You won’t find many music fans who aren’t delighted at the resurgence of vinyl records (and other physical media). We can all agree that digital streaming is great. Services such as Spotify and YouTube give us instant access to an enormous range of music across almost every genre imaginable.
That does, however, come at a price. You want ad-free? You pay a subscription. More worryingly, however, are recent reports which show that the average musician earns a pitiful share of streaming revenue. Many services are reluctant to fully disclose how their algorithms work. Of greater concern is the apparent obfuscation of how artist payments are calculated.
Putting that to one side, there’s an undeniable joy in holding a record in your hands. Be it on tape, CD or classic vinyl, a physical presence adds another dimension (literally). Who hasn’t poured over liner notes, lyrics and artwork while listening to their new purchase? Moreover, as music-lovers, don’t we want something real, something tangible? Part of the pleasure in collecting lies in surveying said collection.
All of which is a pretty long preamble (apologies) to the real business at hand – storage! Now, while record-storage isn’t hard to come by – a trip to your local Ikea will sort you out with some plain shelving – stylish solutions certainly are. I can’t recall ever seeing (before now) a music storage unit designed by a true music fan. Which brings us to the wonderful world of Tunetables!
This ingenious range of of CD, tape and vinyl storage, from UK company Tunetables is based on a simple, but fascinating idea – taking the iconic designs of music-equipment flight-cases and sculpting them into handsome display units. The thoughts of Rob Chappelhow, the man behind the Tunetables, are bound to strike a chord (if you’ll excuse the pun) with many a music collector. “The Tunetables idea was borne,” he says, “out of a personal desire to have my music collection around me once again.”
As you can see from the photos on their website, Tunetables products look great. Each hand-crafted case can even be personalised with your own initials or branding. Product from the Tunetables ‘Classic’ line come complete with its own unique number detailed on a custom badge, which is a nice touch. Storage numbers range from 100 – 500 for CDs, 30 – 60 for tapes, and 75 for vinyl. Okay, you’re going to pay more for such a piece than you’re average flat-pack shelf, but Tunetables is as much about style and love of music as it is about storage.
If you’re looking for a good resting place for your records, you should check them out.
Check out Tunetables below: