Honestly, the #1 tip on buying collections: You don't have to be rich, you just have to be FIRST!

Do I want to know this information? YES! Does my wife want me to know this Information? NO!

My dad's favorite quote was, "The harder you work, the luckier you get." Sounds like that applies. Great info here.

I have a small collection of albums but it's all good ones from jazz to pop to hip hop, it's not how many albums you have but it the quality of the albums you have

You’re awesome for sharing this information with folks. Most people wouldn’t! You deserve all your success man!

Great advice Dillon. A side note. I look for albums at tag sales. If I don't see any, I always ask"Do you have any albums?" You'd be surprised how many times they have them and don't put them out. They either forget about them, or think that people don't play albums anymore. I got my best score ever that way. 13 original Pink Floyd albums, many of them imports, just like new. If you ask , they can either say no, or yeah but I don't want to sell them. That's fine, I'm not offended either way.

Hey, I like Herb Albert😊

I have never bought a big collection and I'm not sure I will but this was a fascinating video. So many of the tips you gave are helpful for just purchasing records in general. Great video Dillon. It was an interesting look into your career.

I recently found your channel and I gotta say it's my favorite as vinyls go. I appreciate the straight talk without all the bells and whistles and monster truck rally introductions. There are a lot of good vinyl record channels and yours in among the best, or at least the easiest to follow. Thanks for sharing all the great info!

What a nice guy for taking the time to explain your methods. I do believe that a records value is only what someone is willing to pay for it. Rarity and condition being the most important.

I've been selling stuff from my collection for many years now and everything you say rings true in my experience as well. Top advice from an expert. Great video.

I’ve always found the dichotomy between someone like me who is very selective and only buys onesies and twosies vs someone like you who moves high quantities of records to be interesting. We’re both looking for essentially the same thing, but in a completely different fashion. I have no interest in dealing, but I still found this video entertaining and insightful. Thanks for sharing.

“Pay well, treat people right, be honest” Yes! To all of this, just in general the world can be a better place if we all did this, but especially in the vinyl community

I frequent a local " Savers" thrift store . Its literally a 8 minute walk from my house . Almost everyday I stop in after work to try my luck on $2.99 vinyl. Today I scored . 3 Doors albums 2 late 60's Rolling stones albums 1 Led Zeppelin 4 2 Ted Nugent albums , his first two. 1 First Blondie album 2 motorhead first two albums . 2 Police albums . 3 Hendrix albums 1 cheech n Chong album . 1 first ZZ top album. 2 genesis albums . All are first pressings and in great shape for $2.99 each . Someone's father or grandfather died and got donated . Most people still think vinyl is junk lol. There were a few more good artists but not my type of music , I don't buy vinyl as an investment I buy to.listen so I left them for the next lucky soul.

It’s a pure hustle and I used to do it for a few years. I had a booth in an antique mall where I would unload the bulk of my collections. Really nice stuff would go on eBay, the very best stuff I would keep. I had the most success with Craigslist, but you have to always be checking and be the first one there. That means dropping everything at any moment to go look at records.

Great video! Never expected to hear MAP records! That’s my friend Vini’s record label!

As I have always made clear to anyone asking me if I will buy their collection...”condition is everything”!

Great info thanks! My problem is I keep buying but then don't want to part with them. Trying to convince wife we need to move to a larger retirement home, so far shes not falling for that line.

Love your videos and love your honest advice. Our shop in Virginia lives by some of your advice and you are correct. Treat em fair , drive to get it, and pay for what you see. Alot of dishonest sellers out there, be cautious. Great stuff!

Another source I use for valuing records is Gripsweat - easy to use and offers a relatively large data base. On Popsike I have noticed that a lower-price transaction (for the same condition grade) will be ignored by them - they just don't list the lower dollar amount sales and so lead you to over-value some records. But you can adjust for that, and Popsike is very quick and easy. I like Ebay sold listings because Ebay has a quick easy-to-use format and they will have both sophisticated and beginner collectors buying their stuff, so you get a good cross-section sample of what buyers were willing to pay. Discogs is very complete, but more difficult to use and just takes longer.

