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View Poll Results: Should VGMdb add an OPTIONAL "how much you paid" field in our collection lists?
Yes - This would provide both buyers and sellers with useful information 11 64.71%
No 6 35.29%
Voters: 17. You may not vote on this poll

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  #1  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 04:33 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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Default "Market" value of soundtracks

Sorry if there is another thread about this, but is there some sort of information somewhere determining what the supposed "market value" of an OOP soundtrack is?

I mean surely just because one person thinks they should get $2000 for a CD, doesn't actually mean its actually "worth" that much?

Or is it simply a case of noone else seems to be selling it, so one person can dictate its value?
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  #2  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 05:11 AM
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Zethe Zethe is offline
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The thing I do to approximate market value of OOP CDs is observing different offers through different sources (any place where you can find oop stuff - shops, auctions, forums etc), preferrably for a longer time. If there's only one item with a very high price tag then that's probably not representative. One CD I'm currently observing has three copies on Amazon JP Marketplace, one for ~30k yen and the other two for at least ~50k each while suruga-ya's buy price (when they buy used stuff from people) for that CD is only 500 yen, telling me that CD can probably be had for a lot cheaper if I wait long enough for it to appear. that's a general rule that often applies: your cd will appear cheaper if you wait long enough. I think the best advice I can give you is just observe stuff on different places for some time.
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  #3  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 07:24 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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I have a bunch of rare soundtracks in my collection that Id be potentially interested selling one day- Itd be good if there was some sort of dedicated resource that listed the average or "expect to pay at least" price for.
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  #4  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 07:27 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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or a "youve been ripped off if you paid more than" guide
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  #5  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 08:08 AM
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Zethe Zethe is offline
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You can of course sell that Ganbare Goemon album for its retail price: Take a stand against greed of gain, be different!
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  #6  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 09:27 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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Well, to be honest, I paid NOWHERE NEAR $1200 for it (Amazon JP), and if I was going to sell it, id actually WANT to sell it, not keep it in my inventory for 10 years waiting for some freak to pay a million dollars for it coz thats what someone else tried selling theirs for

I certainly understand cd's going up in value due to rarity, but then you have to be realistic as well. In my opinion, the only reason people have to sell a cd for such a rediculous price is to attempt to recoup their losses from their own "stupidity" in paying a rediculous price for it themselves (or simply just pure greed).
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  #7  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 09:29 AM
Xenofan 29A Xenofan 29A is offline
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There is at least one seller on the Amazon.co.jp marketplace who tries to take advantage of international buyers by charging absurd prices for everything, even things that are readily available, but giving a description in English, unlike most others, to attract those eyes. It's unconscionable, in my opinion.
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  #8  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 09:33 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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I guarantee the people who sell OOP cds for a "bargain" arent losing much, coz they were likely smart enough, or patient enough to buy it at a reasonable price from a like minded person
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  #9  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 11:18 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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I think it would be a good addition to this site, if in our collection lists, there was an option for us to disclose what we actually paid for our rare soundtracks. Then when someone clicks on the "contained in 50 collections" for a particular ost, they can see that 30 of those people paid around $100, 10 might have paid $80, and only 2 might have paid $200 for example.

Then when you see that particular ost going for $2000 on Amazon JP or wherever, you know that its really not worth that much, and to look elsewhere or wait.

It'd be a helpful tool in my opinion, for collectors AND sellers alike

Site admins? Thoughts?
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  #10  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 02:25 PM
Boyblunder Boyblunder is offline
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That particular goemon soundtrack you mentioned appeared on otokichi once, for 47,000 Yen. It had no obi etc just liner notes and it sold within a couple of hours. You tend to find on here and ebay in particular that people are tight and will ALWAYS try to undercut you, sometimes ridiculously. As a law of averages the best way to determine a rough price would be to gather the auctions price end for several of the same soundtrack on Yahoo JP auctions. To serious collectors also, comleteness and condition mean a big deal and this along with sealed albums push the price up quite a bit most of the time. Studying the market especially YahooJP over a period of time will give you a rough idea. Most online outlets that sell rare items and also ebay sellers will inflate to ridiculous prices. Finally, there are some albums that are so rare that people will literally fight to own it.
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  #11  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 03:09 PM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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47,000 yen ($600 bucks) WITHOUT obi? WOW! Then I consider myself exceptionally lucky! I paid $300 bucks for mine WITH obi and that white card thingymo that usually comes with Japanese soundtracks, plus its in excellent - near mint condition. I could probably buy a house with it one day... lol
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  #12  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 03:29 PM
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Zethe Zethe is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by darkthunder84 View Post
I could probably buy a house with it one day...
I literally loled
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  #13  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 03:41 PM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Boyblunder View Post
You tend to find on here and ebay in particular that people are tight and will ALWAYS try to undercut you, sometimes ridiculously... Most online outlets that sell rare items and also ebay sellers will inflate to ridiculous prices.
It irritates me when someone is selling a soundtrack for a "negotiable" price, and you use a readily available price from other places to make a "reasonable offer" only to be told that your offer is only HALF THE VALUE! (Thats the reason I actually started this topic btw).

