Need some help considering OOP album

[LiquidAcid]

Hey there,

it's about this particular album:
http://vgmdb.net/album/83

VGMdb still lists this being available from CDJapan, but it's OOP according to CDJapan's shop information. I think it was still available about three weeks ago, so it looks like I came a bit too late.

Now I still want to purchase the album, and I give you four links here:

http://joshinweb.jp/dp/4540774900336.html
http://www.vanda.co.jp/300/MCO/LAN_LACA-9033/
http://www.amazon.co.jp/gp/offer-lis...condition=used
http://item.rakuten.co.jp/surugaya-a-too/10840-1/

The Amazon.co.jp looks like the steepest one and only the used copies are "kinda" cheap. I think this would be my last option.

I'm not really sure about the other three shops, so what I'd like to ask you is to comment on these.

I already have a middleman service which I'll probably use, so it doesn't matter if the shops do international shipping (and I highly doubt this).

Greets,
liquid

EDIT: While proofreading I noticed that the Rakuten shop also lists this as OOP (I don't think that was the case yesterday)
Anyway, maybe someone can comment about buying used goods from Amazon.co.jp marketplace. Is this (generally) a good idea? I heard that most used goods from Japan are in great shape since the collectors treat their "treasures" well

[muddbunny167]

It's weird that Rakuten lists the item as out of stock, since if you go to Suruga-ya's main shopfront, it's still listed as in stock at a lower price.

http://www.suruga-ya.jp/database/120011449001.html

I can't comment about ordering from Vanda or Joshinweb, but I've had good luck ordering CDs from Suruga-ya. As far as I can recall, every CD I've ordered came with original art, obi, and the CDs themselves have been in excellent condition. Then again, all of the CDs ordered have been doujin albums, so~

[KeyLogic]

It appears that auctions.yahoo.co.jp might have had it at one time but I no longer see it there. Play-Asia also lists this item as being out of print. And as for Amazon.co.jp, from what I've heard (because I've also been asking about stuff from there) it's legit but it's also known for its high prices/import fees, ect.

[LiquidAcid]

Thanks for your replies!

I'm now asking my middleman if it's possible to try ordering at Suruga-ya first and falling back to Amazon.co.jp marketplace if it turns out that the album isn't available anymore.

[LiquidAcid]

Oh man, I'm having really _bad_ luck lately....

The worst case became reality: Suruga-ya's DB wasn't up-to-date, so no more copies from them... this only leaves the Amazon marketplace and this one is expensive. Well f*ck, world economy needs a boost anyway, so here goes my money

And guess what? Today the OOP horror continued... YesAsia wrote:

In reference to your recent order 5808486, our suppliers have informed us that the following item(s) is/are currently not available.

They were taking about this one:
http://vgmdb.net/album/12026

I was soooooo close

Why?!?! Why are they doing this to me?!?!?!? *grrrr*

Now trying my luck at Play-Asia, which claim to still have copies. However I have little hope left.... it's Play-Asia after all! They _always_ claim to have copies and then later... *bam* "We're so sorry, but we _just_ found out that there are no copies left after all."
Where is my machine that lets me punch people into their face over the internet?!

[Jodo Kast]

Originally Posted by LiquidAcid

*bam* "We're so sorry, but we _just_ found out that there are no copies left after all."

And that summarizes my first few years of collecting game music, back in 1999-2001. Animenation and The-Place were some of the biggest culprits. But Tokyopop was by the far the worst, even going so far as collecting payment on items they didn't have in stock. I clearly remember paying for Dracula Battle and then receiving a refund (no CD).

[muddbunny167]

Arg. That has to be the single biggest pet peeve of mine when it comes to online retailers - they never seem to have a comprehensive grasp of their complete inventory x_x;;

That said, why not try HMV? They seem to have it in stock, they ship overseas, and it's a far cheaper prospect than those ridiculously overpriced Amazon Marketplace listings.

http://www.hmv.co.jp/en/product/detail/1917676
(Also has that Sakura Wars CD too --> http://www.hmv.co.jp/en/product/detail/1493862)

Although maybe e-mail them to see if you can confirm stock on hand before committing funds to a transaction? I dunno~ And if that ends up being a bust, is there any way you can ask your middleman to recommend alternative stores and/or to help you look? He may know of better sites or used stores to check for it.

Good luck!

[LiquidAcid]

@muddbunny167: Thanks, I just sent a mail to HMV asking about the stock status of the Sakurs Wars discs. Since the middleman already ordered a used (but in excellent shape) copy of Aka from Amazon marketplace I'm not going to try and change the deal now.

I didn't know about HMV, so next time I'm more clever and search at their shop first

[LiquidAcid]

Another big thanks for muddbunny167!

HMV <- best advice ever, I just received my copy *yeah*

[mercenary09]

HMV, it's like one of those blessed shops. I like to find out about good stores, so it's going in my list of shops, in case I ever want to find anything sort of old..