Preface: I live in a city with about 70,000 people in it. So It's not HUGE by any means, but it's got a healthy local economy, with a very economically diverse community. This is a great recipe for small business, for instance, we have THREE very unique record stores. I've only been listing to Vinyl for a few months, but I have never bought a record anywhere but in my local shops, and I've probably bought about 40 records to date.

Only one of the three shops participates in RSD, they're also the only one that stocks new releases. I hardly ever buy anything from them. They're the most expensive, and they don't clean their records very well before selling. However they have the most convenient layout and they get the most traffic.

The second is a small shop that sells only used records. Great 'new arrivals bin'. Lost of 60's and 70's rock. By far the best prices and the owner cleans absolutely every album and sleeve before listing it. Even has a budget bin that's actually worth a damn: buy 2 get 1 free and he stocks it with records that come through often enough that they aren't worth much, but he leaves out all the junk and I've never bought a record from the budget bin that I wasn't satisfied with. Also, just an amazingly nice guy with great listening suggestions. Love this place.

Finally, the last store is just Gorgeous. Owner has one of the most beautiful Jolida tube amps I've ever seen. This is where I go when I'm looking for something specific, or something rare. Recently bought a beautiful copy of "Thick as a Brick" with the full booklet in immaculate condition for $10 bucks.

I would put all these stores in the "Good" catagory, and the second two might need an even higher pedestal. I spend most lunches browsing through thousands of records because of these awesome shops, and I freaking love it.