If I could afford a system like Mr. Fremer, there's no doubt in my mind that I would, but this just crosses the line. I'll stick to my Amish made, red oak racks, by no means inexpensive, which work really well, without the industrial touch.
Wax Rax Record Storage Carts Built to Order in Brooklyn
Designed and built to order by David Stanavich and staff in his Brooklyn workshop, the Wax Rax RC-1 is all aluminum and available in either black or silver finish (custom colors available as well), with each unit individually stamped with its serial number. The price is steep, however: $5300 purchased directly from the Wax Rax website.
Yes, I know, it is expensive. I think a cool option would be to have a way to have two jackets or complete records to somehow be affixable to the front panels.
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Do you know how they came to that price? Are these ultra expensive to manufacture or does it take special craftsmanship? If so, I get it or maybe it is just to have bragging rights about having a $5300 record rack. Whatever it is, if it makes you happy and you can afford it then get yourself one. Life is short.
At $1000.00 it would be expensive...... at $5300 it is absurd. What I have has served me well and as I recollect (20 years) they were free.
...I can understand spending tens of thousands of dollars for small improvements in sound, but $5,000+ for a wheeled cart that holds only 200 records? Give me a break.
Being a Graduate Architect and owner of a Krell sound system, I like to compare what value is:
1) I bought my Krell 300 watt (last 2019 model) Power Amp, on EBay for only $7,400.00 USD. In Canada, the cost is $13,100.00. Why would I buy a shelving rack that's overdesigned for what you are charging? Never!
2) I can buy a Harley Davidson Sportster 883 for $4000.00 more than your rack!
3) I am investigating Design Within Reach for LP shelving from $800.00 to, say, $3000.00 max. CAD, that are vertical shelving units.
Yes, it's wonderful that items may be priced to reflect the price of the artistry, but this looks like something one should be able to find at Ikea for a couple of hundred bucks. Someone above used the word absurd to describe the item price relationship. I'd agree-
I hate to bash anything that furthers the love of Vinyl, and maybe I'm wrong to do so in this case? If I had to make this, I might charge a price in this range. But, if I was going into business selling these, I'd work on the assembly process and shoot for a larger audience at a lower price point.
Aluminium sheet bent and screwed together. Pretty cheap to make and they are charging 10 times a reasonable retail price. Unfortunately I could say the same about a lot of so called high end gear aimed at hi-fi enthusiasts.They don't deserve business due to their greed.
The words I would like to use to describe this scam are not for publication. I will leave that to the imagination of other readers here - beyond silly is putting it mildly (and this is coming from someone using a Clearaudio Titanium cartridge ).
Are they freaking nuts charging over $5000 for an aluminum record rack? Do they think audiophiles are stupid or rich? I hope they don't sell any just for being so greedy unless you could tell me why it's so expensive. Oh wait I see, they are individually stamped with its serial numbers. Oh never mind my bad! Yes Sheldon, that was sarcasm.
Well they won't be as nice but look around for some rolling library/book carts if you like the styling. Some of them may have the shelf clearance to fit LPs.
so I need appr. 30 carts for my living room - makes $ 159000,--. Could be a quick divorce.
I think the article has primed a lot of people to think about price. In part this is because the product is periphery to our area of interest. Let's not kid eachother-people fettishize all manner of things. I see cinematographers pay this for a lens, dialog recordists like myself pay this for a mic (or a transmitter/receiver. But damn if there isn't one pro feature that I'm obligated to match), recreational bicyclists pay this for a frame, sneaker collectors pay this for Jordons, chefs pay this for le creuset. With a lot of gear, if something is simply beyond my ability to afford, it's outside my radar and that's that. Meanwhile, that same item will speak to other's who are in that level market.
I can see an after-hour club owners getting a couple of these for the evening rotation. For example, clubs in Vegas beat out casinos this year for profit margin. The same revenue stream is proven in other cities as well. Makes a couple bloaks in the booth feel comfortable moving around eachother. I like our critique's idea of some ledge on the outside of the cart-maybe for a set list or whatever's on deck? Or maybe just some quick labels.
I can see plenty people who are matching modern or important design elements in their home getting one of these. (It is funny to think someone would put their complete library on here!) I've seen one of these racks in-person. This is not disposable or trend furniture. There's more design, optimization, build quality and calculated folds than I could discredit with its price. Not everyone is to-the-9's with Ikea or making their bed out of record crates. A customer at Design Within Reach (not that I'm one of them, but I'd say is on level with an avid Dwell reader) would find the price familiar.
And it sounds like some are harping on the fact that it's made in the US by a single guy who needs to keep the lights on? I think niche manufacturing is fine, and if you can afford certain select pieces, its a great way to complement all the other stuff we're buying that's mass produced. (I've a buddy that started the madecollection, for example. This is their philosphy.)
