How I Future Proofed My Music Room With CD Wallets 

Links to the clear sleeves and boxes I have used to free up space: CD Wallets: amzn.to/43zryAm Storage boxes: amzn.to/3N0imjc DVD Wallets: amzn.to/3OLHjA9

I transferred all of my CDs to poly sleeves, which also fits all of the physical artwork (brand: Slim Disc). Did the same with my DVDs. Like you, I have no regrets. The space it saves is incredible, and because many of my jewel cases were scratched and cracked from moving apartments so many times, the albums all now look new and vibrant. My philosophy about my collection is very similar to yours.

I switched to these sleeves for my CDs and DVDs/blurays a few years ago and couldn’t be happier. I was a little worried about scratching the discs, so I put my discs in those thin rice sleeves inside the larger sleeve for extra protection with almost no extra bulk. Works great, and the amount of space I’ve saved is ridiculous!

Hi Andrew What a fabulous idea. I have downsized from a four bed house where I had converted a garage to a music room to a small two bed cottage. I have a huge cd collection which at the moment stored in boxes in the loft. I will be taking up your idea so thank you for this video

I switched over to these CD wallets years ago. It was the BEST thing I ever did....no regrets at all!

I have followed a very similar path (including the storage boxes) and have now transferred over 2000 CDs. I have no regrets whatsoever. I love the look of the CDs in the super clear sleeves. The CDs look refreshed and I have so much more space.

great idea been doing this for a few years now, saves so much space and send them old cracked cases to recycle win win

Hi Andrew. Great video and I remember part 1 very well. I've moved a lot of my cds over into slipcases now also. Recently though I've finally sorted myself out with a full Spotify account and that has actually succeeded in stopping me buying too many of the buggers!!

Im a jewel case person, i never remove the art work,so all my cd booklets are in mint condition,i would not use plastic sleeves as i would worry creasing them remiving the cds

I've switched. For me it makes the CD packaging closer in feel to vinyl, like when you flick through then. You get much more close and personal to the physical artwork.

Thanks Andrew for this video. I am taking the plunge, at least with my DVDs. Like you I have run out of space for my CDs, DVDs and vinyl (let's not talk about my books). I've purchased 400 sleeves and hope to make more room for my CDs. If I like the result, I may do the same for the CDs.

Hi Sir, I ditched 3000 jewel cases some years ago, no regrets BUT the disk itself must go into a paper inner then into the sleeve (Digipacks etc I left intact). The reason is I have thrown away about 200 Dvds DESTROYED by plastic in contact with the surface. For some reason the slim dvd wallets came with a second plastic inner sleeve....BIG MISTAKE. Space savers are fantastic for me but I am externaly thankful for the paper inners on the Cds. Just my findings. Best wishes Steve.

I think what you have suggested is great idea to save space Andrew thanks

Well…. Yesterday I came across your first video about changing… since yesterday I bought 100 wallets… changed them over and in the last 24 hours I’ve bought another 300!! So 200 transferred… 200 cd’s waiting for tomorrow’s delivery!! One thing I did do was to look for a cheaper storage case… which I found in my local B&M… £3.50 for two and holds up to 70 CDs…. Not as nice as yours but does the job!

I no longer have any CDs, but would do this if I still had them. Always hated jewel cases - horrible things. This is a great space-saving idea.

Not really my thing but if it works for you that's all that matters. People are weird. I do have one concern regarding scratching tho: With how much space there seems to be inside, the disc could move back and forth enough to scratch eventually. Probably not gonna be a problem with your setup but I'd be reticent to move them long distance.

and all your cd's will get scuffed , jewel boxes and digi paks ( but not card sleeves) elevate the disc so that the surfaces of the disc do not touch anything, if you have surface contact regardless of the material, it will mar the disc surface. Seen it happen.

I have been using them for some time and love them. The amount of room they free up is enormous.

Although I have not gone down your route another advantage is that your spines won't fade over time in rooms with sunlight.

I use the space saver sleeves. Most people HATE them but they save a TON of room. I'd rather have my 12k+ cds readily available then have them stored away in their jewel cases. Thanks for posting.

