Conference cookie::notes$archive:cd_v1

    
    From my experience with mail order clubs, I'd say go ahead and join.
    I sent in my application to the IPS this morning.  I've also joined
    the Columbia Disc Club, the Musical Heritage Society, and the RCA
    Compact Disk Club.  
    Two months ago I sent in my cancellation to the CBS club with my
    last payment.  I quit CBS becase 1) they don't sell much except
    Top 40 & the usual basic classical library and 2) the threat of
    the CBS copyguard bothers me.
    I also tried the MHS, but I'm thinking of cancelling because they're
    still fooling with versions of "The Planets" when they should be
    releasing hard-to-find music.
    The RCA club sent me 3 free discs and a half price bonus coupon
    for every disc I buy at regular price.  I like them because they
    offer Philips, London, Erato, Deuthsche Grammophone classical discs.
    The rest is Top 40.
    I suspect (from the list of free discs they offered) that the
    International Preview Society will be about the same as the RCA
    club.
    If you join, though, be prepared for minor irritations.  If you
    get discs you didn't order, don't get upset; just mark them "REFUSED
    - RETURN TO SENDER" and drop them off at the post office.  If they
    put the wrong disc in the package (which has happened to me), just
    repackage it and send it back.  These things are inevitable with
    the mail order clubs.
    
       Marty
    

    I belong to the CBS Club.  I am happy with there selection for now.
    seeing where I need to replace so many albums..
    
    Could you guys post the addresses to the RCA Club and the other
    two mentioned.
    
    If you get a free CD to get a friend to join Either of them...Consider
    me a friend and contact me off line to get my mail node so you can
    mail me the Free CD application.
    
    							John

    MY BUSINESS REPLY CARD IS TO: THE INTERNATIONAL PREVIEW SOCIETY
                                  P.O. BOX 91406
                                  INDIANAPOLIS, IN 46209-9987

    
    The IPS is actually an arm of the RCA club.
    
    The labels available are RCA, DG/Archiv, London, Philips, Erato
    for classical.  Some jazz, and Broadway/show stuff is offered, on
    RCA or PolyGram related labels.
    
    Prices are list (no discounts) but for every one you buy at full
    price you get 50% off your next one, so in theory you get 25% off.
    
    In reality, you pay mucho postage...I ordered some LPs and they
    sent them in two shipments, so I paid *twice* the postage.  Plus
    you pay sales tax; this adds about $2 per album.  For CDs, that
    might be worthwhile, for LPs I found it more expensive than in the
    stores.
    
    They also have the usual "automatic shipment" deal, you have to
    respond every month.
    
    The selection is far superior to either RCA or CBS clubs for classical
    music.
    
    Some of the releaes are record club issues, i.e. pressed by RCA,
    not the parent label.  I could never figure out how they decided
    which ones to do themselves. Some of the DG albums I got were from
    Germany and some were from RCA, U.S.
                                  

    How does sales tax add $2 per album?
    
    Even at $20 for a CD (way high) that's 10%...
    
    Edd

        Try also notes 67.*, 796.*, and 818.* for more information on
    CD clubs.
    
    ASP

    Re: .5
    
    Caught again by Mr. Edd...
    
    make that total postage, handling and tax, about $2.00.
    
    Now, buy an LP for list, $9.98
    
    Buy a second for half, $4.99.
    
    Add $4.00.
    
    Total cost, $18.97.
    
    Divide by two, we get $9.48.
    
    Now go buy them at Strawberries or wherever for about $8 each.
                  
    For CDs, how about $14.98 list.
    
    Second one is $7.49.
    
    Add $4.00.
    
    Total is $26.47, divide by 2 that's $13.23 each.  So you may save
    a little bit.
                                                                 

    I bought records from the IPS about 10 years ago - they were top
    labels but made in Italy rather than where you'd expect. Also,
    you tend to get older recordings (which I personally don't mind)
    and not the latest stuff in the catalog. I did buy a lot of records
    from because they sent me the half-price coupon with each half-price
    record I bought! If they hadn't done that, I wouldn't have bought
    as many records. (The pressings were quite good.)
    
