Link to buy these CD Wallets: amzn.to/3rTwoZt And these are the boxes I've used: amzn.to/3sNgqPO If you thinking of doing this please make sure that wallets you use are NOT made from PVC as this can lead to disc damage eventually. POLYPROPYLENE is safe.
The process of converting to sleeves would have been great fun, interacting with your collection and refreshing the way you are displaying it adds to the hobby 👍 Personally i have ample room to display my collection in Jewel cases and prefer it for quick access. But thats the great thing about it, we all can store and display in our own ways 🙏
Love it! You won't regret it. I did this ~15yrs ago and have never regretted it. I don't own a single jewel case, unless it's part of a box set (some of those earlier boxes had separate cases contained within). My ~1K cd collection is contained within a few case logic binders (for the discs) and I've kept all of the artwork, booklets, etc. within a similar organized system as you - plastic sheaths and "shoe box" style boxes - cheers!
I did this with my entire collection of CDs and DVDs, mostly to save space and weight during a relocation. As I accumulate more, they get the same treatment. I estimate the collection requires about 20% the space it used to, and because I handle them carefully, I've never had one get damaged. No regrets at all.
Hello from the US! I literally just took all my discs from the binders they were in and put them back into their cases that I had stored away for years. I did this so I can create a CD Wall in my man cave area for a nice aesthetic look. I like your idea for organization, but for me, the jewel cases are back in a big way!!!
Hi Andrew. I’ve followed your lead and (so far) have transitioned 400 cd’s. No regrets. And thank you for letting people know about this. And as you’ve discussed there are CDs that remain exempt from the process, otherwise the total would have been much more. I think I have more work to do however as shelf space remains tight but the piles of CDs not in shelves have gone.
I think it's a brilliant idea. And there's no rule that says you have to do it for your whole collection as you yourself have made exceptions for certain artists. My collection is relatively small compared to yours and I would still consider this as a space saving solution. Thanks for the informative video.
I did this years ago, and although I use a different product, it save so much space. I wondered where you got the black boxes. I use a clear case with lids to put my wallets in. I have approx 2200 CDs now in the space of less then 500 jewel cases. I also make my own mini lp cd covers for items that have terrible packaging or bad digi packs. take care
I just can not. Seriously, a video on replacing jewel cases with vinyl slipcases. And they say society is not slipping away into the abyss. But, yet, here I am clicking and watching. Well done Andrew. [clapping.] Well, done!
I got rid of loads of jewel cases and put CDs into 7 large cd folders. Ultimately I hated how they looked and ultimately returned most CDs into jewel cases. Cd single cases were an issue and getting replacement cases was difficult. Most of my CDs are on the wall in very large CD shelf system in the garage which is dry and makes them easy to access. Good luck with your changes..
Same here. I did the exact same thing as you. Put in binders and now put them all back in the jewel cases. Two small cd racks and everything is accessible. Holding 500 cds both racks.
man, i might not interested with your style without jewel case for more space in the room but i got much more respect to ya! Everyone got their own style of collecting CDs!
I understand the need for more room (having the same problem myself). But I treasure the old original jewel cases from the 1980s. They are very sturdy, unlike the current cheapo plastic. Also, I prefer removing CDs by the edges, trying to avoid fingerprints.
Since hearing about this method, I have been very excited about trying it for my music and DVD/Blu-ray collection. If anything, it's made me want to expand the collection, as I have always been concerned about the amount of space it takes up, and been hesitant to buy new things unless it's something that really interests me. So I consider that a good thing. Aside from the obvious examples of limited edition packaging, and similar things, most of the cases can be considered just another form of delivery packaging, similar to the cellophane that is wrapped around new products. The thing you are most interested in is the content and the artwork; the plastic case is just a way of displaying that. Nothing more.
I have nearly 2500 CDs (mostly jazz and art music) in my collection. As my shelf started to burst at its seams I had to fix upon whether to purchase a new rack, or to replace the bulky jewel cases with plastic sleeves. Fortunately I ended up choosing the latter. I delved into a myriad of plastic CD sleeves and, based on my comparative evaluation, settled upon the Slim Disc CD storage system. The (outer) sleeve is made of sturdy (150 μm) and environmentally friendly polypropylene (PP). It is fairly compact in size (height 130 mm; width 142 mm); the tray card spines must be folded when tucked in the sleeve. I have been very pleased with my choice, although have noticed a few difficulties. One headache is that I cannot anymore browse the spines. To overcome this, I made a digital list of my stuff, and ordered plastic dividers in order to classify the CDs by genre and artist’s name. Another drawback is that the cardboard cases, which cannot be taken to pieces like plastic ”jewel” cases, must be cut up to fit into the sleeves. I have carefully ripped the plastic trays off the cardboard cases, and cropped the cardboard enough to fit the sleeves. I have left some cardboard cases untouched in the shelf, which serve as a reference when flicking through my collection. Apart from the cropped cardboard cases, I think the retail value of the CDs has remained unchanged after storing them into sleeves. No regrets.
I presume you looked at Space Saving Sleeves. Can you say what is it you didn't like since it seems it was more work for you to choose your Slim Disc. Thanks.
@@MarinaLarocherry for such a late answer. I prefer the compact size of the Slim Disc CD storage system, its sturdy feel and looks plus environmentally friendly material. I had already a custom-made shelf for jewel cases when switched over to sleeves. The majority of sleeves on the market are larger and therefore do not fit my shelf upright. I think most people go for the space saving advantage of the sleeves. The outer dimensions of Slim Disc and Knosti DisCover sleeves are kept pretty much to the minimum. Although vinyl record sales grow in great numbers, there are still a bunch of CD sleeve types to choose from. The DisCover CD cases/sleeves by Knosti seem like a good choice too.
I did this about 5 years ago. I have a box of about 50. I regret it these discs just don't seem part of my collection anymore. I'm glad I didn't do all of my collection.
I saw you were placing the CDs inside the paper booklets first. I just wanted to mention that it is not a good idea to place bare CDs straight into plastic sleeves as the two surfaces will likely glue together over time. I did this years ago with my CD-Rs and I had to take them out and started using slim jewel cases that hold the discs properly without contacts with the actual recording layer.
Great practical no nonsense video. I'm in a similar situation- 10,000+ and growing, I bought plastic sleeves 2 years ago... I had great intentions but I still haven't got round to transferring all my discs. Maybe tomorrow...
Hello, And thank you for sharing your journey with us. I’m likely to one day do something very similar, but I have 3 main concerns: Humidity- I’m from a place that is very humid and I’m thinking that disks that aren’t accessed often enough may, as a result of the moisture, adhere either to the insert/booklet or the sleeve itself Technology-If the design of the sleeve changes or is discontinued, it could cause an awkward, incompatible change in how future disks are stored Protection - the jewel cases, however inconvenient at times, is a pretty good means by which to protect the media. The center mount suspends the disk from harm at the edges and top and bottom surfaces. Sliding them in and out of the sleeves, even once or twice, could cause surface scratches on the playing surface or label surface.
Right on about sliding and possible scratches - not saying that the plastic sleeves would cause scratching, but contaminants that got inside could. That's one thing that baffles me about the new CD and Blu-ray packaging where the discs come from the factory in cardboard sleeves. Cardboard is in and of itself an abrasive. Makes me want to buy jewel cases or plastic sleeves to protect the new titles I buy, or pay extra for the "premium" version that comes in a jewel case. Is that what it's come down to? Pay an extra $10 for the disc to come in a jewel case now? Pay for the CD and 2 gallons of gas and you get a free jewel case... That could be a promo...
Good idea, I did a similar thing with magazine CDs some time back but not with any others yet. It's a shame when CDs first came out that they didn't start releasing them as mini vinyl replicas as those versions obviously take up a lot less space. I think record companies have become a lot more creative with CD packaging now using more cardboard and less plastic. I dread to think how many jewel cases have been made (and broken!) over the years!
I’ve done this with about 50 CDs so far that were my random albums, not for artists I collect their entire catalog, and I am very glad I did it. Frees up space for 50 more CDs for artists I like to collect and keep ‘proper’.
I changed all of mine because I hated the room that the shelving was taking up in my small flat. I also like the fact that I have them in boxes taking up a lot less space, and it is like flicking through my vinyl albums, like we all do in the record stores
Looks really smart. I'll be honest, my biggest hesitation is the amount of time it would take me! I just dont have the time to sort my entire cd collection like that at the moment!
Andrew, so glad to hear those worked out for you! It is always such a good feeling when it turns out as planned. Would like to know where you got the boxes that you are using. It looks to be the perfect size. Thanks for sharing this, take care.
