Anybody know anything about th Orion Blue Book,for Audio Gear??

[retrokeeper]

So I've taken on an interest in the Cassette Deck Database the Njord features on his website,and having a "little collection" of vintage audio literature at my disposal,I thought I'd help him refine/add to/clarify some of the cassette deck info that he found from a previous listing of cassette deck specifications.I'm currently working on the Aiwa decks,have quite a few brochures and Stereo Reviews Buyer's Guides,and other literature to verify a large portion of the listings.One of my pieces of literature is a 1994 Orion Blue Book,Audio.In it,is a complete (or at least I hope complete,that's why I'm asking) listing of audio gear model #'s by just about any company that made audio gear back then.It's of course dated 1994,and has info on pretty much all stereo gear made up to that year.It also list the type of gear it is,the year it was manufactured and hopefully sold,the manufacturer,the model,it's "new list" price,retail used price,and it's wholesale Mint/Average price.For those not familiar with the Orion,it was a reference book for used prices to offer for audio gear,mainly for the pawn/audio store businesses.Of course the pricing "used" info is outdated and can't be used nowadays due to auction sites and other pricing info for used gear.I don't even know if Orion is still publishing this book...are they??
What I'm wondering is,how accurate this info really was,and were most of the model listing accurate to what was released here in the the U.S.? I want to use what info I find in this issue,and have found some conflict with some model #'s and Njord's list that he found,and with some of my brochures/audio guides,being that some Aiwa decks may have been introduced in a brochure,but never were actually released.And I'm sure as I make headway thru the other companies,this may be true with other models.I'm aware that some gear appeared in Japan and other countries and were not sold in the U.S.,and that is sometimes indicated in the Orion Blue Book.And some Military PX offerings may also have to be figured in to the models listed.So the bigger question is...for those who remember and used this publication,was the information pretty accurate?? Any feedback/comments/info/thoughts would be greatly appreciated. Rob

[Pacific Stereo]

This was an indispensable aid for those of us in the business. At Pacific, we used this for trade-in value as well as historical data. I used it (but now use usedprice.com) for years afterward and still refer to it periodically. I can't say that it's 100% accurate (how could it be?), but I don't remember any egregious errors, either.

However, there is an issue I noticed with Orion, and that was they would delete stuff in new editions. I have old and new books, and I'll be dammed if stuff that's in an older book isn't anywhere to be found in a newer one. Don't know why, but it's very troublesome. If you happen to have needed something that was in an older edition, you're well, screwed.

I don't know if they still publish a hard copy version.

[Web Police]

I had multiple copies but sold them all off except for one. What I have found is the data contains errors and I really only used the model year, model and the original list price as a guide. The prices of course went out of date shortly after the yearly guide was published. It was one of the best guides out there before the internet.

[Nakdoc]

I've been using the 1990 version, and have found very few errors. They did get very confused about Superscope. The books were issued annually, but I do not know what year they first appeared.
check that. on page 2, the history is discussed in several paragraphs. It looks like the Blue Book format appeared in 1985, but older Orion guides date back to 1973.

[Warped Bezel]

They are pretty great but I still think Beitman's and Riders are probably more helpful, relatively speaking. You can't really get that kind of coverage for hifi/stereo gear it's just not all there in one condensed form.

[StereoGaryo]

This was an indispensable aid for those of us in the business. At Pacific, we used this for trade-in value as well as historical data. I used it (but now use usedprice.com) for years afterward and still refer to it periodically. I can't say that it's 100% accurate (how could it be?), but I don't remember any egregious errors, either.

However, there is an issue I noticed with Orion, and that was they would delete stuff in new editions. I have old and new books, and I'll be dammed if stuff that's in an older book isn't anywhere to be found in a newer one. Don't know why, but it's very troublesome. If you happen to have needed something that was in an older edition, you're well, screwed.

I don't know if they still publish a hard copy version.

Nope. No more hard copies. It's all on-line now at usedprice.com.
I kept the last Orion hard copy from 2007. It's dated, but quick and easy to look something up in a hurry.

Garyo

[Nakdoc]

I'd love to scan it but I think I'd get my brains sued out for copyright infringement.

[ke4mcl]

i just use ebay's completed item search to find the value of an unknown item. it generally covers most things im curious about.

[Pacific Stereo]

Unfortunately, that only goes back 30 days. Used to be a year.

[390FE]

This was an indispensable aid for those of us in the business. At Pacific, we used this for trade-in value as well as historical data. I used it (but now use usedprice.com) for years afterward and still refer to it periodically. I can't say that it's 100% accurate (how could it be?), but I don't remember any egregious errors, either.

However, there is an issue I noticed with Orion, and that was they would delete stuff in new editions. I have old and new books, and I'll be dammed if stuff that's in an older book isn't anywhere to be found in a newer one. Don't know why, but it's very troublesome. If you happen to have needed something that was in an older edition, you're well, screwed.

I don't know if they still publish a hard copy version.

They no longer put out a hard copy. You can only subscribe online & get pricing info online.

I have found errors (and in my opinion they were egregious).

I agree about hanging on to the old books & catalogs as the newer ones drop off older info.

I do NOT like the fact that Orion is NOT putting out hard copy books anymore. If you are on the road &/or have no internet you have no way to look up current info/specs or pricing on the spot.