No need to toss out Jewel Cases, or Digisleeves or Digipaks. They also sell inexpensive plastic sleeves, large enough to enclose these entire cases for CD. More and more CDs are packed in either Digisleeves or Digipaks, so you do toss out artwork if you get rid of those. They sell inexpensive plastic sleeves that you slip it all into to. With jewel cases, it prevents the scuffing and friction burns jewel cases are notorious for collecting in short time (from shuffling through them). I do this. The plastic sleeves large enough for the entire case is wonderfully protective. If you sit on it, yes it will break. I keep them boxed up in mint condition after looking at the new ones and the booklet once. The key is that I use a computer to rip the CD to album folders and save them on my hard drive. I also have a copy on my smartphone. I can play them from my phone, or from my computer using Bluetooth. I can also play them on vintage stereos using a Bluetooth Receiver that connects to any vintage receiver using it's RCA input/output. Don't play your CDs live using a CD player. No need. Save your physical music collection and show it off proudly as necessary. It will become a prized snapshot of our culture generations later. When all the Streamers loss their cultural heritage when their cloud goes kaapoot, they won't even be able to remember which songs they loved during their youth. With a physical collection, you preserve not only the music, but create a cultural time capsule. The number one reason for collecting anything, be it stamps, coins, comic books, baseball cards, or CD albums, is to preserve our culture for future generations to inspect. With Streaming Services, the future cultural authorities will certainly vaporize those clouds. When our culture goes out of fashion, it of course will be branded wrong-headed, uncool, or worse, evil. So, for the love of all things good, please preserve your music collections for the sake of preserving our culture for the future to learn from, otherwise, it will simply be erased, and our lives and music will get reinvented as thinking like future brain washed folks think, and liking what they like etc (that's what our generation of cultural authorities has done with past generations, so except the future to do it to us as well . . . unless we preserve it, then at least a few more will actually be aware of it.) So, the number one reason for collecting to preserve, like a museum, a snapshot of our lives . . . through our CD albums in this case . . . when you have a room filled with your collection, it becomes a museum of sorts to visitors. Interested music lovers will browse, learn, and fall in love with your music. Then they build their own collection. This revitalizes the entire music industry: record labels sell more music. Artists earn more money from their new music, so they record more. They have bigger production budgets (the music gets better and better). Stereo manufacturers begin building new systems because their are more music listeners. Musicians become our cultural heroes rather than politicians financed by big money. Music spreads Democracy and keeps cultural authorities and politicians from creating dystopia on earth. Music is the great liberator, but only if you collect the physical music, and only if you save it well, in prized collections, and show it off. For the love of all things good, please cancel your monthly streaming music service, ditch it altogether, and go out to a real music and buy real CD albums, and if you don't have one close by, then Amazon has fantastic deals, and Target too, online. (conspiracy theory: Amazon sells a large number of Music CD Albums with busted up jewel cases. This is because they actually don't want collecting CDs to become too popular. sad to say it, but some theories are true)

very interesting andrew, i have never thought about this before i would for sure have to think about it first, but i also have a space problem, because i have already filled two rooms with cds and blurays and other stuff

very logical and well reasoned. i am about to do the same thing. so those specific sleeves will never stick to a disc?

Huge movie and music collector here Blu-rays, DVDs, Vinyls, CDs and I agree a 1000% with every point you make. I moved 80% of my collection to sleeves and never regretted. And if for some reason I own a rarity and I don’t want it anymore I put that disc on a real case and off it goes. But 99% of used physical media sells for $1 😅

I think you’ve sold me on this for albums which I hardly touch but want to have

I bought 2 packs of 100 sleeves from a seller local in my country to give this method a try (heavily influenced by your first two videos on this matter). To be honest, I don't have much of a choice at this point. 🤣 I'm an absolute CD junkie, and I have been for decades. And when you live in an apartment flanked by eaves... you simply don't get the wall shelving needed for a large collection. We'll see how this goes. If I can live with the results, I'll order 10 more packs to get the rest of the collection done. But I do plan on keeping all the jewel cases. They will simply live in storage.

Regarding the broken, scratched, ugly jewel cases - well, just handle them well and they stay clean and nice. If one breaks, just replace it with a fresh one.

