What makes for a great box set?

[bluesoul]

My reason, in part, is simply because I have never bought, heard, or even seen a Mosaic set, and I am curious.

Be careful. Once you get started, it's a hard habit to break.

[StarThrower]

I'll never get started buying those ugly black Mosaic boxes. I like compact, easily transportable packaging like the Black Saint/Soul Note and ECM boxes. I have the second re-issue of the Miles 60s Quintet box, and the packaging is terrible. The bare discs are pressed against each other and wedged into a plastic tray.

The first box I ever purchased was the Complete Mercury Recordings of Roland Kirk. I'd never shell out over a hundred dollars these days, but I'm glad I bought it.

Classical boxes are a no brainer. There are so many nice sets for very little money. Too many to mention.

[king ubu]

I know one when I see one

[jeffcrom]

Weight. A great box set should break a toe if you drop it on your foot.

[David Ayers]

Weight. A great box set should break a toe if you drop it on your foot.

That is what makes the Plugged Nickel LP set an all-time great.

[gmonahan]

Weight. A great box set should break a toe if you drop it on your foot.

Careful. Heavy ones can be dangerous. The Evans rust box would slice off your toe and give you gangrene.

gregmo

[JSngry]

Just ask the man who owns one.

[Chuck Nessa]

Weight. A great box set should break a toe if you drop it on your foot.

Now we have a winner - mine weighs about 24 lbs:

[bogdan101]

Weight. A great box set should break a toe if you drop it on your foot.

Now we have a winner - mine weighs about 24 lbs:

So what's the deal with these, can you transfer the files to your computer?

[Chuck Nessa]

Done. if necessary you can burn the tracks to about 32 discs. Not a bad deal considering the "documentation" included in the box.

Edited October 13, 2014 by Chuck Nessa

[mjzee]

Speaking of... Ready for volume 2?

Rolling Stone

[Chuck Nessa]

Yep. saw that a while back.

[mjzee]

[Chuck Nessa]

It's an Airstream!

Edited October 14, 2014 by Chuck Nessa

[LouisvillePrez]

To meet my current urge for a new box set, I ended up going with:

1. Complete

2. Fills a big gap in the collection

3. Price per CD

4. Packaging safe to handle

Found the Complete Bill Evans on Verve (non-metal box) for a good price. Thanks to the earlier comments on it. When it comes to plunging into the waters of a Mosaic, I decided to leave it be for a while, still kicking it around.

[David Ayers]

A good choice probably. Only thing for me is, this stuff lures you in. I not even interested in Bill Evans and I've got several boxes, some unopened. I have still- sealed Mosaics. And I have box sets I started work on but, uh...

A great box set maybe is one you actually listen to all the way through more than once....

[A Lark Ascending]

I've always thought it would be interesting to put an electronic tracker in many of these things (especially the instant-connoisseur classical ones). See how many of the discs get opened, never mind played.

In the end the key thing is that the maestro's name is in large letters on the side of the box. So our visitors are well aware of our highbrow tastes.

You've got to hand it to the marketing departments of the record companies. They've got our number just as much as any teenage boy band fan.

Edited October 15, 2014 by A Lark Ascending

[mjazzg]

not too many discs

[LouisvillePrez]

About the number of discs relative to my listening habits, I really do not buy that many CDs in a year, much less box sets, that the ability to hear, enjoy, and spend quality time with a box set has been a problem, My jazz box set buying began in the 90s, and I am only up to 20-ish, so I average about one a year. I have opened them all, and enjoyed them all.

The change in technology with which to listen to my box sets, and my CDs, has also enabled me to hear more of my music more often. With the iPod, I haven't been tied to my home stereo as I was when I first starting buying. Granted, I sacrifice sound quality when I go iPod/dock at work, but I can still listen to my music more often. For what it is worth, when it comes to listening to Dylan, someone I intentionally collected for a period, I often like to throw all my Dylan on my iPod, hit shuffle, and listen to it for days.

Thinking about the volume of Coltrane and Miles that I have in box sets, and how often I have been able to hear and get to know each one in its entirety, only makes me think... bring on 18 CDs of Bill Evans -- and more from others down the road.

[Steve Reynolds]

Choose the prime great shit

Recent examples:

Mad Dogs - 5 CDs culled from a number of nights of the members of the Barry Guy New Orchestra

William Parker - Wood Flute Songs - very small amounts of non essential music among the 8 discs

[LouisvillePrez]

Two that are on my radar.

[SwingItTrev]

• Clear theme; "Fats Waller - The Complete Recorded Works", "Classic Chu Berry Columbia and Victor Sessions", "Stars of the Apollo"...
• Highest audio quality attainable; especially if restoration work has been undertaken.
• Insightful notes: I particularly like notes that go throughout track-by-track and examine the context of the recording as well as interesting elements to listen out for.
• Decent graphic design & packaging

[A Lark Ascending]

Mad Dogs - 5 CDs culled from a number of nights of the members of the Barry Guy New Orchestra

To me, an example of where box sets make sense. Music you can't otherwise get easily (or at all in this case) with a common theme. Packaging was eccentric but that's easily solved.