I think you've won me over! I don't have nearly as large a collection as you do, but it seems so refreshing to clear up so much space while still having my collection look uniform. And, like you've done, I can keep some special ones in their cases.
doing this the cd has no air to breathe and will result in DISK ROT making your collection unplayable and worthless ..note it wont happen overnight but it can happen in as little as 2 years
I've gotten rid of my CD jewel cases a while now I have many cds (thanks to g/y sales thrift stores record stores)and I keep them in large cap zippered cases away from extreme climate conditions. Same with my dvds I donate CD DVD cases to thrift stores. I keep my dvds in paper CD envelopes inside of the artwork sleeves and slip them into sheet protectors and keep them in school 3in ring size zippered notebooks. It saves a lot of room on top of my small dresser drawer. Great vid sir.
I am seriously thinking of putting our cds in sleeves as well. They are stored in two cabinets about 5 ft. tall that go to the floor and my husband has some in his man cave downstairs. Maybe 100-200 total; never counted them. Some I could let go of I'm sure. The open cabinet shelves get dusty and I dislike having to get down on hands & knees to see the ones on the bottom shelves. I like the black boxes you have yours stored in but I would like to be able to keep them in some sort of closed cabinet to avoid them getting dusty. Thank you for this video. Nice to know you have no regrets.
Hi Andrew, I put in a long answer to your previous video on this subject. Those bemoaning the loss of a jewel case, if you were to sell any just put them in a fresh case. As regards damage to a CD, what a load of donkey s???. None of my CDs in jewel cases were immune from the change Beach Boys through to ZZ Top I swapped them all. No regrets but now I need to win the lottery to buy a bigger house. I’ve filled in all the gaps!
Think I get you now Andrew. I thought at first the inner artwork was going 🤦. So I'm a convert now and you now have what looks like boxes you find at a CD record fair ✌️🎶🎵. Good job
I did this but only with the CDs in basic black jewel cases that could easily be replaced. If they are in cleared/colored cases or there’s something else notably unique I didn’t touch them. I went with DiscSox CD Pro Sleeves.
Kudos to you for sticking with it and finding it beneficial. I'm too pedantic about my CDs to try something like this, even though the extra space would be great. Hope to see it continue working well for ya in the future.
I've been doing that for years. No regrets, and the amount of space saved is tremendous. I haven't noticed any damage to the CDs themselves from placing them in sleeves instead of cases.
The big issue here is the future of your collection. In terms of resale after you’re gone, your beneficiaries will find they will have to take a big hit in terms of value if you jettison the jewel cases. It doesn’t matter if you have the greatest artists of the last century….the Record stores and such will not be able to charge what the value says it is without those original packages. Ask them! Talk to them!
This is a process I undertook during the pandemic, again for the same reasons really, conserving space. I use to have an entire spare bedroom reserved for my media library films and music, I moved into a music smaller place and didn’t have the extra room . My converted over 4000 CDs into plastic sleeves with no regrets whatsoever. I collecting get converted straight to my work of art iTunes library any how. But I’ve also converted my incredibly large dvd collection also, that was a bit move difficult to discard all the covers. I my ming there is no loss of value doing this process, I’ve still retained all the covers and art to the CDs and if you sell them at some point, just buy new jewel boxes. I actually found disposing of old dirty jewel cases and rejuvenating old CDs in fresh new covers very pleasing. Nice work my friend
Hi Andrew.Know I'm late to this video but I just grade my CDs.If it's a Grade A like Elton John Goodbye Yellow Brick Road I keep it in original box but if it's anything else I put them in wallets which is 80% of my collection.My work involves clearing houses of stuff where in many examples people have passed away leaving behind thousands of CD that end up on landfill.My point is many people seem to build these massive collections up,some so big that they probably never even got to play them or a small number of times in their lifetime.They were literally surrounded by them wall to wall.I think trying to keep things pristine is a problem for many people who think things are forever.Keeping some stuff in cd wallets gives you more space and freedom.Everyone to their own though,just my thoughts.Enjoyed Video.
These sleeves are a great space saving idea. I've got of the 3 drawer units that sell cheaply in Wilko's for my cds. When I decide to get around to doing this I will keep digicases and boxsets as they are.
this video is really satisfying to watch. didn't consider this until today and i think they look cool in the new plastic sleeves. just ordered some and gonna give this a try. might even re-buy cds that i had donated before.
Hey Andrew, since I watched these videos of you converting your CD collection to the wallets, I myself decided to take the leap and am SO happy I have. Still have quite a few CDs to move over yet, but the sheer amount of space I've gathered from converting the amount I have is staggering, and honestly, a complete weight off my chest. While it's fun to be a collector, it really is stressful dealing with the storage and organizational demands of a collection. Truly, thanks a ton for making these videos. :)
Andrew - this is very instructive. I really like the way you put them into containers - it’s very record-store-like (vinyl style). For your style of shelves that seems to be perfect. Thanks for the update!
Hi Andrew. My preferred option is to have CDs in pristine sturdy jewel cases with a black inner tray. They look great. Unfortunately I buy a lot of second-hand CDs and the jewel cases are nearly always grubby. These CDs look better transferred to plastic wallets. However, I'm always on the lookout at charity shops for CDs that are still sealed. I can then transfer CDs I have temporarily put into plastic wallets back into a new jewel case. If lack of space is an issue, you shouldn't start collecting in the first place.
Anything I do buy second-hand gets a good soapy wash in the kitchen sink as I can barely bring myself to touch them prior to that. Once they've been processed with new cases if need be, then they can join the others upon my shelves.
I commented earlier that these cases seem to be good quality if jewel cases are what you want... My links always seem to get my comments taken down, so if interested, just search the Amazon web forest for: USDISC CD Jewel Cases Standard 10.4mm Single 1 Disc Pack of 100
Got hundreds in a sleeve...with the CD insert...they fit easily.The rear inserts all kept together and take up little room.I do not need to slog through my collection to find something to play because,if you are like me,you KNOW what you feel like listening to.In a particular mood,you just know what suits.Do not be scared about dumping the plastic.
Firstly thankyou for your video. We'll I thought I would never ditch the plastic cases for my cd collection . I was conditioned that a cd came in the traditional plastic case and that was that.. However they do take up space and a large collection can be overpowering . I also love vinyl and you cannot shrink them. I never wanted to go down the streaming route its a choice and a good choice but not for me.Like you I was never a seller of music . My collection was my musical journey and gave me great happiness. I noticed over the years that cds came in cardboard sleeves more like mini lps,no doubt more cost efficient but I liked them, and yes they took less space. Swapping the plastic cases for vinyl covers has been a liberating experience and they look good too , as stated you have the art work back and front you have the booklett I don't need a marketing stickertelling me whether it's a deluxe version or limited edition. Anyway selling a cd online is a bad financial decision you will never come off best . I am glad I have made the change it's all to my advantage . I can tell you I have surprised myself buts it's all in the mind . Take care all whoever reads this if anyone best wishes tim
Thought I would give this idea a go, as I have quite a few broken cases. So just bought 1 pack of wallets and some paper sleeves for the actual CD. It does feel and look like a mini record collection now. Have also put my card digipaks in them too. I'll think hard as to wether I'll continue with the transformation
I have replaced my jewel cases with this kind of wallets as well, so I could store them all in the same room instead of keeping half the collection in the basement! I haven't thought of writing on them - good tip! But I haven't bought those black boxes to keep them in.
I've done this with a lot of my dvd collection. I don't really want certain things taking up shelf space so I have to prioritize now that I'm approaching 1500 titles
I did this with my DVDs. Threw all the plastic DVD boxes into the recycle bin and put the DVDs into special CD binders. I did have to fold the paper DVD covers to fit into the CD binders but it's only one crease. I have no regrets. I have freed up so much space by not having those plastic DVD boxes fighting for shelf space with books, CDs and box sets.
I am seriously thinking about replacing my cd's in these sleeves/wallets but i am a bit old skool and autistic to do so. But yeah even though we are moving to a slightly bigger house my future man cave hasn't got a lot of room to storage my current collection as well my massive book collection. The thing is i am afraid to damage my cd's while i pull them out of the plastic sleeves. I can't rip my cd's and so i have no other option (besides Spotify) than to play them. The idea of saving space really attracts me because i want to make my cave a nice place to be in, but the thought of damaging my precious cd's is Haunting me!!
It's nice to see that there's a solution that lets you keep the back cover art too, I have a bunch of back cover arts stashed away in a box in my closet because when I had to move and moved a bunch of my CDs into a big binder I managed to fit the front cover/booklet but couldn't fit the back cover in as well. I might look into getting a few of these! Kind of a shame the CD Singles style case never saw mass adoption for full records or even video games, I like that it's a slimmer case that still has enough room for spine art.
