Pros and cons of CD storage mediums..

Discussion in 'Music Corner' started by Baba Oh Really, Feb 19, 2012.

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  1. Baba Oh Really

    Baba Oh Really Certified "Forum Favorite" Thread Starter

    Location:
    mid west, USA
    JEWEL CASES - the first storage medium, and probably still the favorite (or is it)? PROS: fairly sturdy, visually pleasing. You can stack them high without damage to the cases or the discs. CONS: you drop the thing once on the first day of getting it, one of the "TABS" breaks off, which really ruins the whole thing. Cases get cracks as well. ANOTHER PRO: the cases can be easily replaced.

    DIGIPACKS - PROS: No tabs to break, looks pretty cool, will last a long time if and stay fairly good looking if taken care of. CONS: If not taken care of these can look CRAPPY real quick. Forget about stacking these. They don't do well under pressure.

    Anything to add? What's your preference? And what is the future of CD storage?
     
  2. Thurenity

    Thurenity Listening to some tunes

    Preference -- Jewel boxes. Reason -- I can toss the jewel box and just keep the liner notes and put the CD in a storage case. If it were up to me, they could toss the jewel boxes completely as I don't need them - just give me a sleeve and liner notes only.

    I find it hard to part with Digipacks, since the artwork cannot be separated from that.

    As for the future? There is none. :( Just a fact of life that we're all going to have to deal with, in the coming years.
     
  3. Grant

    Grant Life is a rock, but the radio rolled me!

    Digipacks are lighter and save space. But, jewel cases look spiffy!
     
  4. Norm Apter

    Norm Apter Well-Known Member In Memoriam

    Location:
    Worcester, MA
    By "tabs," do you mean the inner spindle that locks the CD in place?

    It is my understanding that DIGIPACKS refer to cases in which there is a spindle-device in the center to lock the disc in place though with a paper-based outer cover, whereas the ECOPACK is more along the mini-LP style in that there is no spindle and the disc simply slides into the paper slot or a sleeve (if provided or added).

    I love Jewel Cases because they are easily replaceable and tend to have wider spines that make these titles more easily retrievable (i.e. visible) in my collection, have no problem with DIGIPACKS but abhor ECOPACKS with a passion. The Radiohead In Rainbows and Animal Collective Merriweather Post Pavilion albums are in these ECOPACKS that resemble puzzles. I just want to be able to grab the CD and go.
     
  5. Vidiot

    Vidiot Now in 4K HDR!

    Location:
    Hollywood, USA
    Hard drives.

    [​IMG]

    CDs are so "90s." :o

    But as far as the original format goes, Jewel Boxes to me were an almost perfect storage medium: no physical contact to the disc surface (assuming the center hub works correctly), great protection for the disc on all sides, no chance of the disc slipping out accidentally (unlike LPs), room for a good-sized booklet (up to 25-30 pages). If they had just made the hinges better, the jewel boxes would've been really perfect.
     
  6. George Blair

    George Blair Senior Member

    Location:
    Portland, OR
    And left those damn top-seal stickers off. I'd like to drive the guy who thought of that one into a pile of wet cement.
     
  7. Yankee8156

    Yankee8156 Senior Member

    Location:
    New York
    ^ +1 on the hard drive. My preferred method and the future of CD storage.

    I guess by now I prefer the digipak over the jewel case, but the major con of the digipak, IMO is that it can be "flattened" before you even get it.
     
  8. Synthfreek

    Synthfreek I’m a ray of sunshine & bastion of positivity

    I hate the fact that when hub teeth break off on a digipack-style case you're kinda screwed.
     
  9. I swapped all my CDs in jewel cases into Jazz Loft CD sleeves...saved a ton of space!
     
    krisbee likes this.
  10. schwarcw

    schwarcw Forum Resident

    Location:
    Pittsburgh, PA
    I like jewel cases. They take up more space but can be replaced if damaged.
     
  11. Baba Oh Really

    Baba Oh Really Certified "Forum Favorite" Thread Starter

    Location:
    mid west, USA
    Hmmmm. All of my digipacks are one-piece units made of cardboard - no tabs.

