# Are you a compulsive buyer, i am and i can't help it?



## deprofundis (Apr 25, 2014)

I seen nonsutch had a Pomponio Nenna album from 1973, seem awesome, you know madrigal & consort music, woaw, i could ain't help.it i had to purchased it. and my cash is running low my internet bill most be paid, oh well i mess around , i guess i will have to pay my bill half of iit, darn compulsion, this LP look awesome sleeve , and in mint condition someone have it, it's written in the sky and now yes now my classical Lp collection is done, im self suffisant , got all what i want.

Are you like me when you see a record significant in your eye's , you got to purchased it no mather what before it disapeared from market, LP is thrill seeking , i can't resist, and will have to live like a poor, i hope everything gonna work out for me , perhaps i should ain't bought it, but something telled me i had to, i will have to cancel tobacco from now on and alcohol... records are more important, the only think is that darn bill i have to pay half will shredded my finance.

Oops, major , but i had too :tiphat:

P.s i'm sutch a compulsive idiot im not proud of myself and than again i had to... you know Nenna is a favorite, from now on i wont have money to spent, unless i borrow some .


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

I am afraid that I am a compulsive buyer of music CDs. Someone may have to lock me up in a cell with no computer for a long time to stop this crazy binging on music purchases.


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## KenOC (Mar 7, 2011)

New York Times: “In 2006 — years after Napster, and well into the iTunes era — record labels still reaped $9.4 billion from CD sales in the United States, more than the total sales revenue of the business today. Last year, CD sales stood at just $1.5 billion, a drop of 84 percent in a decade.”

My purchasing habits have followed. I almost never buy a CD unless it’s cheaper than a download.


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## Ras (Oct 6, 2017)

I used to be a compulsive buyer, yes, but I quit the habit, because cds take up too much space and are too expensive.

I subscribe to the streaming service www.spotify.com where I can hear almost everything ever recorded in good sound.

I pay 100 Danish kroners for my subscription that's ca. 16 dollars a month.

But streaming isn't always the ideal way of listening - sometimes the connection fails and the experience is ruined.


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

I have already sent you a friend request...

I'm THE COMPULSIVE buyer. Not only with CDs, SACDs, Blu Ray Audio etc., but with EVERYTHING has to with music. (HI FI, Instruments, Concerts, Memberships, etc...) 


If something is found, and I believe is worthwhile I will buy it under ANY circumstances. Sometimes I have the felling, that I'm working just to buy my smokes and my music. And you know something? I LIKE IT!


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## Art Rock (Nov 28, 2009)

I was one. Spending far too much every month on far too many CD's for decades. Nowadays, I only go for bargains that are too good not to buy them (special promotions, thrift shops).


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## mbhaub (Dec 2, 2016)

Dimace said:


> I have already sent you a friend request...
> 
> I'm THE COMPULSIVE buyer. Not only with CDs, SACDs, Blu Ray Audio etc., but with EVERYTHING has to with music. (HI FI, Instruments, Concerts, Memberships, etc...)
> 
> If something is found, and I believe is worthwhile I will buy it under ANY circumstances. Sometimes I have the felling, that I'm working just to buy my smokes and my music. And you know something? I LIKE IT!


I'm with you. I also buy biographies of musicians and composers by the ton. 12 000 cds and counting. Hundreds of scores. And more. Terrible problem of storage. But I want the physical product, not a download.

You may ask why? First, I love the music and I want to hear everything I can. Second, it's one thing I can do to support the industry. If you love this music you must support the producers, otherwise there won't be any.

Expensive: yes. But it's only money. And if you're on a budget, you should see the astoundingly low prices at Berkshire Record Outlet.


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## Manxfeeder (Oct 19, 2010)

Art Rock said:


> I was one. Spending far too much every month on far too many CD's for decades. Nowadays, I only go for bargains that are too good not to buy them (special promotions, thrift shops).


Yep. My local used CD store has had a ridiculously large amount of ridiculously low priced CDs and box sets. Sadly, this past month I've seen them drastically reducing their classical section and reducing the prices, like they are having a fire sale. If that goes away, it may signal the end of my impulse buying. And that may be a good thing; my office is beginning to look like an episode of Hoarders.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

mbhaub said:


> Expensive: yes. But it's only money.


You nailed it! If one can afford it, why not? The music you can enjoy. The money in the bank will become someone else's when you die. May as well enjoy it now.


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## regenmusic (Oct 23, 2014)

Learn how to be a dealer, then you can get top price for the things you don't need anymore. There must be a French version of eBay or Amazon.