I wasn’t a fan of the way the sleeves looked on the shelf, but really like the boxes. Where did you buy those, I’d you don’t mind? The boxes appear to fit the sleeves perfectly! Cheers!
These are the boxes, but they seem to have skyrocketed in price in the couple of weeks since I bought them, I paid nowhere near that price!! amzn.to/3sNgqPO
I’m personally sticking with jewel cases but for you great idea as so many. I’ve just bought the Beatles collection again as I sold all mine CDs years ago after ripping all. I now have space for 76 max so have to be very selective. I think I’m buying my own stuff back from 10 years ago! Great video 👍
I moved all my CDs from a wallet to plastic holders. But I found the same ones you are using recently. I wish I would have found them before since I had to ditch the back part of the jewel case because they didn't fit in the plastic holders I originally had. Going forward I am using the ones you are using and keeping my CDs more useful than having boxes of CDs everywhere.
I will say the way I find or play a cd is to scan my cd spines on my shelves depending on my mood whereas if I have your system I would not be able to do as easily and would need a data base libary hard copy to look thru which might substitute for that.
Hi Andrew. I did a huge purge of jewel cases a while back, but rather than throwing them away I shoved them in bags in the garage. My concern was whether or not I would eventually purge certain CD's by giving them to Oxfam etc. I did the same as you and exempt certain artists (Beatles etc!). I haven't put them in boxes though, they're all on the shelf with the others and now almost impossible to find, ha ha.
Hi Andrew, good vid and I am doing this myself having done similar with a few dozen dvds but I just folded the dvd inlay and popped the dvd in between and then packed them snugly into one of those A4 size leather look drawer units. It should be stressed that for Cds, square sleeves don't work if you want the info on the Cd spines to show. There does not seem to be much choice in the 154 x 127mm sleeve range. Perhaps manufacturers will cotton on and improve supply.
@@mikeonfreeserve2926 Hi Mike, the ones I link to in the comments section here aren't square and are the correct width for the spines to fold out fully 👍
I think this is brilliant! I was thinking about another way of storing my cd's. I wanted to put them into a barrister bookcase. Now, I think you have given me a great solution!! Thank you Andrew!!
I did this with my CD collection a few years ago using the 3 litre Really Useful boxes from Rymans. They have lids and are stackable. Most of my box sets and digipacs also fit them as is. Saved me about 75% of shelf space.
@@AndrewDixonMusic regretted not long after I'd done it I managed to fit all my cd's in a drawer unit with index cards definately space saving but it was a carry on trying to find stuff. I'm glad I stored all the cases took me longer to put them all back in the cases than it did to take them out LOL!
@@AndrewDixonMusic at one time I spent what seemed a lifetime downloading every CD to a hard drive and downloading everything on to 2 x 180gb ipods playing them through my hi fi and storing the CD's in the garage now that definately saved space!
I've got a ridiculous amount of Jewel cases and some of them are Jank and broken, so I'm definitely going to look into getting some sleeves for those albums and whatnot, but my digipaks and other non-standard cases, I will pretty much leave intact.
Put all my cds in univenture sleeves years ago. Has protective interior so cd won't scratch, holds booklets and spine label. All cds filed alpha by artist in older dust proof cd storage containers. Several hundred cds fit in a space 17" wide by 14" deep by 24" high. All are accessible for playing. Lost one cd to breakage in 33 years. All cds have been ripped for mobile and cds are for dedicated listening time. No regrets.
I've been tacking my CDs and record albums to my wall at home. Lots of great album art on my cd and vinyl albums. I invented a tack that holds cds to the walls without damaging them.
What?! You didn't know about the Kid A booklet behind the tray?! I remember opening up the case the day I got the album and seeing something inside that little circle of tongs, taking off the tray and then finding it. I also remember the smell of the art paper, haha. That must have been some surprise for you. So cool!
@@AndrewDixonMusic I just remembered something. I remember reading on a Radiohead message board that the CD had a hidden booklet behind the tray. Now that I remembered that, I do remember looking for it and not just noticing something peculiar. It's funny how our memories work 20 years later, haha.
Cheers Andrew, I too, have a ton of CDs that are taking up valuable space on my shelves, I think I am going to follow your idea and put mine in the plastic wallets. I'm sure I will have no regrets. Steve.
Started doing it a few days ago and wondered if anyone else had also had the same brainwave when I came across this. No regrets either and so much space saved. 👍
Inspired by this video, I have started the process, using the products you have linked to. I've come to realise how crude jewel cases really are, and I'm already enjoying being able to browse through my CDs just as I do vinyl.
I am involved with these issues. For decades I listened to "experts" state that the resin covering CDs, DVD, and Blu-ray are extremely delicate. Now, the truth is finally out that the only dangerous packaging material is sandpaper. Like so many other generational scams storage needs to be COMPLETElY rethought. The slave saving conclusion is to use paper or polyethylene envelopes. My first choice was the large clear envelopes for both the disc and artwork. My budget won't stretch that far. My practical alternative is to buy blue paper sleeves for the Blu-ray, white sleeves for DVD and CDs. Decades ago I made large triple layered cardboard with covered edge trays for DVDs in white paper sleeves. No problems. I have made smaller versions for this next stage of 12" deep to fit the older shelves I will glue width wide and stronger longer shelf brackets. Heresy added to heresy I will use each blue sleeve to hold TWO Blu-ray discs with the printed sides facing each other. If needed, third disc can be added with a soft paper divider. All is heretical but perfectly safe. One associate who had owned a local record store and is also cursed with being a OCD collector has his apartment filled with tall rows of wood encased shelving with Jewel cased CDs. There is a narrow path from the front door to his desk and electronics station. Take your pick. The extremes are defined.
I transferred all my cds to high quality digital files. My entire collection is there and all 42,000 album tracks are available via the computer media player . I can shuffle albums or tracks or entire collection with fade in. I love to select live albums from various artists in shuffle fade in / out setting so it sounds like one big super concert! I love the flexibility. For me its the best way to ensure that i get to listen to most of my library in my lifetime. I use a dac from computer plugged in to my integrated amp for best sound. Sound is great with no clutter of cds everywhere. Cds tucked away safely in attic. I do appreciate tbat people do like the visual aspect but space in tbe home is at a premium. Id love to know your tboughts on my set up Andrew. All the best. Paul.
I have a similar set up! Everything is ripped lossless to a NAS drive with several back ups. I have a streamer that plays the files from the NAS andgoes through a high quality Roksan DAC and out to my amp. It is extremely rare that I need to play a CD once it's ripped to the NAS.
thx. I'm doing same thing now and It's better! tbh I prefer this slim sleeve over jewel case. I like jewel case but It's big and heavy. maybe I can collect more cds now.
Brilliant - I have my CDs in sleeves in a cd storage box with a lid on - I just label up the front of the box the artists inside - I store the boxes like you in a bookcase that is inside a built in wardrobe section so they are not even on display - where do you store your books and memorabilia - also you being a big Beatles fan do you own the Beatles monthlies that came out originally in the 60s and re published I think in the 70s -- also do you ever listen to your vinyl -- what is your routine to listening to your music -- hope you don't think me being too nosey
I've got a few books in my bookcase where these CD sleeve boxes are, and a few more up in the loft, but I e stopped hanging on to books unless I think I might read them again, I've given away the majority of my books! I collected the Beatles Monthly magazines from about 1990 to 2000 and still have all those in the loft. I listen to vinyl regularly, whenever I'm having a proper album listen without interruptions to relax it will usually be vinyl, and I do digital if it's more background kind of listening
What's the most valuable CD's do you own? I have some Samhain, Venom, Necrophobic, Pungent Stench CDs Discogs Median value around $100.00 US. I couldn't do that to those. I've stopped buying CDs almost totally and just by vinyl.
I thought about these wallets, but then I've decided instead to transfer my entire CD library and any future CD purchases into files. No regrets, either. - Red
Im beginning to be buried beneath the fruits of my obssesion, CD's but im pretty sure i could not put them into wallets. Another reason is that i would not have a clue who was who, and what was what when i want to play them. Good on ya though.
Just make sure you purchase envelopes that will not scratch or damage your discs. There are both vinyl and paper sleeves on the market that are not really safe for CD storage.
I love my jewel cases. For me it adds to the experience. 🙂 I bought a ton of CD cases, so I have a bunck of like new replacements if I break one of mine.
Thanks, Andrew, that's very helpful. I can't tell from the video: does each of the CD wallets have a tab at the top, or are those tabs where you wrote "Jazz," etc., on separate sheets of plastic?
