Plaid Room Records. Monster Music (SC). The In Groove (Phoenix). Lots of brick & mortar record stores have online stores. Some include used records as well as new.
Lots of used records available on Discogs but it can be a real crapshoot. If you find some trustworthy sellers, though, it can be a good resource.
Another vote for Plaid Room. They're my local dealer and I buy almost exclusively from their website, then cruise into town to pick up. If you get on their mailing list, they'll shoot you Friday's new release drop on Thursday night so you can snap up anything in low volume. They discount damaged sleeves as well, so if you're just looking to get the record and don't mind a dinged corner, it's a great way to save a buck or two.
Plaid Room is the best. The last time I was passing through that area on a vacation road trip we actually stopped there to shop in person and see the place. Ended up being such a lovely little town with a brewery and a couple restaurants! I highly recommend people check it out if they are ever close to that area.
This is the way. Shoutout to Sacred Bones Records, Cleopatra Records, and Torn Light Records.
I’ve bought from Merchbar and their shipping is dogshit. They shipped me about 8 records in a box that got crushed, damaging the records inside. Labels and quality indie shops pack everything professionally and safely.
I would probably look at eBay. There are a lot of stores that sell online. If you look for the best feedback usually you will have good luck.
I have also had really good luck buying from people on discogs.
[Zia Records](https://www.ziarecords.com/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9v6wn_7shQMVWF5HAR2o_gOYEAAYASAAEgIKQvD_BwE)
They have eight brick and mortar locations (AZ/NV) and I’ve found stuff on them that I couldn’t find anywhere else retail.
Zia is awesome, but I wish they would remove the little anti theft plastic stickers. They can leave impressions int the sleeve since this are raised and pretty rigid.
My husband and I run a small online shop over at [vinyldevotion.fm](https://www.vinyldevotion.fm/). All our prices are flexible using the Make an Offer button on every listing, shipping is free on orders over $60 and we haven’t had a record damaged during shipping in over 3 years because of our insane packing methods. Hope you’ll give us a chance! 🖤
Depends on the genre/artists
Sometimes it’s directly from labels (Denovali) or artists directly as well.
HHV.de
JPC.de
Are my go to retail online shops.
Even though you are rural and record shops are few and far between, many have online stores so you can still support your not-so-local record shop. Do you mind sharing your general vicinity and I may be able to recommend a few shops?
You do live in a bit of a vinyl dead spot 😆 Unfortunately, I'm not able to recommend any place close but...
As far as online, I can recommend Streetlight Records in San Jose and Santa Cruz. I know they are 200+ miles away but I highly recommend them and they have a Discogs store for each location.
[https://www.discogs.com/seller/Streetlightrecordssc/profile](https://www.discogs.com/seller/Streetlightrecordssc/profile)
[https://www.discogs.com/seller/Streetlightrecords/profile](https://www.discogs.com/seller/Streetlightrecords/profile)
Now if you are ever in Lancaster, there is a very cool shop called Voodoo Vinyl, 721 W Lancaster Blvd. Unfortunately they do not maintain an online store that I know of but you may want to give them a call to make sure, 661-945-6511. Discogs just may be your best bet. Lots of great sellers but you need to be cautious... Always read the feedback and seller terms. 👍
Hope this helps!
Places near me will ship across the province or country for free with orders over a certain amount. Pretty easy to get over $100 in Canada with two or three albums. Hopefully you can find something similar.
Depends what you're looking for. If you are trying to get some of the stuff people seem to buy first for their collections (the stereotypical Darkside of the Moon, Rumors, Abbey Road, etc) honestly, I would do a big store like Walmart, Target, or Amazon because those are getting tons of represses and they're always in stock. If you had a local shop, I'd say check there, but frankly you'll save $5-10 each record and with mass pressed stuff like these, I don't think it matters that much.
I'm lucky enough to have a couple of local shops, but neither of them are great at having a deep collection of back libraries for artists (so they might have the most recent release by a band, but not the prior 5 albums). For those, I like to buy from Ebay, and the best trick I've found there is to find a seller doing a "buy 2 get 1" or "buy more than 2 get 20%", etc type of deal and buy them in batches if you can. I find if I wait until I have like $150 to spend, I can get really good deals compared to just grabbing one record off the site.