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## larold (Jul 20, 2017)

_I used to be a compulsive buyer, yes, but I quit the habit, because cds take up too much space and are too expensive. I subscribe to the streaming service www.spotify.com where I can hear almost everything ever recorded in good sound. _

Isn't everyone that collects classical music compulsive? Hear something, or hear about something, and decide you want it? In the 20th century it was tangible things -- 78s, LPs, tape, CDs, downloads -- now it is YouTube videos or streams.

Only different is you owned one and borrowed the other but seems like the same experience to me.


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## larold (Jul 20, 2017)

It isn't hard to sell on ebay or Amazon anywhere (ebay is in most nations; Amazon in a half-dozen) if you as you have the time, interest and money for it. You pay fees to be a dealer and classical music doesn't sell like some things.

I sold one thing on ebay, a rarity unavailable anywhere else in the world. I advertised it for $100, got one offer for $80. I negotiated him up to $86, paid the shipping, paid ebay a fee, paid PayPal a fee, then got another monthly fee from ebay the next month.

And that was for something one of a kind!


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

mbhaub said:


> I'm with you. I also buy biographies of musicians and composers by the ton. *12 000 cds and counting. Hundreds of scores. *And more. Terrible problem of storage. But I want the physical product, not a download.
> 
> You may ask why? First, I love the music and I want to hear everything I can. Second, it's one thing I can do to support the industry. If you love this music you must support the producers, otherwise there won't be any.
> 
> Expensive: yes. But it's only money. And if you're on a budget, you should see the astoundingly low prices at Berkshire Record Outlet.


I'm a little bit shorter… 10.000 plus and counting. The amazing is that I listen only 50 CDs in regular basis. Not more. Five are the Strauss's Vier Letzte Lieder, another 20 are Liszt's Years of Pilgrimage and the Religious Melodies for the Piano, another 10 are Liszt's works for Piano and Orchestra plus The Hungarian Dances and Faust Symphony, and the rest 15 CDs are Bruckner's 4th, Mahler's 2nd and 8th, Busoni's Concerto, Scriabin's Symphonies and Concertos and the 2nd Symphony of Fibich. That's for classical works. After we have Kurt Weill (everything) Roberto Carlos, Art Pepper and a some other (very few) titles, like Astor Piazzola... END! To listen these titles I use 6 CD and SACD Players, 3 Amplifiers, 12 speakers 2 blu- ray players etc... For this reason I said that I'm a sick MF... (I never listen music from computer, but I try some pieces on You Tube just to see if are ok)

Music scores, instruments (only pianos and keyboards) etc. are another story…

*Ι forgot the Thalberg. Make them 65/70...


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

larold said:


> It isn't hard to sell on ebay or Amazon anywhere (ebay is in most nations; Amazon in a half-dozen) if you as you have the time, interest and money for it. You pay fees to be a dealer and classical music doesn't sell like some things.
> 
> I sold one thing on ebay, a rarity unavailable anywhere else in the world. I advertised it for $100, got one offer for $80. I negotiated him up to $86, paid the shipping, paid ebay a fee, paid PayPal a fee, then got another monthly fee from ebay the next month.
> 
> And that was for something one of a kind!


As a big collector, I can only advice you NOT to sell pieces. ONLY COLLECTIONS! I sold, years before, my ENTIRE LP collection, for many thousands DM! I sold it as an entity, with NO negotiable price. So, make an (example) offer of 1000 CDs for 22.000 bucks targeting (this is a good trick) the 20.000. There, certainly, you will have CDs cost 3 bucks but other cost 150 or more. Not a problem! You are asking 20 bucks pro piece. Take care of the quality Balance of you offer. Every 10 pieces, 2 very strong, 3 very good, 3 ok and 2 trash. And make NO NEGOTIATIONS! (except you have made the trick above…)


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## Steerpike (Dec 29, 2018)

I sometimes develop a curiosity about a particular composer, and go on something of a buying binge. At other times, I realise that my collection is missing a signature piece, and I must have it. The problem then is I start browsing, and other things catch my attention, so I end up buying them as well. I'm also keen to discover composers that are new to me, so when I'm buying a batch of CDs, I'll usually include a speculative purchase or two (obviously, if such purchases prove to be successful, this just prompts further purchases).

It's only money, which calls to mind the well known George Best quote - "I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered."


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

Steerpike said:


> It's only money, which calls to mind the well known George Best quote - "I spent a lot of money on booze, birds and fast cars. The rest I just squandered."


I think that was a revision of the one that was attributed to Groucho Marx:


> I spent most of my money on wine, women, and song, and wasted the rest.


