The Baffling Revival of the Vinyl LP

[The Straight Story]

Last year was a pretty bleak one for the music industry. Overall album sales dropped by 8.4 percent, to 289.41 million, according to Nielsen SoundScan, and CD sales were down 14 percent. For the first time since iTunes launched in 2003, digital downloads also declined in 2013 — and though the drop was less than one percent, to 117.58 million downloads, that's disheartening news for the great financial hope of the record business.

The only real area of growth was digital streaming, which grew 32 percent to hit a record 118 billion total streams, thanks to Spotify, Pandora, Rdio, and other streaming services. Oh, and there was one more musical medium that grew: Vinyl records.

Sales of vinyl LPs shot up 33 percent, to 6.1 million albums, the highest level since SoundScan started counting in 1991. Statista plots vinyl's rise in this crazy chart:

...

Vinyl sales have jumped 250 percent since 2002, Statista says, while overall music sales have dropped by 50 percent.

This isn't just an American phenomenon. Britain also saw its best vinyl LP sales in more than a decade, with 550,000 sales as of November, and Australia saw a 75 percent spike in vinyl sales.

http://theweek.com/article/index/254901/the-baffling-revival-of-the-vinyl-lp

[lapfog_1]

1. recently met a counter-culture woman, early 20s

tattoos and goth style... who's big hobby is collecting vinyl records... and listening to obscure Japanese music groups.

It's apparently a thing.

[Historic NY]

2. As they say in the building industry "vinyl is final"...

a few friends deal in old vinyl and they say its never been busier.

[hlthe2b]

3. My cousin long ago convinced me (with his incredible music system worth more than my house)

that vinyl overwhelmingly surpasses even the best digital formats.

Being one who enjoys music but goes for convenience and economy, I won't be making the switch, but if money were no object.....

[groundloop]

7. As long as you don't mind listening to pops, scratches, etc.

Also, CD's have a higher dynamic range and higher signal to noise ratio than vinyl. I used to have quite good stereo equipment with a great turntable, I'll take CD's any day.

[el_bryanto]

9. The two formats have different benefits and drawbacks

and you only get pops and scratchs if you don't take care of your vinyl.

Bryant

[tridim]

17. But just playing your vinyl smooths out the waveform over time.

IMO that's the sound people find so pleasing when run through a good tube amp. It sounds very rich.

My problem with vinyl is that the waveform in the grooves is not the waveform that was pressed, it is always a smoothed out approximation.

[brewens]

29. I don't know about that. I was a Nazi about carefully handling my vinyl. It never failed.

Eventually, somehow a cratch or pop would appear on even a fairly new album. Not enough to ruin it but enough to piss me off! I'm pretty serious about my sound set up but not enough to mess with vinyl again, even if a was convinced. It's just so much easier to handle CD's properly and never have any issue with them. I do miss the old school album art and the posters and stuff we got sometimes though.

[Strelnikov_]

32. The album art and posters

Those were the good old days.

Always remember one of my first albums, Grand Funk's American Band, came with a poster, stickers etc. (hey, I was a kid).

Or Allman Brothers 'Live At Fillmore East' w/ all the pics.

[brewens]

35. Did you get one of the gold vinyl copies? I had that album but by the time I got it,

it was black vinyl. It still had the other goodies in it though. I have that on CD now. One of the best ever.

[Strelnikov_]

37. Nope, black

Colored vinyl, forgot about that one.

Don't know what a modern audiophile system would do for the above. Still rocks though.

[brewens]

38. Remember that it said on the lable, "Best If Played At loud Volume" or something like

that?

[Strelnikov_]

41. I do now

I was just checking out the Wiki page. I think I was wrong about it coming with a poster.

[brewens]

43. I was wondering too. I think it folded open and that was all taken up by a picture of them all

naked, sitting on hay bales and waving little American flags or something like that.

