • Sep 2011
              • 30163

              #7
              I'm sorry?

              Can somebody explain to me, please, what is "rational" about not buying new CDs? (Other than the literal "rationing" connotation of the word.)
              [FONT=Comic Sans MS][I][B]Numquam Satis![/B][/I][/FONT]

              Comment

              • Anna

                #8
                I have one Benno-type unit and like Chris have a 3' x 6' (not home made) pine shelf unit. I moved units and cds from one room to the other 3 months ago which gave me a chance to a) put them back in alphabetical order and b) sort out those cds unlikely ever to be played again, some of which have gone to charity shops and the remainder stored in cupboard for the moment while I think about them. I find storage of books more problematical so the majority are in bookcases upstairs as I have run out of space for anymore storage units downstairs. Books are my weakness rather than cds at the moment (I think I only bought two cds last year) I blame the charity shops for selling them so cheaply!

                The link to the story about children not living in homes with books is so sad, there's a saying 'You always have a friend in a book' and there's been quite a lot in the press (with the Dickens bicentenary) about how Dickens is now too complicated for children to read plus they just don't have the attention span.

                Comment

                • mathias broucek
                  Full Member
                  • Nov 2010
                  • 1303

                  #9
                  Originally posted by ferneyhoughgeliebte View Post
                  I'm sorry?

                  Can somebody explain to me, please, what is "rational" about not buying new CDs? (Other than the literal "rationing" connotation of the word.)
                  From the perspective of shepherding scarce resources (time, money, storage space) it's more efficient to listen to one's existing collection than to add to it.

                  However to do the analysis correctly one would need to weigh these factors against the additional joy produced by the experience of buying and enjoying some new discs!

                  Comment

                  • Karafan
                    Full Member
                    • Nov 2010
                    • 786

                    #10
                    Originally posted by ferneyhoughgeliebte View Post
                    I'm sorry?

                    Can somebody explain to me, please, what is "rational" about not buying new CDs? (Other than the literal "rationing" connotation of the word.)

                    Agreed!

                    And, as for the home without books Dave.... (hangs head in state of utter despair)
                    "Let me have my own way in exactly everything, and a sunnier and more pleasant creature does not exist." Thomas Carlyle

                    Comment

                    • EdgeleyRob
                      Guest
                      • Nov 2010
                      • 12180

                      #11
                      Originally posted by Flosshilde View Post
                      So maybe the answer to your storage problems is to stop buying & concentrate on the ones you have.
                      Many times I have decided on this course of action but then I start reading that flippin bargains thread ......

                      Comment

                      • ferneyhoughgeliebte
                        Gone fishin'
                        • Sep 2011
                        • 30163

                        #12
                        Originally posted by EdgeleyRob View Post
                        Many times I have decided on this course of action but then I start reading that flippin bargains thread ......
                        [FONT=Comic Sans MS][I][B]Numquam Satis![/B][/I][/FONT]

                        Comment

                        • Petrushka
                          Full Member
                          • Nov 2010
                          • 12242

                          #13
                          Originally posted by Anna View Post
                          ...those cds unlikely ever to be played again
                          Rationally, how does one decide this? Duplications? Fair enough, but that aside I just would not know where to start! The consequence of this is that I have many CD's that are hardly ever played but I still wouldn't get rid of them.

                          Incidentally, why don't we run a CD exchange system on this board? No money needs to change hands just a straightforward swap. Any thoughts on how this could be done anyone?
                          Last edited by Petrushka; 14-02-12, 22:26.
                          "The sound is the handwriting of the conductor" - Bernard Haitink

                          Comment

                          • cloughie
                            Full Member
                            • Dec 2011
                            • 22118

                            #14
                            Originally posted by Petrushka View Post
                            Rationally, how does one decide this? Duplications? Fair enough, but that aside I just would not know where to start! The consequence of this is that I have many CD's that are hardly ever played but I still wouldn't get rid of them.

                            Incidentally, why don't we run a CD exchange system on this board? No money needs to change hands just a straightforward swap. Any thoughts on how this could be done anyone?
                            Great idea, should be straightforward but I suspect there are a load of ah buts!

                            No Beef, the Bruckner 7's not on the table!

                            Comment

                            • ferneyhoughgeliebte
                              Gone fishin'
                              • Sep 2011
                              • 30163

                              #15
                              Originally posted by Anna View Post
                              sort out those cds unlikely ever to be played again
                              Another phrase that doesn't "translate" into Ferneylese!

                              Many years ago, I decided to "downsize" my book and CD collection, ready to move house. Guess which boooks and CDs I most miss?

                              Never again!
                              [FONT=Comic Sans MS][I][B]Numquam Satis![/B][/I][/FONT]

                              Comment

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