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Old 05-13-2022, 05:41 PM   #41
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Back in the 70s I got into collecting/trading/selling antique glass (Carnival Glass, Heisey, Depression Glass, etc.)

I kind of got tired of it just about the time the bottom fell out of most of that type of collectables. SO, now I have one cabinet full of stuff I could never sell
Have you checked recently? All of that stuff sells very actively on ebay. I don't know how good the prices are but a quick search showed dozens of sold items in those categories.


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collectables are usually fads (think Beanie Babies.)
I don't think that's broadly true. Certainly there are fads. Beanie Babies are the textbook example. But plenty of other categories of collectables have been popular for decades. I've been selling Disney memorabilia for 35 years and the market is just as hot today as it was when I started in the 1980s. Which particular items are in demand changes over time but the Disney collecting community certainly hasn't gone away.
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Old 05-13-2022, 05:47 PM   #42
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Originally Posted by Delawaredave5 View Post
I think:
  1. Collectibles today are overpriced because Baby Boomers are buying up
  2. The next generation doesn't care about "stuff"
1. Collectibles are worth whatever someone else is willing to pay. They're never overpriced or underpriced. They're worth what they're worth at that moment.


2. I agree that younger generations tend to be more focused on experiences than things, but collecting is still alive and well. It largely revolves around nostalgia. People get older, start to have more disposable income, and use it to buy things that remind them of their youth. For example, right now stuff from the 80s and 90s is really selling well because those "kids" are now established adults and they're out searching for the toys and things they had when they were young. Simple things like plush figures from then are selling for $50-100 and more.
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Old 05-13-2022, 06:55 PM   #43
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I really like a good female voice. I think vinyl is best for getting a realistic voice. Foe example, Roberta Flack. Nothing beats a live performance, though, I think.
Especially if it is totally acoustic, no "PA" speakers or bad "sound engineer" to get in the way.

Too many live performances are ruined by the sound system and/or the person at the mixing board (louder is better!).

-ERD50
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Old 05-13-2022, 07:24 PM   #44
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Not to derail the vinyl talk....but...I work in the engineering side of things in commercial construction. The prices for material is insane not to mention labor as we have no one build anything anymore, toss in supply chain issues (dealing with switchgear that is out now until 2023!). I was thinking last year this was going to tank fast, I was wrong. I'm starting to see some cracks now, it could get really ugly fast. I have the itch for a new RV and or cabin, I'm not buying squat.
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Old 05-13-2022, 07:32 PM   #45
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Originally Posted by disneysteve View Post
Have you checked recently? All of that stuff sells very actively on ebay. I don't know how good the prices are but a quick search showed dozens of sold items in those categories.



I don't think that's broadly true. Certainly there are fads. Beanie Babies are the textbook example. But plenty of other categories of collectables have been popular for decades. I've been selling Disney memorabilia for 35 years and the market is just as hot today as it was when I started in the 1980s. Which particular items are in demand changes over time but the Disney collecting community certainly hasn't gone away.
Thanks, I'll have to take a look. Never have sold on eBay before though I used anebay service to sell stuff like old watches. I only have one major glass collection left plus odds and ends in one cabinet. Would be nice to empty the cabinet. Aloha
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Old 05-13-2022, 07:37 PM   #46
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Especially if it is totally acoustic, no "PA" speakers or bad "sound engineer" to get in the way.



Too many live performances are ruined by the sound system and/or the person at the mixing board (louder is better!).



-ERD50
And they mix the vocals through auto tune and other processing. So what is live?

Back to topic.... A friend started a boutique store last year and she makes a ton of money off of vinyl. I built some LP display cases for her gratis. I should have charged her after hearing how they are helping the sales go through.
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Old 05-13-2022, 09:37 PM   #47
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On the market(s), couldn't resist wading in with my own brokerage account when all this COVID stuff started. Figured we wouldn't be flying/traveling much, so why not divert and use that money in the meantime. Who knew it would turn into a 3-year+ odyssey though, and a bunch of vulnerable folks would lose their lives, jobs, and businesses. Ugh. :-(


Casually monitored the 'news' headlines, waiting for the emotional drama merchants on Wall St. to freak out about something, start breaking things, then quietly sweep up the bits and pieces off the floor. Those kids will eventually get bored with that and create a rally out of nothing, and the television/internet talking heads will report breathlessly to feed it.


Hang out on the ride up then wait for the next event triggering the kids into breaking stuff again, as I wait and watch, broom and dustpan at the ready. Wash, rinse, repeat.



Not original or clever in anyway, and I'm not Mr. Money Bags by any means, but managed to collect a nice little set of holdings this way over the last 3 years.
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Old 05-14-2022, 06:25 AM   #48
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I really like a good female voice. I think vinyl is best for getting a realistic voice. Foe example, Roberta Flack. Nothing beats a live performance, though, I think.
Not sure it's the best approach, but I've been collecting what I like to listen to in genres where I am familiar. Even if they turn out to be worthless, they're still of personal value to me.

