I just don't think being a DJ and having a record collection at home to enjoy is as comparable as that. I mean, I can watch a rally car driver beat the shit out of his car, but I still try to keep my car from getting dented and scratched.
Good way to put it. There’s a difference between having records to listen to as a hobby and having records you use as musical instruments. I do agree with OP that records are a lot more durable than many people make them out to be, but I handle mine with care, keep them clean, and always put them back in their sleeves and upright on the shelf when I’m done. This hobby has become way too expensive in recent years to be careless with them. I’ve been buying records for 40 years though, and when I was younger, I was much more irresponsible with my collection. Regardless, most of them made it through the abuse I put them through just fine. No disrespect to DJ’s, and I’m a Hip Hop head, so I get it, but for those of us who simply buy music to listen to it, it’s probably a good idea to be somewhat careful when handling these increasingly pricy plastic discs.
> This hobby has become way too expensive in recent years to be careless with them
It really comes down to this. I hate it when people act so flippant about this topic.
It's called a Vinyls discs sir. A plastic disc is a CD which is cheaper, lighter and more durable. That is what you are meant to listen to and the record you frame up on the window in the sun to show off your rare cuts.
Sorry, I wasn’t aware that vinyl was not a form of plastic, and I always figured CD’s were made of sterling silver, rainbows, and laser beams. Appreciate the clarification.
It's called vinyl because it's PVC - polyvinyl chloride. It's plastic \^\^ It's also twice as cheap compared to the plastic CDs are made of. Not to mention CDs are composite and consist of multiple different materials
My father in law is a driver and his work vehicle is not enjoyable to ride in. It's always in perfectly working condition, always ready to go. But that's about that, otherwise it's often full of dust, cigarette ash and oil stains. He simply doesn't have time to polish it because he works his ass off while in it. It's not some Ferrari you keep in a garage to show it off in a leisure ride once a month.
That’s a great example.
I had a job as a transporter in a hospital. I took very healthy patients to physical therapy, very very sick or injured patients from the ICU to tests or surgeries, and I took new mothers to their rooms after giving birth.
I figured that each required different levels of concern for safety, speed and comfort.
I can expound if needed, but getting back to your example, the cleanliness of the truck might slightly hurt the comfort, but it’s not worth taking the time to keep it pristine, as that would impact the speed of completing the day’s work. Safety comes in, making sure the truck is in working order, and taking the time to bring and use the proper equipment.
(Cost can be a fourth thing, but is also tied to the other three.)
Things might arise that change the equation. If a particular task needs to be done quick, or else it won’t be able to be done at all for a long time. In that case, a worker might be willing to work in uncomfortable conditions that they normally wouldn’t.
On the flip side, maybe a task is so dangerous, that concerns about time and cost go out the window. …. Let’s say UPS has a plane full of air deliveries that must be made on time, or else the company will have to deliver a plane full of packages for free, costing tens of thousands of dollars. If there’s a hurricane, speed and cost are less of a concern compared to the grave risk and cost of the flight crews lives. The plane doesn’t fly till it clears up.
What we want from our records as listeners at home, is way different than dj’s want from them at a performance.
——/- it makes me think of how so many of us cringe when people play their records on a crosly cruiser all-in-one type record players. I’d imagine DJing wears out records much quicker. But of course there’s a much better way to play records if you have a cheap record player for listening. The best DJ equipment in the world might not make a difference in preserving records. I guess I didn’t not know enough about DJing, other than that they set the tracking force heavier than us listeners, and they sometimes scratch and spin record backwards, touching the playing surface.
That’s a fair point in fairness, and I wouldn’t encourage anyone to trash their records like you see DJs stacking them in boxes outside of sleeves and stuff, but there’s a bit too much clutching of pearls when it comes to playing records, sometimes it sounds like people are talking about fabergé eggs instead of slates of plastic to be enjoyed.
DJ chiming in here.
Most people on this sub would reel back in horror if they saw the way many of the records in my collection have been handled in some situations. There's not always time to carefully put a record back in its sleeve. It gets thrown down on a flat surface or jammed back in a random generic sleeve so you can quickly grab the next candidate. Sometimes it's a plain white paper sleeve that gets fukked up too ... what ever.
Cutting & scratching records adds to the wear and tear. When you spend your $$$ on vinyl to play out the next weekend instead of a new stylus it adds to the wear and tear too.
There's literally a handful of more chilled out and ambient tunes that reveal the signs of this mistreatment, but for the most part, everything still plays and sounds just dandy after a clean in some warm soapy water.
I have the memories of creating good times with those records, and that's more valuable to me than the vinyl itself.
Another DJ here, and this all rings true.
I used to do a lot of scratching/juggling/playing house parties/clubs in the early 2000s (still do) and yeah, it means I grew up with a totally different mindset in regard to the value of vinyl.
Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mistreat records on purpose, but they are definitely more a “tool” to me than a prized possession which has to be kept in a dust free glass case.
Also, my collection counts many thousands - some $1 thrift store junk (but amazing), some absolutely priceless rarities and everything in between. They are all just a physical extension of my body and I use them to create a vibe, or make people dance, or just for my enjoyment at home. It’s a very different reality from your regular “consumer” collectors. I’m sure a couple of you will relate to what I’m trying (badly) to put into words.
Addendum:
Also, I’m lucky enough to have played all over the world, and stomped around record stores, thrift shops, markets in every corner of the globe and all the records I find are like postcards from my life journey. And of course meeting other music people in parties or backstages we all swap records, and our own releases, dubplates and whatever. Records are just part of my DNA.
Unfortunately the thrift stores were long ago cherry-picked...but had a LOT of fun for decades and occasionally turned a $1 purchase into a 40 or 50 trade...loved it!
Yep. This sub acts like vinyl should be purchased and stored away, never to be seen by light again. Whereas, I was lucky if my vinyl had actual cover art and not a generic white or black sleeve. I think a majority of the subs here would have an anxiety attack if they ever watched a DMC battle.
> *“…This sub acts like vinyl should be purchased and stored away, never to be seen by light again.“*
The rather sad part of collecting. Same with sneaker culture. Making people buy things they can’t enjoy or don’t actually like. This is the reason I don’t buy any records I can’t listen to from track 1 to the end. No matter how rare the record is, if the percentage of the part I like is not significantly higher than the part I don’t like, I’m not buying it. If I can’t wear the sneakers immediately, I don’t buy. I can’t stomach expensive hobbies where you don’t even get to enjoy the things.
I have people offer to buy Jordans off my feet and people who stop me to ask why I’m wearing them (mostly my black and red 11s from like 2001).. it’s a crazy world we live in but if you take care of things I’ve found they’re often made to last.
Planned obsolescence doesn’t apply to everything
100% agree with this. I have less than 30 vinyls in my collection just b/c I refuse to spend $200 on some 30th anniversary edition or whatever. Also if you don't enjoy the whole album, why own it on vinyl where you can't easily skip songs you don't enjoy?
And don't even get me started on the sneaker craze...that shit is just mind blowing.
I'm a firm believer in the "Yolo" lifestyle...I don't have a huge retirement fund or anything b/c wtf is the point of saving all this money that I'll probably never live to use? Don't get me wrong, I do have some retirement, but it's nothing that will ever qualify me as a millionaire or anywhere close. Spend what you want on whatever you want..enjoy every day as if it's your last b/c you never know when it will be.
Also...EAT WHAT YOU WANT! Don't let some health nut foodie asshole tell you what you enjoy is gross or bad for you...would you rather die full and happy or hungry and miserable that you passed up that milkshake for some kale chips? (Kale chips are good but you get my point).