Barf on the newly released presses vs the og versions of like fleetwood mac mastered by kendun or a uk beatles or pink floyd. At the very least og german presses. Step into the light. Ebay the old stuff and quality over quantity. Generally the country the band recorded the album will have a better pressing and many times the mono press will have better mastering like with the beatles uk’s, mid to late 60’s aretha franklin. The Beatles had more of a hand in the mono mixes. You can stevehoffman like any record’s “best” pressing and you can usually find something best or better than the new remastered stuff within budget on like ebay. Just be careful to check condition and get used to reading deadwaxes for what you want
Spinmeroundstore.com I highly recommend this family run store. They’re in Easton, PA. Check out the super sales records page. They’re usually cheaper than anyone.
Don’t quote me on it, but if you order from the super sales page your order comes from the store itself. If not the records are shipped from the distributor. Like I said I could be wrong. Send them an email regardless, I mean, I would.
They're legit, and ship quickly, but their prices aren't great (like, the Cowboy Bebop collection was 200-250 everywhere else, was 350 through TurnTableLabs). Can usually find every normal new vinyl there for a couple dollars cheaper elsewhere.
Will say they package well though.
Plaid room in Ohio is great like others have mentioned. Luna in Franklin TN is also great for online shopping. And anytime I’m getting something shipped from Amazon I check for deals. I know they are the evil giant, but saving money is cool.
Good luck.
For artists that still make music, I buy direct from their website to support them the most. Some bands have special versions that are just on there too. I also like to visit record stores when I travel to support a local store and look at their used section. You could take a trip to the nearest larger town with a real record store and make a fun day trip/date day out of it
After ordering from merchbar and being screwed over without knowing their reputation I've gone strictly with discogs/the official artist/labels site.
That way I know what I'm getting and that I'll actually have a shot at receiving it instead of having some scummy site take my money from me.
Seriously, fuck merchbar. Shit should be shut down.
I’ve seen quite a few complaints about band camp so I’d stay clear. But Discogs and straight from the bands label are excellent suggestions. Just when using discogs try to buy from someone with an excellent “seller rating” paired with lots of reviews. And if you find a seller or two with great selections, keep going back. I could recommend some if you like.
In the UK I'll almost exclusively use Norman Records in Leeds for new stuff. Have been going straight to them for years and their packaging & customer service has always been top notch.
Bleep and Rough Trade would be my second choice, but RT especially can be a bit more expensive.
I'd go to bandcamp or to the artist direct more often, but since a lot of artists ship from the states or generally abroad, shipping can be pricey so I'll wait for a domestic distro to get some copies, or will just stump for it if it's a short run that won't hit distros (e.g. the Cowboy Sadness record that I spent £20 in shipping on)
Discogs exclusively for used records - I've had a handful of bad experiences, but has just taught me to be more cautious and read seller reviews more closely when buying something moderately valuable.
Big box warehouses that are generalists and don't specialise in records like Amazon etc I never buy from. You honestly have no idea what will arrive, or in what condition.
Amazon for new releases. (Europe/Germany!!!)
bought literally dozens of new records from Amazon, and they package every single one individually in a record-shaped 5mm thick cardboard box so that they don't get damaged.
Never had any issues at all.
And whenever something (other than a record) was damaged, they replaced/refunded it without any issues.
[get\_importCDs](https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trkparms=folent%3Aget_importcds%7Cfolenttp%3A1&_trksid=p3542580.m47492.l71970&_ssn=get_importcds) is an eBay seller that I believe is the direct-to-consumer arm of one of the biggest retail store suppliers in the U.S. It often has bundle sales, and the prices are generally good (but double check because sometimes they're a bit high for certain variants). I have never had a problem with damaged records with them, and they have an excellent selection. I support local stores, but when they don't have what I need, this store is a tremendously good resource.
Start with the artists’ website. If they have the product, check out Acoustic Sounds’s website.
https://store.acousticsounds.com/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIj6-HtJPthQMV_NDCBB1WDgzYEAAYASAAEgITvPD_BwE
I've never used this company but I know their name because of how frequently complaints about them come up on this very sub.