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

Speaking from my own hard-earned personal experience over a lifetime, I offer that anyone who is a compulsive slave to buying on first impulse will probably stay behind the financial 8-ball at the risk of going deaf, dumb and blind into debt and be subject to great financial pressure and stress. In the modern world, there’s no longer the need to buy everything that immediately strikes one’s fancy in order to hear something or satisfy a curiosity, including even rare recordings, though there will always be some exceptions... Some reach a point where ownership is no longer necessary or required, and it can be a relief in the accumulation of albums or CDs that might only be heard only once or twice in a lifetime and then sit around as clutter to be stored for years and years. I’m not for it. I no longer subscribe to the belief that one must end up in the financial poorhouse in order to hear the great variety of music that’s now available online, and most of it can be heard in quality sound, even if not cd quality, with the proper equipment. I rarely if ever buy anything on the day that I want it because after a day or two it may no longer seem important or can be heard elsewhere without charge to satisfy the need for variety. Not buying compulsively on first impulse is a discipline, and the clutter of ownership is no longer necessary in order to hear what’s already been recorded, including rare or out of print albums. But the problem is learning to say No to what may be only a short-lived impulse, and few seem capable of that without some measure of practice. Not living in the midst of financial stress and clutter can have a positive effect of freeing up other areas of one’s life, and I do not believe that such compulsive spending should be made light of, sloughed off, or encouraged when it may be causing great distress in the lives of some listeners.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

Larkenfield said:


> Anyone who is a compulsive slave to buying on the first impulse will probably stay behind the financial 8-ball at the risk of going deaf, dumb and blind into debt and be subject to great financial pressure and stress.


Depends how much spare cash you have. I received an inheritance of about $11,500 a couple years ago and it has been going into music, but no effect on household budget. Without that, my spending would be at a much lower level.


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## fliege (Nov 7, 2017)

I could see myself becoming a compulsive CD purchaser but instead I use Spotify with all my music buffered to a massive SD card so maintaining network access is not a problem. I bought 4 or 5 CDs over the last three years. One was the Takács "Beethoven: Complete String Quartets" because it was a great deal and I wanted to spend a lot of time with the quartets in the future. The others were all albums that I have spent a lot of time listening to and wanted to contribute more to the artists than they would get from streaming. 

In general, I prefer to spend my money going to concerts. This is probably the best way of supporting artists and the experience is usually better than listening at home. I try to listen to the music in advance and learn about what I'm going to hear. There are no distractions in a concert hall and it's easier to follow the music being passed back and forth in the orchestra since you can both see the performers and you have more auditory sound localisation cues. Taken together the experience is more profound.


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## Larkenfield (Jun 5, 2017)

Speaking from my own hard-earned personal experience over a lifetime, I offer that anyone who is a compulsive slave to buying on first impulse will probably stay behind the financial 8-ball at the risk of going deaf, dumb and blind into debt and be subject to great financial pressure and stress. In the modern world, there’s no longer the need to buy everything that immediately strikes one’s fancy in order to hear something or satisfy a curiosity, including even rare recordings, though there will always be some exceptions... Some reach a point where ownership is no longer necessary or required, and it can be a relief in the accumulation of albums or CDs that might only be heard only once or twice in a lifetime and then sit around as clutter to be stored for years and years. I’m not for it. I no longer subscribe to the belief that one must end up in the financial poorhouse in order to hear the great variety of music that’s now available online, and most of it can be heard in quality sound, even if not cd quality, with the proper equipment. I rarely if ever buy anything on the day that I want it because after a day or two it may no longer seem important or can be heard elsewhere without charge to satisfy the need for variety. Not buying compulsively on first impulse is a discipline, and the clutter of ownership is no longer necessary in order to hear what’s already been recorded, including rare or out of print albums. But the problem is learning to say No to what may be only a short-lived impulse, and few seem capable of that without some measure of practice. Not living in the midst of financial stress and clutter can have a positive effect of freeing up other areas of one’s life, and I do not believe that such compulsive spending should be made light of, sloughed off or encouraged when it may be causing obvious stress in the lives of some listeners.


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## SixFootScowl (Oct 17, 2011)

Larkenfield said:


> Some reach a point where ownership is no longer necessary, and it can be a relief in the accumulation of albums or CDs that might only be herd only once or twice in a lifetime and then sit around as clutter to be stored for years and years.


On the positive side, it conserves these resources. Every now and then a huge classical collection is bought from an estate lock, stock, and barrel by my local brick and mortar store. They will lay it out on a couple of tables and it is always fun to file through all the newly acquired used stock, often at great prices.