I did this back in the late 90s and regretted it after a couple of years. I felt like my collection was worthless. I understand space is a real issue, especially for people who live in big cities where flats are smaller, but if I had to put my entire collection in sleeves and play the CDs through a streamer, at that point I might as well just sell the CDs and keep the files, or simply stream in CD quality from Tidal without needing a collection at all. Again, total understanding from me, but this isn't for me.

Great video thanks for sharing !!

Ultimate space saving approach. I sold all my CDs😂

Hi there, Andrew. Great video once more. I see you put Hearts and Bones by Paul Simon up on the vinyl wall behind you. Great album. Have you had a chance to listen to Simon's latest album, released last week or so? Seven Psalms is the title of the album. In my opinion it's a fantastic late career work from Paul. Take care!

Not sure what exact sleeves you used ? I might consider this if they made, safe, scratch/acid free sleeves that could fit the booklets and tray cards in tact. But they don't without folding or cutting them. I have seen idiots cutting them down to fit or just throwing away the tray cards all together. No thanks on that for me. If I buy a used disc, it gets cleaned and a new jewel case and bagged. I am a stickler for condition.

I switched from CD cases to wallets 21 years ago and I now regret it. Yes I may not have respected my cds as much as i could have but - I havnt played them for more than 9 years ( went to downloads) and when I took them out of the wallets recently to use and after ultrasonic cleaning pre use, I found that the CD's were surface rubbed dramatically. Not scratched - rubbed. Almost a matt finish, I can only assume from the wallet style envelopes. I now either have to source replacements which will not be easy as some are now quite rare or I have to re polish every disc. I use a very high quality player ($3k+)and it picks up the damage to the point I can't stand the playback quality. It may have been the matarial used for the sleeves? I dont know but I wish I had kept them in the original jewel cases now. Im accepting all blame for my stupidity. 😞😞

Uhhhhh, i will pass on endeavor 😂

USB ....end of

I’ve fallen out of CDs and moved on to records but as a former CD collector, I would say dont do this. You’re not losing the artwork but you’re losing the presentation and the protection the actual jewel case offers. Doing this made me fall out of love with CDs a long time ago, it just made it boring to collect

Yikes. If I ever get to the point where I consider putting all of my CD's that I can in little plastic envelopes I would know it's time to sell my entire collection.

Definitely a nice way to ruin your CD's and make them hold no value whatsoever. You'd be better of just streaming your music. Of course everyone can do what they want but just hate to see physical media being destroyed. Every time you take them in and out it's causing fine scratches that might not be visible for a while but eventually they'll be unplayable. Any record company will verify this.

I swapped over all of my CDs other than my Beatles/McCartney collection a year ago after watching you talk about it. No regrets at all, I've now managed to fit everything in with room to spare, no more broken plastic cases annoying me.

I don’t get it - I’d either rip all the cds lossless and put the original cds in the loft (or sell them off) - otherwise keep the cds in jewel cases out on display to play. Just don’t see the benefit myself but if you do that’s great! Just my thoughts!

I swapped over to sleeves after your first video and I have no regrets. I now buy lots more cds as I have freed up several storage shelves. Like you, I rip them (FLAC) to a music server which makes listening to my music so much more pleasurable.

You make a very good case for changing over to cd wallets Andrew! As you say, space is at a premium for many people, me included. I've also bought second hand cds where the jewel cases were cracked and scratched so swopping to a cd wallet makes good sense! Thank you for sharing this with us!

I'm with you all the way. It's all about practicalities and maximising the space you have available. I must admit some of the reasons folks have challenged you with are rather puerile and don't stand up to any scrutiny or common sense. I have over 10000. I have no intention of selling them, I couldn't care less about re-sale values. I'm 62 and have only recently begun to think of what might happen and at what point in the future. I do think I'll offload at some point as I have no one at present to leave them too or who would appreciate the breadth and diversity of my vinyl/CD collection. I have a very eclectic taste. Of course every collection is a very personal and unique set of discs that quite frankly reflect a persons life and musical education over a very long period- in my case I started in 1970. My tastes have changed over the years and you can see me growing up through this collection. I'm ranting....

