How to Cull Your CD Collection without Missing a Beat

Posted on May 22nd, 2008 in House & Home, Organization

Or, How to Kick the Jams (Out the Door)

No matter how much you love music or are into completing your collection, there comes a time to cull your CDs. Whether it’s taking forever to find Bob Marley among the Backstreet Boys or your 5ives outnumber your Franks, your music collection should be catering your needs, not the other way around. As with any good library, weeding the collection is what helps it grow into something enjoyable, relevant, and useful. If you’re still on the fence, here’s some reasons to consider winnowing your music stash:

Immediate Rewards of Weeding Your CD Collection

Getting rid of the losers makes it easier to find the winners
You waste less time searching for albums
The space required for your collection will stay static
You can earn money selling the items you don’t want
You stumble upon buried treasure albums you forgot you had

So you’re ready to dive in. Where do you start? If you don’t have a plan, it’s easy to get sidetracked and get bogged down in indecision. Try these steps instead:

Get Ready to Rock

Set a goal. This can be a hard goal (driven by numbers or space) or a soft goal (determined in large part by the direction you want your collection to go toward). Some possibilities: Eliminate a set percentage of albums (such as 10 or 15 percent), Eliminate a set number of CDs, Downsize to a specific container or shelf, Cut out all albums you’ve haven’t listened to in two years, Remove CDs that have fewer than four great songs, Cull compilation discs that have a lot of overlap with other albums in your collection. The goal gives you a direction and purpose, even if you don’t stick to it 100%.
Gather all your CDs in one place. Seeing the larger picture of your collection is nearly impossible if it’s scattered around the house.
Find a box or bin to store “Sell” or “Giveaway” items, and keep it close at hand

Ready, Steady, Go

Do a quick scan of all titles. Instantly pull any CDs that you know you’re done with and dump them in your box.
Now, pick a starting place and go album by album. Most CDs will be an instant “Keep,” so don’t waste time debating their merits. If you love it, keep it. If you really like it, keep it.
If you hesitate at getting rid of a CD, put it in the box. (Don’t worry, you’re not getting rid of it yet.)
Walk away for awhile. Come back to make a second round. You may end up getting rid of more or you may wind up pulling some items out of the Sell box. Both are fine.
Put a date on the box and let it sit for a period of a few weeks to a few months. About nine months is the money spot for me; if I haven’t missed anything in the box in nine months, I’ll probably never even remember it’s gone.
Once your deadline has passed, simply load up the box (don’t open it if you don’t have to) and either sell away on eBay or Half.com, or trade them in at a local music store. No drama, no debate, no deliberation. The cooling period has taken all the agony out of letting go of music.

One More Step:

Your albums aren’t the only CDs that need weeding; your mixes do, too. When you clean out your regular collection, go through your burned CDs as well and chuck anything that regularly skips, you never liked in the first place, or you’ll never listen to again.

There’s one caveat, though: if your mixes are largely autobiographical (ie, they take you back to a specific time and place in your life), consider keeping them (or the most meaningful highlights). These are like musical journals that take up just a tiny amount of space. After all, who knows when you’ll want to remember what “23 Hours and 15 Minutes ‘Til My Art History Final Is Over” felt like? (For me, apparently it felt like Eve and Prince combined with a heavy dose of Synchronicity.)

Tips to Keep in Mind

Don’t go too crazy. Culling is about pulling items here and there, not huge overhauls.
Repeat the process on a semi-annual basis or quarterly basis. Smaller, more regular pulls are more effective, in my opinion.
Don’t get rid of artists or discs because you’re not currently in the mood for a specific genre. Your tastes will probably fluctuate and you may miss that CD. Instead, get rid of items that you think are irrelevant to your interests, flat-out subpar, repetitive, or you’re really truly “over.”
Play “Would You Rather” when it comes to borderline CDs. Yeah, you could hang onto that old All Saints album because you might possibly get a hankering for it someday in the right mood. But when it comes down to it, would you rather spend an hour listening to Marvin Gaye? There’s your answer.

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