So whatever I have, will probably go the same route and benefit future listeners who appreciate CDs with the artwork and booklets.


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## millionrainbows (Jun 23, 2012)

No, I'm not a compulsive buyer; it's just that there's a right way to do things, and a wrong way.


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

Fritz Kobus said:


> On the positive side, it conserves these resources. Every now and then a huge classical collection is bought from an estate lock, stock, and barrel by my local brick and mortar store. They will lay it out on a couple of tables and it is always fun to file through all the newly acquired used stock, often at great prices.
> 
> *So whatever I have, will probably go the same route and benefit future listeners who appreciate CDs with the artwork and booklets.*


Excellent thought, Fritz!!! We will show to the next generations (as the past generations have shown to us) that once upon a time they were real men on this planet, who owned the art of spirit with their books and music. This maybe will be not understood, but this is not our problem but of the future generations which, the way the things go, have no real future... (eating and surfing is not a life, but a slavery.) We are the last aristocrats of the spirit. Unfortunately our time is almost over.


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## Johnnie Burgess (Aug 30, 2015)

Fritz Kobus said:


> I am afraid that I am a compulsive buyer of music CDs. Someone may have to lock me up in a cell with no computer for a long time to stop this crazy binging on music purchases.


My problem could be seeing a listing for a Beethoven symphony cycle and not wanting to buy it. Now I am up to 36 and have a few more in sight.


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## JosefinaHW (Nov 21, 2015)

Fritz Kobus said:


> Depends how much spare cash you have. I received an inheritance of about $11,500 a couple years ago and it has been going into music, but no effect on household budget. Without that, my spending would be at a much lower level.


This is very similar to my case. A very dear friend of the family who knew me before I was born had always wanted me to continue my music studies; he has very generously enabled me to do that, although in a different way than he expected. 
Hopefully my collection of CDs, books, etc. will be a wonderful surprise to someone in the future. :tiphat:


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## Phil loves classical (Feb 8, 2017)

Spotify really helped curb my CD buying. Plus, I have pretty much everything I want to own.


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## starthrower (Dec 11, 2010)

Phil loves classical said:


> Spotify really helped curb my CD buying. Plus, I have pretty much everything I want to own.


I don't have Spotify, but I have everything on CD I'll ever need. It's completely pointless to continue buying more. There really are no more classical, jazz, or rock artists I desire to explore. Sometimes I wish I had no CDs and other possessions so my wife and I could sell the house, take the money and start a new life of experience. Spending life being instead of having as Erik Fromm wrote about. I really do want to attend more concerts, and not spending money on CDs will allow me to do more of this. I want to spend the rest of my life eating good food, buying some nice clothes, exercising, and getting out to experience music and art in person. That's were it's at.


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## Dimace (Oct 19, 2018)

starthrower said:


> I don't have Spotify, but I have everything on CD I'll ever need. It's completely pointless to continue buying more. There really are no more classical, jazz, or rock artists I desire to explore. Sometimes *I wish I had no CDs and other possessions so my wife and I could sell the house, take the money and start a new life of experience.* Spending life being instead of having as Erik Fromm wrote about. I really do want to attend more concerts, and not spending money on CDs will allow me to do more of this. I want to spend the rest of my life eating good food, buying some nice clothes, exercising, and getting out to experience music and art in person. That's were it's at.


Excellent thought!! Respect, mein Freund! Music is not everything (for me is a lot, but I have admitted my sickness) especially if you have a partner / wife, children, some other dreams to fulfill etc. If I can remember correctly, the last time you bought a CD collection was for your wife. To show her the world of classical music. (if an other friend did it, my apologies.) What I want to say with this is that our beloved, many / most of the times, don't share our pathos for music. And they do very well! We can try to show them the beauty of our mania (one /two times) and that's it. After we must start to make compromises to protect our life, because music is nothing when you are alone, without money, etc.

*to have a piano, in children room, the moment I had two more in the living room, is sickness. What I achieved was my sons to hate the classical music! They don't play a single note at the piano!!! At the beginning I was so angry and disappointed with them. Now (here helped also my ex wife, God bless her) I say WELL DONE! FFF it! The children will have their OWN life. They will not live my life. This should be miserable and pathetic from my side if I had insisted. Also my girl friend pays no attention to my music. She is doing well!! Because if she had allowed me to speak the whole day for composers and the piano, I should had done it, destroying AND this relation of mine. And (as he said a good friend of mine) to have 20 Rings and no one to speak at the night is not a very good musical outcome.

Thanks a lot for your post!


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