Hello Andrew. Ironically I found your channel searching UA-cam for reviews on a particular brand of replacement jewel case for CDs I've been considering purchasing lots of and stumbled on this and one other of your videos where you were transitioning away from jewel cases. My problem is that I had hundreds of CDs in a carousel CD changer, and when I had placed them all in the changer, I had put the card inserts in CD folders to look at, and put the jewel cases away in boxes to store. A couple years ago I decided to sell off most of my old equipment, upgrade, and in the process go back to a single disc player. Of course in the years since, one of the boxes of jewel cases has gone missing, how, I have no clue. Regardless, watching your videos has given me pause to consider the plastic sleeves instead of jewel cases, because I still have all of the cover art/inserts for 100% of my collection, and I can always print the back cover from a number of sources and insert it into the sleeve for the CDs missing the jewel case along with the original CD and cover insert, and in the process save a lot of space and probably a little money. Thanks for making these videos - they've given me a whole new avenue to consider when choosing my path forward. Cheers!
@@AndrewDixonMusic 300 wallets on the way! Hope to receive them early next week and get cracking on getting rid of my old jewel boxes. I hope this turns out as well as I'm planning. Thank you for the fresh insight!
Hi Andrew, Thanks so much. I'm just going through this process, thanks for the inspiration. Can you please let me know where you got the Black boxes for the Billy? Hope you can help, Cheers
It is not a lot different from vinyl storage and is certainly a big space saver. I store my music on my iMac 27 inch (not bragging - thats what it is called) but I do keep my original CDs (at least those worth keeping) so I going ahead and changing over to CD wallets but keeping the original jewel cases wher appropriate. It is all about the music and practicality.
That’s so funny you only just discovered the hidden booklet in Kid A, I discovered that on release day back in 2000 and blew me away along with the album.
I use resealable CD wraps the same way but about 4 months back I started moving to these same sleeves as they are much sturdier, so far I've bought about 3000 of these sleeves and I probably need another 2000 at least. Often I further protect the CD itself by storing it in a Tyvek sleeve inside them. I don't store them in boxes though I just put them on my regular racking and they don't fall over. Any digipaks or special packaging though are exempt for obvious reasons and also they act as a good reference point when looking for a CD as I have them all stored alphabetically by artist. Strangely I have kept all my jewel cases and they are in the loft.
@@AndrewDixonMusic - Hi Andrew - yes pretty much - they are not packed overly tight so I can easily add new CDs, or move them along the shelves if they do start getting too tightly packed. Also the various digipaks help support them too I guess. If the final shelf is only half full then I just put a bookend or something flat that isn't going to fall over against the last one. I also had some "bespoke" wooden shelving made by a joiner friend so each section is around 68cms wide by 17cm high and the racking is attached to a wall and almost goes the full length of it (my vinyl racking stops it). Works well although I think now I could have reduced the height of each section and had another row. I'm way off getting them all sleeved up though with the new ones, if I play a CD it comes out of the old sleeve and into a new one so I reckon I've done about 300 - 400 that way and I've also slowly been going through them from the start ...I'm up to the letter "D" haha, I have about 2000 sleeves ready to use and I reckon I'll need about 1500 - 2000 more. But I must admit it has had me weeding things out of my collection that I'm never going to listen to again or that were picked up on a whim and aren't really "my bag", I've taken about 250 CDS out that way but I think that's it, there may be the odd one that can go that I missed. I have to admit - once in a while (especially after an evening of drinkies!) I'll put one away in the wrong space .... that can be a bind so now I tend to put them away the next morning :D
Great video, Andrew. You did good with this transfer:) I couldn't imagine doing this with my 850 cds though:) in part because many of them are in the digipack format.
Have been looking forward to the follow-up video, great to hear you've no regrets. I recently got a starter pack of 10 of the sleeves and I'm happy with the look and the space-saving. Probably going to get more and switch most of the collection when we move house this Spring.
@@AndrewDixonMusic That would be ideal but most of my stuff went into storage this time last year, looking forward to being reunited with it all and ditching some of the jewel cases! Really good you managed to pass yours on to a record shop 👍👍
Hi very interesting thoughts on your cd collection I’ve tried various ways to store cds minus the Jewell case and I think the clear sleeves sound like my best option I will also use a paper sleeve inside the the clear plastic sleeve ,what are your thoughts What are the boxes you used to store the cds in many thanks 😊
After seeing your two videos and noticing that the protection offered by jewel cases is not what is advertised to be* I decided to take the leap. But i did it a bit differently. As external sleeves I used those transparent outer sleeves for jewel cases that have an adhesive strip. They are very clear and look really very nice (and are less expensive). Also, for the disc it self I am using front windowed paper sleeves for protection (and to comfort my fears I think... 😅). So in a way I transformed my jewel cased CDs into digisleeved ones. And so far I really enjoy the result. I have the same feeling like when I flipp through my vinyls. Not to say that the space gained is fantastic. Very, very nice. 😃 In this transition I was more radical than you and the only exceptions were the sets with more than 2 discs (but I am thinking for a solution to their size too...). All the others made the transition. Even the boxsets with multiple jewel cases (I kept the box with empty cases though). The only exceptions were the digipacks and the digisleeves. Regrets? So far none but to be on the "safe" side I still have the empty cases with indications to which album they belonged. 😅 So yes, I like the transition, it feels and looks great so thank you for the needed push you indirectly gave. Keep enjoying your music. 😃👍🎶😌 Footnote: *after a time of sitting idle on the shelf my CDs in jewel cases were getting really dusty on the upper area of the data side, with particles of every size and needed serious cleaning. And I was dusting the shelf regularly. So yes, the jewel cases offer mechanical protection but not so much from the elements and cleaning the dust improperly is the most important source of scratches actually.
Glad to hear it's gone well! I still have no regrets at all. Main thing I've learned though, which thankfully doesn't affect me, is that the wallets should not be made of PVC as that can lead to disc damage. So that's worth checking... Mine are made from POLYPROPYLENE which is safe. I've also now done all my DVDs and saved the same amount of space again!
@@AndrewDixonMusic I knew about PVC and stayed clear from it. I learned from a vinyl collector of the damage it can do. The sleeves I used are made from the that thin clear PP plastic foil. So they are not only safe but looking quite nice too. And yes, DVDs are also my next project. For them I intend to use clear document sleeves size A5 made of PP (optimised for keeping paper safe), with paper sleeves for the discs, and binders to put them in. Very practical, cost effective and nice looking. 😃
Here's what i do...if i have 3 or more titles by an artist, i take the disc(s), booklet & back, put the disc & fold the back in half & put both inside the booklet, in the middle by the staple, then stack the full booklets & keep them in a Ziplock sandwich bag...can fit up to 10 per bag!! If the title is in a digipack, i keep that intact...doing that with my whole collection, it cut the space by a THIRD!!
Link to buy these CD Wallets: amzn.to/3rTwoZt
And these are the boxes I've used: amzn.to/3sNgqPO
If you thinking of doing this please make sure that wallets you use are NOT made from PVC as this can lead to disc damage eventually. POLYPROPYLENE is safe.
The process of converting to sleeves would have been great fun, interacting with your collection and refreshing the way you are displaying it adds to the hobby 👍 Personally i have ample room to display my collection in Jewel cases and prefer it for quick access. But thats the great thing about it, we all can store and display in our own ways 🙏
My biggest concern is scratching the CD's while pulling out.
I’m never concerned with pulling out.
@@GermMontesHave a big family?
@@abc456fNo, he’s just a virgin
Love it! You won't regret it. I did this ~15yrs ago and have never regretted it. I don't own a single jewel case, unless it's part of a box set (some of those earlier boxes had separate cases contained within). My ~1K cd collection is contained within a few case logic binders (for the discs) and I've kept all of the artwork, booklets, etc. within a similar organized system as you - plastic sheaths and "shoe box" style boxes - cheers!
I did this with my entire collection of CDs and DVDs, mostly to save space and weight during a relocation. As I accumulate more, they get the same treatment. I estimate the collection requires about 20% the space it used to, and because I handle them carefully, I've never had one get damaged. No regrets at all.
Hello from the US! I literally just took all my discs from the binders they were in and put them back into their cases that I had stored away for years. I did this so I can create a CD Wall in my man cave area for a nice aesthetic look. I like your idea for organization, but for me, the jewel cases are back in a big way!!!
May I ask how you stuck your CDs to the wall?
People still use the term man cave??!!
@@mingfei1622 Old people like me do.
@@mingfei1622 you know he's a real man if he has a man cave
I did this for my CDs and Blurays/4Ks, and it's been fantastic. I saved SO much space and haven't regretted it a bit.
Hi Andrew. I’ve followed your lead and (so far) have transitioned 400 cd’s. No regrets. And thank you for letting people know about this.
And as you’ve discussed there are CDs that remain exempt from the process, otherwise the total would have been much more.