Many Cd jewel cases are easily cracked, broken, and takes up too much space.

This is a great idea and I think you’ve sold me on it. My physical media collection is a bit out of control and I just can see the big binders that some people put their discs into. I love the artwork too much! This is a great compromise. Thanks, man!

Great video. I also use CD inner sleeves which takes care of the "damage the CDs" argument.

I have tended to not buy as many CDs as I did years ago. Often I’ll pick up a track or two from iTunes and it stays in my Computer or iPad. I realize space is important to you but I was wondering if you have the Remco Beatles dolls?

Just ordered some, I'm in a pokey flat and my most recent purchases are just standing around in stacks as there's no room left on the shelves! Anyway, I've always hated the laughably called "jewel" cases, I find them bland and generic.

I don't understand why you have CD's at all if you rip them to a computer file. You'd have plenty of space then.....

I cataloged and boxed all of my cd's up. I know were they are if I need to rip one again. I completely understand the appeal of saving the space and being able to look at the collection.

Keep the jewel cases. Just buy some proper shelving. Floor to ceiling, CD depth, around 1m wide holds around 1000 CDs in a way they can easily be catalogued and found.

Delighted to have come across this, albeit by accident! I too have a listening room with space constraints. I didn't realise these larger sleeves existed, so they could be a game changer for my CD storage. I feel an Amazon order coming on...

DONT STORE CD s like this 100% damage will take place on the playing surface

I have just ordered some DVD clear sleeves, looking forward to freeing up some space!

Vashti Bunyan! I saw her perform in a small club in Nashville and got her autograph.

Hi Andrew Did you see the BBC2 doc Hidden Treasures of the National Trust last Friday 9.00pm (26May). The main story was restoring the wallpaper in the front room of the McCartney house, and re-opening Mother Mary's bedroom, which to this point had always been private. More interesting than it might sound, based on a McGear photograph it made quite a good sidebar of Beatles history and there was some insight from an interview with Mike McGear (who along with Paul (not seen) had to approve the final version of the stone wall-effect paper.

I've transferred my entire CD collection to Univenture's jewelpaks. Box Sets, CD singles, promo CDs, and albums. I print out covers and track lists for my box sets and I print front covers only for DVDs. Saves a ton of space. I don't keep the inlay unless there's a photo I want. Like you, I don't think about reselling my collection.

Your space saving solution is very interesting and gives me food for thought. I would definitely place the cardboard CDs that in an envelope like the others because the cover is more vulnerable to even more damage than the jewel boxes! I place those cardboard CDs in small plastic bags to protect them from the hard jewel boxes on either side. The one thing I’m not keen about is the way the sleeved CDs are placed in a box that needs to be retrieved to locate a specific CD. I too keep my CDs as back-ups for the digital content. I had to sell all my vinyl years ago and RIPped them to CD-Rs. I still back up my digital purchases on CD-Rs since I prefer to have a tangible version with the artwork aside booklets as you do. I started collecting music in the 60s on vinyl and I still bemoan the loss of vinyl. I know that vinyl made a comeback but I don’t feel it’s the same. I do like the mobility of music and want to carry it with me on my mobile and listen to it in my car. One issue that I am concerned about in regards to digital content is that it can get corrupted on hard drives so I keep duplicates on several drives. The drives have a lifetime so they are also limited. The CD-Rs are not finite either so one day they will fail as well…. With all the issues vinyl has being susceptible to scratches and pops, heat that can warp them, the grooves don’t tend to get corrupted like digital files so at least in that aspect they are better.

Hi Andrew. Great video, but I need to raise a point regarding your storage of CDs when it's a double album. The thinnest layer on a compact disc is the top side or label side. Having the label sides rubbing against each other will actually cause eventual damage. The top layer of a CD is incredibly thin consisting of nothing more than a thin coat, or even worse a rather coarse picture label. It really doesn't take much for this thin layer to get damaged in these storage conditions. Once the reflective layer is exposed (however minutely) the damage is not reversible.

I’ve run out of space. But not doing that. And cds these days are in digi packs and not in jewel cases now. Put the CDs you don’t play much into a box.

