Jay’s Music Reviews Score:
It made sense that my blog’s first product review should be an item relating to my favourite format – vinyl. I’d recently been on the lookout for a box to house my most precious LPs – the classics, the favourites and the valuables. These records were deserving of their own well-constructed, slightly flash and most importantly – durable storage box. After searching around Leeds’ poor selection of record shops and inevitably finding nothing special, I went online. I came across a brand named Steepletone. I did a bit of research and discovered they’re involved with the production of music electronics such as turntables and media systems. Being a manufacturer of musical products and not just a producer of boxes – I deduced the quality of their product would be of a significantly higher standard what with it being tailored specifically for music consumers by a company dedicated to music consumers.
I browsed their range of boxes and discovered several variant designs being offered in alternate colours, one of which was a warm orange – which really caught my eye. So, I’d found my colour – I just needed to find the design. I found most of them to be your bog-standard rectangular box with a flat, hinged lid, but I really liked the ‘SRB3‘ (Steepletone Record Box 3 I assume?) which featured a sloped front. The innovative sloped design appealed to me for several reasons. It would make for an easier record sifting experience due to the spines being visible and I’d find it aesthetically pleasing to see the records partially exposed yet partially encased by their protective orange shell (if anybody can make sense of what I’m talking about, it’s quite possible you have an obsessive compulsive disorder). Lastly, the major pro of the SRB3’s design is the hinged lid. The sloped front of the box means the lid becomes extremely deep, allowing for records to be placed and displayed above the box while browsing. So, I checked out all the specs and was convinced it was the box to buy.
I purchased the ‘SRB3‘ and waited around for a couple of days until it arrived. On arrival, I hastily cut into the cardboard packaging with excitement, expecting to exhume the perfect record storage box from within the polystyrene. However, I was quickly met with disappointment. They’d sent me the wrong box! I was now the proud owner of the regular “flat lidded” ‘SRB2′ (pictured below). So, just like with my purchase, you’ve been mislead – this is actually an ‘SRB2‘ review. In addition to being sent the wrong product, the finish was completely different from how it was depicted in its photographic representation. From the presentation photographs, the box appeared to be wood with a painted orange finish. This smooth looking orange finish was actually a faux-leather textured material, embellishing my box with just the right tacky look that I’d been searching for. I’ve used this very same material before at University when I made some cheap replica Moleskine journals, and let me tell you – it’s not good quality. I absolutely loathe it. So, if anybody from Steepletone is reading this review – please provide new photographs of your products because at the moment it’s an unequivocal case of misrepresentation.
I contacted the vendor but ultimately they wouldn’t replace it – nor would they reimburse me. So, to make the most of a bad situation, I started filling it with records. Now, as I previously mentioned, the sloped ‘SRB3’ featured a deep diagonal lid, with no rim on the front side – meaning it would double-up as a record stand. The ‘SRB2’ has a rim that abuts all sides of its lid preventing it from being used to hold things. It was one of the product’s key selling points as far as I was concerned, so you can imagine how annoyed I am right now.
Despite being thoroughly disappointed with the product not satiating my expectations, it’s actually quite well crafted. The fabric is neatly stapled from the inside, which itself is lined by a brown canvas material. However, the product has a significant design flaw that proves to be beyond redemption. As I already mentioned, the whole intention of purchasing this box was to hold my most cherished LPs, and being my most cherished, they’re naturally all in protective PVC sleeves – you know the ones, those really nice frosty “orange peel” textured ones that don’t get scuffed or creased very easily and provide great protection for your vinyl. Well, these sleeves naturally add just over a centimetre of additional width to your record depending on its thickness, with thicker gatefold records reducing the excess the most. So, I started to place my records in. I found it to be incredibly tight with the addition of the sleeves, but they just about managed to fit in. However, when I went to close the lid on the box I found it wouldn’t go down. At first I thought maybe it was because the records were pushed up to the back of the box where the hinges are located, so I moved the entire bulk of records to the front of the box and tried again. Still, no luck. So, tape measure in hand, I started sizing up the records in their sleeves and compared them to the height of the box. I discovered the box is a centimetre shorter than the records when in their protective sleeves. You might argue it’s not their prerogative to take additional protective sleeves into consideration when creating their product – but with Steepletone being a proper manufacturer of vinyl related products, it should tailor their designs with these things in mind. The box is designed to fit 12″ sleeves perfectly, with no room to manoeuvre. That is a inexplicable error, something I’d expect if I’d bought a box from a company not specialising in the subject. They’ve fucked up big time. I should also point out that wood expands and retracts as the climate changes, so creating a box that fits records to the exact measurement without any buffer is a no-no (although as I write this it occurrs to me it’s probably just made out of a composite material like chipboard anyway). I was considering purchasing Steepletone’s 7″ record box to pair up with the LP box but there’s no chance of me committing to that. The box is currently sat in my living room with the lid permanently open, allowing my records to gather dust.
[4/10]
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