WHERE TO GET BEST DEALS ON COMPACT DISCS

So you held out for the lowest price in town before finally buying a compact disc player--now you’re faced with the challenge of finding the best place to buy the shiny little discs themselves.

Fortunately for Orange County residents, this is one of the strongest compact disc markets in the nation, so there is a wider range of options for buying CDs than just about any where else in the country.

Perhaps most significant is that while only a handful of retail stores across the nation are devoted entirely to CDs, two are right here: Compact Disc Warehouse in Westminster, which opened in 1984 as possibly the nation’s first CD-only store, and Compact Discs Unlimited in Costa Mesa.

In addition, all major record chains--Tower Records, the Wherehouse, Licorice Pizza, Music Plus, Musicland--have significant stocks of compact discs that are growing by the month, according to a survey of Orange County record stores. There are also smaller, locally based chains, such as Peer Records, and several independent stores that stock varying amounts of compact discs. All have at least minimal selection of pop, jazz, country and classical titles.

Finally, some electronics retailers, such as Federated Group stores, and even major department stores such as Gemco are now offering limited numbers of CDs.

Virtually all Orange County music retailers said that the CD boom of the last year continues unabated but that business would be even better if supply could keep pace with demand. Even with the world’s CD plants operating at full capacity 24 hours a day, orders continue to outpace production.

There are no signs that the problem will be remedied soon because falling prices of players are luring more and more people into the compact disc market. One local electronics store is predicting that CD players will be available for less than $100 by Christmas.

Industry estimates predict that 1.6 million compact disc players will be sold in the United States this year, up from 1 million in 1985 and 200,000 in 1984. Disc sales are predicted to hit 30 million by the end of the year, doubling 1985’s sale of 15 million and representing a more than fivefold increase over the 5.8 million discs sold in 1984.

As a result, retailers still contend with rationing and frequent shortages of hit titles.

“I recently ordered 200 copies of the new Heart CD and I got eight,” said Robert Stapleton, manager of Tower Records’ El Toro store. “At first they were just going to ship me five, but I called the warehouse and screamed, so I got eight.”

While statistics indicate that compact discs account for 10% to 15% of sales for most record retailers, in Orange County several stores said that CDs represent as much as one-third of their business.

The two factors that distinguish one store from another are selection and price. In Orange County, the best CD selections are at Tower’s three stores, the Wherehouse store on Harbor Boulevard in Costa Mesa, Compact Disc Warehouse and Compact Discs Unlimited, all of which maintain more than 3,000 titles on CD.

Most major chains keep anywhere from a few hundred to 1,500 CDs on hand, with prices averaging $13.99. Sale items are periodically discounted to $11.99 to $12.99, and there are a handful of budget-priced CD titles that sell for $8.99 to $9.99.

Beyond price and selection differences, some independent stores offer a couple of notable services that the chains don’t.

At Compact Disc Warehouse, customers can audition new CDs from among 100 titles or any used CD before buying. Compact Disc Warehouse, Record Trading Center in Orange and Compact Discs Unlimited also give trade-in credit of $5 per CD and sell used discs for $8.99.

Although the compact disc’s inherent resistance to wear and tear makes buying used CDs a safe bet, the newness of the medium makes for extremely limited quantities.

“There just aren’t that many used CDs available, and that’s why we don’t have any yet,” said Mark Ludes, one of the managers at Music Market in Costa Mesa, the largest independent record store in Orange County. The store stocks nearly half a million new and used records and tapes but a relatively small CD inventory of 1,100 to 1,200 titles and no used CDs. Ludes said, however, that the store will be revamped soon to accommodate a larger CD section.

Compact discs have become so popular, particularly among classical music listeners, that many stores have drastically reduced or, in a few cases, phased out classical LPs entirely. But most retailers believe that CDs will never completely eradicate vinyl LPs.

“Not every record will ever be put on CD, and there are millions of turntables already out there that will always need records,” said Robert Heinlein, owner of Record Trading Center in Orange, which deals in new and used records, tapes and now CDs. “I see this turning into a two-tier business: teen-agers will buy records that they can play, scratch and take to the beach and parties, and adults will buy CDs. I see the two peacefully coexisting.”

The following store-by-store summary lists the number of Orange County locations for each chain, or the city for stores with only one location, price and selection information and whether the stores carry used CDs. Stocks of less than 1,000 CD titles are considered below average. Average selection is 1,000 to 2,000, while stores with more than 2,000 titles are rated above average:

COMPACT DISC WAREHOUSE (Westminster): New and used CDs exclusively. Above average selection. Most titles $13.99. Sale items $10.99 to $12.99. A few budget CDs at $9.99. Large selection of imports at $17.99 to $18.99. Used: $8.99.

COMPACT DISCS UNLIMITED (Costa Mesa): New and used CDs exclusively. Above average selection. Most titles $12.99 to $13.99. Used: $8.99.

LICORICE PIZZA (6 stores): Below average to average selection at most stores. Largest inventories at Santa Ana, Costa Mesa and Huntington Beach stores. Most titles $13.99. Some sale items at $11.99. No used CDs.

MUSIC PLUS (8 stores): Below average to average selection at most stores. Most pop titles $12.99, sale items $11.99. Classical titles average $13.99, sale items $12.99. No used CDs.

MUSICLAND (7 stores): The nation’s largest record chain offers below average selection of primarily hit titles. Largest inventory at South Coast Plaza store. Most pop titles $14.99 to $16.99. Some sale items at $12.99 to $13.99. Classical CDs average $16.99. No used CDs.

MUSIC MARKET (Costa Mesa): Average selection. Most titles $12.99 to $13.99. Some sale items at $10.99 to $11.99. No used CDs.

PEER RECORDS: (4 stores): Below average to average selection. Largest inventory at Irvine store. Most titles $13.99. Limited sale items as low as $9.99. No used CDs.

RECORD TRADING CENTER (Orange): New and used CDs. Average selection. Most titles $13.99 to $14.99. Used: $8.99.

TOWER RECORDS (3 stores): Above average selection. Most titles $13.99 and $14.99. Some sale items at $11.99 to $12.99. Good selection of imports at $16.99 to $17.99. No used CDs.

WHEREHOUSE (15 stores): Average selection. Most titles $13.99 to $14.99. Some sale items at $11.99 to $12.99. Largest inventories at Orange and Harbor Boulevard store in Costa Mesa. No used CDs.

LIVE ACTION: Tickets go on sale Monday at 10 a.m. for the Bob Dylan-Tom Petty concert June 16 at the Pacific Amphitheatre. The amphitheater’s gates will open at 7 a.m. Random priority numbers determining line position will be distributed between 7:30 and 8 a.m. Tickets will also be available through Ticketron and Teletron. . . . Individual tickets for Frank Sinatra (June 22), Bob Hope (July 6) and the Dizzy Gillespie-Dave Brubeck-Stan Getz concert (Aug. 1) at the Pacific also go on sale Monday. . . . Tickets for Heart’s May 18 show at Irvine Meadows Amphitheatre go on sale Sunday. . . . Rita Coolidge plays the Coach House in San Juan Capistrano on May 9. . . . Joe Cannon returns to the Crazy Horse Steak House in Santa Ana on May 12.