We didn’t, of course, and that’s because nearly all of the top 100 of the world’s most valuable vinyl records are individually cut acetates, test pressings, pre-production (not commercially released) items that were never formally released, or other items that likely would only have been available to record company employees or in some cases, only to the artists themselves.

Add to cartĬlick here to browse some of the rarest records we have in our store. red vinyl stereo pressing of Julie London's debut LP, Julie is Her Name. We suspect that when people do a search for “most valuable vinyl records”, what they really want to know is “Do I personally own any of the world’s most valuable vinyl records?” We know that when we bought our first record price guides back in the late 1970s, the first thing we did was look up records we owned to see if we had anything that was worth a lot of money. Those records are indeed the most valuable vinyl records, but they’re all unique, aren’t likely to change hands anytime soon, won’t be affordable if they do, and aren’t records that anyone reading this article actually own. We’re talking about things like Elvis Presley’s cut-with-a-lathe acetate of “My Happiness”, or the one acetate of “That’ll Be the Day” by the pre-Beatles Quarrymen, or the intentionally pressed-in-a-quantity-of-one albums by the Wu Tang Clan ( Once Upon a Time in Shaolin) or Jean-Michele Jarre (Music for Supermarkets). The real reason that you, or any randomly selected individual, don’t own any of the most valuable vinyl records is because, with few exceptions, nearly all of the most valuable vinyl records are highly unusual, one-of-a-kind items. That’s not because you don’t have good taste in records or that you simply bought the wrong ones in the store all those years ago. The short answer is – they don’t, and neither do you. As a lot of people are now giving thought to the boxes of records in their attic or basement that they haven’t touched in decades, it makes sense that they might have a curiosity as to whether they personally own any of the most valuable vinyl records. People know that some records are more valuable than others, and that many records are quite expensive. One of the most popular searches, oddly enough, is for the phrase most valuable vinyl records. It's affordable enough to get started with, but you shouldn't outgrow it as you become more immersed in your hobby.Vinyl records have made a comeback in recent years, and as a result, people are often searching for information about them online. It's a well-specced, fully automatic, three-speed player with built in pre-amp and USB port. What Record Player Should You Buy?įor the best beginner record player we'd recommend the Audio-Technica AT-LP120XUSB. It's a good idea to pay beyond the bare minimum, but it's definitely easy to end up spending more than you wanted to, so be careful. And when you get to the high end, you virtually have to configure the whole machine yourself to get the best out of it. Suddenly, you're budgeting for a whole lot more than just a record player. You might also need to supply your own phono preamp since most players aren't powerful enough to drive the speakers without one.

Most mid-range turntables don't have a speaker built-in, so you'll need to supply your own. But this is also where it gets complicated.Īs you move up to the mid range and beyond, the price grows exponentially. Pushing your budget up to the next level will give you noticeable improvements. But if you're looking for the warmer, richer sound that vinyl fans eulogize, you'll need to spend more.

Value of 33 rpm vinyl records