On-line Stores & Sellers

Started by Expresso, July 02, 2007, 09:09:12 AM

Previous topic - Next topic

0 Members and 3 Guests are viewing this topic.

ChamberNut

Quote from: Feanor on December 10, 2008, 07:53:20 AM
I have often purchased from ArkivMusic and have always been very satisfied with their service even though I live in Canada so service is cross-border which adds some delay.  They tend to make partial shipments that originate in different locations, however this really isn't a problem and ensures quickest deliver I suppose.  I highly recommend them.

ArkivMusic's selection is pretty much unsurpassed, and I really like their search & drill-down facilties which are definitely unsurpassed.

Thanks Feanor.  What are the shipping fees like to Canada?  There isn't a Canadian wing of ArkivMusic, similar to Amazon.ca, is there?

Fëanor

#121
Quote from: ChamberNut on December 10, 2008, 07:55:44 AM
Thanks Feanor.  What are the shipping fees like to Canada?  There isn't a Canadian wing of ArkivMusic, similar to Amazon.ca, is there?

Unfortunately there is no "Arkivmusic.ca".  I would say that their shipping charges are extremely reasonable.  For example, I just found that they will send me six CDs (from my shopping card which I won't actually order) for US$13.95 via US Post Office 1st Class/World mail.  From past experience I know they won't charge anymore if they ship multiple partial shipments.  It's worth noting that small shipments of 1-3 CDs  usually do not attract taxes and Canada Post's $5 brokerage.

(It isn't uncommon for US vendors to ship only via FedEx priority courrier that has a miniumum charge of over US$30 and will attract taxes and FedEx's exhorbitant brokerage charge.)

Que

Quote from: ChamberNut on December 10, 2008, 07:55:44 AM
Thanks Feanor.  What are the shipping fees like to Canada?  There isn't a Canadian wing of ArkivMusic, similar to Amazon.ca, is there?

What about Grigorian?
No experience with them, just came across them once online.

Q

ChamberNut

Quote from: Que on December 10, 2008, 01:49:42 PM
What about Grigorian?
No experience with them, just came across them once online.

Q

Hmm, hadn't heard of Grigorian.  Thanks for the tip, Q!   :)

Brian

Quote from: Que on December 10, 2008, 01:49:42 PM
What about Grigorian?
No experience with them, just came across them once online.

Q
I once got a very hard-to-find HIP album from Grigorian and was very satisfied - they were the only place I could find that had it, and it arrived quite safely in my mailbox. :)

not edward

Quote from: Que on December 10, 2008, 01:49:42 PM
What about Grigorian?
No experience with them, just came across them once online.

Q
Haven't used them online, but their bricks-and-mortar store is very well run and has a very knowledgeable staff.

It's certainly my favourite classical store in Toronto, and it does tend to carry some material that wouldn't appear elsewhere.
"I don't at all mind actively disliking a piece of contemporary music, but in order to feel happy about it I must consciously understand why I dislike it. Otherwise it remains in my mind as unfinished business."
-- Aaron Copland, The Pleasures of Music

Fëanor

Quote from: edward on December 11, 2008, 06:54:35 AM
Haven't used them online, but their bricks-and-mortar store is very well run and has a very knowledgeable staff.

It's certainly my favourite classical store in Toronto, and it does tend to carry some material that wouldn't appear elsewhere.

Ditto that.  I often shop at L'Atelier Griogrian here in London, Ontario.

jimmosk

#127
Reading through this thread, I have to admit I'm somewhat surprised not to see ebay mentioned at all.  Of course, what will be listed there in a given week is unpredictable, and there's a lot of chaff to bypass ("Schoenberg's Greatest Hits", etc), but the same is true of looking through any used CD store, with the same thrill of discovery at finding something unanticipated... only ebay is larger than pretty much any such store.
So is there some reason why it hasn't been mentioned?

[Disclaimer: I'm not a disinterested party]

-J

--
Jim Moskowitz
The Unknown Composers Page:  http://kith.org/jimmosk/TOC.html
Jim Moskowitz / The Unknown Composers Page / http://kith.org/jimmosk
---.      ---.      ---.---.---.    ---.---.---.
"On the whole, I think the whole musical world is oblivious of all the bitterness, resentment, iconoclasm, and denunciation that lies behind my music." --Percy Grainger(!)

Daverz

Quote from: jimmosk on December 11, 2008, 06:57:56 PM
Reading through this thread, I have to admit I'm somewhat surprised not to see ebay mentioned at all. 
So is there some reason why it hasn't been mentioned?

I only use ebay as a last resort.   Shipping charges are generally too high.  And I just don't like browsing the site or dealing with the sellers.

I did get a Tower Japan exclusive CD from ebay (Ormandy's wonderful recording of Mendelssohn's Walpurgisnacht).  That saved me from trying to figure out the Tower Japan site.  It's good for oddball stuff like that.

jimmosk

#129
FYI, shipping charges got the boom lowered on them a few months back -- all CDs now must have a $3 or less shipping option for US shipping (though other more expensive options can be offered in addition).  Similarly there are caps now on books, DVDs, and a few other categories. 

-J

--
Jim Moskowitz
The Unknown Composers Page: http://kith.org/jimmosk/TOC.html
Jim Moskowitz / The Unknown Composers Page / http://kith.org/jimmosk
---.      ---.      ---.---.---.    ---.---.---.
"On the whole, I think the whole musical world is oblivious of all the bitterness, resentment, iconoclasm, and denunciation that lies behind my music." --Percy Grainger(!)

Solitary Wanderer

I've just made my first purchase from The Classical CD Exchange

They have a very good selection.

I managed to get an OOP title for a good price.