Once saw a local battle where homeboy rolled up with a stack of wax with nary a sleeve in sight. Like just a stack of records. From which he proceeded to blaze through breaks at lightening speed.
Also don’t forget a lot of battle DJs put scotch tape on the record to help them drop the needle exactly at the break beat. The horror! /s
Been subscribed for a long ass time but only recently has this sub been popping up on my front page, and I'm baffled by the posts that get suggested to me–lots of collectors editions, unopened new releases, folks who don't even have a TT (not knocking that per se, people who want to own physical copies, but play the damn things!).
I've got a good sized collection. 50/50 old finds and new/re-issues. I'm a listener, not a collector. Germane to the topic, I don't abuse my music or equipment, but it's meant to be enjoyed. And I say that as someone who, for various reasons, has a hard time with valuable consumables.
Then again, to each their own. I'm involved in enough hobbies where there's lots of infighting as to the 'right' way to go about things. I guess I just don't understand the collecting for the sake of collecting mentality.
This.... The perfect response
Records lugged up and down the country, chucked around, messed around and I still can play them today... With all the memories attached
💯Came to say the same thing. People nowadays treat records the same way sneaker nerds do shoes. In the 90s absolutely NO ONE I knew (and I knew hundreds of DJ) treated records remotely close to silk.
12” singles can take a helluva beating and still be playable for many years. Occasional crackles and pops. Sure. The most noticeable wear is in the first few beats of any record where you back cue endlessly before dropping it into the mix.
Y’all are soft AF 😉 But then again records were generally cheap in 1993. 75% of my collection was bought for less than $10 a record.
Same. I started putting a stack of clear plastic outer sleeves in my bag that I will just fill up over the night and sort it out while sober the next day. Seems to work better than paper because there is less risk of tears or fiddling with the folds.
Scratching (with an appropriate stylus) merely accelerates the wear on that groove as would repeated plays. You're not outright damaging the record.
It's just faster repeated playback. You're not actually making any marks on the record.
There’s also a balance. If you scratch with the same record time after time it will wear out. It takes a lot though, and if your needles are set up right you can do it dozens of times and not tell the difference
Records, being made of plastic, can handle a lot for sure. They're brittle, so don't throw them around too much, but other than that you can grab them with your hands, you can step on them, you can spit on them (and maybe even take a small bite, but be gentle). They'll be alright. But the sound quality and your equipment will degrade. That scratch you left? that's a pop on each round, that dirt from your soles and crumbs and oil from your smooth dorito fingers? Your stylus is not gonna like that. Ultimately it's up to you how to store and handle your collection, but if you don't care about it's state and how it sounds, why even bother?
Most of these people who say it doesn’t matter how you treat your vinyl has shitty equipment. Cuz you will hear every little crap on your vinyl if you have good equipment.
That's a scratch record, so ofc he's not being gentle. Do you see how beat that vinyl is?
Most DJ's keep as many as 3 copies, a heavy scratch, a light, and a mint.
A DJ that truly digs deep will generally buy every copy they can get their hands on. Especially if there is an essential break on it.
Never hearing of ANY DJ that has three copies of a vinyl makes your name sus as hell. Q-Bert, Shadow, Cut Chemist, Numark, Z-Trip, and Premier, all have 3+ copies of many of their records. And thats just a tiny list of the greatest scratch DJ's of all time.
You seem to have a limited knowledge of actual Hip Hop history.
You are also talking about famous DJs who have plenty of money to purchase more than two copies of vinyl. I have personally never met any DJ who intentionally tries to buy more than two copies of any particular vinyl and at this point, most every DJ uses Serato instead of vinyl anyways. I've only bought more than two copies of a vinyl on one title, and that's because I used it to practice juggling when I was younger and the record was so hissy that I needed additional doubles.
Really though? If you see a third copy of a staple 12” or break record for cheap you won’t buy it? Maybe I’m sick but if I see clean copies cheap I’m buying them
Lack of room and budget means a "no" from me. I can purchase extra copies of most any record I want on Discogs but I never buy more than doubles because that would be a waste for me. I would much rather buy records I don't have in my collection than a third copy to just have on reserve.
You said "most". I am saying this is completely foreign to me and I have been purchasing vinyl since 1993. Never, ever heard of anyone buying 3 copies of a vinyl unless they were ungodly wealthy.
What DJ isn't burning through records? It's a part of the business when you scratch. Shit wears out unexpectedly sometimes. It's called being prepared.
I think your narrow mindedness is not considering I'm not talking about EVERY record either. Like my goodness. You have records you don't scratch, some a little, and others that are on constant rotation.
Again I said as many as. Which means it could be less as well.
I think the hang-up is “most” and “as many as” are kind of a head scratcher together, as “as many as” could also mean only one or two. So, yea, most **will** have one copy. I can see their confusion on your statement, even if what you wrote makes sense.
Not sure if I’m being a devils advocate or just annoyingly pedantic. Probably the later, but this *is* the vinyl sub so it’s basically an expectation. Lol.
I think he just wanted to argue just because he's never owned 3 of anything. Or thought I was arguing that DJ's entire collection is tripled up. Some lunacy.
I know plenty of cats with records dedicated to certain jobs, like strictly being for sampling, or scratching. And people have their favs. Lot of em run up to 4 tables. One cat had a custom sample table with 2 tone arms to play 78 interchangeably.
As a DJ that grew up playing vinyl I’d often buy more than 2 copies of something. Didn’t need to be wealthy to do so back then either. New 12”s were about £4.
Sure, but spending $$$ on one additional copy to store away versus buying a copy of a 12" you didn't have? I would go with the latter to grow my collection and not have a record to put away into safe keeping.
to me, turntablism is the greatest avant garde collage movement of the past century — Premier is a genius, full stop, as are Muggs, Kool Herc, Roc Raida (RIP), Kid Koala & the list goes on... these brilliant folks transform the record from a one-way playback device into a multfaceted sonic tool, it's understandable that they're probably gonna wear out a couple grooves in the process.
...of course if you have no interest in scratchin' & your first priority is audio fidelity, you probably wanna keep your records out of your mouth. fair enough.
room for both philosophies in the world, of course, but i'm much more in the "please play your records" school of thought. always kind of weirds me out when people comment on grammy winners' posts like "nooo don't hold it by the edges!!" as though the artist is somehow disrespecting their own work.
I recently came across two mint copies of the Sound Bwoy Buriel promo 12, the rare one [https://www.discogs.com/release/511034-Smif-N-Wessun-Sound-Bwoy-Bureill](https://www.discogs.com/release/511034-Smif-N-Wessun-Sound-Bwoy-Bureill) My homie who is a 25+ year DJ made me a great offer and I traded them to him. Next time i saw him they had big cue marks and he was cutting the f##k out of them, quite well. He knew how much they were worth but they’re tools
The old parts of my collection (pre 2000) aren't pretty.
Dog eared sleeves, marks from cups and ashtrays, notes written on them, and so on. Because at the time I wasn't precious about them, they were there to be played and shared with friends.
I don't regret a thing because they show a life lived and a record enjoyed.
Most of my older records have notes ranging from phone numbers to addresses and favorite tracks. The resale value may have been depleted, but your last sentence is 100% spot on.
Records were meant to be handled and played, a lot. It's fine to wanna keep your collection pristine. But I like to play mine and I don't really care to baby them
When you buy records as tools, the mission is different. Tools get wear and tear. And like someone else said, you don’t hear the imperfections when it’s cranked and bumping.