I have 3000 DVD Like this in 10 Boxes 😅👍

I switched the bulk of my cds and dvds to this when I moved in with my wife. Now we live in a house and have the space for cases and want to go back 😂. But I’m still glad I did it.

My only issue is certain cd sets come in cardboard sleeves and others in jewel cases that you will remove and keep separated. That means you have to keep some bands albums separated from each other in your room. I like everything together, all cds from a band in one place, not in different sections of your room. Box sets are understandable because they need their own section shelves.

Curious why you chose this system rather than binders with poly sleeves that fit 8 CDs per sheet. Did you look at that option? Wouldn’t that save even more room? Although it’s a challenge sometimes getting everything from the CD case into one of the pockets

your disks are going to ROT cds need air thus a jewel case .dont do this people .this dude is going to be very sorry in 20 years

I love browsing record shops when I travel and have found this solution to be a lifesaver in being able to fit all my finds into my luggage.

I have about 3500 CDs and have converted all of the standard jewel cases to CPP plastic "sleeves" as they're called in Canada/USA. No regrets. They are all displayed in three CD bookcases which are four feet high and three feet wide each, seven shelves high. I keep them in straight alphabetical order regardless of genre. I file compilation CD's separately. I recycle the jewel cases at the recycle depot. I don't convert the digipak cardboard sleeves either. I really like cardboard sleeves as they so often have great artwork. On the shelf, they give me all the visual alphabetical hints I need to find the CDs that are in sleeves. I buy used CDs almost exclusively because they are so inexpensive. The used jewel cases are very often horribly dirty or broken, but they did their job keeping the artwork and booklets in near new condition! For me converting the old CD into a new sleeve is a big upgrade both visually and for saving space. The sleeves are crystal clear and the artwork is much more visually appealing. I use smaller sleeves than you do: mine are 130mm square. I either fold the backing card to fit, or leave it sticking out unfolded to assist in finding it on the shelf. Per sellability after conversion: I have an eBay store where I sell the CDs that I don't wish to keep. This store more than pays for all the CDs I buy (usually at thrift stores / charity shops for a dollar or two). I sell the CDs in the sleeves without a jewel case as the mailing cost is 1/3 the price. I therefore can sell cheaper than most other sellers. I do give the buyer the choice to pay $2 more if they want a jewel case. Only one person has chosen this option in about 300 sales. Obviously jewel cases are easily replaced. What matters is the artwork, the booklet and the CD. I also rip all my CDs to lossless quality on my computer. I do this whilst I'm listening to the newly acquired CD. I have iTunes match which allows me to listen to all my music on any of my devices. This costs me $28 per year. I store all the music on an 8 TB hard drive. I also back up this hard drive to older smaller hard drives. Even with unlimited space I would use the sleeve method. Unless the jewel case is pristinely new they look so much better than jewel cases. in this case for me, less is more.

I had this brainwave too a few years ago. The only CDs I have now that are in jewel cases are ones with deep sentimental value. The rest are in square sleeves (so I've had to fold over the long CD back insert) and sit perfectly in a chest of drawers. What I love about this method is that you replicate the rifling through LPs at the record shop, so there's an added nostalgic value too. I've also saved myself a MASSIVE amount of space by storing my DVDs and blurays in the same manner. It's infinitely better than using those truly ugly folders.

I like it. Certain artist I won’t do but great idea overall!

I bought a bigger house for my collection!😁

Ok. I’m gonna give it a try. I have about 800 cds and they are taking up a lot of space.

these cost less in the UK than the USA. I looked up and paid $17.99 for a 100

What do you do with t h e jewel cases? And isnt the liner notes part of the collection?

Hi again did you say you ripped your cds to a computer / hard drive what is the trade off for you compared to music streaming services I take my cds out of my plastic sleeves by holding on to everything inside placing on a flat surface and lifting top book from cd and then picking up cd to play in cd Hence no sliding of cd 9then hopefully no scratches) Did I hear you on radio 2 a couple of weeks ago talking about oasis tickets

I wish I could do that with my books.

I really like your idea Andrew, but those boxes are so expensive. I'd need about 6 for what I want to achieve. Can't justify it

Would you do this to a copy of the Pet Shop Boys album "Very"? I wouldn't....