:)
'I lingered round them, under that benign sky: watched the moths fluttering among the heath and harebells, listened to the soft wind breathing through the grass, and wondered how any one could ever imagine unquiet slumbers for the sleepers in that quiet earth.' ~ Emily Bronte

Coopmv

Quote from: Solitary Wanderer on December 17, 2008, 06:14:20 PM
I've just made my first purchase from The Classical CD Exchange

They have a very good selection.

I managed to get an OOP title for a good price.

:)

Does Classical CD Exchange ONLY sell used CD's?

George

Quote from: Que on July 02, 2007, 09:48:18 AM
I buy mostly individual items with Marketplace sellers on the various Amazon's (.com/.de/.co.uk/.fr).

Then MDT's special offers, jpc

I second Gurn's recommendation of CDconnection: low price, very fast delivery and they have a reliable indication if something is in stock (I hate back orders). One disadvantage: they have not a large stock, mostly new releases.

I do most of my bargain hunting at the (in)famous Berkshire Record Outlet aka "BRO".
They are the cheapest in town, but when are they going to use some bubble wrap instead of old papers??
Be prepared for some damaged jewel boxes...!  :o

Also worthwhile is Leslie Gerber's Parnassus Records, especially for some OOP. Also for LP's.
He works with a monthly list, so best is to scan that now and then.

Cheap, but not as cheap as BRO - but they have more mainstream items - is the German Zweitausendeins.
Also for books.

The best place for rare historical and live recordings is Norbeck, Peters & Ford. Also for 78 rpm's.

Addition:
I found some real bargains lately, many of them OOP, at Swiss discPLUS. I guess only of interest to European members of the forum.

Q

Great post, Que!

Has anyone attempted to compile the sellers listed in this thread? I know that FK has a list ion his blog, but not sure if he lists all the ones found here.

Kuhlau

Quote from: Coopmv on January 31, 2009, 06:41:03 PM
Does Classical CD Exchange ONLY sell used CD's?

Yes, but the quality of what they sell (and indeed, accept for exchange/resell) is exceptionally high. The people who run it now have, I hope, maintained the standards set by those who started it originally, with whom I had many happy dealings.

As a general aside (and to bang on yet again about my blog), this page on my site contains around 300 useful classical music links, including a healthy selection of online sellers.

FK

Coopmv

Quote from: Kuhlau on February 01, 2009, 03:37:36 AM
Yes, but the quality of what they sell (and indeed, accept for exchange/resell) is exceptionally high. The people who run it now have, I hope, maintained the standards set by those who started it originally, with whom I had many happy dealings.

As a general aside (and to bang on yet again about my blog), this page on my site contains around 300 useful classical music links, including a healthy selection of online sellers.

FK

I just have my hang-up about buying CD's that are used.  Perhaps for OOP recordings, the choices are few and far between.  Or unless we want to buy from our friends ArkivMusic ...   Jay, are you following this thread?     ;D

Jay F

#135
Quote from: Coopmv on February 01, 2009, 05:19:07 AM
I just have my hang-up about buying CD's that are used.  Perhaps for OOP recordings, the choices are few and far between.  Or unless we want to buy from our friends ArkivMusic ...   Jay, are you following this thread?     ;D
I just found it, Stuart.

I buy used CDs all the time. It's the only way to get certain original pressings from the '80s and '90s, which I'd rather have than (potentially crappy sounding) reissues. I've discovered I really don't like these mini-box sets with sleeves instead of jewel boxes. The sleeves are way too determined to contain their CDs at all costs (mainly scratching). The price is attractive, but I find myself (unconsciously, perhaps) choosing to play other CDs than the ones in these mini-boxes.

When I'm hunting for something old, I ask the sellers a lot of questions. How do CD and case and booklet smell is the first thing I want to know, as sometimes these things absorb odors over the years, and I don't want to breathe that in. I think it's the booklets that get smelly--the ink, the chemicals used during processing, I really don't know exactly what.

Most sellers are good about describing discs. But they are not as compulsive as Keithy-Boy about "dimples" in the booklets, or the degree of scuffiness on CD cases. I'm not particularly fussy about those things, either. I mean, it's nice to get a flawless case, but the things are 20 years old for Christ's sake. The smell is more of a big deal to me, as well as whether the discs are scratched and/or scuffed. The important thing is to ask a ton of questions.

Used CDs = my favorite alternative to ArkivCDs.

Fëanor

Quote from: nicht schleppend on February 03, 2009, 01:58:16 PM
...
When I'm hunting for something old, I ask the sellers a lot of questions. How do CD and case and booklet smell is the first thing I want to know, as sometimes these things absorb odors over the years, and I don't want to breathe that in. I think it's the booklets that get smelly--the ink, the chemicals used during processing, I really don't know exactly what.

Most sellers are good about describing discs. But they are not as compulsive as Keithy-Boy about "dimples" in the booklets, or the degree of scuffiness on CD cases. I'm not particularly fussy about those things, either. I mean, it's nice to get a flawless case, but the things are 20 years old for Christ's sake. The smell is more of a big deal to me, as well as whether the discs are scratched and/or scuffed. The important thing is to ask a ton of questions.
...

Good Lord!

I borrow a lot of CDs from the public library; one becomes quite tolerant of odors, stains, etc.

Jay F

#137
Quote from: Feanor on February 03, 2009, 06:06:55 PM
Good Lord!

I borrow a lot of CDs from the public library; one becomes quite tolerant of odors, stains, etc.

One wishes not to purchase said odors, given the opportunity, when said odors give him a migraine.

ChamberNut


Renfield

Different practices suiting different people, nothing new. :)