Also, not sure if I agree that boomers are the last collectors. GenXers seem to be making a solid push to acquire things from their youth: Cars, luxury goods and childhood toys. Just not things like brown furniture and silver/china.
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Old 05-14-2022, 03:32 PM   #49
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Especially if it is totally acoustic, no "PA" speakers or bad "sound engineer" to get in the way.

Too many live performances are ruined by the sound system and/or the person at the mixing board (louder is better!).

-ERD50
I am lucky to be close to three universities with excellent music departments. My favorite is a small acoustically nice amphitheater where they hold operatic voice recitals every so often. Never any electronics involved in the sound. Just some symphony instruments and the voices. The singers are well trained, of course, and have beautiful voices to begin with.
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Old 05-14-2022, 03:43 PM   #50
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Yeah, just repeating what I've heard and that can be problematic. No personal knowledge about CDs vs vinyl. Personally, I like CDs cause there's no pop and less hiss. By the way, I think NY is a great writer/performer. But "I hope Neil Young will remember..." He's not my source on what kind of medium (or podcasts ) I should listen to.
I think some music sounds 'best' on an AM car radio (supposedly the worst medium for music?). Some music just sounds like it was meant to be listened to on an AM radio, maybe lots of 60's stuff. I never knew 'Under My Thumb' (Stones) had a marimba until I heard it 5 years ago on my AM car radio. Your Mileage May Vary, ha ha.
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Old 05-14-2022, 04:46 PM   #51
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I think some music sounds 'best' on an AM car radio (supposedly the worst medium for music?). Some music just sounds like it was meant to be listened to on an AM radio, maybe lots of 60's stuff. I never knew 'Under My Thumb' (Stones) had a marimba until I heard it 5 years ago on my AM car radio. Your Mileage May Vary, ha ha.
I would have to agree, AM has so much character.
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Old 05-14-2022, 05:24 PM   #52
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Maybe it's time to bust out the beanie babies and see what I can fetch...or the pogs...or maybe my old baseball cards.

I have a bunch of baseball cards from the 80s. Not sure if they would be worth anything today, no clue where to go check. Where would be a good place to check? Or should I just pass them down to the grandkids someday?
Everything Roger said was true. To reiterate, make sure you look at sales, not asking price, and pay attention to condition.

Here is one of the largest baseball card dealers I've found, and what they say:

https://www.deanscards.com/sell-your-baseball-cards

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We buy baseball cards from 1969 and older.*
* We can buy most 1970s sports cards, especially if they are part of a larger vintage sports card collection.
* Besides some complete sets, we rarely buy cards newer than 1980, as many do not hold enough value.

Mine are mostly from the 60s and early 70s but not in great condition so I don't figure I could get much, maybe $2-5K, maybe more if I wanted to piece them out via ebay. I don't think my son would ever really be interested in them. A couple years ago I decided to make the most of them for myself so I spent some money on display stands and protective sleeves (already had most of the best ones protected) and have my favorites displayed with others in albums, all in a bookcase right outside my bedroom.

A second advantage to getting them organized is that my son will be able to easily identify which ones a collector might be, and which he can dump or donate. https://commons4kids.org/ is a place where you can donate but you pay the shipping and they are not a 501(c)3 charity so it's not a deductible donation.
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Old 05-14-2022, 11:49 PM   #53
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Originally Posted by John Galt III View Post
I think some music sounds 'best' on an AM car radio (supposedly the worst medium for music?). Some music just sounds like it was meant to be listened to on an AM radio, maybe lots of 60's stuff. I never knew 'Under My Thumb' (Stones) had a marimba until I heard it 5 years ago on my AM car radio. Your Mileage May Vary, ha ha.
Gotta admit it. I never heard a car FM stereo until 1969 (not MY car, heh, heh.) Most of my favorite songs I heard on car AM first. Still, I do like the old stuff with the additional richness available on a good system. My poor, worn out ears don't hear nearly as well as they did when I was a kid, but my brain still fills in the gaps on songs I know from way back when. YMMV
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Old 05-15-2022, 04:55 AM   #54
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A lot of 60s music was intentionally produced with mono in mind. The stereo mixes were after-thoughts.

This tidbit is important when looking at vinyl. Some mixes are rare, so you need to know what you have because it could be the rare bird (could be either mono or vinyl).

As for AM radio: the only way to listen to it these days is in the car. At home, we have so many noisy devices. LEDs and their dimmers are big culprits. Unless you live next to a clear channel station, you get too much interference to enjoy it.

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Originally Posted by John Galt III View Post
I think some music sounds 'best' on an AM car radio (supposedly the worst medium for music?). Some music just sounds like it was meant to be listened to on an AM radio, maybe lots of 60's stuff. I never knew 'Under My Thumb' (Stones) had a marimba until I heard it 5 years ago on my AM car radio. Your Mileage May Vary, ha ha.
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Gotta admit it. I never heard a car FM stereo until 1969 (not MY car, heh, heh.) Most of my favorite songs I heard on car AM first. Still, I do like the old stuff with the additional richness available on a good system. My poor, worn out ears don't hear nearly as well as they did when I was a kid, but my brain still fills in the gaps on songs I know from way back when. YMMV
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Old 05-15-2022, 12:55 PM   #55
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Funny you should mention pinball machines. I sold my $1400 Twilight Zone and The Addams Family for over $6k each 6 years ago and now you would be lucky to find a TZ for $10k.

