CDs Anonymous

[gurnemanz]

My total cd collection is around the 8000 mark but I have a collector friend whose classical cd collection is more than 3 times mine , around the 25,000 mark ........ and they are all in one room ........ a very large dedicated room with multiple floor to ceiling purpose built storage racks and everything is arranged and catalogued to enable speedy location and retrieval of discs. It is an astonishing sight, but I am sure there are others with more !!!

I have a mere 3500, modest by comparison, but sane observers might regard even that tally as bloated. The collection has only become this large over the last few years thanks to all those bumper-sized boxes which do, of course, have the advantage of taking up less shelf space. No doubt there are lots more that would tempt me but I think my wife might have a point when she keeps asking me if I have yet reached some kind of supersaturation point. I will try to rein myself in (how many addicts have deluded themselves with such assertions?) but have just made an exception and ordered the massive Toscanini compendium.

[AmpH]

That makes my addition seem like a common itch.

Indeed , reminded me of reading some time ago about a certain well known music critic .....

http://spitalfieldslife.com/2010/09/17/edward-greenfield-music-critic/

[Eine Alpensinfonie]

...but have just made an exception and ordered the massive Toscanini compendium.

No, no.. please stop it. I'm trying to put it out of my mind.

Now look what you've gone and done.

[EdgeleyRob]

8,000, cds 25,000 cds (crikey perhaps I'm only a trainee ceedeaholic).

I honestly don't know how many I've got but it's certainly nowhere near those kind of figures.
They're everywhere,in boxes,on shelves,tottering piles around the house,the car,the cellar,under the bed.......

[hafod]

.....but have just made an exception and ordered the massive Toscanini compendium.

No, no.. please stop it. I'm trying to put it out of my mind.

Now look what you've gone and done.

Why resist when you can get it for just over €87 delivered at Amazon.es - under £73 at the moment? I didn't.

Moreover, adding other boxes does not increase the delivery charge of €6.99 and there are a number of bargains to be had e.g. Arrau's 7cd Chopin box for €17.76; the 10cd Fiorentino box €19.43; Levine's Mahler box for €11.88; the Janowski Ring for €20.66; Brilliant Classics Richard Strauss Edition for €39.95; Mozart Complete Masses €8.98; Muti's Tchaikovsky Symphonoies for €11.61 That's enough examples (ed)

http://www.amazon.es/The-Complete-Collection-Arturo-Toscanini/dp/B006VKKAWQ/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&coliid=I1FJB8QBIBM43O&colid=3CNIUA0G40LUN

http://www.amazon.es/Plays-Chopin-Arrau/dp/B007O5FANQ/ref=sr_1_5?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1337546247&sr=1-5

http://www.amazon.es/Berlin-Recordings-Fiorentino-Edition-Vol-1/dp/B005WIKRTO/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1337546308&sr=1-1

http://www.amazon.es/Symphones-Levine-Gustav-Mahler/dp/B0041LXX2G/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&coliid=I28Y0W6IQMZ7JY&colid=3CNIUA0G40LUN

http://www.amazon.es/Der-Ring-Nibelungen-M-Janwski-14cd/dp/B006XOBFJC/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&coliid=I1A1HBMELG10GJ&colid=3CNIUA0G40LUN

http://www.amazon.es/Richard-Strauss-Edition-Compilation/dp/B006546EPA/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&coliid=I1154DMT4JAOVM&colid=3CNIUA0G40LUN

http://www.amazon.es/Mozart-Complete-Masses-Wolfgang-Amadeus/dp/B005BC18JO/ref=wl_it_dp_o_pC_nS_nC?ie=UTF8&coliid=ISR12XGQ2CILJ&colid=37MQKAATNXKD2

http://www.amazon.es/Symphonies-1-6-Ballet-Music-R-Mutti/dp/B0052RUYYS/ref=pd_sim_m_20

[hafod]

Incidentally, Amazon.it is also worth a look. Good job there is no Amazon.gr!

[Dave2002]

Incidentally, Amazon.it is also worth a look. Good job there is no Amazon.gr!

Stop it Hafod! In this thread we are supposed to be considering whether CD collecting can get out of hand, whether this is a real problem, whether it needs dealing with in some way - not making it worse.

However, you'll note that some of us sit in both camps, and I not only read the bargains thread, but also contribute to it. Perhaps you could discreetly refer those of us who still want to partake back over to the bargains area. We should perhaps consider this a respite or recovery area.

I have had withdrawal symptoms for days as I've not actually hit the send button for yet another box set (Karajan, EMI orchestral music) - though I've got close. How many of us furtively fill up our online baskets, then chicken out at the credit card stage, or the final "confirm order now" stage?

Do some of us also keep a target in mind, but not actually order it for long periods? My own example is the Mercury box set. I'd like it, and in the end I expect I'll succumb, but it doesn't have to be now. Maybe it makes me feel good not having given in .... just yet!