[Egalitarian Thug]

53. I have that. The cover is kind of rough, but the album is pristine. n/t

[Lizzie Poppet]

15. Take proper care of your stuff, and you don't get pops.

Properly cared-for, properly cleaned vinyl records don't "pop." Takes a bit of care and effort, but...

"Red Book" CD can theoretically sound better than vinyl: less distortion and, as you point out, wider range (although much of that is no more discernible to human hearing that is vinyl's theoretical advantage of continuous signal vs 44khz sampling). However, just like truly good vinyl sound requires very good gear, truly good CD sound requires a very, very good DAC (digital-to-analog converter). Most CD systems have terrible DACs, and the result is a harsh, "tinny" sound with a reduced soundstage, even if the rest of the system is quite good.

SACD sounds even better, of course...but the catalog is severely limited (and you'd better be a fan of classical, jazz, and dadrock...the vast majority of SACD releases are in those genres).

The bottom line is, well...the bottom line: you have to spend a fair bit of money to get genuinely good sound from either medium. CD is a better value (a CD player with a very good DAC can be had for a bit less than turntable/cartridge combo of equal fidelity), and there's a lot more music available on CD. There's even more available on MP3 (if you include file stealing, er...sharing), but anyone satisfied with MP3s obviously doesn't care about sound quality and probably listens on their smartphone via shitty earbuds.

[Strelnikov_]

36. I have been told that about the DAC's

Dude at work has a brother with a 'audiophile' system. The higher end CD players, with a quality DAC, supposedly make a big difference.

That said, I have also fallen into the 'convenience over quality' trap, so to speak. Really like having my collection available wherever I go, and most of the stuff I listen to, rock, folk rock . . .

OTOH, I have been thinking a bit about a dedicated CD player again. Or another option, a dedicated external DAC (digital optical>DAC>analog RCA). Still need to research the last one.

[mockmonkey]

75. I remember buying a new record...

and having to listen to clicks and pops on the first play. The biggest impression on me when I heard my first CD in '83 was how quiet it was. I think to keep the cost down record companies didn't give a crap about the quality of the pressings. I preferred CDs they were more durable and you didn't have to flip them over.

I have to say CD Players suck.

[Gravitycollapse]

67. Analog recordings still possess the highest density of data.

Not that such a value is incredibly important. A well set up digital system today will not possess any discernible difference in sound to an audiophile quality record player.

Most people listen to records because they "tend" to present a warmer, more fragile, yet more agile and fulfilling listening experience. Some believe you are in better tune with the music.

I don't agree with that sentiment. Digital sources can essentially match the quality of audiophile level record playback. And it presents it in a cleaner, more consistent manner that can thus be manipulated to match all sorts of listening moods and presentations.

[House of Roberts]

4. Up until recently, music has always had a new media to be sold upon.

I've gone from vinyl, to cassettes, to CDs, and have music I've converted to mp3s from my CDs. I'm not buying any more music.

I expect one could play a vinyl record into a computer directly and copy it onto digital in one playing, like I used to do with cassettes.

[dionysus]

57. i have a record player that also has a cassette deck am\fm tuner, and a cd player\burner.

it's lets you burn your records and cassettes onto disc.

[Trekologer]

80. Even if there wasn't a new medium, the existing ones wore out

Vinyl got scratched or broken, the deck "ate" your tape, the CD was scratched. Or you lost it. Or you lent it to a friend who never gives it back.

Today, you "rip" your CDs to MP3 (or equivalent) or simply buy digital to begin with, there is no wearing out, no damage, no misplacing.

[Shandris]

5. I've heard something about how the 'new' stuff is...

...using digitized fake loudness that ruins the original recordings of songs. Dunno if that's part of the cause or not, but it was certainly the first thing that came to mind.

[tridim]

12. The fake loudness occurs before pressing, in mixing and mastering.

It's not a result of the final medium.