Who knew that pinball machines would be one of the better investments!
After a life threatening medical emergency in late 1999, I decided I would spend half of my bonus on fun stuff instead of investing... which included pinball machines. Early 2000 I bought 5-6 pins, DMDs, A list titles, and a few more over the years. Fast forward to today, and I still have 10. I have joked that I should have bought more instead of leaving it in the market for the 2000 crash!

My playing has dropped off, but I still get enough pleasure from playing and don't need the money for other things, so I hang onto them. And when my grandson visits he loves playing!
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Old 05-17-2022, 02:31 AM   #56
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After a life threatening medical emergency in late 1999, I decided I would spend half of my bonus on fun stuff instead of investing... which included pinball machines. Early 2000 I bought 5-6 pins, DMDs, A list titles, and a few more over the years. Fast forward to today, and I still have 10. I have joked that I should have bought more instead of leaving it in the market for the 2000 crash!

My playing has dropped off, but I still get enough pleasure from playing and don't need the money for other things, so I hang onto them. And when my grandson visits he loves playing!
What a valuable lesson - "none of us gets out of here alive." Save, yes. Invest, yes. But LIVE now! You and your GKs will enjoy your pinball machines a lot more than even psssst Wellesley!
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Old 05-17-2022, 04:22 PM   #57
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After a life threatening medical emergency in late 1999, I decided I would spend half of my bonus on fun stuff instead of investing... which included pinball machines. Early 2000 I bought 5-6 pins, DMDs, A list titles, and a few more over the years. Fast forward to today, and I still have 10. I have joked that I should have bought more instead of leaving it in the market for the 2000 crash!

My playing has dropped off, but I still get enough pleasure from playing and don't need the money for other things, so I hang onto them. And when my grandson visits he loves playing!
Dear oldphd:
As someone who plays about 10-20 games a day, I'll need a list.

Thanks,
arcyallen 😀
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Old 05-17-2022, 05:30 PM   #58
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I love the idea of a virtual pin, but playing one has always been a disappointing experience for me after playing real pins. If real pins didn't exist, I think virtual ones would be a blast. But it'd be very hard for me to go back and forth between real and virtual.
Have you ever had a chance to play VPX or FX3 on a full sized cabinet with a DMD?

That's what I'm running. And while I don't have a real pin next to it to compare, the experience is pretty darn close to real far as I can recall. And I can play literally hundreds of different tables, though in truth there are probably only a few dozen I truly love - Tales of the Arabian Nights, Theater of Magic, Mars Attacks and even Fish Tales being among my faves..
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Old 05-17-2022, 06:18 PM   #59
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Have you ever had a chance to play VPX or FX3 on a full sized cabinet with a DMD?

That's what I'm running. And while I don't have a real pin next to it to compare, the experience is pretty darn close to real far as I can recall. And I can play literally hundreds of different tables, though in truth there are probably only a few dozen I truly love - Tales of the Arabian Nights, Theater of Magic, Mars Attacks and even Fish Tales being among my faves..
I've played them at Pintastic in Mass on "some sort" of virtual pin. I'm not sure if it was a VPX or FX3, but it was not a cheap setup like a 1up or anything.

I think I'd find them most useful when trying to learn different pin rules/layouts. For me, there is something very visceral about the mechanics of a pin. I often find myself at the end of a crazy multiball holding my breath without realizing it, because it's so tense/exciting. I've played on my PS3/PS4, and while I know that's different from staring at a digital table I find those to be fun but very lacking. I often can't figure out where the ball is going. I'd assume on a real virtual pin it's more clearly laid out.
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Old 05-17-2022, 08:03 PM   #60
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A lot of 60s music was intentionally produced with mono in mind. The stereo mixes were after-thoughts.

This tidbit is important when looking at vinyl. Some mixes are rare, so you need to know what you have because it could be the rare bird (could be either mono or vinyl).

As for AM radio: the only way to listen to it these days is in the car. At home, we have so many noisy devices. LEDs and their dimmers are big culprits. Unless you live next to a clear channel station, you get too much interference to enjoy it.
I'm by no means an expert, but my understanding is that, although there are technically digital recordings from the late-70s, digital recording had mostly replaced analog recording of records by the mid-80s. So while I do indeed own some newer records, putting them on my turntable is simply reading a digital signal that's been converted to analog. However, older records are fully analog and (IMO) do provide a "richer" sound beyond just the warmth added by the vacuum tube preamp.

As an example, last summer I bought a brand new John Prine album "For better, or worse" just for listening while I was at Shake-It in Cincinnati (incredible record shop!). However, what I buy with a collectors eye are mostly late-60s and early-70s soul, gospel, R&B, and reggae. For example, I have an original first pressing of Stevie Wonder's "Songs in the key of life."

As far as AM, I believe there are actually apps that will play your digital file with the added ambiance of an AM car stereo.
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