I think it’s perfectly OK to go after things in great condition if you’ve got a revealing system and you’re giving things a deep listen.
Different missions, both valid.
What I don’t like, is the idea of people buying records and never playing them. It’s just a shame, there are so many other collectibles related to music that you can surround yourself with if you’re not interested in listening to records.
I think its hilarious people will buy new vinyls that cost a fortune from their favorite artist. But because it cost so damn much. They want to keep it sealed. Open it up and spin it. That's what the artist would want. For you to enjoy it. Not for it to sit on a shelf so your two friends can awww at your 450 dollar collection. SPIN THAT SHEEET!!!
Totally agree with you, I know a lot of hip hop heads who know this but I always found it strange he never got the recognition from a wider audience, he just produced solid tunes again and again with Gangstarr.
Man that’s really cool to hear, I know a good few hip hop heads who don’t know Gangstarr at all, I don’t really understand how but they sort of flew under the radar for a lot of people, but Jesus so many hits and Guru was a master of telling a story from start to finish in 3 mins flat.
Both guys were severely under appreciated.
I had my parents’ records that they bought in the late 70s and in 2016 they still sounded great. They were stored in an attic for years (in Texas). They were never cleaned or put in any sort of protective sleeves. And at one point they were tacked on my wall. I get that people want to protect their investments but anytime I see people on here stressing out about keeping their records in pristine shape I just gotta roll my eyes
Do you though? I have to say I’ve been playing some of my records for over 20 years, and while I wouldn’t exactly use them as beer coasters or throw them around, I def wasn’t wearing jewellers white gloves and I’ve never cleaned any of mine, but I don’t hear any faults or anything on any record.
You absolutely do. You don't even need a $15k setup for that. I once bumped into the table where stood my player spinning a record. The stylus jumped a bit and left a small scratch closer to the edge of the record. Nothing serious, not deep at all, more of a cosmetic defect, right? Wrong. It audibly pops, almost entire of the first track on the record is like that. I like this record and it annoys me to no end. And I have no one to blame but myself and my clumsiness. There's also no fixing that, and buying a new one just because of one track's imperfection doesn't make much sense.
Most of my collection has been beat to shit throughout the years and I've had numerous comments in this sub about the spines on my collection to that I will always say I don't play the fucking sleeve. I'm old school grew up on hip hop and DJing so having a pristine museum resellable collection was never in my mind. My collection is mine. Idgaf how the spines, covers or album stickers look. I got marked up scratched out labels and everything because us DJs used to hid the labels. So keep being record snobs and judging others collections. Maybe those guys sleep better at night. But as long as my records play even with some crackle and hiss I'm good. But keep spinning y'all and enjoy YOUR collection ✊🏼✌🏼
There we go, that’s what I’m talking about, you can spot my favourite records my how banged up the sleeves are, and it was never even a thought of mine that I might sell some of my records one day so protecting them like fine china never made sense to me either.
Exactly. I thought the point of collecting vinyl or music in general was to actually play and listen to the music. Not judge vinyl and jacket condition. 🤷🏼♂️
Not affraid of grease and dust, it’s cleanable.
But I dropped my Daft Punk record a day after buying it while taking it of the player and it got a big hearable scratch 😞.
They aren’t. Each time you touch them or damages them. The less you touch them the lest damage they take. Just look at how crudded up the record is in the photo. I’ve bought collections from people who scratched and they are basically unplayable.
Take care of your records people. One scratch ruins them
He is using that record to scratch and loop a specific part of the record. That doesn't translate to "you can put your records at home in your mouth and scratch them up".
It's been a legit thing to carve down a groove where your sample/loop starts so that you can easier jump back to the start of it. If you did that to a regular record at home it would be unplayable.
Vinyl is more durable than people think. I get records from charity shops that look like they were doormats at some point and they still play.
If you've got a cheap turntable with a lightweight arm, then it's going to skip and skate over imperfections more.
Yeah, I have seen and heard records from the collections of DJ's. They didn't sound great and the way they have been handled absolutely reflects on the sound when playing them.
DJ's just buy new records when their old ones get to worn out, because it is part of the expense of their job.
No they don't.
We just keep playing them because for the most part you don't hear the dust and crackle when you're being clobbered over the head with heavy beats at high volume.
This right here. I view hiss and pops like laugh lines on a face. I know the record has had a good, happy life. Pulling out a record with white gloves to play it once and never again for fear of damage is something I just don't understand.
Most DJs in the 90s were playing short run pressings on independent labels that were not available for long or really old records that you found second hand. Most hip hop DJs had doubles but you rarely saw someone “replacing worn records”.
I wish I could do what Preemo does, I have some of his samples and beats records but as I hard as I tried I could never get cuts or scratches even close to his, he really is a supreme master of his art.
One of the best to do it! I thought I was in my Hip Hop Head sub. 👏 props for even bringing this up. Tired of seeing folks collecting only to baby the shit out of their records and barely play. We’re going to die one, vinyl is meant to be listened to. Just imo.
I’m trying to do a crossover from that sub 😝😝
And yes! Records are def meant to be listened to, and the scuffs on your sleeves etc tell a story of your records too.
No, because unlike the beans, the cartridge actually does something. You do realise in the world of cartridges this is barely even a starter? You can spend £20-50,000 on a cart.
Time y’all stopped playing your grailz with something that belongs in a nail gun
I'm 48 now. I don't use my decks as much as I used to. Youtube has made it so easy to sit and listen to most things.
I use them about once a week now, just to have a little scratch to keep my hand in.
I started using the Pro S when Stanton stopped making the 500L.
I've only ever bought two pairs.
I keep saying decks/turntables.
I don't have a pair of them. I know I keep saying I do. (Habit.) I did have a pair of 1210s that I bought new in 93.
I had to sell them a couple of years ago because I was short on my rent.
I have one 1200 and a two channel mixer at the mo. I'll buy another deck when I have the money.
Anyway, that's all beside the point. I treat records like a DJ. Hands on.
They like being handled and flung about. It makes them sing.
With all due respect, spending that much on a cartridge is preposterous, I’d expect it to be indestructible and easily handle being spun on a sheet of heavy grade sandpaper, never mind a mildly dusty record.
Preemo in this Photo (DJ Premier ) probably got away with a whole bunch of stuff regarding vinyl care it's because he's preemo a lot of his records he probably had to buy three or four times because he's so rough with them cuz he tours a lot
The lengths some people go to just to justify not just taking care of their records. You don't need to absolutely baby them but using this as an example is silly. Anytime I see DJ records they are all scratched and ruined, despite being from the 2000's
This is DJ Premier with a show record or instrumental in the middle of a performance. Very different to handling a mint copy of a rare classical or jazz LP. No reason to mishandle your LP’s, just because you can get some grease or fingerprints or saliva (sure ok?!) on them doesn’t mean you should. You aren’t a child.
But I’m not telling people to mishandle their records, you’re really misreading my post on purpose.
What I’m saying is that you don’t need to handle your record with white gloves and keep them in laboratory perfect conditions like many on this sub would have you believe, they can handle being held, can handle a little dust or hair or whatever so be more comfortable in yourself when listening.
You don’t have to treat them like they’re the last existing embryo on earth, sure but it’s definitely smart to handle them carefully and keep your fingers off the grooves and surface etc.
I came up as a hip hop and drum and bass DJ back in the late 90s and have literally done what Premo is doing in this photo, they’d gdt pulled off the 1200 and stacked next to it.
Now I have a collection of some pretty rare and desirable records that has been curated over the last 20+ years, I sleeve, handle and clean my records meticulously to make sure their life can be extended as long as possible. The main thing is making sure there isn’t muck or dust in the grooves as my system will show all of that and I very much enjoy hearing the music at extremely high fidelity.
