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| Author |
Message |
| 25 new of 195 responses total. |
kerouac
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response 50 of 195:
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Dec 6 17:30 UTC 1996 |
The Tower records store in D.C. is pretty good. After I move to NewYork,
I anticipate going a lot to the Virgin Records MegaStore in Times Square.
That place is huge-- even has a movie theater, bookstore, software store,
cafe and Travel agency, and thats just on the ground floor.
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kewy
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response 51 of 195:
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Dec 6 19:49 UTC 1996 |
yeah, when i was there, a friend of mine wanted to go visit that, but we never
ended up making it.. new york's such a cool place...
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krj
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response 52 of 195:
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Dec 7 00:19 UTC 1996 |
There is an item waiting to be written about mega-stores and music retailing.
I dunno if I should it here, in an item linked to Consumer cf, though.
Valerie?
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robh
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response 53 of 195:
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Dec 7 02:30 UTC 1996 |
An item about buying CDs is appropriate for both conferences,
and should be linked from one to the other, whichever one it
happens to start in.
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popcorn
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response 54 of 195:
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Dec 7 05:48 UTC 1996 |
This response has been erased.
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kentn
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response 55 of 195:
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Dec 8 00:34 UTC 1996 |
Right, I'll be happy to link it here in consumer if it is elsewhere. Just
let me know (or enter the item in consumer cf.).
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lumen
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response 56 of 195:
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Mar 3 21:00 UTC 1997 |
Hastings is all we have over here, and I guess it's a company limited to the
western U.S. I say it's all we have in regards to a discount store-- we have
Sam Goody and Camelot at our local mall, but I'd rather go to hastings for
their prices. (It's also closer to where I live.) That's the best we have
for new recordings. As far as used CDs and tapes, our locally owned deja vu
is best and R&P Records is our only used LP store (and the owner usually
copies them to tape for you). I mentioned more about deja vu in the used
music item.
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krj
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response 57 of 195:
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Mar 28 06:29 UTC 1997 |
Schoolkids (in Ann Arbor) is advertising a 20% off sale through Easter
Sunday. (I'd probably best keep my distance, so I don't save myself
into bankruptcy.)
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mcnally
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response 58 of 195:
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Mar 28 08:58 UTC 1997 |
D'oh! Just broke down and bought a few records at their inflated normal
prices the other day.. CD prices in Ann Arbor have gotten outrageous in
the past nine months or so. Does anyone actually pay $15.99 for an
average CD?
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bmoran
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response 59 of 195:
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Mar 28 15:08 UTC 1997 |
Sadly, many do. I can't remember where I read that a group is trying to
sue the manufacturers for keeping the prices so high. A very limited
pressing, say 500 or so, only costs about $5.00(US) each. That's for
everything, recording, materials, promotion, gas for taking them to the
record stores, etc. I would imagine making more, like a few hundred
thousand, would drive the cost down further. For now, when I can scrape up
a few bucks, I'll buy used cds or vinyl.
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anderyn
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response 60 of 195:
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Mar 28 21:15 UTC 1997 |
I am bad -- I do pay those prices, and worse. Though not usually for
anything popular. I figure that most of what I buy isn't available
in discount sotes, so I'm stuck.
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mcnally
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response 61 of 195:
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Mar 29 07:10 UTC 1997 |
re #60: If you can only find it one or two places you've got little
choice but my question was about paying that for an "average CD."
When I was at Tower a week or two ago the new U2 disc was marked
$16.99 -- of course as a new release they were selling it at a
discount ($12.99 or $13.99..) After the initial sale period is
over do they really expect people to pay $17 for a disc that you
can buy (almost literally) anywhere?
Someday I'd like to see a breakdown of where the money goes in CD
sales.. On my more cynical days I tend to suspect that more money
goes to lobby legislators to keep decent recordable technologies
like DAT off the market or too expensive and fending off antitrust
actions than goes to the artists..
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anderyn
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response 62 of 195:
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Mar 29 18:14 UTC 1997 |
Cynical, aren't we? :-)
But I do agree, it seems totally stupid for CD prices to be so high,
and 've noted a disturbing trend for prices to be marked at $17.99
for new releases lately. I will not pay that for anything popular, but
I know people who do.
Most of what I buy is folk, and half the time it's imports, and
Schollkids is my only source. Of course, if I had some patience,
I could probably order my own copies from Elderly's or evne England,
but I have this immediate gratification problem.
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kaplan
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response 63 of 195:
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Mar 29 21:31 UTC 1997 |
Well, I don't know a lot about where the money for CDs goes, but from my
expirence working at Best Buy 1994-1997:
The normal price for many CDs at the Michigan stores was 13.99 for a
fairly long time. One day a Media Play store was getting ready to open
near the Best Buy on the northwest side of Grand Rapids. So about 3 of us
from Ann Arbor and several people from the rest of Michigan went up to
Grand Rapids armed with price guns. We went through every CD in stock at
both the NW and SE Grand Rapids stores covering every $13.99 price tag
with a $12.99 sticker. The district media manager who was in charge of
this operation noted with some glee that spys from Media Play would
quickly figure out what we were doing. They will not be happy about it.