I think I have more work to do however as shelf space remains tight but the piles of CDs not in shelves have gone.
I think it's a brilliant idea. And there's no rule that says you have to do it for your whole collection as you yourself have made exceptions for certain artists. My collection is relatively small compared to yours and I would still consider this as a space saving solution. Thanks for the informative video.
I did this years ago, and although I use a different product, it save so much space. I wondered where you got the black boxes. I use a clear case with lids to put my wallets in. I have approx 2200 CDs now in the space of less then 500 jewel cases. I also make my own mini lp cd covers for items that have terrible packaging or bad digi packs. take care
I just can not. Seriously, a video on replacing jewel cases with vinyl slipcases. And they say society is not slipping away into the abyss. But, yet, here I am clicking and watching. Well done Andrew. [clapping.] Well, done!
Thanks, I think?! 😄
I got rid of loads of jewel cases and put CDs into 7 large cd folders. Ultimately I hated how they looked and ultimately returned most CDs into jewel cases. Cd single cases were an issue and getting replacement cases was difficult. Most of my CDs are on the wall in very large CD shelf system in the garage which is dry and makes them easy to access. Good luck with your changes..
Same here. I did the exact same thing as you. Put in binders and now put them all back in the jewel cases. Two small cd racks and everything is accessible. Holding 500 cds both racks.
man, i might not interested with your style without jewel case for more space in the room but i got much more respect to ya! Everyone got their own style of collecting CDs!
I understand the need for more room (having the same problem myself). But I treasure the old original jewel cases from the 1980s. They are very sturdy, unlike the current cheapo plastic. Also, I prefer removing CDs by the edges, trying to avoid fingerprints.
Since hearing about this method, I have been very excited about trying it for my music and DVD/Blu-ray collection. If anything, it's made me want to expand the collection, as I have always been concerned about the amount of space it takes up, and been hesitant to buy new things unless it's something that really interests me. So I consider that a good thing.
Aside from the obvious examples of limited edition packaging, and similar things, most of the cases can be considered just another form of delivery packaging, similar to the cellophane that is wrapped around new products. The thing you are most interested in is the content and the artwork; the plastic case is just a way of displaying that. Nothing more.
I have nearly 2500 CDs (mostly jazz and art music) in my collection. As my shelf started to burst at its seams I had to fix upon whether to purchase a new rack, or to replace the bulky jewel cases with plastic sleeves. Fortunately I ended up choosing the latter. I delved into a myriad of plastic CD sleeves and, based on my comparative evaluation, settled upon the Slim Disc CD storage system.
The (outer) sleeve is made of sturdy (150 μm) and environmentally friendly polypropylene (PP). It is fairly compact in size (height 130 mm; width 142 mm); the tray card spines must be folded when tucked in the sleeve.
I have been very pleased with my choice, although have noticed a few difficulties. One headache is that I cannot anymore browse the spines. To overcome this, I made a digital list of my stuff, and ordered plastic dividers in order to classify the CDs by genre and artist’s name.
Another drawback is that the cardboard cases, which cannot be taken to pieces like plastic ”jewel” cases, must be cut up to fit into the sleeves. I have carefully ripped the plastic trays off the cardboard cases, and cropped the cardboard enough to fit the sleeves. I have left some cardboard cases untouched in the shelf, which serve as a reference when flicking through my collection.
Apart from the cropped cardboard cases, I think the retail value of the CDs has remained unchanged after storing them into sleeves. No regrets.
I presume you looked at Space Saving Sleeves. Can you say what is it you didn't like since it seems it was more work for you to choose your Slim Disc. Thanks.
@@MarinaLarocherry for such a late answer. I prefer the compact size of the Slim Disc CD storage system, its sturdy feel and looks plus environmentally friendly material.
I had already a custom-made shelf for jewel cases when switched over to sleeves. The majority of sleeves on the market are larger and therefore do not fit my shelf upright. I think most people go for the space saving advantage of the sleeves. The outer dimensions of Slim Disc and Knosti DisCover sleeves are kept pretty much to the minimum.
Although vinyl record sales grow in great numbers, there are still a bunch of CD sleeve types to choose from. The DisCover CD cases/sleeves by Knosti seem like a good choice too.
@@Jazzbuff1970 Thank you for resplying !
I did this about 5 years ago. I have a box of about 50. I regret it these discs just don't seem part of my collection anymore. I'm glad I didn't do all of my collection.
I saw you were placing the CDs inside the paper booklets first. I just wanted to mention that it is not a good idea to place bare CDs straight into plastic sleeves as the two surfaces will likely glue together over time. I did this years ago with my CD-Rs and I had to take them out and started using slim jewel cases that hold the discs properly without contacts with the actual recording layer.
Great practical no nonsense video. I'm in a similar situation- 10,000+ and growing, I bought plastic sleeves 2 years ago... I had great intentions but I still haven't got round to transferring all my discs. Maybe tomorrow...
Hello,
And thank you for sharing your journey with us. I’m likely to one day do something very similar, but I have 3 main concerns:
Humidity- I’m from a place that is very humid and I’m thinking that disks that aren’t accessed often enough may, as a result of the moisture, adhere either to the insert/booklet or the sleeve itself
Technology-If the design of the sleeve changes or is discontinued, it could cause an awkward, incompatible change in how future disks are stored
Protection - the jewel cases, however inconvenient at times, is a pretty good means by which to protect the media. The center mount suspends the disk from harm at the edges and top and bottom surfaces. Sliding them in and out of the sleeves, even once or twice, could cause surface scratches on the playing surface or label surface.
Right on about sliding and possible scratches - not saying that the plastic sleeves would cause scratching, but contaminants that got inside could. That's one thing that baffles me about the new CD and Blu-ray packaging where the discs come from the factory in cardboard sleeves. Cardboard is in and of itself an abrasive. Makes me want to buy jewel cases or plastic sleeves to protect the new titles I buy, or pay extra for the "premium" version that comes in a jewel case. Is that what it's come down to? Pay an extra $10 for the disc to come in a jewel case now? Pay for the CD and 2 gallons of gas and you get a free jewel case... That could be a promo...
Good idea, I did a similar thing with magazine CDs some time back but not with any others yet. It's a shame when CDs first came out that they didn't start releasing them as mini vinyl replicas as those versions obviously take up a lot less space. I think record companies have become a lot more creative with CD packaging now using more cardboard and less plastic. I dread to think how many jewel cases have been made (and broken!) over the years!
I’ve done this with about 50 CDs so far that were my random albums, not for artists I collect their entire catalog, and I am very glad I did it. Frees up space for 50 more CDs for artists I like to collect and keep ‘proper’.
I changed all of mine because I hated the room that the shelving was taking up in my small flat. I also like the fact that I have them in boxes taking up a lot less space, and it is like flicking through my vinyl albums, like we all do in the record stores
Looks really smart. I'll be honest, my biggest hesitation is the amount of time it would take me! I just dont have the time to sort my entire cd collection like that at the moment!
It did take ages, I just did batches at a time while watching TV or playing albums!
Andrew, so glad to hear those worked out for you! It is always such a good feeling when it turns out as planned. Would like to know where you got the boxes that you are using. It looks to be the perfect size. Thanks for sharing this, take care.
These are the boxes but the price seems to have gone a lot in the last few days! amzn.to/3sNgqPO
Thank you so much your CDs looked really good in them.
I think you've won me over! I don't have nearly as large a collection as you do, but it seems so refreshing to clear up so much space while still having my collection look uniform. And, like you've done, I can keep some special ones in their cases.
I did it and HATED it...feel like I've committed a crime! Costing me a fortune to redo it.
doing this the cd has no air to breathe and will result in DISK ROT making your collection unplayable and worthless ..note it wont happen overnight but it can happen in as little as 2 years
I've gotten rid of my CD jewel cases a while now I have many cds (thanks to g/y sales thrift stores record stores)and I keep them in large cap zippered cases away from extreme climate conditions. Same with my dvds I donate CD DVD cases to thrift stores. I keep my dvds in paper CD envelopes inside of the artwork sleeves and slip them into sheet protectors and keep them in school 3in ring size zippered notebooks. It saves a lot of room on top of my small dresser drawer. Great vid sir.
I am seriously thinking of putting our cds in sleeves as well. They are stored in two cabinets about 5 ft. tall that go to the floor and my husband has some in his man cave downstairs. Maybe 100-200 total; never counted them. Some I could let go of I'm sure. The open cabinet shelves get dusty and I dislike having to get down on hands & knees to see the ones on the bottom shelves. I like the black boxes you have yours stored in but I would like to be able to keep them in some sort of closed cabinet to avoid them getting dusty. Thank you for this video. Nice to know you have no regrets.
