How often do you shop for music?

It's ritualised for me. I do it once a month, the first Saturday after payday.

Sorry if that doesn't make you feel any better. But I realised a while ago that I had to control my habit when I couldn't pass a record store without going in.

Far, far too much

On average - 3 times a week
Probably once Intentionally and the other times by accident.
Usually HMV on a Monday (although this is getting less regular as I realise I can't find what I want in there)
Camden on a Saturday or a Sunday
And usually one or two others, Mr CD for Promo's/Cheap stuff, Smallfish for odd dance stuff.

I do like the idea of Kate's - Which I have tried to do (and failed).
The trouble is I'll read about something, really really want to listen to it, so keep an eye out for it coming out and then rush out for it when it finally comes out.
I really should start copying more stuff off mates.

I don't *like* doing it this way, but it's rather an economical necessity. ;-)

And the problem with doing it this way is, half the time by Record Buying Saturday, I've forgotten what it is exactly that I wanted to get in the first place!

I used to stop in at the record store to shoot the shit on my way home from work everyday.
"Oh, I'm just going in to catch up on the sleazoid news of the day," I'd tell myself. But I started walking out with purchases 1 out of 3 times. So I cooled it, only went in when my intention was to buy something.
"Whatsa matta, you been sick or something?" Followed by a ritual punch in the junk.

I usually go shopping every Thursday or Friday. I get paid on Thursday, so it just depends on whether I work Thurs. morning or Thurs. night. Usually I intend to only buy one album a week, but end up walking out with 2 or 3. Sometimes out of guilt and lack of finances I skip a week.

i've had to cut back a LOT, although i never was on a set schedule. in high school, i used to go into record shops practically every day---spent an ungodly amount of time at my favourites after school every day but usually didn't buy anything due to lack of funds. whenever i could scrape enough milk money together to buy something, i usually would---kept my favourite store full of change in their drawer when they were still open! and who needs calcium, anyway? ;)

now, i usually try not to go in unless i absolutely have got something specific in mind to find. unless there's some random strange sale or something going on which would make it really stupid of me not to go in. had i more money, chances are good i'd be making at least weekly jaunts.

it also helps that i can't drive, and therefore am somewhat limited in my options. good for reining in the cash.

I keep a notepad by my computer to jot down album titles on. When one page is done, I shop. I hate impulse buying because I often cross things out after a few days of realizing that it isn't, indeed, that great.

I browse used and bargain bins quite a bit though. I've recovered a number of great records from them. Well, subjectively great.

Does the price you pay for something have an effect on your enjoyment of it? (new thread?)

I don't actually enjoy listening to a CD more after paying gobs of money for it. But I do treasure it more in an archival sort of way. I love knowing I'm the only kid on the block that owns James Talley's "No Bread, No Milk, No Money." (Hey, it's a pretty lame block.)

I am in the CD store Every weekday

The only record store in my small city is directly across from the newspaper. I go in at least once a day to check the new selection of used CDs and my special orders.

i go to the record stores here every week but i rarely buy anything, my taste does not correspond to the hippies that own the stores. mail order for me. i sorta rotate through different places.

I probably shop for music three times a week -- but often on a shopping day I hit more than one shop. I rarely buy just one CD; zero is common, so is three or four.

Actually, my signif. other is travelling a lot these days so both my CD shopping and CD listening are up. When he's around, CD shopping becomes more of a once every week or two thing.

Shop in a store? Once every couple weeks. But to make strategic hits, I spend a LOT of time browsing the internet. A LOT. And maybe that counts as shopping, too.

Good point Kenan.

Another pattern of mine is to leave a record shop wondering whether some of the discs I left in the Used bins are actually little-known treasures. Followed by research on the internet. Followed, in some cases, by rushing back to the shop the next day in the hope they're still there.

Is it obsessive to bring a small notepad to the record store with you?

Never. Stealing from the internet is so much easier.

Kenan is OTM. Another way to make sure you make only fine buys is to scavenge a bit on Kazaa or other P2P software. But AMG is still my first source on things to buy (and the reason why I started to buy OH SO MUCH MORE CD's than I would some years before...)
Shopping time is everytime I see CD's for sale (tho' I jump directly to the nice price/used/opportunity bin) and every Saturday, to my local "black" market, to browse for used stuff and look for some CD's only released on the Monday after...

If U count the web then daily, but i don't always buy.

arrrr, im a pirate.

If I go past a record shop, I go in. I may not buy anything.

As a few people have touched on, the internet has changed everything. Not only does easy access to info and opinions mean you want things that much more, there's also the ease of buying stuff over the net.

For instance, I'm not supposed to be buying anything at the moment cos I bought a load of CDs when I was in the States a few weeks ago, and I haven't even got through them all yet. But I've still been in Fopp this week and bought 4 £5 CDs (one planned, three impulse). And without even intending to I just ordered 3 CDs from Amazon marketplace this morning because I'd been looking for them for a while and not seen them in any shops. Didn't want to miss out.

Then there's the steady drip, drip of ebay stuff. You have a look to see what's out there, see something and either think "that's really cheap" or "I've been looking for that for ages and it's out of print" and before you know it you've put in a couple of bids.

And because it's all on the credit cards it's not real money until you get the bill.

So in a week when I'm not buying anything I've shopped five times and bought nine CDs. This has got to stop.

I go once every month or so. I buy any new releases I want off the internet generally, but I go to Selectadisc, Fopp or one of the megastore sales every few weeks. It works out at just over 1 CD a week I think. I'm trying to cut down in anticipation of going to North America next month.

I still store-shop, I usually go on Saturdays or Sundays. I order stuff online too, but generally I save that for things that are too obscure to find at the rekkid shoppes; and I'm too lazy to ask them to order it then wait for the call.