Vintage adventures: Vinyls edition

I am currently building a vinyl collection. Why vinyls? (1) Unlike CDs, vinyl records retain a certain value if they are in a decent condition. It only matters if you want to one day sell them, but  it's nice to know that the money we spent went in a good place (2) I like the sound of vinyl - beside the pops and crackles, the sound of vinyls is much less detailed and there is something "warm and comforting" coming out of that sound. It's like digital cameras versus image on a film. I like the fact that it's imprecise. And finally, (3) It's a nice way for me to take care music. I bought so many CDs and lost half of my collection, break the cases, etcetera. Vinyls feel precious to me.

For a while now, the vinyl business is booming since hipsters find it 'cool' to listen to vinyls instead of CDs. And it's okay. There's no good or bad reasons to like vinyls. If you're into vinyls because you're an audiophile: fine. If you're into vinyls because you like the vintage look of record player and that it looks good in your living room: also fine. Vinyls are, indeed, more appealing than CDs. The only thing I have to say is: go for a good turntable. While Crosley's are really cute with their vintage look and built-in speakers, they are not quality. If you have a low budget, go for an Audio-Technica and simply plug it in speakers. If you REALLY want a Crosley, use it only when you're going to the park and want to bring your music with you - the needle on Crosley's turntables is not top quality and damage your vinyls quickly. They are mostly a 'cute decoration'. 

If you ever come to Sorel, a little town an hour away from Montreal in Canada, go to the Mario Bastiani library (address here). It can look really weird and messy at first (and yes, it's messy, you have to search a long time before finding something interesting) but seriously, their book and vinyl collections are ENORMOUS and at a ridiculously small price. Along with vinyls of Fleetwood Mac, Simon and Garfunkel, The Beach Boys, Duran Duran and The police (for like less than 12$), here's what I found last week for a big total of 6,25$ and a little look at the shop!

If you want to build a vinyl records collection, click here for some great tips! + Bonus! The best online sites for Vinyl records: Amazon and Ebay are goldmines to find records - new or used - at a cheaper price along with cool online records store like Vinylloop, Insound, Discogs, Turntablelab as well as Urban Outfitters. Let's invest in the music industry and stop illegally downloading it!