[https://www.reddit.com/r/vinyl/search/?q=merchbar&type=link&cId=b370d437-b728-4cd6-ba6b-5353460865f2&iId=2312c2c9-8f80-4376-b63e-fea2115797fc&sort=new](https://www.reddit.com/r/vinyl/search/?q=merchbar&type=link&cId=b370d437-b728-4cd6-ba6b-5353460865f2&iId=2312c2c9-8f80-4376-b63e-fea2115797fc&sort=new)
Please avoid merchbar. They are notorious for listing albums that they don’t have as “back order” with no intention of getting them. Search reddit for them and you’ll see the complaints.
Interesting! Honestly im very new to the vinyl collection and got some good records from them but if its hurting the industry is good to find other ways
Newbury Comics has some really awesome pricing for colored and exclusive vinyls. A great spot to get some classics if you're not apposed to a repress and not an original press!
Plaid Room Records. Monster Music (SC). The In Groove (Phoenix). Lots of brick & mortar record stores have online stores. Some include used records as well as new. Lots of used records available on Discogs but it can be a real crapshoot. If you find some trustworthy sellers, though, it can be a good resource.
Another vote for Plaid Room. They're my local dealer and I buy almost exclusively from their website, then cruise into town to pick up. If you get on their mailing list, they'll shoot you Friday's new release drop on Thursday night so you can snap up anything in low volume. They discount damaged sleeves as well, so if you're just looking to get the record and don't mind a dinged corner, it's a great way to save a buck or two.
Seconded. I've probably gotten 4-5 records from them. Great experiences. Any shop or label attached to the Colemine/Daptone universe is great.
Third(ed). Plain Room is fantastic. Lots of GREAT artists on Colemine Records also.
Plaid Room is exactly like [target.com](http://target.com) in appearance.
Plaid Room has excellent customer service and uses careful packaging to ship records. They’re the best.
Plaid Room is the best. The last time I was passing through that area on a vacation road trip we actually stopped there to shop in person and see the place. Ended up being such a lovely little town with a brewery and a couple restaurants! I highly recommend people check it out if they are ever close to that area.
Discogs or straight from the label/Bandcamp of the artist I'm intending to support with my purchase. I try to stay away from the large online stores.
This is the way. Shoutout to Sacred Bones Records, Cleopatra Records, and Torn Light Records. I’ve bought from Merchbar and their shipping is dogshit. They shipped me about 8 records in a box that got crushed, damaging the records inside. Labels and quality indie shops pack everything professionally and safely.
I would probably look at eBay. There are a lot of stores that sell online. If you look for the best feedback usually you will have good luck. I have also had really good luck buying from people on discogs.
[Zia Records](https://www.ziarecords.com/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI9v6wn_7shQMVWF5HAR2o_gOYEAAYASAAEgIKQvD_BwE) They have eight brick and mortar locations (AZ/NV) and I’ve found stuff on them that I couldn’t find anywhere else retail.
Zia is awesome, but I wish they would remove the little anti theft plastic stickers. They can leave impressions int the sleeve since this are raised and pretty rigid.
I buy either from shops that people post in r/vinylreleases or Discogs for stuff I specifically seek out
Plaid Room Records (Ohio) Fingerprints (LA) Artist web store/label (like island records or dead oceans for example)
I gave used Acoustic Sounds . Com they are pretty decent. My record was packaged and protected very well.
Dusty Groove is a Chicago record store with a wonderful mail-order service. https://www.dustygroove.com/
Really good customer service too
Live auctions on Whatnot can be pretty fun, lots of variety there.
It's so hit or miss sometimes. There's a few buyers with more money than sense. Lol
Sub pop out of Seattle is really good. I buy all my Iron & Wine records there
My husband and I run a small online shop over at [vinyldevotion.fm](https://www.vinyldevotion.fm/). All our prices are flexible using the Make an Offer button on every listing, shipping is free on orders over $60 and we haven’t had a record damaged during shipping in over 3 years because of our insane packing methods. Hope you’ll give us a chance! 🖤
Acousticsounds.com
Depends on the genre/artists Sometimes it’s directly from labels (Denovali) or artists directly as well. HHV.de JPC.de Are my go to retail online shops.
