#31
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Honestly, buying anime soundtracks is the same as buying VGM soundtracks. You go to most of the same places (eBay, Otaku.com, CDJapan, YahooJP Auction), look out for the same kinds of bootleggers and so on.
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#32
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Well I feel bad, I just bought a three bootleg copies of shadow of the colossus & ICO soundtracks from a eBay seller called HobbyLot. I knew the price was probably too good to be true but I decided to go with it. Guess I'll have to buy them again on CDJapan. Stupid. So that's another seller to watch out for. HobbyLot.
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#33
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You didn't follow the golden rule: Never buy something if the seller doesn't indicate the (correct) catalog number and publisher for the album.
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#34
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You're right, I was ignorant on how prevalent bootlegged items were. Guess I'll just search out authentic copies I suppose.
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#35
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I don't know if this is true anymore, but some bootleggers had comfortable ties with retailers (non-auction). In 1999, the store GameCave told me to always buy Ever Anime versions of soundtracks. And gamemusic.com used to sell Son May versions. I picked up a Son May Dracula Battle II from gamemusic.com in 2000 (didn't know it was a bootleg - not back then).
Edit: I also bought a CD from gamemusic.com titled "Dragon Quest: Digital Sound Explosion", which was a Son May version of the 1986 Dragon Quest Symphonic Suite.
__________________
Switch Friend Code = SW-0516-9380-0234 Last edited by Jodo Kast; Oct 16, 2013 at 10:18 AM. |
#36
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Advanced trick for buying from Amazon Japan marketplace. Has been very fruitful for me recently.
Usually, items that are marked "Amazon" can be purchased by overseas buyers. The drawback is the shipping is skyhigh (I believe it's EMS) and most used items are not marked "Amazon". Usually, the marketplace is full of sellers that do not sell overseas. Hence, the need for middleman to nab these items. However, some marketplace sellers WILL sell overseas. To find out which ones, search for the album you want (I usually do it by catalogue number) and navigate to the used marketplace listing for the item. Unless the album is stupidly rare, there are usually 10 or more copies sitting in the marketplace. Add 4-5 of the same item (but from different sellers) into your cart and attempt to check out. You will receive an error message for each one that will not ship overseas, so you can remove these from the cart. The ones that don't give the error message, you can simply check out and buy the item with your registered account. REMEMBER TO TAKE OUT THE DUPLICATE ITEMS FROM YOUR CART IF MULTIPLE SELLERS ARE WILLING TO SHIP OVERSEAS! The shipping is usually also less (I live in the US and I pay around $8 an item). What is cool is some of the more common items that would fetch even $15-$20 on the US/European market are regularly had for 1-200 yen (yes, one crummy yen!). Amazon Japan is a pretty good indicator of prices that items fetch. Last edited by GoldfishX; Apr 17, 2014 at 11:39 AM. |
#37
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Quote:
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#38
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this is a decent guide. Thanks for the info and comments.
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#39
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To me, estethicaly, the OBI is the most important part of an OST, and it goes with the way that japaneses add some fabrics/strip about everything to highlight. The OBI makes an OST more thick and beautiful, and having them side by side with their OBIs is great because it makes a beautiful line and a feeling of satisfaction since it's hard to collect them that way. So, when I got a complete copy, I rip it and scan it, then archive it and listen the .flac files I've just ripped, like this I preserve the whole stuff against touchy practices which can damage it with time (it can happend that I rarely listen it in my CD player) So, people who give importance to these details don't like bootlegs since bootlegs are just poor alternatives (poor printing quality & mastering) and they don't reflect the true spirit of the japanese way to make releases. So, bootlegs collectors better have to buy originals and OBI free owners better have to buy OBIs Btw, the only point I can find on bootlegs is that they are at least all first issues Last edited by erzane; May 12, 2021 at 08:43 AM. |
#40
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The thing with obis though is that they're made to be adverts or (originally) a way to know what was actually on the disc. They're meant to be thrown away, and most of the general population do throw them away. As a collector I think albums look better with them, but they're not some platonic ideal of Japanese craftsmanship and artistry.
Last edited by Aifread; May 12, 2021 at 09:12 PM. |
#41
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If obis are hard to find, wait until you want all your Japanese albums and books with registration/return card! I find it especially hard for books, since most of the time even if they're included, you don't know until you receive the item, because most sellers don't flip through all the pages looking for that piece of paper. obis are pretty much always on photos so it's not much of a problem, just need to wait patiently for a copy to show up.
There are a few guides where the obi and reg. card, I see it no more than once a year, pretty crazy considering the guide itself isn't rare. but that's what makes something interesting for collectors: the fact that not everybody has it Also, let's not talk about those old albums with glued-on-case obis. I thought previous owners did that until I realised it was done at the factory, since it appeared over and over on the same bunch of albums. |
#42
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Heh. I'll settle for a bootleg, if that's the only thing I can get my hands on at a decent price.
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#43
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I'll never understand the obsession about obis and not caring about reg. card or other extras which originally came with an album at the same time |
#44
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Surely it's not that mysterious? As someone who does care about and enjoy having obis (though is perhaps not obsessed), and doesn't care at all about registration cards, it's because there's nothing aesthetically interesting or presentational about reg cards. Obi design often complements, and sometimes completes, the outward appearance of the product cover, and might include some unique descriptive copy or minor artwork. It's an attractive, extra little visual embellishment to the overall package. Reg cards don't have any inherent visual value and don't factor into the product design, so it's easier to disregard them.
