RecordsAlbums.com Vinyl Records Grading Guide:

Vinyl Condition:

ATTN: Most Items Are VISUALLY Graded. We do listen in some cases (will be listed in Vinyl: on product page). We do not have the time to listen to all of these records. We have a pretty good idea how these records are going to play by looking at them. (YOU CAN REQUEST A PLAY TEST using contact us page) Also, we do not deep clean these records (we DO wipe them with a microfiber cloth). PLEASE examine the photos (or request more) of the item. We try to be as accurate in condition as possible (hence the many facets of our grading scale).

SEALED: Exactly what it means, the record is still sealed in shrinkwrap. NEVER OPENED / NEVER PLAYED

MINT: The record itself is in brand new condition with no surface marks. We rarely use this grading. If a record had been opened it usually has SOME miniscule defect that we dont see/find. So we're real carefull with this one.

NEAR MINT (-) (+) / MINT (-) : The record has VERY LITTLE (Near Mint -) to VIRTUALLY NONE (Mint -) signs of having been used, there should be no lessening in sound quality. A nearly perfect, possibly unplayed or played only a few times.

VERY GOOD (-) (/+) (+) (+ / +) (++): The record has/may have been played many times, but displays no MAJOR surface marks ("feeler scratches"), but has light scuff (sleeve) marks and the the occasional light scratch/s.

GOOD (-) (+) (++): The record will play, but has very heavy scuffing and mild "feeler" scratches and may have a skip or two. We usually call these listener / collection fillers, as they are a great buy if you want to own the record and listen to it, but not care to much about lots of noise, a skip or two, or damaging it further.

FAIR: The record has NOT been taken care of properly, has heavy scuffs and/or heavy scratches. the record may/may not play properly. We rarely waste our time putting these online unless they are really rare or sought after (at a much reduced price, of course).

POOR: A piece of junk. A needle killer. The record will PROBABLY NOT play properly due to heavy scratches and/or cracks. It will likely have horrible surface noise, skips, jumps, etc. We rarely waste our time putting these online unless they are really rare or sought after (at a much reduced price, of course).

Cover Condition:

In addition to these grades, we try to explain (in the item description) if the cover has any split spines. Length of split, location, etc. Inner contents are usually diclosed as to their condition, IF, we believe there is a defect that may have an effect on the value of the item/s. We usually just let the pictures do the talking for inner contents. We do, however, say whether the item has, or doesnt have, an inner sleeve or other contents. PLEASE examine the photos (or request more) of the item. We try to be as accurate in condition as possible (hence the many facets of our grading scale).

SEALED: Exactly what it means, the record is still sealed in shrinkwrap. NEVER OPENED / NEVER TOUCHED. Occasionally the cover may have a crease or punch hole, etc. We will always disclose this in the item description.

MINT: The cover and any extra items such as the lyric sheet, booklet or poster are in perfect condition. Again, we are REAL reluctant to use this grade.

NEAR MINT (-) (+) / MINT (-): The cover and packaging have very light to almost no wear.

VERY GOOD (-) (/+) (+) (+ / +) (++): Some wear and tear on the cover or extra items, without any major defects. Slight discororation, ringwear, edgewear, staining, scuffing, cornerwear, a slight split, etc. Is still generally a nice looking and collectible package. (sometimes we refurbish items and upgrade them to very good, but we always disclose what we have done)

GOOD (-) (+) (++): The cover and contents suffer from heavy folding, scuffing of edges, splits, discoloration, etc.

FAIR: The cover and contents will be torn, stained and / or defaced.

POOR: The cover and contents will be badly damaged or missing.

We try to be as fair as we can in our grading. WE DO NOT WANT AN UNHAPPY CUSTOMER. We try to price these items as reasonably as possible regarding their condition. We check our pricing guides as well as ebay and our competitors and try to beat the prices, of those same records in the same conditions. Please FEEL FREE to ask us for more detailed descriptions, extra photos, etc.

Thanks For Reading,
RecordsAlbums.com Team