Physical media my beloved

Physical Media is a dying art these days, so I want to share some ways I preserve and where I find physical media!

I'm going to list places I get physical media with a price range on a scale of 1-3 (1 being cheap, 2 reasonable, 3 expensive) and their pros and cons

1. Just be nice (0)

The best way to get older physical media for FREE is to be nice! volunteer at your community garage clean out/donation days, typically people will be happy to hand you things for free if you volunteer. Many of my movies, decor, and game consoles I have gotten free from helping neighbors clean out attics, mow their lawns, or volunteering at the local church. (I'm not even religious! I just like helping!) Not only are you participating in community, but my best finds are from locals offering me to pick one item out since I refuse payment (I got a job I don't need lawn mowing money no more!)
I started assisting elderly in the community in high school, but it was extended to anyone who needed it. I would mow lawns for $10 or a pizza. I would move stuff to be donated for $20 or let me rummage and take what I want through the donations. I got my SNES, NES, SEGA Genesis, many video games, movies, shows, and model kits this way for free!!

2. Thrift stores (1)

I love love love thrift stores for physical media, is typically VERY cheap but the stock is slow to rotate. I suggest going to richer neighborhoods that tend to have old money as old people have butt loads of physical media from music to movies. The only thing is more niche things are less likely to be here.

I've gotten box sets of Indiana Jones movies, tons of great CDs like beastie boys, and even some PS2 games like battlefield and mortal combat here!

3. Local specialty shops (3)

Here I am referring to your local music, movie, or video game store. These are typically buying second hands games/movies/music for cash and so the prices tend to be higher- BUT they have a more curated and guaranteed to work selection. I got 48 Star Trek VHS tapes and some Johnny Cash on record today at my local music and movie store. It supports local businesses even if it is the most expensive option, and the stuff you're gonna find is gonna be some real serious gems. I got the search for Spock SEALED! for $10!!

4. Garage Sales (1-3)

Prices vary on the neighborhood, and if you can haggle can be a real cheap option! again like the thrift store these are hit or miss, but these days with Venmo and Zell and stuff it's real easy to pop into any garage sale you spot without carrying cash (I recommend you always have some cash tho!) These are seasonal so it's not the best choice for a year round collector.

5. Charity events (3)

At least in my area, organization events that take donations tend to be pretty pricey which makes sense as they have to turn a profit on renting out a venue. These again are area dependent I live in a old money small town so there are some really nice finds, but not much in the ways of 2000s physical media. I do occasional get a few good things from these but honestly I tend to pass because most things are priced over $10. 

6. online (11)

don't even joke lad. unless you want something super niche, don't buy stuff online... its so expensive and not even guaranteed to work half the time. and the scam risk is high....

Now that I got my physical media, now what?

If you got a tape, make sure to rewind it. I bought a auto rewindey thingy for $4 at the thrift shop and ngl i LOVE IT!! As some one who now has a collection of over 70 VHS tapes i need it XD. ofc all 48 of the tapes I bought today weren't rewound XP so rude!

I recommend buying a AV to USB capture card, as many tapes will or are suffering from Tape Rot!!! (AHHH!) keep your tapes in a cool dry place as many are over 20-30 years old now. With a USB capture card you can record them and keep them digitally (with some quality loss). And then burn them onto a more reliable way to keep media- DVDs/CDs!  If you don't know how to burn/rip media I think I have a blog on it? if not i'll make one LOL

With CD's/DVD's I like to back them up on my pc too! You can record or rip the media from the disc onto your PC.

Once that's done you can watch it all on VLC (its my fave as you can add subtitle tracks oooo)

When it comes to games, some games are easier to backup than others. Old carts I recommend cleaning the pins of with some electronic cleaner. (same with consoles you acquire always take them apart and clean them!!!) You can use rubbing alcohol but electronic cleaner is safer and is less likely to damage the cart. Newer consoles like the Xbox line may need a thermal paste reset. It's recommended to redo thermal paste every 10ish years or earlier if you notice slowdowns and the fans are noisy. Games like the PS2 line are easy to dump onto a PC and burn onto any sorta DVD (MUST BE DVD).

The difference between DVD and CD is what kinda media they can hold. DVD's are for anything with visuals, slide shows, games, videos. CD's can hold data, like files and documents, and audio, like audio books and music!

-RW are re-writable, so if you make a mistake, you can burn a few times on it before quality loss!

-R just means its writable once, so make sure your mixtape/movie is set up right!

I use VLC to burn most things onto disc, and DVD styler to make DVD menus for episodic shows.

The biggest thing about physical media is storage, maintaining cleanliness around the area of your media is key, as dust can really effect Records, Tapes, Cassettes, and Carts. Especially if you have pets. Fur can clog systems up quick. I clean my systems out monthly! and my turn table weekly as the diamond tip collects tons of hair easily and you really need to maintain that. 

But yeah thats my blog on physical media!! Thanks for tuning in, LMK if you got comments or question!

-A wolf on the web