What is the best way to display your vinyl collection while still protecting them from damage? Do you personally display your collection or do you only pull them out when you listen to them?
Wayne Parham Messages: 18793 Registered: January 2001
Illuminati (33rd Degree)
Just keep them in their sleeves and stand them up on edge in a temperature and humidity controlled environment and you're good. By "controlled environment," I just mean indoors at a comfortable temperature rather than in the attic or storage shed.
As for display, if you have very few, you could display each like a photograph, just as long as they are standing on their edges and inside their sleeves. The vertical orientation helps protect the grooves from crushing, warping and other mechanical damage. The sleeves protect them from dust.
I think most people store them like books on a shelf though. This allows a lot of records to be stored in a relatively small space. Don't pack them too tightly though, or it's not much better than a horizontal stack. The whole reason we don't store them horizontally is the weight of the records will compress the vinyl on the bottom of the stack. So by the same token, pack them loosely when putting them on the shelf so there is no crushing force.
Rusty Messages: 1205 Registered: May 2018 Location: Kansas City Missouri
Illuminati (3rd Degree)
I built shelving for my equipment and my most used records on the bottom. The shelf's slide out like drawers. I made them so you can go through the records like you would at a record store.
Wow, nice setup, Rusty! I'm officially jealous. So neat and organized. My setups are always a bit haphazard, heh. Those speakers look amazing. How much did they run you?
Rusty Messages: 1205 Registered: May 2018 Location: Kansas City Missouri
Illuminati (3rd Degree)
Thank you for the compliment's. Those speakers are the old Theater 4 Pi models. I don't remember the cost specifically it was so long back. I spect about 400 overall for the parts. I put them together with plans Wayne supplied. They've served me very well. But they are big old beasts. I've wanted to do subwoofers with them, but they have good low end, and they eat up a lot of room. With the Pi's and my tubed amps and preamp, I've been pretty well immune to feeling any upgradeitis for near a couple decades now.
Your audio equipment looks so nice! Mine gets banged around by grandkids, cats, and dogs. That's one reason that I want to get my vinyl out of the way. I like your drawer system. I also love the speakers. Were they difficult to put together? About how long have you had them? They look new. Thanks for sharing the pic.
TheWanderer Messages: 58 Registered: December 2018
Baron
I store mine in a rack that I bought specifically for the records. I have a knack for banging stuff up and not keeping it in the best shape. I didn't want that to happen to my records, so I purchased something to keep them neat, tidy and safe.
Displays.......Have a shelf or shelves dedicated for this purpose, track lighting and in a temperature controlled room. Behind glass, have your favorite album displayed and, beside it not behind glass, other albums by the same artist stored at a slight angle. Then beside that, another favorite of a different artist behind glass, front displayed, with the other albums stored as above for easy access to be played.
Those are gorgeous Pi speakers, Rusty! You've got a nice layout going. All I'd need is a comfy chair to kick back in.
My sister (Lost the Remote) and I found our dad's record collection when we were cleaning up his stuff after he passed away. I display the ones that were signed by the artist since they were obviously important to Dad. I have them standing in a glass cabinet away from sunlight. I turn them every now and then since that's what the advice I found said to do. Maybe you could display your favorites and tuck away the rest.
I've seen some cool projects on Pinterest with old records that are no longer salvageable. After I get the acoustics fixed in this apartment I'm going to work on something creative. Maybe I'll do something with his old records that won't play.
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I didn't want that to happen to my records, so I purchased something to keep them neat, tidy and safe. 
