Definitive Audiophile pressings

TenderLovingKiller® said:
Not to be pedantic but the first US President to use this quote was Ronald Reagan who said this regarding the Soviet Union’s Nuclear disarmament. W. Mighta said it later but it was in homage to Reagan, to whom the Neo Cons, of Bush’s ilk hold in high regard.
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LOL. I got it from W though!

W's greatest hits. At least he had a sense of humor.
 
Portland Sheriff said:
NM- from Dusty Groove. This photo is in clear light, but it’s also easy to see in regular light. There Are plenty other obvious markings all over this record, many of which come with clearly audible noise, but this non-fill (I think?) is loud and intrusive on a couple quiet jazz ballad tracks.

I think of Dusty Groove as a good, reputable shop, but this is my first used purchase from them. Is this typical for Dusty Groove? Their used prices are very fair, but not if the grades are way off.
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I recently bought 3 used records from Dusty Groove, all graded NM-. One was NM-, one was VG+ and one was VG. First time in a long time I bought used from them and I won’t do it again.
 
Portland Sheriff said:
NM- from Dusty Groove. This photo is in clear light, but it’s also easy to see in regular light. There Are plenty other obvious markings all over this record, many of which come with clearly audible noise, but this non-fill (I think?) is loud and intrusive on a couple quiet jazz ballad tracks.

I think of Dusty Groove as a good, reputable shop, but this is my first used purchase from them. Is this typical for Dusty Groove? Their used prices are very fair, but not if the grades are way off.
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We'll know everything we need to know about them when we hear how they respond to your informing them about this.
 
snowwhat said:
I recently bought 3 used records from Dusty Groove, all graded NM-. One was NM-, one was VG+ and one was VG. First time in a long time I bought used from them and I won’t do it again.
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That’s unfortunate. I like them as a shop but have only done new from them a few times. Didn’t even know they sold used online to be honest! I don’t really trust NM- grading…
 
Accurate grades, even rounded down for online, are essential. I just don’t care for adding + or - willy nilly. And explanation goes much further for me than just a grade. VG can be pretty rough or just a few more marks than VG+ allows, quite a different listening experience. And I am always suspicious of NM grades.
 
Dusty Groove is my local shop (well one of them).

Portland Sheriff said:
NM- from Dusty Groove. This photo is in clear light, but it’s also easy to see in regular light. There Are plenty other obvious markings all over this record, many of which come with clearly audible noise, but this non-fill (I think?) is loud and intrusive on a couple quiet jazz ballad tracks.

I think of Dusty Groove as a good, reputable shop, but this is my first used purchase from them. Is this typical for Dusty Groove? Their used prices are very fair, but not if the grades are way off.
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Hit them up, they should take care of you. Unfortunately, I had issues with a couple of NM- records that I bought online (but store pickup), so now if it’s graded NM-, I usually check in store first to verify. Everything I’ve bought from them graded VG+ or lower has been accurate (as far as I can remember). Their grade is only for the vinyl though. Usually if there’s something wrong with the sleeve they’ll note it on the listing, but there’s no separate grade.


RHANDMJ said:
I've bought from Dusty Groove many times, in person and online. Their shop is relatively small, and I suppose more used stuff never makes it to the store but is warehoused for online sale.

They do high volume of used vinyl, and to do so, must be scouring garage sales and buying large collections sight unseen. They probably have a grading team about the size of Elon Musk's content moderation team. They take a quick look, maybe don't even flip the side, and that's it.
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From my experience, every used record they’ve got up on the website, is available out on the floor. Everything that’s out on the floor gets graded. They’ve recently reopened their bargain bin basement filled with lower end (value & grade) pieces from those collections they buy, but those records don’t make it to the website.

snowwhat said:
I recently bought 3 used records from Dusty Groove, all graded NM-. One was NM-, one was VG+ and one was VG. First time in a long time I bought used from them and I won’t do it again.
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Like I said above, the only ones I remember having issues with were NM- ones, and they always took care of me. I’m local though so not sure how they do returns/refunds for shipped orders. Did you reach out to them?