Hi Andrew, I put in a long answer to your previous video on this subject. Those bemoaning the loss of a jewel case, if you were to sell any just put them in a fresh case. As regards damage to a CD, what a load of donkey s???. None of my CDs in jewel cases were immune from the change Beach Boys through to ZZ Top I swapped them all. No regrets but now I need to win the lottery to buy a bigger house. I’ve filled in all the gaps!
Think I get you now Andrew. I thought at first the inner artwork was going 🤦. So I'm a convert now and you now have what looks like boxes you find at a CD record fair ✌️🎶🎵. Good job
Thanks Andrew for showing your CD sleeve process and the outcome. 😀
I did this but only with the CDs in basic black jewel cases that could easily be replaced. If they are in cleared/colored cases or there’s something else notably unique I didn’t touch them. I went with DiscSox CD Pro Sleeves.
Kudos to you for sticking with it and finding it beneficial. I'm too pedantic about my CDs to try something like this, even though the extra space would be great. Hope to see it continue working well for ya in the future.
I've been doing that for years. No regrets, and the amount of space saved is tremendous. I haven't noticed any damage to the CDs themselves from placing them in sleeves instead of cases.
The big issue here is the future of your collection. In terms of resale after you’re gone, your beneficiaries will find they will have to take a big hit in terms of value if you jettison the jewel cases. It doesn’t matter if you have the greatest artists of the last century….the Record stores and such will not be able to charge what the value says it is without those original packages. Ask them! Talk to them!
This is a process I undertook during the pandemic, again for the same reasons really, conserving space. I use to have an entire spare bedroom reserved for my media library films and music, I moved into a music smaller place and didn’t have the extra room . My converted over 4000 CDs into plastic sleeves with no regrets whatsoever. I collecting get converted straight to my work of art iTunes library any how. But I’ve also converted my incredibly large dvd collection also, that was a bit move difficult to discard all the covers. I my ming there is no loss of value doing this process, I’ve still retained all the covers and art to the CDs and if you sell them at some point, just buy new jewel boxes. I actually found disposing of old dirty jewel cases and rejuvenating old CDs in fresh new covers very pleasing. Nice work my friend
Hi Andrew.Know I'm late to this video but I just grade my CDs.If it's a Grade A like Elton John Goodbye Yellow Brick Road I keep it in original box but if it's anything else I put them in wallets which is 80% of my collection.My work involves clearing houses of stuff where in many examples people have passed away leaving behind thousands of CD that end up on landfill.My point is many people seem to build these massive collections up,some so big that they probably never even got to play them or a small number of times in their lifetime.They were literally surrounded by them wall to wall.I think trying to keep things pristine is a problem for many people who think things are forever.Keeping some stuff in cd wallets gives you more space and freedom.Everyone to their own though,just my thoughts.Enjoyed Video.
These sleeves are a great space saving idea. I've got of the 3 drawer units that sell cheaply in Wilko's for my cds. When I decide to get around to doing this I will keep digicases and boxsets as they are.
this video is really satisfying to watch. didn't consider this until today and i think they look cool in the new plastic sleeves. just ordered some and gonna give this a try. might even re-buy cds that i had donated before.
Hey Andrew, since I watched these videos of you converting your CD collection to the wallets, I myself decided to take the leap and am SO happy I have. Still have quite a few CDs to move over yet, but the sheer amount of space I've gathered from converting the amount I have is staggering, and honestly, a complete weight off my chest. While it's fun to be a collector, it really is stressful dealing with the storage and organizational demands of a collection. Truly, thanks a ton for making these videos. :)
Good to hear! I've done hundreds more since this video (and all my DVD collection), and almost a year on, zero regrets.
Andrew - this is very instructive. I really like the way you put them into containers - it’s very record-store-like (vinyl style). For your style of shelves that seems to be perfect. Thanks for the update!
Hi Andrew. My preferred option is to have CDs in pristine sturdy jewel cases with a black inner tray. They look great. Unfortunately I buy a lot of second-hand CDs and the jewel cases are nearly always grubby. These CDs look better transferred to plastic wallets. However, I'm always on the lookout at charity shops for CDs that are still sealed. I can then transfer CDs I have temporarily put into plastic wallets back into a new jewel case. If lack of space is an issue, you shouldn't start collecting in the first place.
Anything I do buy second-hand gets a good soapy wash in the kitchen sink as I can barely bring myself to touch them prior to that. Once they've been processed with new cases if need be, then they can join the others upon my shelves.
I commented earlier that these cases seem to be good quality if jewel cases are what you want... My links always seem to get my comments taken down, so if interested, just search the Amazon web forest for:
USDISC CD Jewel Cases Standard 10.4mm Single 1 Disc Pack of 100
Why don't you just go buy new jewel cases??..
Got hundreds in a sleeve...with the CD insert...they fit easily.The rear inserts all kept together and take up little room.I do not need to slog through my collection to find something to play because,if you are like me,you KNOW what you feel like listening to.In a particular mood,you just know what suits.Do not be scared about dumping the plastic.
Hi Colin. Where can I order these? Can’t find them. Ken
I've sent you a link Kenny, hopefully you've seen it now.
Firstly thankyou for your video. We'll I thought I would never ditch the plastic cases for my cd collection . I was conditioned that a cd came in the traditional plastic case and that was that.. However they do take up space and a large collection can be overpowering . I also love vinyl and you cannot shrink them. I never wanted to go down the streaming route its a choice and a good choice but not for me.Like you I was never a seller of music . My collection was my musical journey and gave me great happiness. I noticed over the years that cds came in cardboard sleeves more like mini lps,no doubt more cost efficient but I liked them, and yes they took less space. Swapping the plastic cases for vinyl covers has been a liberating experience and they look good too , as stated you have the art work back and front you have the booklett I don't need a marketing stickertelling me whether it's a deluxe version or limited edition. Anyway selling a cd online is a bad financial decision you will never come off best . I am glad I have made the change it's all to my advantage . I can tell you I have surprised myself buts it's all in the mind . Take care all whoever reads this if anyone best wishes tim
Thought I would give this idea a go, as I have quite a few broken cases. So just bought 1 pack of wallets and some paper sleeves for the actual CD. It does feel and look like a mini record collection now. Have also put my card digipaks in them too. I'll think hard as to wether I'll continue with the transformation
I have replaced my jewel cases with this kind of wallets as well, so I could store them all in the same room instead of keeping half the collection in the basement! I haven't thought of writing on them - good tip! But I haven't bought those black boxes to keep them in.
Such horrible idea and feel sorry for whoever gets this cds next
I've done this with a lot of my dvd collection. I don't really want certain things taking up shelf space so I have to prioritize now that I'm approaching 1500 titles
I did this with my DVDs. Threw all the plastic DVD boxes into the recycle bin and put the DVDs into special CD binders. I did have to fold the paper DVD covers to fit into the CD binders but it's only one crease. I have no regrets. I have freed up so much space by not having those plastic DVD boxes fighting for shelf space with books, CDs and box sets.
Great idea. Just finished converting 200. Never liked the plastic jewel case. Amazing how much room it has freed up to grow the collection.
I am seriously thinking about replacing my cd's in these sleeves/wallets but i am a bit old skool and autistic to do so. But yeah even though we are moving to a slightly bigger house my future man cave hasn't got a lot of room to storage my current collection as well my massive book collection. The thing is i am afraid to damage my cd's while i pull them out of the plastic sleeves. I can't rip my cd's and so i have no other option (besides Spotify) than to play them. The idea of saving space really attracts me because i want to make my cave a nice place to be in, but the thought of damaging my precious cd's is Haunting me!!
It's nice to see that there's a solution that lets you keep the back cover art too, I have a bunch of back cover arts stashed away in a box in my closet because when I had to move and moved a bunch of my CDs into a big binder I managed to fit the front cover/booklet but couldn't fit the back cover in as well. I might look into getting a few of these!
Kind of a shame the CD Singles style case never saw mass adoption for full records or even video games, I like that it's a slimmer case that still has enough room for spine art.
Agreed, I've not changed any of my CD singles over and if albums came in the same style case I wouldn't have any need to have done this.
I wasn’t a fan of the way the sleeves looked on the shelf, but really like the boxes. Where did you buy those, I’d you don’t mind? The boxes appear to fit the sleeves perfectly! Cheers!
These are the boxes, but they seem to have skyrocketed in price in the couple of weeks since I bought them, I paid nowhere near that price!! amzn.to/3sNgqPO
I’m personally sticking with jewel cases but for you great idea as so many. I’ve just bought the Beatles collection again as I sold all mine CDs years ago after ripping all. I now have space for 76 max so have to be very selective. I think I’m buying my own stuff back from 10 years ago! Great video 👍
Glad I found this, was on the fence with doing this to my movie collection.
