CDs and Vinyl outselling digital downloads

I was only pointing out that, from a stand point of the format's popularity, CDs are still big business, and will make gains and losses from year to year. My store nearly doubled CD sales in 2017 from the previous year, and surveys of more than a thousand independent online and brick & mortar retailers in the U.S. and abroad show growing sales of the format.
(that includes new and second-hand trade of course) So it really comes down to consumerism. There is no shortage of people who want CDs. But they should buy 'new' product more than they buy "second-hand" (used) CDs if they want the niche to remain viable going forward. Just like with anything. If people stop buying a product, then the product stops getting produced.

 

FiioX5, Bose 5.1 Surround Sound, Sony 5.1 SACD...

"Probably" ROFL

my vinyl rig is more "mid level" than my digital. Digital is mastered with too much EQ emphasis on the highs and lows...

Vinyl is mastered with more...sympathy.

Vinyl sounds better.

In every instance I've ever heard.

 

Oh, now I understand.

 

It does have a 2-channel option.

I prefer the more natural sounding bottom end of the vinyl mastering.

@aphexj and I concluded that the vinyl cut of the new Sgt Pepper remix is cut from the same Hi-Res files, but the reason the vinyl sounds so much better to everyone who has heard both is simple - the bass rolloff on the vinyl allows for a less congested soundstage, and the high end cut allows for less ear fatigue on the high end.

It's really not that complicated...

 

Your post perfectly encapsulates what I've been saying about vinyl vs CD releases that are from the same source; it's not the format that makes the different but rather the mastering.

 

100%.

That being said, there's THIS :
SH Spotlight - What sounds just like the analog master tape: CD, Vinyl, SACD or a 1:1 analog Reel tape copy?

Which is why I have CDs, SACDs, and LPs.

I choose what sounds best to me, on my system, in my living room.

Ymmv.

 

Or a disagreement over terms between the holder and streaming company when it's time to renegotiate the rights. Or the copyright holder choosing to withhold the material. Or non-availability due to competing exclusive content among different streaming services.

Sorry, but no. I will not have access to the music I want to hear held hostage or dictated by the whims of the streaming services or their "content" providers.

P.S. I know that others have probably said the same things in this thread already but I came late to the party and I'm still going through the posts. That's my excuse and I'm sticking to it.

 

You good. And I agree, as a songwriter and publisher, so many people have/do stream my songs, and we get so little per 10,000 streams that it's not worth it to put a whole bunch of money into writing/recording new music.

Sad...but totally true.

 

I forgot about that aspect of streaming services: You only have the music if they have the music. To provide an example, what if you are fan of The Beatles and they holders of the rights to their music decides to no longer allow it to be streamed. Suddenly, you no longer have access to their music and the only way to get it is to purchase it.

 

The streaming services are movie theaters, not movie studios. From a strictly consumer standpoint, I don't see a compelling argument that we'd be better served if they tried to become the latter. People might go out of their way from time to time to see a particular movie in IMAX or at an arthouse theatre, but they wouldn't drive an extra 10 miles every single time they wanted to see a Paramount movie. People tolerate keeping track of shows on various streaming services because video is consumed in a fundamentally different manner than music. Balkanization of the streaming services doesn't seem to have done Tidal any favors. It's also a lazy, anti-consumer solution. If Apple wants to differentiate their service, I hope they take a different approach.

 

Big Brother indeed.

 

People in some countries (like Germany) have never taken to buying downloads anyways.

 

I think that in the future physical media will be superseded by downloads. However, I think that will only occur if the downloads move to lossless. To me, the reasons for lossy downloads are no longer valid.

Download speeds have reached a point where it doesn't take much time to download a lossless file. The size of the files isn't as much of an issue as it used to be since the capacity of players has significantly increased, and if file size is an issue there is the option of converting the files to a lossy format.