KZfaq algorithm because I love the work Dylan does

You really set it straight, Dillon. Everyone thinks what you do is so easy. It takes a lot of research, hard work and persistence. I agree with what you said about Discogs. People often forget to look at condition of past sales and I’ve noticed quite a few fake sales get through and bring value down or it skyrockets. I notice Popsike sales are more expensive than Discogs. I try to stay in the middle. Informative video.

What works for me is mowing the neighbors lawn. It took a while but eventually he retired, moved to California and gave me his small (~500ish) but hardly touched collection. Okay, so it took about 10 years, still worth it! Thanks for all the tips. I'm thinking of expanding my new-to-me collection so your advice is well taken.

Hey man thank you for making this video! I am 24 and been a police officer for about 2 years now dont really make the best money being a cop in my area so i thought i would pursue the dream that i have had with my bestfriend woody and thats to open a record store! woody and i have dreamed about this since we were about 15-16 and started collecting around that time. We are big 80s metal and trash metal guys but also love 70s-90s rock as well and just about anything 80s lol. we just started getting serious a month back on doing this and wont even be ready for atleast another 2 years if we are lucky but this video definitely helped with us starting out! ps also know my 70s/80s/90s rock very well and know whats worth money and not worth money and lastly i know that is the biggest genre that people want so I think ill be good in that department lol

Thanks for sharing. great info. And I need to stop procrastinating and make it to one of your pop ups. 2 hours isn't a big deal to drive to meet you and get some vinyl. plus who needs an excuse to go to Charlotte. Thanks again.

Appreciate these insights. I collect mostly for myself, but love finding big lots - most of the times because there'll be a few obscure rock titles mixed in. But one of the best grabs I had was a CL post I saw that was only 14 minutes old - "35 records for $35." All of them weird psych like Advancement, Influence, all in all averaging $800 (value to me is more interesting then practical, more like stuff I wouldn't own otherwise.) Was a tense 1 hour drive, knowing all someone had to do was message them and offer more (there were photos) But yeah, always fun going to record stores and seeing stuff you've come across. And knowing what types of music is on what labels (Polydor is usually pretty decent stuff.) I need to do more for getting my name out there locally, I appreciate these tips!

I'm going to go out on a limb and predict that this will be one of your most popular videos. Great information that makes a lot of sense. I've always said you are the hardest working record digger there is. And that is the biggest tip and takeaway from this video. Hardwork. I love what you said that it's not just hard work now it's the hard work that you've put into it in the past. And I truly love the fact that all of your hard work is paying off.

Watched this video countless times before but never commented. One comment I would make is in response to where Dylan mentions about buying what you know, in particular when he says about when you’re at someone’s house looking at their records to pick out the ones you definitively want to buy. From my experiences this can be a bad move as some people claiming to be sellers are actually just looking for someone to do the work for them with regards picking out the good records from a collection which they can then go on and sell online themselves. Happened to me various times over the years where I’ve done that and gone to them with a price and they turn me down but then I see them quickly grabbing the records I was looking at and putting them to the side. A lot of people even if big music fans don’t know the intricacies of valuing records and even if they do know about sites like discogs and eBay (most will know about eBay I guess) in a large number of cases they don’t know how to use the information correctly (eg. not even knowing how to bring up completed sold listings). A little information in the wrong hands can be dangerous!

Great information. I missed out on a 300 record collection recently but ended up buying a set of speakers from the guy. He had posted a video on Craig's list and there were some nice albums in there but a lot of it was common or obscure 2nd tier artists. I was prepared to offer (if the records were in good shape) $300 for the lot and go as high as $400 if I had to. My figuring was that there were probably 20 records worth $10-15 each, 100 worth $3-5, and 80 worth $1-2 and 100 that weren't worth much of anything. Basically my view was that there were about $600-800 of value there. I don't know if this guy was blowing smoke or not but he claimed he sold it for $1,100. I told him he made a great deal. And I thought to myself, if he's not lying, that someone grossly overpaid for those records.

