PUCCINI Madame Butterfly Sinoploli1988 LATE DIGITAL DGG three LPs 423 567-1 NM

	£		25
	$		30

·       Deutsche Grammophon 1988 3 Digital LPs 423 567-1 German pressing

Giuseppe Sinopoli conducts the  Philharmonia Orchestra and Ambrosian Opera Chorus       

Mirella Freni, Jose Carreras, Teresa Berganza, Juan Pons    

Vinyl NM (no sign of previous use)       

Labels NM

Box - almost as new, no signs of wear except a small edge knock at bottom right of box lid.  A few foxing spots inside the box and on two of the inner sleeves.

CD-size booklet and plastic housing, NM 

The description will state if the LPs have been fully auditioned (for rarer material, or when the visual grading is unclear),spot-auditioned, or if not otherwise stated, just visually graded.

For listening tests, stereo LPs are played either on LP12/Ekos/Dynavector Karat17D2 or Garrard 301/SME 3009/Denon DL103R, while monos are tested on Thorens TD160/SME 3009/Denon DL102, all through Quad QC24/Quad IIs/ESL63 system ).  Visual grading is under tungsten-halogen spotlight or direct sunlight (when available in England!)

A few LPs will have been professionally cleaned, and this will be stated in the description.  In my experience, most used LPs will benefit from professional cleaning which reduces background surface noise and often removes many of the pops and clicks, especially when these are due to debris, grease etc on the surface.

GRADING – obviously slightly subjective and often dependent on original pressing and vinyl quality– see description of each LP for more detail. 

Mint – only used for sealed and unopened records (which may of course have pressing defects which are not visible until unsealed).

NM     Visually perfect, no scuffs or other marks, and plays without any problems, and barely audible surface noise(depending on date and pressing).  No spindle trails on label. Jacket (sleeve) or box will be almost perfect.

EX+    The occasional extremely light mark, fingernail scuffs etc that should not make any difference to the sound, possibly a few spindle trails on the label. Playback should be similar to NM.  Jacket or box may have very minor defects such as slight creases, or ring-wear but these will be not very noticeable

EX     Only one or two very minor marks that might give the occasional low level pop or click but no serious scuffs or scratches and the record should play without any distortion or serious problems. Surface noise may be slightly more apparent than NM but still not at all distracting.  Jacket or box may have some minor defects, slight distortions or edge knocks, small amount of discolouration or slight laminate peel etc.

VG:   There are marks that will cause some deterioration in the sound, such as repeating clicks from shallow scratches, or higher levels of background noise but this will not be serious enough to cause a major distraction to the listener.  Very slight inner groove or “side-end”distortion may be present on loud passages. Sleeve or box might have splits(repaired or otherwise), pronounced ring-wear, tears, sticker damage, writing,or noticeable creases or bends. 

Only very rare records will be offered for sale in less than VG condition; the description will give details of all the defects in such cases.

Postal charges:                      

Calculated by weight, including packaging

UK:  Royal Mail standard 1st Class (insured up to £20)

up to 1kg (normally 1-3 LPs)                          £3.00     (2nd class £2.60)

up to 2kg (normally 4-7 LPs)                          £6.85     (2nd class £5.60)

UK:  Royal Mail "signed-for" 1st class (insured up to £50)

up to 1kg (normally 1-3 LPs)                       £4.00     (2nd class £3.70)

up to 2kg (normally 4-7 LPs)                        £7.95     (2nd class £6.70)

Over 2kg, Parcelforce Express 48 prices (insured up to £100):

Up to 5kg                                                       £13

Up to 10kg                                                     £16

Additional insurance can be purchased, please ask for a quote.

Europe Air Mail (insured up to £20):

1 LP £6.00

2LP  £7.50

3 LP  £9.00

4 LP £12.00

5 LP £13.20

Rest of the World Standard air mail (insured up to £20):

1 LP £7.00

2 LP  £9.50

3 LP  £13.00

4 LP £16.00

5 LP £20.00

International Signed-for or tracked service, add £5 (EU) or£5.50 (rest of world) which also gives insurance up to £50, or add £8 for insurance up to £250.

 ·         Boxed sets – the box generally adds the weight of one extra LP.  Please remember that earlier pressings will usually weigh more then later ones (some early mono LPs are more than 200g).

 ·         For all packages insurance is required and I can provide a quote for higher value packages (over £250).  I will always retain proof of postage.

 ·         LPs will be well packed, with extra stiffeners, and with the LP removed from the outer sleeve to prevent seam splits.

 ·         Honest mistakes in grading can occur occasionally, so if the LP is not as described, please contact me within 14 days to arrange return and refund (buyer pays return postage)