Our Guide to Record Collecting for Audiophiles
Our good customer ab_ba has some advice for those who are interested in improving the quality of their collections by acquiring more Hot Stamper pressings.
I have taken the liberty of editing parts of his letter, mostly to focus the reader’s attention on some of the practical tips Aaron wishes to share.
Hi Tom,
I’ve been your customer for over four years now, and I count more than 60 records of yours on my shelf. I know I’m not quite one of your heavy-hitter customers, but I’ve got enough familiarity to know how refreshingly different your ecosystem is from everything else out there. I’ve purchased white hot stampers from you for nearly all of my lifelong favorite albums.
I’ve purchased many super hots and even plain-old hot stampers, and many of them are among my most-played records. I’ve also used your site as a way to discover new music.
But, very few of your new customers are likely to go straight to the White Hot Stamper shelf. I sure didn’t. And, some of my Super Hots are albums I return to and enjoy again and again. Yes, when I’m playing a super hot, then by definition I know that there are other copies out there that sound even better, and in the few instances where I’ve been able to directly compare a Super Hot and a White Hot, I know that your ranking system is indeed reliable.
In my experience, any record you sell is highly likely to sound better than the same title purchased anywhere else. Not only that, even if I don’t have a copy to compare it to, I can count on your records to sound great. So much so, in fact, that I really don’t bother with discogs and record stores anymore. Your system – everything from procuring to cleaning to shooting out – yields a product that is so superior to what else is available, that I simply don’t bother hunting around anymore. Being able to cut through the deluge of options available brings a lot of peace of mind in a world that’s increasingly full of mediocre slop, and that’s why Better Records is increasingly necessary.
My suggestion to anybody who’s starting to discover what you offer is to adopt two strategies I’ve landed on.
First, make your want list requests. This way you can be assured that you can get the best-sounding copies of that handful of albums you love the most.
Second, the nearly white hot records, and the white hots with issues, are a real treasure trove. They are considerably more affordable than the white hots, and even if one leaves me feeling idly curious what a true white hot would sound like, I’ve been amazed and delighted by the nearly white hots I’ve purchased. Even if somebody out there has a better-sounding copy, I can console myself with the money I saved.