Fantastic information! I knew I wasn't the only one asking you some of those questions. Lol. Really useful information and I really appreciate you sharing with us. I've learned alot from you and a few others already.

The most important without a doubt is just, know your shit. As far as thrift stores go, i've made thousands off cds. And it's so funny, my biggest scores were found right after someone got through scanning with thier phone. Rare editions, low press indie label stuff, and promo only shit. I sold one track singles for half a grand. KNOW YOUR SHIT.

Thank you so much for doing this video. I've gotten into buying small collections and I really needed some guidance doing this .

I am very small-time at buying and selling, but I would just expand a little on some things you said. If you have friends who seriously collect or buy and sell, then you have many conversations about record sales or collections that have been bought or examined, and you know how those conversations go. If you are on the phone with someone who wants to sell, and you have to travel, get them to talk about it, and even if they say they have a big jazz collection, you want to make sure they talk about this stuff the way all your friends would talk about it if they were trying to sell it. If someone is selling his own collection, but does not start enthusiastically throwing out titles and artists, I will not travel. If he can't tell you the gems in his collection, he probably has none.

Appreciate the tip on Popsike, good to know. Good point about Discogs, which only reflects their own sales and another side of that is that if the release doesn't happen to have a sales history within Discogs you get no info at all. It's a stab in the dark. It's also the most counterintuitive site I know to try entering data into. I'd almost rather do my income taxes than enter something on Discogs. Almost.

You are an awesome guy!!! Good info man, thanks for sharing!

I have a collection of records, 8-10bins with at least 50 records per bin. I inherited it from my dad

I’m from Lebanon and I always watch your videos

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and experiences.

favorite video yet! My question is (for a follow up video?) is what is the best way to SELL records. Discogs page? eBay? Set up a table at an expo twice a year? Out of my hatchback? Flea market parking lot? Cash is king and no shipping and/or tax is wonderful. I have hundreds of records to sell from somewhat-below-average to holy-smokes-rare-pricey-stuff and I'm not sure exactly where to begin - and, no, for anyone reading this, I'm not trying to unload all of them for cheap. I've got plenty of time to sell them one at a time for decent $. :^) I know about a half dozen guys at work (who know a few other vinyl enthusiasts) who I'll let come by my apartment to go through my crates. No strangers are coming over to look at my place for valuables. I've learned a lot over the last few years from videos like this (thank you) and constantly on the search. But, funny enough, I get straight up lucky sometimes. Ever find an original Townes Van Zandt s/t on Poppy for a dollar at your local thrift shop - I have, it is a little rough VG- wax, NM- inner, VG(+) cover. Anyone ever come across a white Dark Side of the Moon (1978 Holland pressing) for less than $3 - yeah, it's NM/M-. How about an original Charles Manson from 1970? - also less than $3 - now I'm just showing off. Thanks again for this great video.

Some people don't realise that resellers are dealers. I used to run a record shop and still dabble online. I love vinyl but I also sell as well :) I don't mind paying out for stuff. Some stuff is worth way less because of the condition. One Beatles record isn't worth as much because it sounds like a chip pan :) Vinyl is condition, condition, condition. I agree entirely with what you said :) Knowledge of what you know is vital. eBay and Discogs go on price sold average not value

Great job Dillon. I might add that sometimes I might have to clean the records and then put them in plastic sleeves. You don't want angry customers. Cleaning makes them look and sound better. The plastic sleeves make them look better and you can put a price sticker on the bag which won't hurt the jacket of the record. And be careful. There are bad people out there. Bill

Nice one man for the tips.Great video Noble Records👍

Very informative video Dillion. Wishing you the very best and still hoping to hit one of your pop-ups in the near future. Enjoyed! Andre’

So you are like the American Pickers of Vinyl. I am waiting for your TV show. To your point if you really want to do this you must commit. It is a leap of faith. It would be fun but I would not take the leap. Lord knows I work the hours but I want my guaranteed check. I really appreciate what you do and your dedication. Too many people think it is easy and just want to flip. I figure someday I’ll get some of their records lol. Nice video, I’ll just continue to be the guy that buys them from you. Steve

You rock man! Thanks for sharing your wisdom. Godspeed!