It's like dont try and tell me I should pay $200 for something I can easily get elsewhere for $100.

I feel sorry for those that actually end up paying these sellers what they ask because of a lack of experience in determining a much more realistic estimate of what they could get it for (and yes I have been in that position myself as a buyer, but never again!)

I think a community based approach is the best way to tackle exorbitant greed on the part of sellers. I still like the idea of giving people the option to list what they paid for their soundtracks in their collection lists. Easier to look up, easier as a quick reference guide when you havnt thought to look at Yahoo actions over an extended period of time for a soundtrack you've only just discovered.
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  #14  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 03:57 PM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by darkthunder84 View Post
I still like the idea of giving people the option to list what they paid for their soundtracks in their collection lists.
And this way we'll all finally get to see that Princess Isabella is really Gina Rineheart
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  #15  
Old Jul 20, 2012, 04:00 PM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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And no, Princess Isabella is not the one I'm taking issue with, just for the record
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  #16  
Old Jul 21, 2012, 01:15 AM
Boyblunder Boyblunder is offline
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Don't forget also that the american dollar has been weak for quite some time now. It is definitely not a sellers market at the moment.
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  #17  
Old Jul 21, 2012, 06:46 AM
Kimimi Kimimi is offline
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I quite like the idea of some kind of community average sale price to try and gauge how much OSTs are worth - provided there's an option to keep the personally identifiable parts private. If I bought a CD for $20 and it ends up being worth $200 I don't feel that I or anyone else should feel "shamed" into selling it for less if we happened to be the lucky few in the right place at the right time.
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  #18  
Old Jul 21, 2012, 07:18 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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I agree noone should be shamed at all. Its simply about getting an "accurate" idea of the real value of an ost to stop people getting away with charging $400 when its "worth" $200 And of course so you know you can sell it for $200 instead of $20
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  #19  
Old Jul 21, 2012, 09:36 PM
Kimimi Kimimi is offline
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Is that part (about "getting away" with a high price) really a problem though? I mean, if somebody says "I want $400 for this OST" and somebody else says "That's fine, give me your Paypal email" is anyone being ripped off? The buyer knows the price before they hand over any money.

I do like the idea of some sort of average value tracker just out of curiousity's sake, but I don't agree with the idea of it tackling "exhorbitant greed of the sellers" - there are a lot of rare OSTs out there that really are nigh-on impossible to find these days, I don't think it's so much greed as simple availability vs. desirability that pushes up prices.
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  #20  
Old Jul 22, 2012, 10:09 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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Generally I'd say you are right, it is most often limited availability that pushes up prices. But its how that limited availability is decided by a select few people "in the know" that sets the scale for how much rare cds sell for.

Usually I think people pay more than they need to because of a lack of knowledge- I just want to put that knowledge out there for all to see in an easily accessible manner. Much like how you can get information on how much a house in your street sells for

And then, if someone can see that the average sale price is $200, and then two people decide to conduct an exchange of $400 for that cd, well sure that is their prerogative.

I'm really just trying to look out for the little guys out there who arent "in the know" and arent experts when it comes to buying vgm.

The vgm buying guide doesnt really help people very much when it comes to this issue. It simply says "know the market value", without giving helpful advice on how to know it. The initiative I'm proposing will address that in the easiest possible way, and I'd love to see it take off
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  #21  
Old Jul 22, 2012, 11:56 AM
Boyblunder Boyblunder is offline
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I agree totally, but my original point was based on a few past experiences. For example I was randomly offered $20 for a mint complete Super Mario World. It's this kinda of cheep skate idiocy that winds me up.
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  #22  
Old Jul 22, 2012, 12:08 PM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Boyblunder View Post
I was randomly offered $20 for a mint complete Super Mario World. It's this kinda of cheep skate idiocy that winds me up.
Yeah that is pretty silly :P Just as much as selling KICA-7943 for $2000 is (opposite of cheep skate) idiocy :P

See how both buyers AND sellers can be equally passionate about this issue!
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  #23  
Old Jul 22, 2012, 06:50 PM
GoldfishX GoldfishX is offline
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Just some general rules I go by for OOP soundtracks:

-For OOP CD's with limited demand, I would say their market value is $25 or less. Reason being, that is about the cost of a new release (assuming single disc) and they would have depreciated by now, due to not being new and not being in demand. These are probably the most common examples of OOP CD's and the kind I cringe at when I see sellers marking them up to $50-$100 or more, especially since most sellers can't give these away for anything worth packaging and shipping and going to the mail office for. Examples: Xexex Original Soundtrack, most SNK soundtracks, most Tokimeki Memorial soundtracks, most old G.S.M albums (and old arcade soundtracks in general), most of those obscure OST's or arranges that you've never heard of before (Burai Prototype as an immediate example).