Already did it for my x360 collection and it was so convenient.
CDs in sleeves can warp if stored in hot environment. Pressure against delicate label side could also damage CDs.
I moved all my CDs from a wallet to plastic holders. But I found the same ones you are using recently. I wish I would have found them before since I had to ditch the back part of the jewel case because they didn't fit in the plastic holders I originally had. Going forward I am using the ones you are using and keeping my CDs more useful than having boxes of CDs everywhere.
I will say the way I find or play a cd is to scan my cd spines on my shelves depending on my mood whereas if I have your system I would not be able to do as easily and would need a data base libary hard copy to look thru which might substitute for that.
Hi Andrew. I did a huge purge of jewel cases a while back, but rather than throwing them away I shoved them in bags in the garage. My concern was whether or not I would eventually purge certain CD's by giving them to Oxfam etc. I did the same as you and exempt certain artists (Beatles etc!). I haven't put them in boxes though, they're all on the shelf with the others and now almost impossible to find, ha ha.
Hi James, yes I quickly realised these needed to be in strict order and labelled otherwise nightmare!
Hi Andrew, good vid and I am doing this myself having done similar with a few dozen dvds but I just folded the dvd inlay and popped the dvd in between and then packed them snugly into one of those A4 size leather look drawer units. It should be stressed that for Cds, square sleeves don't work if you want the info on the Cd spines to show. There does not seem to be much choice in the 154 x 127mm sleeve range. Perhaps manufacturers will cotton on and improve supply.
@@mikeonfreeserve2926 Hi Mike, the ones I link to in the comments section here aren't square and are the correct width for the spines to fold out fully 👍
I think this is brilliant! I was thinking about another way of storing my cd's. I wanted to put them into a barrister bookcase. Now, I think you have given me a great solution!! Thank you Andrew!!
600 CD's, that's quite a cull. Well done & glad there's no regrets...🙂
I have recently done this with my CD collection and I am very very satisfied with the visual result!
I did this with my CD collection a few years ago using the 3 litre Really Useful boxes from Rymans. They have lids and are stackable. Most of my box sets and digipacs also fit them as is. Saved me about 75% of shelf space.
Did this about 10 years ago to save space about 1600 cd's totally soul destroying doing it and guess what? A year ago put them all back in the cases.
Were you regretting it at the time or did that come later?
@@AndrewDixonMusic regretted not long after I'd done it I managed to fit all my cd's in a drawer unit with index cards definately space saving but it was a carry on trying to find stuff. I'm glad I stored all the cases took me longer to put them all back in the cases than it did to take them out LOL!
@@AndrewDixonMusic at one time I spent what seemed a lifetime downloading every CD to a hard drive and downloading everything on to 2 x 180gb ipods playing them through my hi fi and storing the CD's in the garage now that definately saved space!
@@johnt3979 yes I hardly.ever play a CD, it's all ripped to a server and played through my streamer
I've got a ridiculous amount of Jewel cases and some of them are Jank and broken, so I'm definitely going to look into getting some sleeves for those albums and whatnot, but my digipaks and other non-standard cases, I will pretty much leave intact.
Put all my cds in univenture sleeves years ago. Has protective interior so cd won't scratch, holds booklets and spine label. All cds filed alpha
by artist in older dust proof cd storage containers. Several hundred cds fit in a space 17" wide by 14" deep by 24" high. All are accessible for playing. Lost one cd to breakage in 33 years. All cds have been ripped for mobile and cds are for dedicated listening time. No regrets.
it makes perfect sense if your gonna keep your cds in one place but if you move them a lot then it would be a terrible idea
I've been tacking my CDs and record albums to my wall at home. Lots of great album art on my cd and vinyl albums. I invented a tack that holds cds to the walls without damaging them.
What?! You didn't know about the Kid A booklet behind the tray?! I remember opening up the case the day I got the album and seeing something inside that little circle of tongs, taking off the tray and then finding it. I also remember the smell of the art paper, haha.
That must have been some surprise for you. So cool!
I would never think to look there for anything extra!
@@AndrewDixonMusic I just remembered something. I remember reading on a Radiohead message board that the CD had a hidden booklet behind the tray.
Now that I remembered that, I do remember looking for it and not just noticing something peculiar. It's funny how our memories work 20 years later, haha.
HI Andrew,
Where did you obtain the boxes from that you are keeping the cd,s in, they look great.
Steve.
Hi Steve, got them here (they've gone up in price since I got mine!) amzn.to/357g1iK
Cheers Andrew,
I too, have a ton of CDs that are taking up valuable space on my shelves, I think I am going to follow your idea and put mine in the plastic wallets.
I'm sure I will have no regrets.
Steve.
Started doing it a few days ago and wondered if anyone else had also had the same brainwave when I came across this. No regrets either and so much space saved. 👍
Still no regrets here several months later and have done several hundred more plus my DVD collection since.
Inspired by this video, I have started the process, using the products you have linked to. I've come to realise how crude jewel cases really are, and I'm already enjoying being able to browse through my CDs just as I do vinyl.
They're fairly ugly things once you take out the disc and the front/back covers aren't they!
I am involved with these issues. For decades I listened to "experts" state that the resin covering CDs, DVD, and Blu-ray are extremely delicate. Now, the truth is finally out that the only dangerous packaging material is sandpaper. Like so many other generational scams storage needs to be COMPLETElY rethought. The slave saving conclusion is to use paper or polyethylene envelopes. My first choice was the large clear envelopes for both the disc and artwork. My budget won't stretch that far. My practical alternative is to buy blue paper sleeves for the Blu-ray, white sleeves for DVD and CDs. Decades ago I made large triple layered cardboard with covered edge trays for DVDs in white paper sleeves. No problems. I have made smaller versions for this next stage of 12" deep to fit the older shelves I will glue width wide and stronger longer shelf brackets. Heresy added to heresy I will use each blue sleeve to hold TWO Blu-ray discs with the printed sides facing each other. If needed, third disc can be added with a soft paper divider. All is heretical but perfectly safe. One associate who had owned a local record store and is also cursed with being a OCD collector has his apartment filled with tall rows of wood encased shelving with Jewel cased CDs. There is a narrow path from the front door to his desk and electronics station. Take your pick. The extremes are defined.
I transferred all my cds to high quality digital files. My entire collection is there and all 42,000 album tracks are available via the computer media player . I can shuffle albums or tracks or entire collection with fade in. I love to select live albums from various artists in shuffle fade in / out setting so it sounds like one big super concert! I love the flexibility. For me its the best way to ensure that i get to listen to most of my library in my lifetime. I use a dac from computer plugged in to my integrated amp for best sound. Sound is great with no clutter of cds everywhere. Cds tucked away safely in attic. I do appreciate tbat people do like the visual aspect but space in tbe home is at a premium. Id love to know your tboughts on my set up Andrew. All the best.
Paul.
I have a similar set up! Everything is ripped lossless to a NAS drive with several back ups. I have a streamer that plays the files from the NAS andgoes through a high quality Roksan DAC and out to my amp.
It is extremely rare that I need to play a CD once it's ripped to the NAS.
thx. I'm doing same thing now and It's better! tbh I prefer this slim sleeve over jewel case. I like jewel case but It's big and heavy. maybe I can collect more cds now.
Where did you get those CD Boxes? I’d like to get some myself.
Hi, it's these: amzn.to/42oOQJo
We have the same mindset that we don't plan to ever sell our collection but we want any changes to be reversible just in case.
Brilliant - I have my CDs in sleeves in a cd storage box with a lid on - I just label up the front of the box the artists inside - I store the boxes like you in a bookcase that is inside a built in wardrobe section so they are not even on display - where do you store your books and memorabilia - also you being a big Beatles fan do you own the Beatles monthlies that came out originally in the 60s and re published I think in the 70s -- also do you ever listen to your vinyl -- what is your routine to listening to your music -- hope you don't think me being too nosey
I've got a few books in my bookcase where these CD sleeve boxes are, and a few more up in the loft, but I e stopped hanging on to books unless I think I might read them again, I've given away the majority of my books!
I collected the Beatles Monthly magazines from about 1990 to 2000 and still have all those in the loft.
I listen to vinyl regularly, whenever I'm having a proper album listen without interruptions to relax it will usually be vinyl, and I do digital if it's more background kind of listening
What's the most valuable CD's do you own? I have some Samhain, Venom, Necrophobic, Pungent Stench CDs Discogs Median value around $100.00 US. I couldn't do that to those. I've stopped buying CDs almost totally and just by vinyl.
I thought about these wallets, but then I've decided instead to transfer my entire CD library and any future CD purchases into files. No regrets, either.