    I would keep the above in mind when buying CDs from them. You probably
    are not getting a 'true' DG (for example) CD even if it says DG
    on it. I don't know if that matters with CDs.
    
    I tend to think you get what you pay for (or pay for what you get),
    and half the fun of buying LPs (and I assume CDs) is going to the
    store and picking them out. Now that radio stations are playing
    CDs more often, you can hear different renditions of a piece and
    then go and get that rendition. For what CDs cost, I'd be even less
    inclined to take a 'pig-in-a-poke'. For what it's worth ...
    
    Charlie

    I signed up, the deal is unbeatable.
    
    You get three CD's for about $6 total, and then you quit.  They
    don't mind, and (for me, at least) staying in isn't worth it.
    
    Once you send in the card, you will never see anything saying
    "International Preview Society" again.  You will be a member of
    the Compact Disk Club, which used to be owned by RCA but has
    (I believe) changed hands as part of their re-org.  [Also think
    the RCA Record Club is no longer part of RCA, in the same sense
    that GE appliances were being sold be Black and Decker and that
    Whirlpool is now a Speed Queen brand name].
    
    The discs in the initial offer are fine, and a fair number are 
    recent (including DDD, if that matters to you) releases.
     

Re: .4

*Sales tax*??  On an interstate mail shipment??  No way, people!  That is
illegal!

I'm in the process of putting my IPS application in the mail even as I
write, but if they lay an Indiana sales tax on me, who live in New
Hampshire, back their stuff goes!

Re: authentic DG or whatever, they may work the same way many of the 
"original artists" TV record offers do.  That is, they take the original 
masters and recut them - this usually results in a good clean LP, often 
better than the original pressing.  For a CD, it could mean several 
things.  If they use the original analog masters, argh.  If they use 
the intermediate digital masters, or the original masters of a digital 
recording, you're golden - there will be absolutely no difference.  There 
is also the fact that there are very few CD manufacturers in the world -
regardless of where the masters came from, it's an odds-on bet that
Polygram or Sony will have made the actual CDs. 

- Dick Binder

>I'm in the process of putting my IPS application in the mail even as I
>write, but if they lay an Indiana sales tax on me, who live in New
>Hampshire, back their stuff goes!

Nope, they won't do that.  What they do is charge you the sales tax for the
state in which you reside.  They send that to your state's revenue department,
minus a small collection fee.  (If they *really* do business in your state,
then they don't get to keep the collection fee -- the collection fee is a
clever marketing deal by state revenue departments to get more tax revenue.)

/john

    Where can I get a membership application for the IPS?
    
    thanks in advance,
    -Scott

    Re: .4   "The IPS is actually an arm of the RCA club"
    
    This is true to the extent that you can't join the International
    Preview Society if you already belong to the RCA club.
    I got my letter of rejection two weeks ago which said that they
    only allowed one membership per mailing address.
    
    The odd thing is that the form I sent in said nothing about RCA's
    COMPACT DISC CLUB.  At first I was confused until I checked the
    clubs' addresses and noticed they were the same except for very
    close P.O Box numbers.  I guess I'll have to quit the RCA club so
    I can join the IPS.
    
    Did anybody else get this membership rejection notice?
    
    Marty
    

    Well, I sent in my application a quite a few weeks ago.
    
    A couple of weeks ago I got a letter saying the stuff would be on
    its way shortly, and that my membership would be handled by the
    RCA club.
    
    Two days ago the 3 CDs arrived, complete with invoice and a new
    membership number, and a copy of DISCOVERY, RCA's CD catalog.
    
    I'm a member of the RCA CD club, so I guess their checking isn't
    very thorough.

    Since I don't need two memberships to RCA's club, I'll just cancel
    out on the new one. When I've used up my 1/2 price coupons from
    my original membership I'll cancel out on that one too. The catalog
    doesn't contain many selections that I want right now.
    
    - roger