    The biggest hazard with those is that the more you open and close them, the more you have the danger of getting a "white line" which can eventually fray and begin to separate.

    I have a used copy of the original Ozzy Osbourne "Live and Loud" digipack with the actual "speaker grid" that is FALLING APART. I used clear packing tape to hold it together. Looks like heck, but I got it for $2.
     
  12. Baba Oh Really

    Baba Oh Really Certified "Forum Favorite" Thread Starter

    Location:
    mid west, USA
    Well done.. I see what you were going for here. You did good!
     
  13. apple-richard

    apple-richard *Overnight Sensation*

    Jewel cases because you can replace them. The plastic is getting thinner each year. I hate cardboard sleeves. They may look cool but wear out just like old LP covers. I refuse to buy anything in an eco pak unless it's used.

    I bought the new Noel Gallagher CD yesterday and almost broke it getting it off the hub. Some CDs can be a real chore because the hub is too big or the hole is too small.
     
  14. JL6161

    JL6161 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    I love the ecopack/digisleeve as long as it's standard size. A couple of recent releases have these obnoxious oversized ones that are too tall for a normal CD rack. Grrrrrrrrrr.
     
  15. John B Good

    John B Good Forum Hall Of Fame

    Location:
    NS, Canada
    I've been noticing some lighter and even more fragile jewel cases too. The engineers and accountants must be greatly improving the bottom line with that :(

    Must say I'm not a great fan of the jewel case anyway. Digi packs are lighter, and if they would consistently provide for any booklet insert... :(
     
  16. SBurke

    SBurke Nostalgia Junkie

    Location:
    Philadelphia, PA
    Agreed. I suppose you could try to make an arts & crafts project out of it but I've never tried. It's a real PITA.

    I used to get all wrapped around an axle about thin paper sleeves, worrying they would scratch the discs. Now I prefer them.
     
  17. JL6161

    JL6161 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    This is why those foam hubs (or dots or whatever) make more sense. If one wears out, which would take a while, pull it off and stick on another. Cheap, simple, and secure, so you'd think they'd be more common, but I see them mainly in box sets.
     
  18. apple-richard

    apple-richard *Overnight Sensation*

    My Glen Campbell The Legacy 1962-2002 has those rubber hubs. I have to admit it took me a good 5 minutes to get the CDs back on. Is there a trick to those things? I couldn't believe what a hard time I was having replacing the disc (4) back in the book.
     
  19. Synthfreek

    Synthfreek I’m a ray of sunshine & bastion of positivity

    Maybe I'm not calling this type of packing the right term...to me this is a Digipak and I don't see how the whole thing is made of cardboard. I'd like to know how to replace that hub.

    [​IMG]
     
  20. JL6161

    JL6161 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    The all-cardboard "digipak" is some version of one of these, which I think is technically called a digisleeve:

    [​IMG]
     
  21. detroit muscle

    detroit muscle MIA

    Location:
    UK
    I like the mini-lp type sleeves as they take up far less space and you don't have to worry about the hub - either losing the teeth on the case or wear and tear on the CD itself.

    I don't care for the card sleeves where there is no inner sleeve and it's a tight fit to get the disc as the CD's are prone to scuffing when taking out.
     
  22. JL6161

    JL6161 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Michigan, USA
    I've only got a few of these in box sets too, but that does seem to be the design flaw: like a wine bottle cork, the foam expands a little when you remove the CD so it's a pain to get back on. I wonder if setting it in the fridge for a couple of minutes would help?

    That's why I like the digisleeve (preferably with protective inner sleeve) approach. No hubs.
     
  23. Dennis Metz

    Dennis Metz Born In A Motor City south of Detroit

    Location:
    Fonthill, Ontario
    Hard drives never!:D:cheers:
     
  24. PROG U.K.

    PROG U.K. Audiophile-Anglophile

    Location:
    New England
    Same design was used for David Gilmour's On An Island. These will and do lead to scratches.
     
  25. Metralla

    Metralla Joined Jan 13, 2002

    Location:
    San Jose, CA
    Ditto on David Gilmour - that's the one I think of. It took a bit of getting used to.

    I don't believe I have another.
     
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