- Red
Im beginning to be buried beneath the fruits of my obssesion, CD's but im pretty sure i could not put them into wallets. Another reason is that i would not have a clue who was who, and what was what when i want to play them. Good on ya though.
I will switch to that system as well. Sounds really convenient. Can you explain where I can get these boxes?
@@Bibliophilo if you have a look at the comment I've pinned to the top there's a link for the boxes 👍
I wouldn't dare throw out the cd jewel cases,i enjoy the cd art and booklets,i can't believe people would actually throw them out.
I still have all the CD art and booklets, none of that is gone.
That's good,now i wish they would bring them back instead of the slip cases
Just make sure you purchase envelopes that will not scratch or damage your discs. There are both vinyl and paper sleeves on the market that are not really safe for CD storage.
I love my jewel cases. For me it adds to the experience. 🙂
I bought a ton of CD cases, so I have a bunck of like new replacements if I break one of mine.
Thanks, Andrew, that's very helpful. I can't tell from the video: does each of the CD wallets have a tab at the top, or are those tabs where you wrote "Jazz," etc., on separate sheets of plastic?
Hi, all the wallets have that tab (think of them as like an envelope), I just leave some of them sticking up for me to write on.
Hello Andrew. Ironically I found your channel searching UA-cam for reviews on a particular brand of replacement jewel case for CDs I've been considering purchasing lots of and stumbled on this and one other of your videos where you were transitioning away from jewel cases.
My problem is that I had hundreds of CDs in a carousel CD changer, and when I had placed them all in the changer, I had put the card inserts in CD folders to look at, and put the jewel cases away in boxes to store.
A couple years ago I decided to sell off most of my old equipment, upgrade, and in the process go back to a single disc player. Of course in the years since, one of the boxes of jewel cases has gone missing, how, I have no clue. Regardless, watching your videos has given me pause to consider the plastic sleeves instead of jewel cases, because I still have all of the cover art/inserts for 100% of my collection, and I can always print the back cover from a number of sources and insert it into the sleeve for the CDs missing the jewel case along with the original CD and cover insert, and in the process save a lot of space and probably a little money.
Thanks for making these videos - they've given me a whole new avenue to consider when choosing my path forward. Cheers!
Thanks for that, good to know it's been useful for others! 🙂👍
@@AndrewDixonMusic 300 wallets on the way! Hope to receive them early next week and get cracking on getting rid of my old jewel boxes. I hope this turns out as well as I'm planning. Thank you for the fresh insight!
Hi Andrew, Thanks so much. I'm just going through this process, thanks for the inspiration. Can you please let me know where you got the Black boxes for the Billy? Hope you can help, Cheers
Hi, these are the ones I have, although they're dark brown rather than black amzn.to/3RxD4HD
@@AndrewDixonMusic Thanks very much
It is not a lot different from vinyl storage and is certainly a big space saver. I store my music on my iMac 27 inch (not bragging - thats what it is called) but I do keep my original CDs (at least those worth keeping) so I going ahead and changing over to CD wallets but keeping the original jewel cases wher appropriate. It is all about the music and practicality.
That’s so funny you only just discovered the hidden booklet in Kid A, I discovered that on release day back in 2000 and blew me away along with the album.
How about a Link to the BOXES that U Store the Sleeves in ! ? Thanks ....
Here you go: amzn.to/357g1iK
Hi mate, well done for the storage solution! Would love to have a "sticky" at how your vinyl storage is going.
I use resealable CD wraps the same way but about 4 months back I started moving to these same sleeves as they are much sturdier, so far I've bought about 3000 of these sleeves and I probably need another 2000 at least. Often I further protect the CD itself by storing it in a Tyvek sleeve inside them. I don't store them in boxes though I just put them on my regular racking and they don't fall over. Any digipaks or special packaging though are exempt for obvious reasons and also they act as a good reference point when looking for a CD as I have them all stored alphabetically by artist. Strangely I have kept all my jewel cases and they are in the loft.
How have you managed to stop them falling over, is it just because theye well packed on the shelf?
@@AndrewDixonMusic - Hi Andrew - yes pretty much - they are not packed overly tight so I can easily add new CDs, or move them along the shelves if they do start getting too tightly packed. Also the various digipaks help support them too I guess. If the final shelf is only half full then I just put a bookend or something flat that isn't going to fall over against the last one. I also had some "bespoke" wooden shelving made by a joiner friend so each section is around 68cms wide by 17cm high and the racking is attached to a wall and almost goes the full length of it (my vinyl racking stops it). Works well although I think now I could have reduced the height of each section and had another row. I'm way off getting them all sleeved up though with the new ones, if I play a CD it comes out of the old sleeve and into a new one so I reckon I've done about 300 - 400 that way and I've also slowly been going through them from the start ...I'm up to the letter "D" haha, I have about 2000 sleeves ready to use and I reckon I'll need about 1500 - 2000 more. But I must admit it has had me weeding things out of my collection that I'm never going to listen to again or that were picked up on a whim and aren't really "my bag", I've taken about 250 CDS out that way but I think that's it, there may be the odd one that can go that I missed. I have to admit - once in a while (especially after an evening of drinkies!) I'll put one away in the wrong space .... that can be a bind so now I tend to put them away the next morning :D
Great video, Andrew. You did good with this transfer:) I couldn't imagine doing this with my 850 cds though:) in part because many of them are in the digipack format.
Yes there's no way to do those, they have to be left alone.
Have been looking forward to the follow-up video, great to hear you've no regrets. I recently got a starter pack of 10 of the sleeves and I'm happy with the look and the space-saving. Probably going to get more and switch most of the collection when we move house this Spring.
Good luck, would you switch before moving to make that process easier?
@@AndrewDixonMusic That would be ideal but most of my stuff went into storage this time last year, looking forward to being reunited with it all and ditching some of the jewel cases! Really good you managed to pass yours on to a record shop 👍👍
Hi very interesting thoughts on your cd collection I’ve tried various ways to store cds minus the Jewell case and I think the clear sleeves sound like my best option
I will also use a paper sleeve inside the the clear plastic sleeve ,what are your thoughts
What are the boxes you used to store the cds in many thanks 😊
After seeing your two videos and noticing that the protection offered by jewel cases is not what is advertised to be* I decided to take the leap. But i did it a bit differently.
As external sleeves I used those transparent outer sleeves for jewel cases that have an adhesive strip. They are very clear and look really very nice (and are less expensive). Also, for the disc it self I am using front windowed paper sleeves for protection (and to comfort my fears I think... 😅). So in a way I transformed my jewel cased CDs into digisleeved ones. And so far I really enjoy the result. I have the same feeling like when I flipp through my vinyls. Not to say that the space gained is fantastic. Very, very nice. 😃
In this transition I was more radical than you and the only exceptions were the sets with more than 2 discs (but I am thinking for a solution to their size too...). All the others made the transition. Even the boxsets with multiple jewel cases (I kept the box with empty cases though). The only exceptions were the digipacks and the digisleeves.
Regrets? So far none but to be on the "safe" side I still have the empty cases with indications to which album they belonged. 😅
So yes, I like the transition, it feels and looks great so thank you for the needed push you indirectly gave. Keep enjoying your music. 😃👍🎶😌
Footnote: *after a time of sitting idle on the shelf my CDs in jewel cases were getting really dusty on the upper area of the data side, with particles of every size and needed serious cleaning. And I was dusting the shelf regularly. So yes, the jewel cases offer mechanical protection but not so much from the elements and cleaning the dust improperly is the most important source of scratches actually.
Glad to hear it's gone well! I still have no regrets at all. Main thing I've learned though, which thankfully doesn't affect me, is that the wallets should not be made of PVC as that can lead to disc damage. So that's worth checking... Mine are made from POLYPROPYLENE which is safe. I've also now done all my DVDs and saved the same amount of space again!
@@AndrewDixonMusic I knew about PVC and stayed clear from it. I learned from a vinyl collector of the damage it can do.
The sleeves I used are made from the that thin clear PP plastic foil. So they are not only safe but looking quite nice too.
And yes, DVDs are also my next project. For them I intend to use clear document sleeves size A5 made of PP (optimised for keeping paper safe), with paper sleeves for the discs, and binders to put them in. Very practical, cost effective and nice looking. 😃
Here's what i do...if i have 3 or more titles by an artist, i take the disc(s), booklet & back, put the disc & fold the back in half & put both inside the booklet, in the middle by the staple, then stack the full booklets & keep them in a Ziplock sandwich bag...can fit up to 10 per bag!! If the title is in a digipack, i keep that intact...doing that with my whole collection, it cut the space by a THIRD!!
Can you tell me what cases you use and where to order please?