[teamsaint]

i know I am a bit of an interloper on this thread, but frankly it is mostly the record companies who are to blame.
So, amazon messed up my download of Bruckner 8(knew they were a bad idea)...and now I have to buy a CD ...any will do really, as it will be my first of this work. But the cheapest CD is £9.00, and there are several completes around £15. So , since I am taking a gamble anyway, I might as well pay £4 extra and get the lot. Bound to be something good in there. And I will be 8 Cd's up.

Easy to see how you lot got in this state....

[Dave2002]

TS

If you can cope with the audio quality, Napster is rather good value, and you can hear many versions of many pieces, including Bruckner's 8th. [e.g Furtwangler, Schuricht, Knappertsbusch, Jochum, Giulini, Celibidache, etc.] OK - you don't own the CDs, but you can get to try out a lot, and that may help you to decide whether to buy, which to buy and which to walk away from. Around £5 a month I think, which is relatively cheap - though some will think otherwise. Depends on your disposable income. Spotify and classical.com also offer similar services, at different prices. Sometimes there are different music selections - for example Spotify also has Barbirolli in Bruckner 8 - but it'll cost you a bit more - nearer £10/month.

Depending on how someone uses downloading or streaming services may increase or reduce their dependency on physical CDs.

[cloughie]

i know I am a bit of an interloper on this thread, but frankly it is mostly the record companies who are to blame.
So, amazon messed up my download of Bruckner 8(knew they were a bad idea)...and now I have to buy a CD ...any will do really, as it will be my first of this work. But the cheapest CD is £9.00, and there are several completes around £15. So , since I am taking a gamble anyway, I might as well pay £4 extra and get the lot. Bound to be something good in there. And I will be 8 Cd's up.

Easy to see how you lot got in this state....

ts, did you get back to amazon to inform them of the mess up because they are usuaslly quite good at sorting problems out.

[teamsaint]

Cloughie

Yes, thankyou, had a very polite email back in a couple of hours, with promise of refund...and I am 3 movements or Bruckner 3 up !! Very good service from Amazon.

Dave2002. Thanks for the advice...I shall deffo look into these, and see if something suits.Need better laptop speakers to get anything out of this though. Cheers.

[french frank]

ts, did you get back to amazon to inform them of the mess up because they are usuaslly quite good at sorting problems out.

I agree that their service is very good. I received a copy of a book which was not what I ordered. There was an online report page with a button to click if you wanted to speak on the telephone to someone. I filled in my details, clicked on the button - and my phone rang (not joking - and yes, it was Amazon!)

[hafod]

Stop it Hafod! In this thread we are supposed to be considering whether CD collecting can get out of hand, whether this is a real problem, whether it needs dealing with in some way - not making it worse.

However, you'll note that some of us sit in both camps, and I not only read the bargains thread, but also contribute to it. Perhaps you could discreetly refer those of us who still want to partake back over to the bargains area. We should perhaps consider this a respite or recovery area.

I have had withdrawal symptoms for days as I've not actually hit the send button for yet another box set (Karajan, EMI orchestral music) - though I've got close. How many of us furtively fill up our online baskets, then chicken out at the credit card stage, or the final "confirm order now" stage?

Do some of us also keep a target in mind, but not actually order it for long periods? My own example is the Mercury box set. I'd like it, and in the end I expect I'll succumb, but it doesn't have to be now. Maybe it makes me feel good not having given in .... just yet!

Sorry Dave - you are quite right. I have re-posted the details on the Bargains thread.

I find that setting a target price above which I will not buy certain sets is helpful. I place the item in my wish list and monitor it. That is how I came to buy the Toscanini at £68 and is what triggered my post. As to the Mercury box it is a great buy and funnily enough only last week the price fell to £56 from a marketplace seller I had bought from successfully before and I was tempted as my target was £60. However, on close inspection I found that I already had 20 of the discs and there were another 5 I had no interest in (Balalaika Favourites, Civil War Music, Flamenco etc) so I decided against and deleted it from my wish list. Pragmatism I think rather than addiction but then I would say that wouldn't I?

[Beef Oven]

I find Amazon to be the best customer service experience on the planet (maybe they should adopt that as their corporate vision statement).

Yes, there is the odd mistake. I had a download problems last month, and a delivery snag (probably as much my fault as theirs). I used the free call-back facility and within seconds they were talking to me resolving my problem. They also gave me a total of £7 credit for my trouble.

[Dave2002]

Cloughie
Dave2002. Thanks for the advice...I shall deffo look into these, and see if something suits.Need better laptop speakers to get anything out of this though. Cheers.

If you can cope with headphones you can get pretty good ones for less than £30, and really good ones for under £100. Problem is that they'll make most loudspeakers sound pathetic. I find that wearing headphones for hours on end isn't so great, but my Beyerdynamic set (around £50) and this set from Sennheiser give really good sound - http://www.amazon.co.uk/Sennheiser-H...7604060&sr=1-3 I have some Sennheister HD 201s as well - they're good, but not as good as the 202s which at anything £25 or under are spectactular value.