Six thousand vinyl records will be on sale Friday and Saturday in the ASU music library for a mere 50 cents each.
The LP (long playing) albums have been donated to the music library over the past two years. The money from the sale will be used to buy more compact discs for the library, ASU music library director Bob Follet said.
Follet, who hopes to raise between $2,000 and $3,000, said he is expecting that many different types of people will search through the vintage records.
"A lot of dealers are coming, some from out of town, and the general public is welcome," he said. "We are also expecting older folks that are trying to remember the hey-day of vinyl."
The available music includes classical, rock 'n' roll, pop, jazz, and other types from the late 1950s through the 1980s.
Vinyl records seem to be making a comeback these days with many university students, like Whitney Fitzpatrick, a broadcasting junior, owning their own turntables.
"A lot of the music that I buy only comes out on vinyl," she said. "I like the sound quality I get with vinyl. It's got warmth, unlike digital music which seems sterile to me."
Jacob Delph, a pre-business junior, disc jockeys regularly on weekends and plans to visit the sale, he said.
"I mostly play house music, but I'll check out the sale to look for '80s stuff and some '70s stuff," he said.
Delph prefers vinyl records rather than CDs because they are hands-on, he said. He owns between 500 and 600 vinyl records and said he likes that they can be sped up or slowed down with the touch of a hand.
Turntables are showing up more due to the popularity of techno and dance music as well as a growing interest in disk jockeying. Turntables are currently available for about $100 in most electronic stores and can be found cheaper in second-hand stores. Professional equipment can cost as much as $500 per turntable.
Jeff Dixon, a business sophomore, said he doesn't own a CD player.
"I'm all about vinyl," he said. "I go digging all the time for vintage records."
Dixon, also a DJ, will be at the sale looking for classic rock albums and "old soul records," he said.
The sale will be 8 a.m. - 5 p.m. today and 11 a.m. - 5 p.m. Saturday in the music library on the third floor of the music building. Only cash and checks will be accepted.
For more information call (480) 965-3513.
Reach the reporter at terry.oreilly@asu.edu.