Hi Andrew, The inner Dvd sleeves claimed to be PPL and safe. Lesson learned and I'm just glad it wasn't the music collection which has stayed pristine in paper then plastic. For what it's worth the wallets I sourced from a company called "slimdisk' and weren't particularly cheap if I recall. For my CD collection I am more than happy. Steve

I would need 38 of those boxes and then have to start buying more.

broken CD cases, i replace, its originality, and loses value.

Hi Andrew, thanks for the video. I followed you part way, transferring some of my cds into wallets and keeping some jewel cases. I have disposed of so many discs over the years just because I was short of space so this is a much better option for me. Thanks again as I would never have known about the wallets if not for your original video.

The only thing is, you can't see the end label when they're all lined up on the shelf.

Hey Andrew, good seeing you again. I see you’ve bought the Lemmon Twigs as well! I got mine Saturday last, even filmed the record shop here in Oslo where I bought it. Loved it.

Thanks for the video, Andrew! If it works for *YOU*, it's goodness! 🙂

This is a great space saving idea. When I buy cds now, I try to go for the digi pack style as opposed to the jewel cases.

Paul Simon's "Hearts And Bones" behind you is in my absolute top 20 of all times.

Just as a footnote to this video. Today I purchased Bob Dylan's "Shadow Kingdom" on CD and it came in a cardboard gatefold CD cover, and the assistant in the record store told me how a couple of record labels are looking to completely phase out the jewel cases by the end of next year, as it's becoming more cost effective to do so. This I think is both good news for the consumer and for the environment. I have looked at my CD shelves and they are slowly starting to grow in number. Hopefully it's the way forward, in the meantime I'm awaiting the delivery of my next packs of the wallets.. By the way The Dylan album is great, well worth a tenner of anyone's money...

I love those Japanese LP replica CDs. Wish all CDs were released like that.

Andrew.. Love your videos have watched you from the very start.. After watching your past video on this subject i have since developed a 'Music Room' in my house and i am now half way through the process of transferring all my C. D. s to wallets fantastic idea.. Love it👍👍

I ditched my jewel cases for the sleeves and I have no regrets. I think people that have 200+ cd's will feel the same way.

Done similar, takes up a lot less space

Thank you very much for this, It is something I am thinking about. Phil

If I could just write legibly. Not for me but interesting. If you're worried about scratches then look at the function of the jewel case. The CD sits on a spindle where the data part of the CD never touches anything. But they also have figured out the glass bottle was the most environmentally friendly for soda or pop... I digress.

My solution was to put all my music on my laptop and into Windows media player. I have instant access to all music. I can select by album by artist by year.i can shuffle album tracks artist cross fade tracks genres artists albums. Ripped lossless. I put it through an external dac and into my 5.1 av... It's fantastic.

I used Zip Loc bags before, and also for when I mail multiple CDs to friends because a lot more can fit inside a box that way.

I have crates of CDs in the attic , im thinking about this ,,my main collection i will keep in the cases but my excess collection i want to have handy ,,,i do like the fact you still got all the artwork and can revert back if required ,,

Definitely not your best idea 😂

Smart move Andrew 👍👍 I have been doing this since 1997 when it was difficult to place double CD cases in alphabet order in shelving . Bags Unlimited in New York came through for me I have been doing this since then my CD's are not in site I can simply find what i am looking for in seconds I have them stored in a 16X16 box that normally stores 100 CD's I tripple that space is more important you do not need to buy any shelves you are good .👍👍

I have done the same with about 200 of my CDs. I haven’t done it with digipaks, neither have I done it with anything that had a hype sticker on the front casing. With single CDs, instead of putting the disc in the middle of the booklet, I have used rice paper type clear CD protective sleeves. They look great in these wallets and like you say the space saving is incredible, so I can now carry on buying more music.

Hi Andrew! I was wondering..... have you ever done a "let's create a Beatle album" poll? We used to have fun creating these with cassette tapes. You take all the solo releases each year, before John went into retirement, and vote which would have made it onto a Beatles album. Order is important too. 1980 is also doable with Double Fantasy release. As long as each Beatle had a solo output that year...you can create a Beatle album. Fun!