Massive media collections and media collection endgames

[Cranial Blast]

I was curious as to if anyone with a very really large collection of physical media has ever given any thought to what will happen to their collection when they die? Do they have arranged ideas like a will? Has anyone given any thought to their collection and where and how it would all end up should they meet death? I occasionally think of this and think what a profound mess it would be for those around me in my immediate circle to stumble upon and perhaps would be a great burden of sorts to those who could give a shit about any of it, as I gaze at my own collection of stuff it makes me wonder at what point is it valid to think of a sort endgame for this stuff, especially loner individuals like myself whom don't have a close network of individuals whom share this sort of interest.

[Balor/SS1535]

I am (hopefully) a while off from having to actually figure this out, but I think leaving some sort of will in combination with actively trying to rehome certain items to people I know would appreciate them before the final deadline would be my plan. (Get it? ha)

[Cranial Blast]

I am (hopefully) a while off from having to actually figure this out, but I think leaving some sort of will in combination with actively trying to rehome certain items to people I know would appreciate them before the final deadline would be my plan. (Get it? ha)

For sure I know exactly what you mean, as I've thought of that as well. I think certain things should definitely be designated to certain individuals whom would appreciate the sentiment. It's an interesting thing to ponder from time to time, as you never know when our time is to be expired.

[FreakAnimalFinland]

My collection size is something that can't be really sold as a whole. First of all, unless it is larger business with serious storage space, it would be impossible to put anywhere when talking about multiple rooms worth of stuff. Then there is different things, not only audio releases, but magazine/books original art etc. It's easy to make decent money with hot items, but a lot of underground items are something that would most likely never sell. I am not really that old, that I feel I should start to plan what happens when I die. If there is premature death for reason or another, should have people here who know the "cultural value" of things, so it won't be just all dumped into garbage.. hah.

[HateSermon]

There are a couple of guys I'll probably put in my will because I know my ol' lady aint gonna want to deal with it.

[Cranial Blast]

There are a couple of guys I'll probably put in my will because I know my ol' lady aint gonna want to deal with it.

That could be a good idea about a potential will, as you mentioned about spouse "not wanting to deal with". I think that brings up an interesting point, because I think for some of us, that could pose as a potential reality one day. I know if I dropped dead tomorrow it would be a serious burden or task for someone in my family to go through my collection of stuff and know what to do with or how to properly deal with it all and providing they even want to deal with it. I don't know why I came up with this topic. I was just looking into closet last night, packed to brim with stuff and thought, this could be a real awesome opportunity for someone, or an absolute nightmare for someone who wants no part in sorting out this stuff to where it feels like a massive task.

[k.p.g]

My own collection?  I am assuming my friends will fight for the good stuff & my family will toss the rest.

I did talk about this subject once with RRRon, as he is someone with a large collection (between the store and RRR masters).  His plan basically is "my sister takes it and sells it off to the highest bidder."  So in case anyone wants to own every Recycled tape ever down the line...

[Cranial Blast]

My collection size is something that can't be really sold as a whole. First of all, unless it is larger business with serious storage space, it would be impossible to put anywhere when talking about multiple rooms worth of stuff. Then there is different things, not only audio releases, but magazine/books original art etc. It's easy to make decent money with hot items, but a lot of underground items are something that would most likely never sell. I am not really that old, that I feel I should start to plan what happens when I die. If there is premature death for reason or another, should have people here who know the "cultural value" of things, so it won't be just all dumped into garbage.. hah.

It's almost seems imperative for the survival of a collection to have people around who do recognize the cultural value, or the garbage dump could be a reality...haha. This kind of reminds me  of a part of the Jim Haras episode on White Centipede Noise podcast. If I remember right I think somewhere during interview and I can't remember exactly where in the interview, but something about old rare tapes and how he speculated some of that stuff that's vanished might of just been thrown out. It makes one wonder how often things like that happen for those whom don't have a good network of close likeminded friends. Not necessarily meaning one has to die for stuff to be thrown out, but definitely comes to mind how the trash option could potentially be a sort of reality for some when they die, more so now than maybe ever with the way some people view physical media nowadays, as like this archaic sort of artifact that doesn't have as much relevance in the world of easy click streaming.

[Penon]

Great topic. As a sign of my music collection being heavily skewed towards digital files, I had thoughts and conversations with family members as to who gets to inherit my hard drives if I die.

With regards to rare music ending up in a garbage dump, I have lost my CD collection twice and I am pretty sure CDs ended up in a dump. While I don't miss them personally (I have digital copies of all CDs I ever owned; and I see importance of packaging differently from many), I do feel guilty when I think about all those CDrs "limited to 10 copies" but even 50LTD CDs - now due to my carelessness, edition of 50 became edition of 49, and edition of 10 became edition of 9, etc. I feel like artist would be upset if they found out.