I don't understand why I have to read the same comments over and over after a point has been adequately made re: pricing of this unit. It's obviously priced at a rate that will exclude certain budgets but I'm going to go out on a limb (after searching for this product on the web and not finding it) that this is the first production of a new product that is also new to the market place and thus, priced high based on the time and energy to design and handcraft the units currently available. As you all remember...products new to the market are costly to manufacture and distribute until a customer base allows for streamline production, etc. and the price starts to come down. Don't make me list examples....
But enough about pricing...there's a market for this product even if it's at the higher end of the scale. Let’s instead talk about design and functionality for a second. It's evident that the designer(s) put a lot of thought and editing into this product. It has both a retro and modern aesthetic, which should allow it to stay current years down the road. What others view as simplicity, I view as a clean design sense. From what I can tell the product is lightweight, which makes it portable and thus easy to transport or move around your home or studio. I could see this product being used by high-end clubs and those making a living DJing (including any radio stations STILL playing vinyl).
My core review is that this product is simply very cool. I applaud the designers for bringing us a well over due product. Let's agree to let the free market decide if it's priced right. Maybe if we're lucky, we WILL see them in our price range at IKEA down the road! I'm sure the manufacturers won't complain!
What I meant to say was that I had the opportunity to see one of these in the metal a few weeks ago at the WFMU record fair in NYC and I was pretty impressed. This is not IKEA, people, no screws, as a previous comment suggested, every part down to the rivets is custom designed and fabricated in the USA and hand assembled in Brooklyn one at a time. It is designed and finished to the highest standard. Is it expensive? Yes. Will it change the way you experience music? Maybe, but that's not the right question. If you are happy with your milk crates, great. For those of us who appreciate good design, and moved out of the dorm this kills it. I got the impression from talking to David that there may be other product lines offered in the future and I think it's pretty ballsy to roll out the Caddy first. Best of luck.
"Will it change the way you experience music? Maybe,"
Seriously? How?
"If you are happy with your milk crates, great. For those of us who appreciate good design, and moved out of the dorm this kills it."
I don't live in a dorm. I don't use milk crates. I appreciate good design. I can easily afford enough of these to store my approximately 2000 albums. Now If only I were a total fool, I would order them.
I'm sorry, but there is just zero logic in these things.
sure. having a glass of scotch and dimming the lights changes the way i experience music but no, it will not make the new allman bros box set more "tasty" again this is not the point. it is amazing that people will debate the merit of $25,000 speakers but dismiss this out of hand bcause it is supposed to be "utilitarian". as if having a tricked-out hi-fi and storing my record collection in crates is a badge of honor. i can make a case for a $125 bottle of bordeaux without knocking the $12.50 merlot because i am not a snob.
the commentor who pointed out that he would need 30 of these to fit his records missed the point as well, even if he could afford it. this is a niche product and not meant to replace whatever you are currently using to store your collection. kind of funny that it riles so many people up - the injustice of charging a high price for a quality hand built product!
i predict that we will be seeing cheap knockoffs within the year, there is simply nothing else like this out there. if you are fortunate enough to afford it go for it. if you would rather screw rollerskates to a milk crate well fantastic. but i wouldnt knock it unless you've seen it in person.
I'm not saying that it's not super cool looking but when I first saw it I thought that it would be really great for my in rotation Lp's and then I saw the price. I really thought it was going to be a few hundred dollars. So I was very shocked when I read it was over $5000 ! I then went to the web sight to see if it was a typo and was only $500 !!!
I love the fact that it's made in the USA by one guy, I think that's great. Also I don't mind expensive audio stuff but I'm just going to keep my in rotation records in my Ikea or Dane design shelf which also look real nice.
And no $#!% some people pay that much for a lens. It's a lens, not a shelf!
Until I read this:
with each unit individually stamped with its serial number.
On a metal cart. Really?
Let's say it's finished to a fine degree. Let's say the handles are kinda neat. Let's say it shouldn't have wheels that look like they came from the hardware store. Let's ... eh, pass.
Believe it or not there are folks out there who think if you're crazy about vinyl that you are stupid. The folks at wax rax belong to this category. Even if I was rich like Larry Ellison I still would not pay more than $250 for this contraption. What a joke.
Check out the affordable Expidit cases for record storage. I suppose you could find a way to put wheels on them if need be.
If I could afford that, there would be a new VPI turntable in my house along with a bunch of new vinyl before a"rack" would take my money. I would certainly own an SME model 10 before I would buy 2 of those.
Write an article about how the 0.1% can spend their money, and then just stand back! I suppose an article about $20,000 cables would do the same.
What's funny is that many people think we audiophiles are crazy; and here's a bunch of audiophiles thinking the same about the 0.1% who'd buy such racks.
In the great tradition of capitalism, if nobody wants to buy these carts, then Wax Rax will stop making them. (Personally I'd rather get 5,300 thrift store vinyls or 2,650 CD's, or better yet, fly to NY and see several operas and symphonies.)
It does beg the question, though, do such articles scratch at a deep resentment of income inequality?
That sounds right up my alley. Anyone know a vendor for these?