PHANTASIA austrian limited #47 psych I TALK TO THE MOON

$

42

hello again; after a lengthy stay overseas, i am back with another large round of auctions. hope you will enjoy some of the selections i will be pulling out of the archives over the next few months...

first off, i use the strict goldmine grading scale as the basis of my system (please see below), which means that my m- lps will look practically new and my vg+ will look like most others' ex or m-! i have finally relented and incorporated the ex grade into my system, despite my disdain for the ambiguity with which it is so often applied. i reserve this grade for those lps which aren't quite truly m-, but are so close that vg+ just doesn't do them justice. in nearly all the instances in which i've actually allowed myself to purchase an 'ex' record on ebay, it's been vg at best according to my standards. i assure you that will not happen here; except for a few mega-rare pieces, nothing i own is less than vg, most not less than ex. i am an critical audiophile with a very sizable collection, and have always let the condition of an item be the determinant of whether or not I should acquire it (other than it must be an original, of course) - you have to draw the line somewhere; mine is drawn at ex! many of the lps I will be listing over the next several months will be from my private collection. you can bid with confidence and security every time.

my lps are listed cover first, then the vinyl. following this i will describe with my usual microscopic precision all the possible flaws the item may have, no matter how small. i want there to be no issues. the records from my collection have for the most part only ever been played twice, as i always recorded everything to preserve the original lp (you have to play it through once first before it is in its optimum state). please email me if you ever have any questions.

shipping within the us is $4 for media mail or $6 for priority, each additional lp is $1. insurance is optional, and is $1.30 for items up to $50, $2.20 for $51-$100, and $1 for each $100 after that. registered mail is $8, with insurance included for the declared value.

canada and mexico are $6 ($2 for each additional), europe is $12 ($4 for each additional), and asia is $14 ($5 for each additional).

for all locations, double lps & multi record sets will count as 2 or more lps. the shipping charge includes the cost of a new mailer. the records are packed with great care so that they arrive safely. the lps are never shipped in their covers.

i accept paypal, money orders, cash (sent at your own risk), and checks. personal checks must clear before the item is shipped. i normally function within a relatively quick turnaround schedule. if you have any special requirements, please let me know. also feel free to write with any questions you may have. happy bidding, and good luck!

***my grading scale***

all lps are graded under a 100 watt spotlight for ultimate accuracy. i do not believe in play-grading a record, since it is usually unnecessary and at best is just one more needless play which degrades it that much more, no matter how slightly that may be. i have been visually grading all my lps for twenty years now, and haven’t had a single complaint yet! with mediocre pressings, even a new lp will never sound m, or even vg+ in some cases, but that’s not the point, it would still be m- in my book. i know my pressings, and will always let you know the relativity of what it is you are looking at. my grading is as follows:

M- (the highest grade, except for sealed): vinyl is visually perfect, no scratches or marks at all. flawless, museum-quality piece, which will never need to be upgraded!

EX+: record has just a few faint paper sleeve marks that do not affect play at all; visually they should be barely noticeable. still retains all the original surface gloss.

EX: record has been handled or played carefully, and may have some very light paper marks or other very minor flaws that barely affect play, if at all. should still play clean with very little or no surface noise. still retains nearly all of the glossy surface.

VG+: record has been played, has some light, hairline-type scratches, but nothing that stands out without close inspection or that can be felt (ie, nothing deep). really should only be noticed between songs or possibly in very quiet spots, and then should not be distracting or continuous. must still have most of the original gloss.

VG: record has been well played, has some scratches, possibly small nicks, perhaps some minor groove wear. there will be some surface noise, occasional clicks or pops, but no skips or jumps! still has much of the original gloss.

VG-: record is fairly scratched, has surface noise, and some wear. still should play without skips or jumps. some original gloss remains.

G: poor condition, much crackling, possible skips, and lots of visual surface wear. little or no gloss remains.

***a note about my feedback history***

i have been a record dealer since 1990, when i placed my first ad in goldmine. i started my ebay 'career' in 2000, which continued until i moved to sweden in 2002. i was running auctions up until the time i left, by which point i was informing prospective buyers that if their payment wasn't received by a certain date (1st of april), then their packages would be sent by someone other than me, and though they should arrive without hassle, it is impossible for me to personally promise this. i flew overseas and immediately went on tour (i am a sound engineer) for several weeks, and when i got off the road i returned to the states to find that:

(1) one check had come a few days after i left (over one month after the auction ended!), and that my helper had to wait for the check to clear before he could send it, which he still hadn’t done though it had cleared nearly two weeks prior. i apologized profusely and sent the disgruntled buyer both the lp and a full refund.

(2) another buyer whose payment just arrived after i left provided me with an address which neither ups or fedex would ship to (usps would not ship it), but since my helper did not have his email address, that was also still sitting there when i returned. - both of these payments had been received less than a month before they were rectified.

(3) i put a last few unclaimed items back up again before i went back overseas for good, and right before i departed one customer decided he was unhappy with a tape deck, even though it was exactly as it was described in the auction and even he could not contest this fact. i took it back anyhow and sent him a refund, but i had to coordinate this from overseas (it didn't arrive here before i left) so it took longer than it normally would have.

(4) right after the new year 2003 someone left me more neg feedback about something i presumably didn't pay for at some point, but i have no idea what this was, and the seller has not returned any of my mails attempting to rectify this. there is a remote possibility that it may be true, i suppose, though i have to say that i am usually so looking forward to the things i've won that i don't normally forget about them, but i have never been able to find out!

i am a conscientious and very honest seller, and am not comfortable when my customers are not satisfied, which i can say with pride does not happen very often. i always 100% guarantee my items, assuming they are returned to me in the condition in which they were shipped, but my descriptions are usually of such calculating accuracy this is almost never needed as well. i have always warned prospective customers when i am about to go out on the road again, which does happen somewhat regularly, and most respond quite positively to this. i have never tried to withhold information or misrepresent anything. thank you for your time and for allowing me to explain myself. happy bidding, and good luck!

...dave...

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this is an extremely limited Austrian Ton Um Ton pressing of the mega-rare 1969 Kansas City, MO lp. this is number 47 of 300, and comes in an amazing psychedelic foil cover; the back is truly one of the coolest things i have ever seen. the bottom of the cover extends inside to provide flaps on the inside of the gatefold, where all the information is. really excellent epic psychedelia which definitely does the cover justice.

condition: VG+ / EX

the cover is quite nice for the most part. it has two concentric bends in the right top corner, as well as a little minor wear on the very corners and a spot here and there on the seams and spine. the front flap at the top is slightly curving outwards, but it is nothing serious at all. there is also some very light ring wear, which is very minimal. the mirror-like surface is faintly scuffed a bit, nothing bad at all aside from a few very light scratches, but a surface like this is nearly impossible to keep in perfect reflective shape unless it was sealed, and even then... overall very nice, crisp, sharp and striking!

the vinyl is nearly perfect. just one paper mark which is of course completely inaudible, and a few very small and extremely light hairline scratches, which also should not affect play at all, aside from a possible stray crackle or two during a very quiet moment or something... as glossy, lustrous and full of sheen as the day it was pressed, and very thick as well (feels like at least 150g, if not 180). really about as nice as it gets.

a nvery nice and extremely attractive copy of a rediculously rare underground psych treasure. good luck!