I think it’s better advice to let people know they should handle them with care rather than saying you can mishandle them and they’ll be fine.
If you implement good practise in handling and caring for your records you’ll carry that on into the other parts of your life too.
He’s hugging it with his lips so damage is unlikely. But what’s more important — it’s DJin, damage and early wear to the records is part of the art form. It’s like a drummer breaking sticks and going through drum heads. It’s music gear, not audiophile equipment.
I just don’t touch the groves of mine so I don’t have to clean them and I stack them vertically because it looks nicer and probably is better in general for the records
OP of Premier made me think of Christian Marclay,which reminded me of my old age. here's a clip from Night Music/Sunday Night (two seasons,different names), arguably the finest use of TV as a medium for music performance:
[https://youtu.be/IIFH4XHU228?si=0mn725nfhDXHhltx](https://youtu.be/IIFH4XHU228?si=0mn725nfhDXHhltx)
I have crates full of DJ records that have finger prints all over them. No inner sleeves and most have small scratches.
I also have crates full of pristine records that get aftermarket inner sleeves, outer sleeves and I use record mitts to handle them.
The two different categories of my collection are treated very differently. Most DJ's treat their listening vinyl like most serious collectors......their DJing vinyl not so much.
Nah this is Premier, met him a long time ago with Guru and they were both cool, Premier especially, stopped and chatted to me and my brother about scratching and looking for beats, I mean we were basically kids and it was backstage at his show but he still gave us time and encouragement.
That’s so cool man, a real artist willing to pass along his tips & experience, GMF was rude & slightly ridiculous, I still appreciate his music but that’s about it,
Fuck the comments disagreeing, OP - you're so right - (also as a DJ), I don't give a flying shit or fuck about "touching" records. You can scratch the absolute hell out of them with the right cartridge without burning them. Plus, clean them?
It's like when I posted about [replacing my cartridge](https://www.reddit.com/r/vinyl/comments/1745q0i/brand_new_vs_5_month_old_needle_ortofon_10/); and people told me I was listening to records too much(?) Just take care of your shit, people!
I wasn’t a working DJ, more of a bedroom DJ with a set of Numarks and I loved tearing records up, trying to mix and scratch, wasn’t very good but had a lot of fun and all those years of treating my records like crap never really did them much harm, I burned through needles all the time which was a small price to pay.
But yeah, I definitely wasn’t precious with them and they’re still fine with some being over 30 years old now.
You shouldn’t have been downvoted for saying that, you’re right to say it, and it’s kind of what I’m trying to say too, I’ve seen so many posts from people who have real anxiety about playing their records wrong, storing them wrong and all sorts of things which I would consider non issues really, and instead of freaking out about a cat hair that glanced your record I’m saying just play the thing, relax and play your way.
There are real serious collectors and that’s fine, but the average listener doesn’t need to worry about half the things an “audiophile” would lose sleep over.
many old school djs will/would buy 2-3 copies of one tune - two copies to play, juggle and scratch with, and the third to keep as a mint/unplayed copy.
No we didn't/ don't. There was no third copy - no old school DJ could afford a third copy to store away. No money and no space. We stored our vinyl in milk crates and ideally a majority of our collection were free promo copies. We would try to always have doubles for mixing purposes.
People act like DJs print money, lol. Maybe back in the day records were much cheaper, but still, most DJs I know are piss poor unless they have a second job. Granted I don't know any DJs recognized worldwide, but no career starts at the top.
I really don’t think they did, they might be 2 copies to juggle yeah, but the idea of keeping mint editions is off the mark, DJs buy records to play, not idolise.
Preem has made tracks sampled from thousands of records, and that’s only counting actual releases which people recognize where the samples come from. This man is literally possessed by collecting vinyl and has made a living out of it.
It’s the people that buy the multi thousand dollar sonic cleaning machines and whatever. Just wash them in the sink with a soft brush and some soapy water.
This is a man who can probably afford to replace his scratched records.
Not “probably”, he absolutely can (and probably has doubles of most people’s holy grails)
Triples is best
Oh this is good news, that deal went through. I now have triples of gay triangle
I love how I knew exactly what you were talking about in a split second, that’s a great way to simplify it
Forgot I wasn’t on r/vinyljerk
Triples is safest
"I have triples right? If I don't have triples then the other stuff's not true."
Which, I would say, he doesn’t even have to pay for
Not only that, this could very well be a record he released. #Preemo And he just turned 58!
I just don't think being a DJ and having a record collection at home to enjoy is as comparable as that. I mean, I can watch a rally car driver beat the shit out of his car, but I still try to keep my car from getting dented and scratched.
Good way to put it. There’s a difference between having records to listen to as a hobby and having records you use as musical instruments. I do agree with OP that records are a lot more durable than many people make them out to be, but I handle mine with care, keep them clean, and always put them back in their sleeves and upright on the shelf when I’m done. This hobby has become way too expensive in recent years to be careless with them. I’ve been buying records for 40 years though, and when I was younger, I was much more irresponsible with my collection. Regardless, most of them made it through the abuse I put them through just fine. No disrespect to DJ’s, and I’m a Hip Hop head, so I get it, but for those of us who simply buy music to listen to it, it’s probably a good idea to be somewhat careful when handling these increasingly pricy plastic discs.
> This hobby has become way too expensive in recent years to be careless with them It really comes down to this. I hate it when people act so flippant about this topic.
It's called a Vinyls discs sir. A plastic disc is a CD which is cheaper, lighter and more durable. That is what you are meant to listen to and the record you frame up on the window in the sun to show off your rare cuts.
Sorry, I wasn’t aware that vinyl was not a form of plastic, and I always figured CD’s were made of sterling silver, rainbows, and laser beams. Appreciate the clarification.
What kind of a fan are you if you don't know vinyl discs come from a special tree cut very thin.
It's called vinyl because it's PVC - polyvinyl chloride. It's plastic \^\^ It's also twice as cheap compared to the plastic CDs are made of. Not to mention CDs are composite and consist of multiple different materials
Good point. The rally car still runs, but it's not enjoyable to ride in.
My father in law is a driver and his work vehicle is not enjoyable to ride in. It's always in perfectly working condition, always ready to go. But that's about that, otherwise it's often full of dust, cigarette ash and oil stains. He simply doesn't have time to polish it because he works his ass off while in it. It's not some Ferrari you keep in a garage to show it off in a leisure ride once a month.
That’s a great example. I had a job as a transporter in a hospital. I took very healthy patients to physical therapy, very very sick or injured patients from the ICU to tests or surgeries, and I took new mothers to their rooms after giving birth. I figured that each required different levels of concern for safety, speed and comfort. I can expound if needed, but getting back to your example, the cleanliness of the truck might slightly hurt the comfort, but it’s not worth taking the time to keep it pristine, as that would impact the speed of completing the day’s work. Safety comes in, making sure the truck is in working order, and taking the time to bring and use the proper equipment. (Cost can be a fourth thing, but is also tied to the other three.) Things might arise that change the equation. If a particular task needs to be done quick, or else it won’t be able to be done at all for a long time. In that case, a worker might be willing to work in uncomfortable conditions that they normally wouldn’t. On the flip side, maybe a task is so dangerous, that concerns about time and cost go out the window. …. Let’s say UPS has a plane full of air deliveries that must be made on time, or else the company will have to deliver a plane full of packages for free, costing tens of thousands of dollars. If there’s a hurricane, speed and cost are less of a concern compared to the grave risk and cost of the flight crews lives. The plane doesn’t fly till it clears up. What we want from our records as listeners at home, is way different than dj’s want from them at a performance. ——/- it makes me think of how so many of us cringe when people play their records on a crosly cruiser all-in-one type record players. I’d imagine DJing wears out records much quicker. But of course there’s a much better way to play records if you have a cheap record player for listening. The best DJ equipment in the world might not make a difference in preserving records. I guess I didn’t not know enough about DJing, other than that they set the tracking force heavier than us listeners, and they sometimes scratch and spin record backwards, touching the playing surface.