I later did a similar "music repricing" operation at Best Buy Madison Heights.
Correct me if I'm wrong, but in Micigan at Best Buy stores near Media Play
stores you won't find a CD for $13.99 but at the Ann Arbor store, you won't
find a CD for $12.99.
I don't know from personal expirence because I wasn't paying attention to
music prices for the last severl months I worked there and I just about never
buy CDs for myself. I prefer the radio.
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valerie
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response 64 of 195:
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Mar 30 23:39 UTC 1997 |
This response has been erased.
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mcnally
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response 65 of 195:
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Mar 31 06:16 UTC 1997 |
(a special command performance brought to you by the organizers of
the music conf..)
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omni
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response 66 of 195:
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Mar 31 18:19 UTC 1997 |
There has to be a *very good reason* for me to spend in upwards of
$18 for a CD. I think the last one was "Sinatra: Reprise" with some
of his best performances. I'd like to have the US3 and "In Gabriel's Garden"
but not for $18. I'll wait.
OTOH, CD's are virtually indestructable, if treated correctly, and will
most likely outlast thier owners by far. In that respect, $18 is a small
price to pay, if you really think about it.
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omni
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response 67 of 195:
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Mar 31 18:20 UTC 1997 |
And another thing, tapes can break, or get eaten.
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krj
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response 68 of 195:
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Apr 1 20:10 UTC 1997 |
If it's any consolation, CDs are cheaper in the USA than just about
everywhere else in the world. British CDs generally run about
12-14 pounds in the shops there. French CDs are higher.
Canadian prices are wildly variable; new releases get promoted
at Can$11-13, but back catalog is often Can$20.
I'm just back from Where House Records in East Lansing, and I noticed
that many of their CDs have been restickered down to $14.99.
Also, on Tuesdays, Where House in East Lansing has a $2 off sale,
and I believe that sale runs in Ann Arbor too.
Alas, neither Where House nor anyone else in East Lansing has the
first Whiskeytown CD. :(
I believe that a good deal of the price of a major label CD goes
to pay for the extravagant, up-front deals that the biggest
artists have been commanding. R.E.M. set the most recent
record with $80 million for their next few albums. Janet Jackson,
Michael Jackson, the Stones, Aerosmith, and probably a few others
have gotten astonishing amounts of up-front money in the last few
years.
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anderyn
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response 69 of 195:
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Apr 6 03:52 UTC 1997 |
I was really shocked when we went to Adrian today. They have a
Sam Goodys at the mall, and I went in, hopig to find a cheap 80s
compilation tape or cd. Well, not only did they NOT have any
80s compilations (!), I priced most of their popular records at
$16.99, and several others at $18.99 -- and these were not big
names nor new albums -- one was an Eric Clapton, and another was a nice
but not outstanding Moody Blues "Greatest Hits" package, which
I mihgt have gotten at a more normal price, but NOT at
$18.99. The ohter interesting thing was the prevalence of rap and
country music. Both sections were bigger than the rock, the
classical, and the "misc." section..
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mcnally
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response 70 of 195:
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Apr 6 05:59 UTC 1997 |
I'm not sure whether there are any decent independent music stores
in Adrian to provide competition but I'm constantly baffled by the
success of mall chain music stores (Sam Goody, Musicland, Coconuts,
etc..) in cities such as Ann Arbor where there're clearly superior
choices.
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bruin
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response 71 of 195:
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Apr 6 14:29 UTC 1997 |
I remember buying all my 45's at Nixon-Marbro's in 1967-68, when it was in
downtown Adrian (where I lived until moving to Ann Arbor in 1973).
|
anderyn
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response 72 of 195:
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Apr 6 16:53 UTC 1997 |
Hey, Bruin! My mother in law worked at Nixon's way back in the 50's, I
think it was there -- it was certainly a cool music store from the stories
she's told.
Far as I know, there are no independent music stores in Adrian. (Though
I don't shop there often.) Well, I think that for me, in re: why I'd
shop at a Musicland here in A2 would be tht I wanted something popular
(like an 80s compilation) and cheap. I'm not going to find much in that
line at Skids or at Tower -- or if I do, they'll be esoteric ones that
leave off the cheesy songs that I really want, but don't want to pay
a whole bunch of money for. (The store on the corner of State and
Liberty has been a godsend for my quest to make the perfect 80s mix
tape -- they have a whole *bunch* of cheap ($4.99 and lower...) tapes
which have covered nearly all the songs I want.) But if I wnat to get
something *good*, I usually hit Skids or Borders.
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krj
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response 73 of 195:
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Apr 8 16:28 UTC 1997 |
I believe that Discount Records, on the corner of State and Liberty,
is a part of the Musicland chain, whose stores are usually in malls.
I think Discount is the vestige of something which was once much
larger; East Lansing had a Discount Records which was part of the
same operation up until about 1981.
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bmoran
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response 74 of 195:
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Apr 9 13:32 UTC 1997 |
Ann Arbor's monster record and cd show is sched. for this Saturday the
12th from 10am - 4pm. At the Elks lodge on East Eisenhower. They say you
can bring in a few records to sell or trade, if you want. $3 admission.
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