I have been given a couple of record collections but have yet not pulled the trigger on purchasing one. These are good tips. Thanks for the info.

I'm totally loving your channel! Very informative stuff.

Think you shared a lot of this on one of your live broadcasts. Thanks for sharing again!

My advice would be to NOT buy from private sellers in the Las Vegas area (where I live). I saw someone asking...get this...$40 for a 2009 pressing of Abbey Road. I paid about $22 (including tax) at my local Best Buy for the SAME pressing when I bought it for my son. Saw another person asking $125 for a 1987 pressing of Dark Side of The Moon trying to say it was a 1st press even though there's a freaking bar code on the back cover (those didn't start popping up until around 1980 or so) and the catalog number within the barcode was near identical to my CD first released in 1987 save for the "-1" instead of "-2". One last example was someone selling a used copy of Rubber Soul they literally picked from Goodwill (left the dang sticker on the front jacket indicating they did this) and... wanted $250 for it. I could see if it was sealed...original 1st press and so on... This was beat to hell tho. As you can see, serious price gouging going on out here. And it's strangely only in Vegas. I can go to California, Arizona or Utah and the prices are fair and relevant to the condition. There's literally three shops I typically trust when shopping for records here. Now, I'm only trying to help my son build his collection (he's 13..begged me for a decent turntable and has similar tastes in music as myself...he's my mini me)...so he has stuff to listen to & enjoy right now. But it's tough. Anyhow, great tips, informative as always. Keep it up dude!

From Columbia, SC. Looking forward to paying a visit to your upcoming shop sometime,

Big props to you, Dillon. GREAT video. Now you have a video to point people to when they keep asking that question. Very rarely is finding a valuable record for an incredible price “luck.” Even folks that are just collectors are digging all the time, everywhere when they find that crazy $1 bin find they tell their grandkids about. Obviously, you work harder, and most of us knew that already. But you get my point. 👍🏻✌🏻

You should make a video on how every copy of Streisand and Herb Albert records are magically and or magnetically drawn to Goodwills and Salvation Army!?

U da man and Ik u grew that beard so all collectors remember the blue eyed, bearded, vinyl bandit!

Thank you so much for this video! I've been waiting for one like this. I really appreciate you sharing your knowledge and experience.

We had a lady bring some albums in the antique shop there was about 30 albums and she wanted $2,500 for them 😃. And these were in pretty beat shape...lol

I just subscribed. I love your channel because you help us learn various areas in records and music equipment.

Finally a video about this!

Great video. Many thanks from the U.K.

La chance : C'est quand la préparation rencontre l'opportunité. Nice video and cool advices, thanx

glad you mentioned Popsike , hundreds of records on there are ones I sold on ebay, good video

A major tip is to bring some type of latex gloves and mask, dust and mold can become an issue over time, digging through vinyl is fun but rashes are not.

I'd have to move to another state or country, there's just not enough people with records where I live. The ones that have records don't part with their good stuff or want top dollar, or are hunting for the same stuff I am. In my country out of state is 10+ hrs drive. The psych stuff I see some of you guys pick up just isn't seen here at all, even in record stores. You guys don't understand how LUCKY you are just because of your location.

Great advice in so many areas and ways!

The price on Popsike is always higher than anything else because the popular records are in most cases subject for a bidding war, and that is seldom the case in a recordstore. So most sellers go by popsike, because the price is artificially high, and most buyers go by discogs because it's considerably lower than popsike in most cases. So if you sell records and don't really want to sell them by all means use popsike to price your records. If i'm buying records an comes across a seller who use it, we're are usually to far apart so i swiftly move along...That said, you can't go by the discogs price if only two vg records etc. have been sold, you have to apply logic.

