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How do you store and catalog your vinyl?

Just curious how members store, sort and catalog their vinyl collection.
With less than a 1000 I have a hard time remembering just what I already own and have purchased duplicates by mistake whilst at the LRS.

How do you store them?
How do you sort them? Alphabetical or genre or year?
Catalog? In the good old days probably in a note book modern equivalent would be a word document or excel spreadsheet.

Very interested to hear what you do and how you manage that massive collection.
128x128uberwaltz

Showing 10 responses by bdp24

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bdp24
10,014 posts
 
Good points, all of which I agree with of course.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 
So, you're saying plastic jewel cases don't reflect sound waves that hit them?! The jewel case's internal volume may also resonate, but it's not either/or.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 
Oh Geoff, I thought you meant that a CD itself sounds better if stored vertically! Maybe your room benefits from horizontal diffusion (from vertically-orientated diffusors). Mine does, for planar speakers. Plastic CD jewel cases are nasty, cardboard much nicer.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 
I've never seen an LP collection stored horizontally. Since CD's are (mostly) in jewel cases, I doubt it matters. But it IS easier to get a CD case out if it doesn't have 10 or 20 more piled on top of it.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 
I haven't done the math, but I don't believe there are enough hours in an average persons life to listen to a million albums. And that's if you started at birth! But then, some people "collect" with no intention of listening.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 
@downunder, good point about the compartments in the Kallax being too wide, one reason I prefer the EKET. Each compartment in the EKET is 12-3/4" wide, still too much but acceptable. Owners of the Kallax have solved the problem of their excessive depth by installing a block inset into the back of each compartment. I also don’t like the Kallax’s open-back design, but a thin piece of plywood or melamine can be attached to the rear, closing it off.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 
The Ikea KALLAX is the best deal around. I like the EKET even more, but it’s cost-to-capacity ratio isn’t as good. It’s worth it to me.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 
noromance, so the idea behind genre-organization is that you regularly find yourself desiring to hear music of a specific genre? Being able to flip through albums and see the covers is very appealing, I must admit. But I barely have room for my bookcase-style LP and CD storage in my music room! Both side walls are completely covered, leaving space only for my speakers and equipment racks on the front wall, and my listening chair on the rear. I need a bigger room, which may be in my future.
bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 

noromance, record store style is tempting, but it takes up MUCH more space than does bookcase style storage.

As for genre-organizing, I don’t like to think of music in those terms. Is Dylan Folk? Rock? Folk-Rock? Americana? How about Ry Cooder---Blues? Zydeco? Cuban? Bill Frisell---Jazz, Americana, Fusion? Danny Gatton---Rockabilly? Jazz? Blues?

The answer to all the above is yes!

bdp24's avatar
bdp24
10,014 posts
 

Man, you guys make it way too complicated! Just kidding, whatever works. I just put my Pop (non-Classical) alphabetical by artist, then chronological. Classical alpha by composer, then alpha by piece title, then alpha by conductor. That's for both LP and CD.

Brooks Berdan had probably 25,000-30,000 LP's when he died. Sheila let him turn their dining room into his LP library. At that time I had about 5,000, and he had 5 or 6 times that. I'll bet Fremer has at least that.

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