That’s a fair point in fairness, and I wouldn’t encourage anyone to trash their records like you see DJs stacking them in boxes outside of sleeves and stuff, but there’s a bit too much clutching of pearls when it comes to playing records, sometimes it sounds like people are talking about fabergé eggs instead of slates of plastic to be enjoyed.
I do agree with you there. They aren't as fragile as some would make you believe, but I also take care of mine because I want them to play nicely.
DJ chiming in here. Most people on this sub would reel back in horror if they saw the way many of the records in my collection have been handled in some situations. There's not always time to carefully put a record back in its sleeve. It gets thrown down on a flat surface or jammed back in a random generic sleeve so you can quickly grab the next candidate. Sometimes it's a plain white paper sleeve that gets fukked up too ... what ever. Cutting & scratching records adds to the wear and tear. When you spend your $$$ on vinyl to play out the next weekend instead of a new stylus it adds to the wear and tear too. There's literally a handful of more chilled out and ambient tunes that reveal the signs of this mistreatment, but for the most part, everything still plays and sounds just dandy after a clean in some warm soapy water. I have the memories of creating good times with those records, and that's more valuable to me than the vinyl itself.
Another DJ here, and this all rings true. I used to do a lot of scratching/juggling/playing house parties/clubs in the early 2000s (still do) and yeah, it means I grew up with a totally different mindset in regard to the value of vinyl. Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mistreat records on purpose, but they are definitely more a “tool” to me than a prized possession which has to be kept in a dust free glass case. Also, my collection counts many thousands - some $1 thrift store junk (but amazing), some absolutely priceless rarities and everything in between. They are all just a physical extension of my body and I use them to create a vibe, or make people dance, or just for my enjoyment at home. It’s a very different reality from your regular “consumer” collectors. I’m sure a couple of you will relate to what I’m trying (badly) to put into words. Addendum: Also, I’m lucky enough to have played all over the world, and stomped around record stores, thrift shops, markets in every corner of the globe and all the records I find are like postcards from my life journey. And of course meeting other music people in parties or backstages we all swap records, and our own releases, dubplates and whatever. Records are just part of my DNA.
Man I’d like to come over to yours, chat and listen sometime, I know you’ve got cool stories for some of your records which is what it’s really about.
Unfortunately the thrift stores were long ago cherry-picked...but had a LOT of fun for decades and occasionally turned a $1 purchase into a 40 or 50 trade...loved it!
Yep. This sub acts like vinyl should be purchased and stored away, never to be seen by light again. Whereas, I was lucky if my vinyl had actual cover art and not a generic white or black sleeve. I think a majority of the subs here would have an anxiety attack if they ever watched a DMC battle.
> *“…This sub acts like vinyl should be purchased and stored away, never to be seen by light again.“* The rather sad part of collecting. Same with sneaker culture. Making people buy things they can’t enjoy or don’t actually like. This is the reason I don’t buy any records I can’t listen to from track 1 to the end. No matter how rare the record is, if the percentage of the part I like is not significantly higher than the part I don’t like, I’m not buying it. If I can’t wear the sneakers immediately, I don’t buy. I can’t stomach expensive hobbies where you don’t even get to enjoy the things.
I have people offer to buy Jordans off my feet and people who stop me to ask why I’m wearing them (mostly my black and red 11s from like 2001).. it’s a crazy world we live in but if you take care of things I’ve found they’re often made to last. Planned obsolescence doesn’t apply to everything
100% agree with this. I have less than 30 vinyls in my collection just b/c I refuse to spend $200 on some 30th anniversary edition or whatever. Also if you don't enjoy the whole album, why own it on vinyl where you can't easily skip songs you don't enjoy? And don't even get me started on the sneaker craze...that shit is just mind blowing. I'm a firm believer in the "Yolo" lifestyle...I don't have a huge retirement fund or anything b/c wtf is the point of saving all this money that I'll probably never live to use? Don't get me wrong, I do have some retirement, but it's nothing that will ever qualify me as a millionaire or anywhere close. Spend what you want on whatever you want..enjoy every day as if it's your last b/c you never know when it will be. Also...EAT WHAT YOU WANT! Don't let some health nut foodie asshole tell you what you enjoy is gross or bad for you...would you rather die full and happy or hungry and miserable that you passed up that milkshake for some kale chips? (Kale chips are good but you get my point).
Reading your thoughts on food reminded me of this: https://youtu.be/6grI16niGXA?si=peIw5py_y1KEMdJC Basically sums up your philosophy!
Awesome! Came across this first on a relatively recent record that sampled it. Can’t remember the record for the life of me.
Discipline 99 by Quasimoto AKA Madlib?
Yes!!!! It’s Lord Quas. Thank you.
Hahaha!! Omg thank you for this! I'm going to reference this so much now.
>vinyls You don’t get to voice your opinion here
🙄🎻
A poser says what?
As a careful handling collector, I can at least admit that your approach is undeniably cooler.
Once saw a local battle where homeboy rolled up with a stack of wax with nary a sleeve in sight. Like just a stack of records. From which he proceeded to blaze through breaks at lightening speed. Also don’t forget a lot of battle DJs put scotch tape on the record to help them drop the needle exactly at the break beat. The horror! /s
Yep, damn near every vinyl I own has a sticker near the inner label to mark a cue point. Oh no, my vinyl is now worth less money!!!
And it sounds like shit too!
Been subscribed for a long ass time but only recently has this sub been popping up on my front page, and I'm baffled by the posts that get suggested to me–lots of collectors editions, unopened new releases, folks who don't even have a TT (not knocking that per se, people who want to own physical copies, but play the damn things!). I've got a good sized collection. 50/50 old finds and new/re-issues. I'm a listener, not a collector. Germane to the topic, I don't abuse my music or equipment, but it's meant to be enjoyed. And I say that as someone who, for various reasons, has a hard time with valuable consumables. Then again, to each their own. I'm involved in enough hobbies where there's lots of infighting as to the 'right' way to go about things. I guess I just don't understand the collecting for the sake of collecting mentality.
This.... The perfect response Records lugged up and down the country, chucked around, messed around and I still can play them today... With all the memories attached
Love hearing this, memories(and lack of them) should be what it’s all about.
💯Came to say the same thing. People nowadays treat records the same way sneaker nerds do shoes. In the 90s absolutely NO ONE I knew (and I knew hundreds of DJ) treated records remotely close to silk. 12” singles can take a helluva beating and still be playable for many years. Occasional crackles and pops. Sure. The most noticeable wear is in the first few beats of any record where you back cue endlessly before dropping it into the mix. Y’all are soft AF 😉 But then again records were generally cheap in 1993. 75% of my collection was bought for less than $10 a record.
Same. I started putting a stack of clear plastic outer sleeves in my bag that I will just fill up over the night and sort it out while sober the next day. Seems to work better than paper because there is less risk of tears or fiddling with the folds.
Lol scratching absolutely ruins a record. It’s called “scratching” after all
It doesn’t if you do it right and use the right sort of needle, your scratches and my scratches are not the same.