My preference for physical media is mainly because it offers the best audio quality and full documentation (the LP jacket/CD Booklet. But I would not adverse to downloads provided: (1) they offer Red Book sound quality as a minimum (Red Book is fine for me) , (2) provide a graphic file (like a PDF) that takes the place of the CD booklet, and (3) full and accurate metadata.

 

I found this story interesting. Streaming services have essentially destroyed the digital market, like a mother eating her young. Nice to see vinyl carving a small but significant niche. My records once again have value!

CDs, vinyl are outselling digital downloads for the first time since 2011

 

GOOD ! I enjoy my LPs and cds and the physical format definitely adds to the enjoyment of my music

 

There is a big problem with this. When iTunes goes defunct, people will move to streaming. But what happens when streaming services go defunct in 5 or 10 years time? Who do they turn to? Go back to vinyl or cd's. Not likely. Where do they get their obscure or rare masterings from?

 

or what happens when you have to go ala cart and subscribe to 3 or 4 streaming services when you want to hear everything you want to hear?

 

That is the problem with current streaming services. You don’t know what mastering you are getting full stop.

 

Horrible news for artists. iTunes (and other paid download services) are by far what puts the most money back in the artists pockets. To think that sales of music (physical and digital) have fallen this far....

 

I was coming from the angle of streaming causing second hand record/cd shops to close. They will be all but wiped out when spotify eventually goes defunct.

 

I've heard a lot of stuff streamed on Spotify that was pulled straight from a vinyl rip. That said, I have listened to tons of music on streaming services I would not have purchased in physical format, or even bought as a digital download. I have tons of vinyl and CDs, but streaming is worth it just to explore new areas, and for classical, it's pretty amazing. In some cases, you can listen to 50 different recordings of a particular work. Who would buy 50 different CD versions of the Brandenburg Concertos?

I have a lot of issues with streaming services, but as they become more competitive, the quality of the product (along with the audio quality) should improve.

Streaming is also so incredibly portable. No more Walkmans, no more wires. A phone and bluetooth headphones are all you need.

 

There is only one solution to this and that is "save it while it's there".

For example, I feel lucky that I emailed the now dissolved band Keepaway from Brooklyn, NY, a few years ago and asked if there was a way I could buy a copy of their album "Black Flute" in lossless sound, and they kindly sent it to me as a download from which I built my own jewelcase version with the help of the cover design from iTunes and a LaTeX template for CD artwork for the back cover.

Asking for lossless a/k/a the CD version in time is what we can do to preserve the good, current releases we love because artists more often than not might either not have the time for data management or the knowledge about it (e.g. the version of the album "On My Way" by singer/songwriter Sahara Smith's group Girl Pilot on bandcamp surprisingly is not lossless).

And sometimes, you can get lucky by writing and actually be able to obtain a pressed CD which the artist has got for sale at the merch stand at their shows, in spite of the CD version not appearing in the shop of the artist website due to the expectation of low demand.
(That way, I was able to get the actual CD of "Faithless World" by singer/songwriter/guitarist Mary Cutrufello).

But the major labels lurking around on this forum surely couldn't care less if independent releases disappear from the market, as that would only increase their own market share. And they do definitely make sure their masters are stored somewhere.

 

This is why I ONLY support one format, vinyl. I will not download or pay a subscription. I believe there will only be 1 format standing for physical content. I do enjoy exploring music through pandora or Spotify. But I only use their free sides. If I like a song, I buy the vinyl LP. If its not on vinyl I write a letter to the band/label/manager explaining I love the work but will only buy vinyl.

Sure they probably laugh, don’t care. They don’t get money from me unless it’s vinyl. Heather Rigdon, love your stuff.... sorry.

 

You and the listening public are at the mercy of a bad quarter or a few bad business decisions.

 

I wish we could discuss the potential fading, ending, obsolescence, or replacement of formats, platforms, and genres without using the term “death.”

iTunes as a download vendor is not going to “die.”