Discogs
Even though you are rural and record shops are few and far between, many have online stores so you can still support your not-so-local record shop. Do you mind sharing your general vicinity and I may be able to recommend a few shops?
I’m in Kern County, California. An hour away from Palmdale and Bakersfield
You do live in a bit of a vinyl dead spot 😆 Unfortunately, I'm not able to recommend any place close but... As far as online, I can recommend Streetlight Records in San Jose and Santa Cruz. I know they are 200+ miles away but I highly recommend them and they have a Discogs store for each location. [https://www.discogs.com/seller/Streetlightrecordssc/profile](https://www.discogs.com/seller/Streetlightrecordssc/profile) [https://www.discogs.com/seller/Streetlightrecords/profile](https://www.discogs.com/seller/Streetlightrecords/profile) Now if you are ever in Lancaster, there is a very cool shop called Voodoo Vinyl, 721 W Lancaster Blvd. Unfortunately they do not maintain an online store that I know of but you may want to give them a call to make sure, 661-945-6511. Discogs just may be your best bet. Lots of great sellers but you need to be cautious... Always read the feedback and seller terms. 👍 Hope this helps!
I drive to Lancaster every so often so I’ll definitely check out Voodoo Vinyl next time I’m there. Thanks for the recs!
Places near me will ship across the province or country for free with orders over a certain amount. Pretty easy to get over $100 in Canada with two or three albums. Hopefully you can find something similar.
Depends what you're looking for. If you are trying to get some of the stuff people seem to buy first for their collections (the stereotypical Darkside of the Moon, Rumors, Abbey Road, etc) honestly, I would do a big store like Walmart, Target, or Amazon because those are getting tons of represses and they're always in stock. If you had a local shop, I'd say check there, but frankly you'll save $5-10 each record and with mass pressed stuff like these, I don't think it matters that much. I'm lucky enough to have a couple of local shops, but neither of them are great at having a deep collection of back libraries for artists (so they might have the most recent release by a band, but not the prior 5 albums). For those, I like to buy from Ebay, and the best trick I've found there is to find a seller doing a "buy 2 get 1" or "buy more than 2 get 20%", etc type of deal and buy them in batches if you can. I find if I wait until I have like $150 to spend, I can get really good deals compared to just grabbing one record off the site.
Barf on the newly released presses vs the og versions of like fleetwood mac mastered by kendun or a uk beatles or pink floyd. At the very least og german presses. Step into the light. Ebay the old stuff and quality over quantity. Generally the country the band recorded the album will have a better pressing and many times the mono press will have better mastering like with the beatles uk’s, mid to late 60’s aretha franklin. The Beatles had more of a hand in the mono mixes. You can stevehoffman like any record’s “best” pressing and you can usually find something best or better than the new remastered stuff within budget on like ebay. Just be careful to check condition and get used to reading deadwaxes for what you want
Spinmeroundstore.com I highly recommend this family run store. They’re in Easton, PA. Check out the super sales records page. They’re usually cheaper than anyone.
Dang, I bought from them a week ago and it’s been radio silent.
Don’t quote me on it, but if you order from the super sales page your order comes from the store itself. If not the records are shipped from the distributor. Like I said I could be wrong. Send them an email regardless, I mean, I would.
Ahh, interesting. I believe I did order from the super sales page, but I’ll email them regardless. Thanks!
If I can't get it from the bands merch page, I'll get it from Discogs.
Vinted has been great for me lately
Anyone have experience with turntablelabs? They have a record I can’t find anywhere.
They're legit, and ship quickly, but their prices aren't great (like, the Cowboy Bebop collection was 200-250 everywhere else, was 350 through TurnTableLabs). Can usually find every normal new vinyl there for a couple dollars cheaper elsewhere. Will say they package well though.
Awesome appreciate the insight
Plaid room in Ohio is great like others have mentioned. Luna in Franklin TN is also great for online shopping. And anytime I’m getting something shipped from Amazon I check for deals. I know they are the evil giant, but saving money is cool. Good luck.
Definitely not Qrates
imusic Great experience so far (10 albums).
Mostly Bandcamp
Amazon, label, or Discogs
Discogs, ebay, amazon etc.