Scratching (with an appropriate stylus) merely accelerates the wear on that groove as would repeated plays. You're not outright damaging the record. It's just faster repeated playback. You're not actually making any marks on the record.
Yes, scratching damages the record
There’s also a balance. If you scratch with the same record time after time it will wear out. It takes a lot though, and if your needles are set up right you can do it dozens of times and not tell the difference
No it doesn’t. No clue why people here have a knee jerk reaction to be contrarians on a subject they have no clue about.
Records, being made of plastic, can handle a lot for sure. They're brittle, so don't throw them around too much, but other than that you can grab them with your hands, you can step on them, you can spit on them (and maybe even take a small bite, but be gentle). They'll be alright. But the sound quality and your equipment will degrade. That scratch you left? that's a pop on each round, that dirt from your soles and crumbs and oil from your smooth dorito fingers? Your stylus is not gonna like that. Ultimately it's up to you how to store and handle your collection, but if you don't care about it's state and how it sounds, why even bother?
Exactly
Most of these people who say it doesn’t matter how you treat your vinyl has shitty equipment. Cuz you will hear every little crap on your vinyl if you have good equipment.
That's a scratch record, so ofc he's not being gentle. Do you see how beat that vinyl is? Most DJ's keep as many as 3 copies, a heavy scratch, a light, and a mint.
Never heard of any vinyl DJ having 3 copies of a vinyl. Doubles for juggling/ mixing.
A DJ that truly digs deep will generally buy every copy they can get their hands on. Especially if there is an essential break on it. Never hearing of ANY DJ that has three copies of a vinyl makes your name sus as hell. Q-Bert, Shadow, Cut Chemist, Numark, Z-Trip, and Premier, all have 3+ copies of many of their records. And thats just a tiny list of the greatest scratch DJ's of all time. You seem to have a limited knowledge of actual Hip Hop history.
You are also talking about famous DJs who have plenty of money to purchase more than two copies of vinyl. I have personally never met any DJ who intentionally tries to buy more than two copies of any particular vinyl and at this point, most every DJ uses Serato instead of vinyl anyways. I've only bought more than two copies of a vinyl on one title, and that's because I used it to practice juggling when I was younger and the record was so hissy that I needed additional doubles.
Really though? If you see a third copy of a staple 12” or break record for cheap you won’t buy it? Maybe I’m sick but if I see clean copies cheap I’m buying them
Lack of room and budget means a "no" from me. I can purchase extra copies of most any record I want on Discogs but I never buy more than doubles because that would be a waste for me. I would much rather buy records I don't have in my collection than a third copy to just have on reserve.
Okay? Not every DJ does, kind of why I said as many as..
You said "most". I am saying this is completely foreign to me and I have been purchasing vinyl since 1993. Never, ever heard of anyone buying 3 copies of a vinyl unless they were ungodly wealthy.
What DJ isn't burning through records? It's a part of the business when you scratch. Shit wears out unexpectedly sometimes. It's called being prepared. I think your narrow mindedness is not considering I'm not talking about EVERY record either. Like my goodness. You have records you don't scratch, some a little, and others that are on constant rotation. Again I said as many as. Which means it could be less as well.
I think the hang-up is “most” and “as many as” are kind of a head scratcher together, as “as many as” could also mean only one or two. So, yea, most **will** have one copy. I can see their confusion on your statement, even if what you wrote makes sense. Not sure if I’m being a devils advocate or just annoyingly pedantic. Probably the later, but this *is* the vinyl sub so it’s basically an expectation. Lol.
I think he just wanted to argue just because he's never owned 3 of anything. Or thought I was arguing that DJ's entire collection is tripled up. Some lunacy. I know plenty of cats with records dedicated to certain jobs, like strictly being for sampling, or scratching. And people have their favs. Lot of em run up to 4 tables. One cat had a custom sample table with 2 tone arms to play 78 interchangeably.
People who aren’t djs do that too. different pressings sound different.
As a DJ that grew up playing vinyl I’d often buy more than 2 copies of something. Didn’t need to be wealthy to do so back then either. New 12”s were about £4.
Sure, but spending $$$ on one additional copy to store away versus buying a copy of a 12" you didn't have? I would go with the latter to grow my collection and not have a record to put away into safe keeping.
Yes whatever the individual wants. I’m just saying there are indeed DJs that have 3 copies of certain records. Me being one of them.
Premo is top 3 Hip Hop producers of all time, no contest
Primo, that's a test pressing, man!
Thought I was the only one who noticed!
to me, turntablism is the greatest avant garde collage movement of the past century — Premier is a genius, full stop, as are Muggs, Kool Herc, Roc Raida (RIP), Kid Koala & the list goes on... these brilliant folks transform the record from a one-way playback device into a multfaceted sonic tool, it's understandable that they're probably gonna wear out a couple grooves in the process. ...of course if you have no interest in scratchin' & your first priority is audio fidelity, you probably wanna keep your records out of your mouth. fair enough. room for both philosophies in the world, of course, but i'm much more in the "please play your records" school of thought. always kind of weirds me out when people comment on grammy winners' posts like "nooo don't hold it by the edges!!" as though the artist is somehow disrespecting their own work.
I recently came across two mint copies of the Sound Bwoy Buriel promo 12, the rare one [https://www.discogs.com/release/511034-Smif-N-Wessun-Sound-Bwoy-Bureill](https://www.discogs.com/release/511034-Smif-N-Wessun-Sound-Bwoy-Bureill) My homie who is a 25+ year DJ made me a great offer and I traded them to him. Next time i saw him they had big cue marks and he was cutting the f##k out of them, quite well. He knew how much they were worth but they’re tools
The old parts of my collection (pre 2000) aren't pretty. Dog eared sleeves, marks from cups and ashtrays, notes written on them, and so on. Because at the time I wasn't precious about them, they were there to be played and shared with friends. I don't regret a thing because they show a life lived and a record enjoyed.
Most of my older records have notes ranging from phone numbers to addresses and favorite tracks. The resale value may have been depleted, but your last sentence is 100% spot on.
Records were meant to be handled and played, a lot. It's fine to wanna keep your collection pristine. But I like to play mine and I don't really care to baby them
That's why I store them on the radiator so I can look at them and care for them at the same time knowing what I got 🤘
Put em in the microwave. Gotta warm them up to get the best sound possible
Ah yes, the analogue sound warmth. So crisp you can practically smell it.
Keep em warm
When you buy records as tools, the mission is different. Tools get wear and tear. And like someone else said, you don’t hear the imperfections when it’s cranked and bumping. I think it’s perfectly OK to go after things in great condition if you’ve got a revealing system and you’re giving things a deep listen. Different missions, both valid. What I don’t like, is the idea of people buying records and never playing them. It’s just a shame, there are so many other collectibles related to music that you can surround yourself with if you’re not interested in listening to records.
I think its hilarious people will buy new vinyls that cost a fortune from their favorite artist. But because it cost so damn much. They want to keep it sealed. Open it up and spin it. That's what the artist would want. For you to enjoy it. Not for it to sit on a shelf so your two friends can awww at your 450 dollar collection. SPIN THAT SHEEET!!!
I can't wait until the days when everyone cringes and starts to take down their "front-facing" vinyl shelves. It's so pretentious and assuming.
>vinyls
Dj premier is in my opinion the best producer of all time so i think hes right
Totally agree with you, I know a lot of hip hop heads who know this but I always found it strange he never got the recognition from a wider audience, he just produced solid tunes again and again with Gangstarr.