The loudness thing is a problem on vinyl since the waveform is physically cut in the grooves instead of encoded as bits. A loud (and wide) signal makes for very wide grooves and thus less information can be stored on the LP.

[Shandris]

14. Oh, okay, thank you!

I didn't claim to be real knowledgeable on it, so that explanation helps a bunch.

[bobclark86]

34. You're talking about the Loudness War...

... and it's a CD thing.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loudness_war

It became a big issue in the early '90s. Late '90s got bad -- RHCP's "Californication" is the best example of no dynamic range. Everything on that album is straight loud, with no quiet. Most "Remastered" specials of old albums on CD now have this problem -- that's why my Dire Straits, Chicago, et al., are on records and vintage CDs, not "remastered" CDs.

[sweetloukillbot]

39. I have a friend who cannot listen to albums from the late 90s

The dynamics make him physically nauseous. Rush's comeback "Vapor Trails" is another album that was ruined by the loudness wars - and Iggy Pop's remaster of "Raw Power" is also especially ugly. Although that album was ugly sounding to begin with.

[Trekologer]

79. An unmastered copy of "Californication" showed up in the typical places on the Internet

It is far and away better than the official release.

[jmowreader]

49. They have to do it to overcome the laws of physics

If you mix a song so it sounds good on the kinds of speakers we all used to have, or at least wanted (think 12-inch woofers, midrange drivers and tweeters in a fairly large cabinet), it sounds like there's nothing there on earbuds, television sound bars and those five-piece satellite speaker systems that'll fit in a shoebox. So they compress the living shit out of music today.

If you go on eBay you can find several dbx 3BX dynamic-range expanders that will reverse this shit about as well as can possibly be done. They were originally made so classical-music lovers in the era when music came on vinyl - which doesn't have enough dynamic range to properly express classical music - could get their songs to sound like they did in concert halls. Today, we rock and roll fans need the same device to get rock and roll to sound right on a speaker that won't fit in a coffee cup.

[okaawhatever]

6. Jack White of the White Stripes and Raconteurs has had a big hand in this. Here is a story from

Collector's Weekly that explains part of it. He also has a vinyl store that sells over the internet. An excerpt:

Come 2008, the White Stripes’ original deal with V2 Records in North America had expired. They signed for “Icky Thump” with Warner Bros., and Warner Bros. also took on the manufacturing of the White Stripes’ CD back catalog. But the band retained the vinyl rights.

The main impetus for starting Third Man Records in 2009 was getting these White Stripes records—their back catalog—back into print on vinyl. In between the germination of that idea and the actual opening of Third Man, The Dead Weather formed and recorded an album, which redirected us for the first year or so. But now we’re back on point, working on these White Stripes reissues.

http://www.collectorsweekly.com/articles/your-turntable-is-not-dead-inside-jack-whites-vinyl-record-empire/

[tridim]

8. I wish I had the cash to re-invest in a vinyl music collection.

And the mega-cash to invest in decent hardware.

[Liberal_in_LA]

60. years ago records were stacked sky high at salvation army, goodwill

That's where I dropped off my records and like new stereo system

[groundloop]

10. I wonder if anyone has taken a look at CONTENT.

In my limited opinion there's not much good (new) music out there right now. It doesn't matter what format it's in, if it sucks people won't buy it.

[ashtonelijah]

19. There's plenty of great music out there right now.

I assume you're basing your opinion on top 40, but there's tons of great music out there right now if you know where to look. You probably won't hear it on the radio, but it's definitely on vinyl. Here are just a few of my more recent vinyl purchases:

Phosphorescent -- Muchacho
Alabama Shakes - Boys & Girls
Bon Iver -- For Emma, Forever Ago
The Civil Wars
Mumford & Sons (top 40, but I love their latest album)
Vampire Weekend -- Modern Vampires of the City
Kings of Leon -- Mechanical Bull
The Lumineers
The Black Keys - El Camino
Florence and the Machine - Ceremonials
Jenny Lewis - Acid Tongue

[alarimer]

47. I agree with this list, for the most part.

I belong to a music discussion group called Postcard from Hell. And most of the discussion centers around groups like this (they do hate Mumford and Sons and Kings of Leon, but the rest has been discussed).