Russ I said:
We'll know everything we need to know about them when we hear how they respond to your informing them about this.
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They’ve always taken care of me whether it’s a misgraded used record or a defect on a new record, but again, I’m local, so I’d be interested how they handle returns/refunds for shipped orders.

MikeH said:
That’s unfortunate. I like them as a shop but have only done new from them a few times. Didn’t even know they sold used online to be honest! I don’t really trust NM- grading…
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djdavedk said:
Is NM- even a grade?

not to be pedantic… why not VG+++ ?
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NM- is their highest grade for unsealed records as far as I know. I just treat it as what some places sometimes use as EX (if they also have a VG+ grade) or VG++. Basically should just be a couple (max) small marks that don’t affect play.
 
Oh and in that package with Bill Withers, also got Lucinda Williams’ Car Wheels from MOV. It sounds terrific even if it should probably be on three or four sides. If there’s ever someone that deserves a solid reissue campaign, it’s her. Wouldn’t surprise me if we get something for that record this year being the 25th anniversary this summer. Perfect album. Frankly, her self titled, Sweet Old World, and Car Wheels are all perfect.
 
mitchwagz said:
Just picked up the MoFi Bill Withers Greatest Hits and it’s damn good. I’m not a huge huge fan but I do like all the songs on this hits package so this is perfect for me. Highly recommend picking it up before it’s discontinued which it appears it may be?
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While I actually don't like the Greatest Hits selection as much as Carnegie or some of his other albums -- I agree....the sound quality is pretty amazing
 
Portland Sheriff said:
NM- from Dusty Groove. This photo is in clear light, but it’s also easy to see in regular light. There Are plenty other obvious markings all over this record, many of which come with clearly audible noise, but this non-fill (I think?) is loud and intrusive on a couple quiet jazz ballad tracks.

I think of Dusty Groove as a good, reputable shop, but this is my first used purchase from them. Is this typical for Dusty Groove? Their used prices are very fair, but not if the grades are way off.
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I used to order used from them, and they were good, but last time I ordered from them was almost 20 years ago during the mid 2000's.

Those types of scratches are nasty. Not sure what they're from - whether it's debris in the sleeve or mishandling at the pressing plant when they stack them, but I mostly get them from completely sealed brand new records. The "Untitled" run by Sault was particularly bad in this regard for me. They are most definitely very audible.

Curious to hear how they respond because this is basically the opposite of NM, i.e. F.

EDIT: I've referred to these as "scribble scratches" on here before, because I couldn't think of a better way to describe them. What @Portland Sheriff showed is what I'm talking about when I use that expression.
 
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So I gotta say, I picked up the repress of the 2 Many DJs As Heard On Radio Soulwax Vol. 2 and I don't know what sorcery they used to get this pressed to vinyl so well, but holy hell it sounds incredible considering this is all sourced from very used vinyl in most cases (I think). But the fidelity is crazy. My phone doesn't record the best audio but you can get the idea here...

 
Mather said:
So I gotta say, I picked up the repress of the 2 Many DJs As Heard On Radio Soulwax Vol. 2 and I don't know what sorcery they used to get this pressed to vinyl so well, but holy hell it sounds incredible considering this is all sourced from very used vinyl in most cases (I think). But the fidelity is crazy. My phone doesn't record the best audio but you can get the idea here...

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Is that an Isoacoustics platform that your turntable is on? If so, how do you like it? I’ve been eyeing them myself.
 
Urbs_hott said:
Is that an Isoacoustics platform that your turntable is on? If so, how do you like it? I’ve been eyeing them myself.
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It is yep, that's the ZaZen 1 (why are all the names of these things so stupid).
I think it does it's job, but it's not a miracle worker. If you walk past the system it will still skip it if you don't do it carefully. I've got 60 year old spongy hardwood floors.

But in terms of sound, I may have noticed a bit more precision in the low end and a bit wider of a stage with it vs without. But no massive changes either way.
 
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