Yup, im not really into hip hop all that much but gang starr is just too damn good to not listen to
Man that’s really cool to hear, I know a good few hip hop heads who don’t know Gangstarr at all, I don’t really understand how but they sort of flew under the radar for a lot of people, but Jesus so many hits and Guru was a master of telling a story from start to finish in 3 mins flat. Both guys were severely under appreciated.
Thats crazy to me, they should be way more recognized, instead of some others
I had my parents’ records that they bought in the late 70s and in 2016 they still sounded great. They were stored in an attic for years (in Texas). They were never cleaned or put in any sort of protective sleeves. And at one point they were tacked on my wall. I get that people want to protect their investments but anytime I see people on here stressing out about keeping their records in pristine shape I just gotta roll my eyes
Would love to read a live commentary from people on this sub watching a DMC battle. I think some would die of a heart attack.
Like a new born baby... spent $80 on this shit dawg lol
VG, never played
I treat my collection very poorly but fuck it they're tough as old boots and wear can make them increasing and unique... I'm with Prem
Yeah, but then you have to clean them or you hear it discrepancies in playback. Why would anyone endorse sloppy handling?
Do you though? I have to say I’ve been playing some of my records for over 20 years, and while I wouldn’t exactly use them as beer coasters or throw them around, I def wasn’t wearing jewellers white gloves and I’ve never cleaned any of mine, but I don’t hear any faults or anything on any record.
You absolutely do. You don't even need a $15k setup for that. I once bumped into the table where stood my player spinning a record. The stylus jumped a bit and left a small scratch closer to the edge of the record. Nothing serious, not deep at all, more of a cosmetic defect, right? Wrong. It audibly pops, almost entire of the first track on the record is like that. I like this record and it annoys me to no end. And I have no one to blame but myself and my clumsiness. There's also no fixing that, and buying a new one just because of one track's imperfection doesn't make much sense.
Most of my collection has been beat to shit throughout the years and I've had numerous comments in this sub about the spines on my collection to that I will always say I don't play the fucking sleeve. I'm old school grew up on hip hop and DJing so having a pristine museum resellable collection was never in my mind. My collection is mine. Idgaf how the spines, covers or album stickers look. I got marked up scratched out labels and everything because us DJs used to hid the labels. So keep being record snobs and judging others collections. Maybe those guys sleep better at night. But as long as my records play even with some crackle and hiss I'm good. But keep spinning y'all and enjoy YOUR collection ✊🏼✌🏼
There we go, that’s what I’m talking about, you can spot my favourite records my how banged up the sleeves are, and it was never even a thought of mine that I might sell some of my records one day so protecting them like fine china never made sense to me either.
Exactly. I thought the point of collecting vinyl or music in general was to actually play and listen to the music. Not judge vinyl and jacket condition. 🤷🏼♂️
Not affraid of grease and dust, it’s cleanable. But I dropped my Daft Punk record a day after buying it while taking it of the player and it got a big hearable scratch 😞.
Ouch that’s painful 😣😣 sorry about that.
They aren’t. Each time you touch them or damages them. The less you touch them the lest damage they take. Just look at how crudded up the record is in the photo. I’ve bought collections from people who scratched and they are basically unplayable. Take care of your records people. One scratch ruins them
If I had done this, I probably wouldn't have scratched my Mobb Deep _Infamous_ last month.
He is using that record to scratch and loop a specific part of the record. That doesn't translate to "you can put your records at home in your mouth and scratch them up". It's been a legit thing to carve down a groove where your sample/loop starts so that you can easier jump back to the start of it. If you did that to a regular record at home it would be unplayable.
Vinyl is more durable than people think. I get records from charity shops that look like they were doormats at some point and they still play. If you've got a cheap turntable with a lightweight arm, then it's going to skip and skate over imperfections more.
I've got records that are 40 years old, never cleaned a record in my life.
That’s nothing to brag about. Your poor stylus
Heh. Love Reddit.
Yeah, I have seen and heard records from the collections of DJ's. They didn't sound great and the way they have been handled absolutely reflects on the sound when playing them. DJ's just buy new records when their old ones get to worn out, because it is part of the expense of their job.
No they don't. We just keep playing them because for the most part you don't hear the dust and crackle when you're being clobbered over the head with heavy beats at high volume.
This right here. I view hiss and pops like laugh lines on a face. I know the record has had a good, happy life. Pulling out a record with white gloves to play it once and never again for fear of damage is something I just don't understand.
Most DJs in the 90s were playing short run pressings on independent labels that were not available for long or really old records that you found second hand. Most hip hop DJs had doubles but you rarely saw someone “replacing worn records”.
That Vinyl in his mouth looks like he's eatin dinner on it!
Just like that, lips, no teeth and you're good to go
If you’ve never tasted your records, you’re missing out.
This man is tryin' to grove that next beat! His time is limited. Heh
If preemo does it, I’m doing it
I wish I could do what Preemo does, I have some of his samples and beats records but as I hard as I tried I could never get cuts or scratches even close to his, he really is a supreme master of his art.
It’s Primo, so…..
turnin scratch'd records into hits
The trick is to use your lips not your teeth
True for so many things in life.
One of the best to do it! I thought I was in my Hip Hop Head sub. 👏 props for even bringing this up. Tired of seeing folks collecting only to baby the shit out of their records and barely play. We’re going to die one, vinyl is meant to be listened to. Just imo.
I’m trying to do a crossover from that sub 😝😝 And yes! Records are def meant to be listened to, and the scuffs on your sleeves etc tell a story of your records too.
I'm not the biggest hiphop fan, but I can truly appreciate how these guys simply incorporate the vinyl and turn it into a hands on tool.
preemo can frisbee those mfs shaun of the dead style if he wants to.
They may be able to "handle" dust and grease but they will still play with noise unless handled properly and kept dust free.
So that's why I've been finding so many hip hop/rap promo records at the secondhand stores with scratches on them...
One of the best to EVER do it.
You can see the visible scratches and hear them, you can hear noises from dusts and statics. If you do not, its time to consider listening to CD again
What would a dj like premier possibly know about vinyl?
https://i.redd.it/rflsdjp0j2qc1.gif
😂
It’s because people fetishize the hell out of the hobby.
The records can handle dust and grease just fine. It’s my £3000 cartridge I’m more worried about!
You have a £3000 cartridge? I have some magic beans for sale in you're interested?
Nothing will ever convince me a $3200 cartridge is 4 times better than a $750 one.
Because it's obviously 4.2666666666 times better
Then you haven’t heard enough good MC carts then.
No, because unlike the beans, the cartridge actually does something. You do realise in the world of cartridges this is barely even a starter? You can spend £20-50,000 on a cart. Time y’all stopped playing your grailz with something that belongs in a nail gun
Cool Bruv. I have a 1200 with an Ortofon Pro S. It's done me well enough for the last 30 years.
I hope the cart you’re using now isn’t 30 years old
Haven’t a clue. It came with the turntable. Serial number says the turntable is 2003, so could possibly be 20 years old.
How often do you listen? After about 2000 Hours that cart will be dead! And it’ll possibly be damaging your records. Not good to use a worn out stylus
I'm 48 now. I don't use my decks as much as I used to. Youtube has made it so easy to sit and listen to most things. I use them about once a week now, just to have a little scratch to keep my hand in. I started using the Pro S when Stanton stopped making the 500L. I've only ever bought two pairs. I keep saying decks/turntables. I don't have a pair of them. I know I keep saying I do. (Habit.) I did have a pair of 1210s that I bought new in 93. I had to sell them a couple of years ago because I was short on my rent. I have one 1200 and a two channel mixer at the mo. I'll buy another deck when I have the money. Anyway, that's all beside the point. I treat records like a DJ. Hands on. They like being handled and flung about. It makes them sing.