I buy them from iMusic
For artists that still make music, I buy direct from their website to support them the most. Some bands have special versions that are just on there too. I also like to visit record stores when I travel to support a local store and look at their used section. You could take a trip to the nearest larger town with a real record store and make a fun day trip/date day out of it
Straight from the record label/artist or Bandcamp is the way to go for me. Shoutout to Needlejuice and Luminelle
After ordering from merchbar and being screwed over without knowing their reputation I've gone strictly with discogs/the official artist/labels site. That way I know what I'm getting and that I'll actually have a shot at receiving it instead of having some scummy site take my money from me. Seriously, fuck merchbar. Shit should be shut down.
have had really good experiences via ebay, here, amazon, or the artists own store
I've had great results from "Sound of Vinyl" for new, import-only records.
I’ve seen quite a few complaints about band camp so I’d stay clear. But Discogs and straight from the bands label are excellent suggestions. Just when using discogs try to buy from someone with an excellent “seller rating” paired with lots of reviews. And if you find a seller or two with great selections, keep going back. I could recommend some if you like.
In the UK I'll almost exclusively use Norman Records in Leeds for new stuff. Have been going straight to them for years and their packaging & customer service has always been top notch. Bleep and Rough Trade would be my second choice, but RT especially can be a bit more expensive. I'd go to bandcamp or to the artist direct more often, but since a lot of artists ship from the states or generally abroad, shipping can be pricey so I'll wait for a domestic distro to get some copies, or will just stump for it if it's a short run that won't hit distros (e.g. the Cowboy Sadness record that I spent £20 in shipping on) Discogs exclusively for used records - I've had a handful of bad experiences, but has just taught me to be more cautious and read seller reviews more closely when buying something moderately valuable. Big box warehouses that are generalists and don't specialise in records like Amazon etc I never buy from. You honestly have no idea what will arrive, or in what condition.
In the UK, normanrecords.com or Rarewaves.com
Amazon for new releases. (Europe/Germany!!!) bought literally dozens of new records from Amazon, and they package every single one individually in a record-shaped 5mm thick cardboard box so that they don't get damaged. Never had any issues at all. And whenever something (other than a record) was damaged, they replaced/refunded it without any issues.
Anyone with good European site suggestions? Mainly rap and hip hop/r&b if that helps
https://rsdmrkt.com you buy straight from independent record stores.
Acoustic Sounds, Music Direct, Elusive Disc, ebay, The In Groove
[get\_importCDs](https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_trkparms=folent%3Aget_importcds%7Cfolenttp%3A1&_trksid=p3542580.m47492.l71970&_ssn=get_importcds) is an eBay seller that I believe is the direct-to-consumer arm of one of the biggest retail store suppliers in the U.S. It often has bundle sales, and the prices are generally good (but double check because sometimes they're a bit high for certain variants). I have never had a problem with damaged records with them, and they have an excellent selection. I support local stores, but when they don't have what I need, this store is a tremendously good resource.
Start with the artists’ website. If they have the product, check out Acoustic Sounds’s website. https://store.acousticsounds.com/?gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIj6-HtJPthQMV_NDCBB1WDgzYEAAYASAAEgITvPD_BwE
eBay
[удалено]
I've never used this company but I know their name because of how frequently complaints about them come up on this very sub. [https://www.reddit.com/r/vinyl/search/?q=merchbar&type=link&cId=b370d437-b728-4cd6-ba6b-5353460865f2&iId=2312c2c9-8f80-4376-b63e-fea2115797fc&sort=new](https://www.reddit.com/r/vinyl/search/?q=merchbar&type=link&cId=b370d437-b728-4cd6-ba6b-5353460865f2&iId=2312c2c9-8f80-4376-b63e-fea2115797fc&sort=new)
Please avoid merchbar. They are notorious for listing albums that they don’t have as “back order” with no intention of getting them. Search reddit for them and you’ll see the complaints.
Interesting! Honestly im very new to the vinyl collection and got some good records from them but if its hurting the industry is good to find other ways
Newbury Comics has some really awesome pricing for colored and exclusive vinyls. A great spot to get some classics if you're not apposed to a repress and not an original press!