I've been very lucky with albums from the GW!
My experience may be out of the ordinary. I've gotten wildly varying stuff, much of it like-new & pristine as vinyl can be.
Now, mind you, it's often more obscure and older stuff, box sets & crap from my Dad's era that I'd typically never purchase new at the "record store", (yeah just dated myself there),... a lot of swing music & big band, pristine you better believe it. I like swing music. When it comes to classical, pristine or not, I'm not inclined to buy those discs.
Virtually all the pop and classic rock you find there is average use and wear, but my own newly purchased vintage vinyl from back in the day more than makes up for that.
Most of the albums I've gotten at GW have been average or better condition, with a large proportion pristine like never-played. It's like someone got a big box set from Time/Life and kept receiving them and putting them on a shelf & never broke them out. Pristine like that. My guess is that some serious audiophiles in my area have died and their precious collections found there way to my local GW's.
The records that turn out warped and unplayable when I get home get returned. F/I, yesterday I returned 4 albums. 3 were warped and 1 was not the same disc as the jacket. Then I picked up a "Saturday Night Fever" double LP in VG condition, $2. With deals like that & I'm a happy camper. I try to inspect them closely while in the store. I also passed on a "Boston" that had some stubborn smudges, & a young girl snatched it up as soon as I put it down. I have my own copy of Boston, but I often pick up spare copies of stuff for my GF. Got her a sweet JVC TT a couple years ago for $14, yep, at the Goodwill.
I'm no "Lt. Bob" (5000+ albums), but I have a good 5-600 albums from back in the day, and later purchases up to the moment. Very happy with it all. I have nothing too rare or vintage & no first editions. Many years ago I gave away a handful or 2 of albums & another time had some stolen. You know how that goes sometimes.
I think the trendy newly pressed vinyl records you see sometimes in stores for $25-30 a pop is insane and a waste. Albums were no more than $7.99, even at the height of the market. For $25 it will remain an obscure niche market.
I use them. I listen to my turntable. There is a vintage vibe you get. A few pops & clicks never bothered me. I have a record cleaner brush. Not quite a true "audiophile" (to the nutty level), I've always taken good care of my albums. It's a different experience listening to vinyl records than CD shuffle or MP3. When I listen to WMedia Player, I can't keep my hand off the "next" button. I have no patience & the attention span of a housefly. When I listen to an album, I cue it up and sit it out for a while. It's a totally different listening experience. YMMV.