Great video / advice. Stay safe... From a music lover in the UK

TRUTH Bomb, as usual my man. W O R D ... I especially liked "it's hard work". Yes sir. 💎✔️

Thanks for the insight! Golden nuggets!

Thanks for your help from New Zealand 🇳🇿

Thanks for this video! Taking all these tips to heart!

I used to buy CD and book collections from people homes. Man, they thought they were selling gold bricks. I guess for them, they just thought about how much they paid for something and how much they enjoyed it, not the market value. I had one guy state that he would accept nothing less than $4.00/CD since there was "A pawn shop up north that pays $5.00 per CD" I called his bluff and said, "Oh, cool. I'm headed that way tomorrow and have some CDs I need to get rid of. What's the name of the place?" He started mubling, sweating, stammering and then grabbed his collection and kicked me out of his house. I had other transactions where, after I got home I would get some e-mails where they would MF me for not giving them a good price. Needless to say, I stopped doing that and stuck to garage sales, rummage sales, pawn shops and thrift stores and did just as well.

Wow! This is great info.

Well made video dude. Won’t be buying any collections but cool to hear about your process and experiences.

Thankyou so mutch and your record collection is very awesome

Dropping gems!

Great tips thanks for the knowledge and advice

I wish these tips were true for og pressings of extreme metal stuff. Nobody seems to sell those records, I've checked out quite a few collections for sale and no one has any death, black, doom, sludge etc records in them. And the people I know who have stuff like that just will not sell them, literally when they purge they'll purge everything except for the metal, very frustrating.

I know a guy with a record shop he does the same thing he buys whole collections because people want them all gone but he only pays for what he can sell and he throughs away a lot of ruined are unsellable records.

One of the most useful vids on the VC ever! Thanks for sharing. So where do you sell? Can we buy from you online?

Great info, thanks buddy

Anberlin!

This is great, thanks so much for the info!

Did you have a specific amount of $$ set aside when you were starting out for just buying collections?

Got a big collection

Great informaton in this one, thanks.

A very important point in this information is when you tell what you did for a living as a young buck (at 15:30). I suspect this is where you learned the lion's share of your craft. What you say here is very interesting, but for me it all gets uncomfortable very quickly. I tried selling some records at a record fair with my VC friend Martin Parrott. It felt to me like selling children. It was an emotional wrench to part with each one of them even though they were duplicates of what I already had. My heart is too much in the collecting I guess. I know you are very busy, but if you get chance take a look at my video called The Vinyl Misadventure. What you said in your video about how it can go wrong reminded me of my own experience. And look out for the punch line near the end. Cheers

Hey dude, great video, really fantastic info and delivered in such a friendly honest way, thank you! Heads up, the link for your store on your youtube profile directs to a brokenish page, you get a 404 error on the body

Great tips! I've bought a lot of records on offerup PRO TIP if the selling proile name is recordflipper or something along those lines he probably is trying to sell off his junk records in bulk always check the person's profile

Jesus Christ when he showed those pictures around 3:23 I was like 😮

Does your strategy change any if you come upon records that you want to add to your personal collection? Great video, good advice!

A really great and helpful insight shared by you there mate. Thanks and i hope records keep falling from the sky for you for many more years to come.haha :)

Some very wise advice here.

Right on. I found all this to be true 👍

Herb Albert is awesome ......

I figured you’d get more questions about your beard then your records😂

Only buy what you know. so true. fuck this is a spot on vid. love it!

Great video thnx for the advice 👍

Would you advise to start selling new records before buying old collections? Do you have a video on that topic?

ok popsike is so useful. thank you for that.

Hey! Herb Alpert and the Tijuana Brass isn't that bad!

Great video, useful info. Happy record collecting is done with no wife to nag about it....