[Minus1]

I was curious as to if anyone with a very really large collection of physical media has ever given any thought to what will happen to their collection when they die? Do they have arranged ideas like a will? Has anyone given any thought to their collection and where and how it would all end up should they meet death? I occasionally think of this and think what a profound mess it would be for those around me in my immediate circle to stumble upon and perhaps would be a great burden of sorts to those who could give a shit about any of it, as I gaze at my own collection of stuff it makes me wonder at what point is it valid to think of a sort endgame for this stuff, especially loner individuals like myself whom don't have a close network of individuals whom share this sort of interest.

Precisely this! And I've worried about a lot of the "artwork" that will be found! I think I need to leave notes in certain box-sets: "This is not why I bought this. I am not into this stuff. It's about the sounds."

I have an aquaintance at the record shop who understands my...er...Special Interests. He gets discogs. If I get run over by a bus, he knows the CD cabinets are for his perusal and selling.

[Theodore]

My collection is big enough, but not huge compared with others. 1000+ releases, around that. It will grow further ...

I dont want to take them in my grave. My intention is to sell them all before i die, slowly, initially to refund new purchases, then once i see i am approaching the finish line just to save them from the garbage, though i dont think my relatives would trash them -at least not soon-, just cause of love and respect for me. So, i ll sell them just to pass the torch to a newer generation, to save my relatives from the question what we do with these, and to have funds for my medicines, heh.

If i die suddenly, i have not given instructions ... I have no idea. For now, no wife, no kids -and i dont plan or wish to have- .Parents are old. Sister ? I think i should tell her, hey, the things in my closets worth something. But still, for my sister's financial standards, i dont think she will bother ...

Friends ? Noone that cares about this stuff or i want to leave him an inheritance instead of my family.

Only hope, to make my 1 YO niece a noisehead !

Great topic !

Edit : My digital drives : Really there is a treasure there for those who care about files etc. These, let them  rot, i dont care once i am dead. Alive, i back up.

[Minus1]

Only hope, to make my 1 YO niece a noisehead !

Excellent idea! I am convinced that kids would love Vomir.

[BatteredStatesofEuphoria]

Since I plan on living to The Singularity and becoming a higher-order being of immortal energy, this question is meaningless to me...

However, in the SLIGHT event I don't make it to that...

Its obviously somewhat of a hard topic to tackle cause no one wants to think about their own mortality, usually. I'm not young, but I'm not old, either, so hopefully I've got a while yet, but SHOULD I think about it more?

I do have a will and all that, but honestly, I never even thought about putting instructions about my music collection in it. I guess if I died suddenly my wife would sell most of it.

The hope is, I'd have some inclination of my coming demise, have time to talk with the people who might want something and/or have to sell the, point out what is valuable, give a ballpark estimate for what could be gotten for the rest, etc. Then again, I should have decades left, and who knows what this stuff might be worth then?

But my wife does know about Discogs and a store in the area that takes used music items and is catered toward non-mainstream genres, so its not that she'd totally be unprepared for what to do with it. I think that'd be her last priority at that point, anyway.

[Zeno Marx]

Leaving some sort of details is compulsory, but too many details would cause problems for someone not involved themselves.  It would be difficult  for the unknown if you get too particular, but leaving a list of contacts who could help/be trusted would be key.  And of course, pointing out to them that many things have additional packaging, or might be missing something (bought used), so consulting said contact and looking up photos on Discogs is necessary.  I guess what I'm saying is that general guidelines would likely be more helpful than trying to explain the entire hobby, your entire history with the hobby, and the complex web of buyer mentality.  This hobby is a huge pain in the ass, and selling it will be no different.

*I've told people in my life to not throw ANYTHING away.  Nothing.  If that scrap of paper looks like garbage, look into it a couple times before it hits the trash can.  I myself have thrown out, or given away, things that I later found out were worth money/were desirable.  It really does come down to turning my junk into the most money for whoever ends up with it.  They likely won't care about any of my junk, so they might as well exploit it to the fullest possible advantage. It's up to them whether they sell it as one big lump or try to sell it by piece (which is like being a willing participant in a marathon swim with a cement block chained to the neck).

[theotherjohn]

Hopefully I have a bit of time to go still to consider what to ultimately do with my collection/s, but I do think about my Dad and what he wants happening to his music collection when the time comes. No noise in his collection and it's mostly CDs so by market standards it's probably not so valuable to resell the majority of it, but it's nevertheless something he's committed significant time and money to grow into a collection that he personally considers significant. It's probably a topic I should breach with him at some point. Would he dislike it if I just cherry picked certain items and dumped the rest? Does he want it all to end up in mine and my siblings' hands, or is he happy for a friend or a nearby record shop to get everything? Does he want to sell what he can before he gets a visit from a certain hooded figure, so he can use the money himself or bestow it to others? I'm sure when more important matters arise he won't be too precious about where it all ends up, just so long as it doesn't burden his offspring too much. Or maybe not. Either way, I should give The Gentle Art of Swedish Death Cleaning another read (and maybe pass a copy onto him too).