-OOP CD's with intermediate demand, that is, CD's belonging to a particular company's releases or a particular game series. Personal market value on ones like this is $60 and below ($60 being on the high side). I think it assumes a rather generous $20-$30 mark-up of the new price for rarity, with a decline for less demand. In other words, I would start listing these at $$50-60 and start marking down if no one bites, with the potential to go down to the $20-$25 price range (heh, just like current-gen games). Examples: Most Falcom Perfect Collections, Soukaigi, Konami Battle Albums (these have declined in rarity the past 10 years or so), Rockman 2 The Power Fighters, Mystic Ark OST.

-OOP CD's with intermediate/high demand AND notoriously small supply (not helped by the fact that they usually went OOP before the VGM community became aware of them). Usually indicated on a one-to-one basis and based on how much you wanted the damn thing. Also I refer to these as "holy grails". These are the ones that would fetch $100-$150 routinely and I can't really disagree with those values (that's right, $150 would be my personal ceiling for ANY VGM release and I know a lot of collectors have paid way more than that). If you're listing these, I agree with a higher price because there are people looking at these and constantly thinking, "Hmm..." Personal examples: Estpolis Biographies (aka the first release of the Lufia soundtracks), Super Mario RPG OSV, Game Music Graffiti, Phantasy Star Sound Collection 1, Dracula New Classic (moreso for the fact that this album once sold for $1500 in an ebay auction than the actual music), Sakuraba's pre-Star Ocean 2 arranges (SO Perfect Collection, Shining the Holy Ark), Final Fantasy VII Limited Edition.
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  #24  
Old Jul 23, 2012, 12:57 AM
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$50-60 for mystic ark? and $150 for super mario RPG? So basically about £90 for SMRPG. Not happening in a billion years.
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  #25  
Old Jul 23, 2012, 04:37 AM
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Quote:
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$50-60 for mystic ark? and $150 for super mario RPG? So basically about £90 for SMRPG. Not happening in a billion years.
I don't know why anyone would pay 50-60$ for a cd that's produced incorrectly. It's quite possibly the worst mastered/produced vgm cd of all time. It's a piece of garbage.
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  #26  
Old Jul 23, 2012, 05:38 AM
GoldfishX GoldfishX is offline
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Some years ago (2006?), I listed SM RPG for $100 and figured no one would bite on it. Had the stickers, but the booklet was really torn up on the side (came like that). Was gone in an hour. I regret it nowadays. I should have kept it. To be fair, I actually had gotten it for retail price in the late 90's, so technically, it was a 300% profit, but doesn't feel like one nowadays. I either could have kept it or gotten twice that.

I've heard about the hissing problem on Mystic Ark, but I still love the soundtrack and its' never deterred me from liking the underlying music. Possibly the best non-Square RPG soundtrack in the SNES era, IMO (then again, I love Akihito Mori). I would say $60 would be a fair price for it (although note, I had in the group that is "$60 and below")

And worst mastered/produced vgm cd of all time? Wow, lol, sorry it's got about a million ahead of it in that department. Anything else, besides the hissing?
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  #27  
Old Jul 23, 2012, 09:48 AM
darkthunder84 darkthunder84 is offline
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The Legend of Zelda OoT 3D OST is the worst produced I have in my collection! I was excited to finally get the complete cuts of all the temple themes, but omg the sound quality!
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  #28  
Old Jul 23, 2012, 01:27 PM
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Quote:
Originally Posted by GoldfishX View Post
Anything else, besides the hissing?
that's actually enough. i've isolated the problem if someone wants to hear it: http://www.mediafire.com/?8qtkmdfjl8tsd0m (not sure if it's ok to post that here. if not please remove it immediately. but it's basically just a short sample, not even a second long)
this is spread throughout the disc. and not just the left channel, the right channel has it as well - not as loud but enough to be audible @ std volume here. it sucks big time. there's no excuse for something like this. but, this soundtrack is vgm history; people can still be proud to own it. akihiko mori is a legend, I'd be proud to physically own anything scored by him. though indeed it feels kind of strange to give the producers money for an audio-technical failure as this.

Last edited by Zethe; Jul 23, 2012 at 01:34 PM.
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  #29  
Old Jun 3, 2014, 09:44 PM
smartalex2014 smartalex2014 is offline
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Default Market value

Book Off is a great place to start. Also Bunkado(If anyone is familiar about the store). I always went to Bunkado in Little Tokyo, Los Angeles! Can't believe the music clearance is still on. You can find rare anime OST's for $3 each! Old J-pop and folk music too. Tapes are 50 cents! I got several anime tapes! Real Collector's items! If you're around little Tokyo, I recommend it!
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  #30  
Old Jun 4, 2014, 02:20 AM
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I regularly sell my Sonic albums for less than I bought them for. If anything, I'm ripping off myself! (While also giving buyers an incentive to buy from me rather than an actual market.)
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