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#45
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How much I'm willing to hold out for an obi depends on how old or rare the album is. After the year 2000? Yeah, getting a copy with obi should be no problem. Before 1990? Good effing luck. In the grand scheme of things I care way more about having unique goodies like what came in King Records releases (bandana in GSM Capcom 5, fancy outer box for Gradius III, calendars and whatnot in the Falcom Special Boxes, etc.) than the obi, though having the obi too is definitely nice. Registration card doesn't even... register to me.
Not to mention all those Super Famicom Magazine promos where you're lucky if you even find them with inserts... Last edited by Aifread; May 13, 2021 at 04:52 AM. |
#46
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Yes it is. You can't call your copy "complete" without the reg. card as it was part of the original package. Simple as that. But each to his own.
And reg. cards can have useful information about campaigns, print run or other merchandise related to a certain product. So I find them interesting nonetheless. |
#47
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>Aifread : Weekly Jumps Comics are a good example in this case. Japaneses throw WJCs away, but mostly western collectors (probably japanese too) collects Jumps even if as basis these books are only produced as an ephemeral item.
>LuxKiller65 : that's funny you talk about this because these days I'm prospecting to find OBIs for my japanese books. A few years ago I bought a Terasawas book called Gundragon. It was a time I wasen't concerned with OBIs, so I didn't know that book was released with it. One day I came across with a complete copy and since that day I'm hunting the OBIs for all the books I bought naked at that period. I did the same with an art book of Kurumada (Sora) and I had to pay 170$ to get the OBI. Anyway, you also evoke glued-on-case OBIs : same for me I discovered that particularity on this one : https://vgmdb.net/album/36132 Also, some OBIs does have a corner-cut. For example, this one : https://vgmdb.net/album/37495 Last edited by erzane; May 13, 2021 at 10:31 AM. |
#48
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Then you have the taped-on-case obis which are even worse than the glued on ones since you are now forever stuck with a piece of tape on both sides on the obi. I guess second-hand shops do these kind of things to make the obi stay on when it's displayed. I thankfully only have a few taped ones, but a whole bunch of the more common glued variety (and of course a bunch of the corner-cut ones too because why not).
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#49
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Like I said, obis have some inherent presentation value, as do other package bonuses like slipcases or themed swag. If you happen to find registration cards interesting and fun to collect, go for it. I'm just saying it shouldn't be surprising that for some people, the cards don't add anything to the product except a penny's worth of extra shipping weight. |
#50
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Well, then check your collection for reg. cards and send them over to me for a penny's worth of shipping and I'll give them a good home
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#51
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I guess if 2nd hand shops wants to make the OBI stay on when displayed they better would add a plastic wrap, it's more convenient than spending time to glue it (if you observe it closely, the tape is perfectly glued, it's not a hand job). There are also OBIs which have the same size but aren't sticked, those have an extra strip separated by small cutted-lines which pinches under the flipping mecanisme, like this one : https://vgmdb.net/album/37495 Yeah, pls also send some to me Last edited by erzane; May 14, 2021 at 12:47 AM. |
#52
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#53
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Maybe the mechanical process of sitting the obi in its final position and sealing the product wasn't perfect in some factories, so they glued or sticked obis as a quick and inexpensive fix. I can imagine the obi could have ended up a bit too high or too low. Just a guess.
Have only seen this with very old albums from the late 80s and early 90s. Also, I understand the term obi works for music albums and games, but doesn't it mean belt? Sounds like it's more accurate for describing paper belts around books, while spinecard would be more accurate for albums and games...? In the game collecting scene, they're never called obis. |
#54
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Quote:
Last edited by erzane; May 14, 2021 at 01:46 AM. |
#55
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I don't mind the taped-on obis. I like how they stay in place as you open and shut it like the spine of a book. I had always assumed this was done at a factory cause of how professionally done they look and the fact that you only see it with albums from certain publishers and time periods.
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#56
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Hi!
Well i'm kinda late to the discussion, but regarding the soundtracks, i always try to get them all complete. And as erzane, i rip my discs to flac for preservation purposes too. And of course, i still have a BD/DVD burner! (damn new Pc cases with no 3.5 bays!!). I must say that nowadays is getting expensive to collect Game soundtracks, at least for me :/. As for the Obis, they make the item complete, like the registration cards/notes/Booklets, but i dont care if the item isn't unopened/sealed, wich probably will make it 2x expensive, but, if its a really good ost, then maybe i will try to get it brand new. |
#57
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This is what I mean when talking about obsession: Normaly this album (H27E-20007) runs for about 10,000 Yen without obi. There are several sold copies on Yahoo, even for less.
Today an auction for another copy including the obi ended for 53,800 Yen. So in the end the douche who won the auction paid about $400 for a small piece of paper... that's what I call dedication https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp...on/x1000256506 |
#58
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#60
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The title on the front of the obi is off-white/yellowish, but on the side it's very white, sooo the side is most likely sunfaded...? eeek
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