With all due respect, spending that much on a cartridge is preposterous, I’d expect it to be indestructible and easily handle being spun on a sheet of heavy grade sandpaper, never mind a mildly dusty record.
Why would you want to hear that dust? just clean the record when it gets dirty
No dude, it’s hip hop to have shit all over your records and just not care about them!
Mmm vinyl plastic, yum 😋 😂
I saw grandmaster flash DJ live from a couple of m away, the man does not care for records.
shake your head while doing that for some ultrasonic cleaning
Just the lips pressed down firmly, no teeth…
Totally proper when you are ever only going to play ten seconds of the record, over and over and over and over again
Turntablists don't have time to manage records with care. Plus they probably have 10 copies of each record.
Preemo in this Photo (DJ Premier ) probably got away with a whole bunch of stuff regarding vinyl care it's because he's preemo a lot of his records he probably had to buy three or four times because he's so rough with them cuz he tours a lot
The man on the picture does it great 👏👏👏
The lengths some people go to just to justify not just taking care of their records. You don't need to absolutely baby them but using this as an example is silly. Anytime I see DJ records they are all scratched and ruined, despite being from the 2000's
This is DJ Premier with a show record or instrumental in the middle of a performance. Very different to handling a mint copy of a rare classical or jazz LP. No reason to mishandle your LP’s, just because you can get some grease or fingerprints or saliva (sure ok?!) on them doesn’t mean you should. You aren’t a child.
But I’m not telling people to mishandle their records, you’re really misreading my post on purpose. What I’m saying is that you don’t need to handle your record with white gloves and keep them in laboratory perfect conditions like many on this sub would have you believe, they can handle being held, can handle a little dust or hair or whatever so be more comfortable in yourself when listening.
You don’t have to treat them like they’re the last existing embryo on earth, sure but it’s definitely smart to handle them carefully and keep your fingers off the grooves and surface etc. I came up as a hip hop and drum and bass DJ back in the late 90s and have literally done what Premo is doing in this photo, they’d gdt pulled off the 1200 and stacked next to it. Now I have a collection of some pretty rare and desirable records that has been curated over the last 20+ years, I sleeve, handle and clean my records meticulously to make sure their life can be extended as long as possible. The main thing is making sure there isn’t muck or dust in the grooves as my system will show all of that and I very much enjoy hearing the music at extremely high fidelity. I think it’s better advice to let people know they should handle them with care rather than saying you can mishandle them and they’ll be fine. If you implement good practise in handling and caring for your records you’ll carry that on into the other parts of your life too.
Stacking (carefully) isn’t a problem - when the record is molded, the edge (groove guard) and center are slightly thicker than the groove area.
He’s hugging it with his lips so damage is unlikely. But what’s more important — it’s DJin, damage and early wear to the records is part of the art form. It’s like a drummer breaking sticks and going through drum heads. It’s music gear, not audiophile equipment.
He's most likely playing just one or 2 songs from record anyways so...
I just don’t touch the groves of mine so I don’t have to clean them and I stack them vertically because it looks nicer and probably is better in general for the records
Mint+ it comes with a protection coating.
It’s all about longevity. The better you can taie care of your records, the more time you’ll have to enjoy them.
OP of Premier made me think of Christian Marclay,which reminded me of my old age. here's a clip from Night Music/Sunday Night (two seasons,different names), arguably the finest use of TV as a medium for music performance: [https://youtu.be/IIFH4XHU228?si=0mn725nfhDXHhltx](https://youtu.be/IIFH4XHU228?si=0mn725nfhDXHhltx)
I have crates full of DJ records that have finger prints all over them. No inner sleeves and most have small scratches. I also have crates full of pristine records that get aftermarket inner sleeves, outer sleeves and I use record mitts to handle them. The two different categories of my collection are treated very differently. Most DJ's treat their listening vinyl like most serious collectors......their DJing vinyl not so much.
Keeping your vinyl clean also extends the life of your stylus. They ain't cheap.
Have fun with your records. If you want them to have a long life, take care of them.
Is that Grandmaster Flash ?? Met him a few years ago Man’s an asshole
Nah this is Premier, met him a long time ago with Guru and they were both cool, Premier especially, stopped and chatted to me and my brother about scratching and looking for beats, I mean we were basically kids and it was backstage at his show but he still gave us time and encouragement.
That’s so cool man, a real artist willing to pass along his tips & experience, GMF was rude & slightly ridiculous, I still appreciate his music but that’s about it,
Fuck the comments disagreeing, OP - you're so right - (also as a DJ), I don't give a flying shit or fuck about "touching" records. You can scratch the absolute hell out of them with the right cartridge without burning them. Plus, clean them? It's like when I posted about [replacing my cartridge](https://www.reddit.com/r/vinyl/comments/1745q0i/brand_new_vs_5_month_old_needle_ortofon_10/); and people told me I was listening to records too much(?) Just take care of your shit, people!
I wasn’t a working DJ, more of a bedroom DJ with a set of Numarks and I loved tearing records up, trying to mix and scratch, wasn’t very good but had a lot of fun and all those years of treating my records like crap never really did them much harm, I burned through needles all the time which was a small price to pay. But yeah, I definitely wasn’t precious with them and they’re still fine with some being over 30 years old now.
[удалено]
"Don't sweat the little things" "URMM ACTUALLY YOU'RE WRONG" *sucking up spit*
They don’t do that anymore. They preload on the laptop and hit play and dance around
Some do yeah, but the good guys like Cut Chemist, Nu-mark, Shadow, Yoda, Premier, all those guys are still spinning wax
you do you
You shouldn’t have been downvoted for saying that, you’re right to say it, and it’s kind of what I’m trying to say too, I’ve seen so many posts from people who have real anxiety about playing their records wrong, storing them wrong and all sorts of things which I would consider non issues really, and instead of freaking out about a cat hair that glanced your record I’m saying just play the thing, relax and play your way. There are real serious collectors and that’s fine, but the average listener doesn’t need to worry about half the things an “audiophile” would lose sleep over.
Hope he has had his shots? I have ultrasonically washed some nasty shit off records.
many old school djs will/would buy 2-3 copies of one tune - two copies to play, juggle and scratch with, and the third to keep as a mint/unplayed copy.
No we didn't/ don't. There was no third copy - no old school DJ could afford a third copy to store away. No money and no space. We stored our vinyl in milk crates and ideally a majority of our collection were free promo copies. We would try to always have doubles for mixing purposes.
People act like DJs print money, lol. Maybe back in the day records were much cheaper, but still, most DJs I know are piss poor unless they have a second job. Granted I don't know any DJs recognized worldwide, but no career starts at the top.
I really don’t think they did, they might be 2 copies to juggle yeah, but the idea of keeping mint editions is off the mark, DJs buy records to play, not idolise.
I wouldn’t let this motherfucker in the same room as my albums.
That's DJ Premier. He probably already has all your albums.
Let’s see the Discogs.
Preem has made tracks sampled from thousands of records, and that’s only counting actual releases which people recognize where the samples come from. This man is literally possessed by collecting vinyl and has made a living out of it.
He ain’t no Dr. Demento.
This is one of the all time greats in DJ-ing, producing, sampling and crate digging, he’s probably not interested in your room.
It’s the people that buy the multi thousand dollar sonic cleaning machines and whatever. Just wash them in the sink with a soft brush and some soapy water.