It's been a very good resource for me to discover new music, much of which does not get played on commercial radio. It may be played on community or listener-supported radio (the Current, KCRW, WFUV, WMNF, etc).

But the vinyl thing strikes me as a hipster fad.

[thucythucy]

78. Great list! nt.

[Initech]

52. That's not true at all.

If you don't think there's good music right now you're not looking hard enough. Some of my favorite albums of 2013:

- Nine Inch Nails - Hesitation Marks
- Arctic Monkeys - AM
- Cage The Elephant - Melophobia
- The Roots f. Elvis Costello - Wise Up Ghost
- Bastille - Bad Blood
- Black Sabbath - 13
- Queens Of The Stone Age - ...Like Clockwork
- AFI - Burials
- Dream Theater - Dream Theater
- Queensryche - Queensryche
- Steven Wilson - The Raven That Refused To Sing
- How To Destroy Angels - Welcome Oblivion
- Dropkick Murphys - Signed & Sealed In Blood

[MineralMan]

11. Analog rules!

When it comes to sounds, analog recordings can capture it all. Digital just can't. That's why.

That said, I no longer have any equipment to play music on vinyl, and no plans to buy any.

[jmowreader]

50. Which of course is why records are being made from music originally recorded in Pro Tools...

[Silent3]

55. Frequency response and signal-to-noise ratio are just as information limiting...

...as sampling rates and quantization, only in a more random, and almost always more severe way. There's absolutely no truth to the "infinite information" myths about analog. Analog recordings cannot "capture it all".

To the extent that analog recording sound better to some people (and that I don't dispute that they do), it's when compared to badly-done digitizing (for which there is some basis in truth, but that's hyped well beyond proportion), placebo effect, or due to euphonic distortion - degradation of the signal that nevertheless sounds good, maybe even more "real" to some ears than more accurate signal replication would.

Edit: I should add that, of course, excessive digital compression can certainly make analog shine by comparison!

[pintobean]

13. I still have most of my vinyl

I've given some of my albums to young people who are into vinyl - harder to find stuff that's usually higher priced. I figure they will get more use and enjoyment from them than I will. I prefer digital these days.

[n2doc]

16. Nothing baffling about it to those who know. n/t

[egold2604]

18. As a recording studio owner, mixing for vinyl is a lost art

The vast majority of music sold today is an MP3 at 128kbs clock speed which takes up about 3megs of data. In contrast, a .WAV file (CD format with 16 bit and 44.1 kHz clock speed) is about 40megs. There is considerable data loss when converting .WAVs to MP3s. Furthermore, when mastering, smart limiters are used to bump up the volume because.

IT IS ALL LISTENED TO EITHER ON CAR STEREOS WITH A USB PORT FOR YOUR iPHONE, OR ON EAR BUDS.

I still have my vinyl and 80s high end stereo and you can hear the difference in volume between songs mixed for vinyl and songs mixed for small speakers and ear buds.

That being said, I record at either 48 kHz or 96kHz, so I can hear the music better. However, it is still mixed down to 16bit/44.1 kHz for CDs and then the data is further reduced for MP3.

The bottom line, is tweens, the real buyers of music because grandma gave them them money to buy some songs on iTunes, really don't know better and really don't care.

It is the older, more sophisticated buyers who are buying vinyl. But, don't be blind sided by percentages. Any increase from a low base will show higher percentage growth.

Vinyl is rich and warm, and only a small percentage of the population gives a shit.

[PCIntern]

20. I still have my Dual 1019 with my Shure V-15 type 2 cartridge,

several decent power amps, two preamps, and two speakers which I built in 1972 each with twin 15" woofers and horn tweeters and supertweeters which could level a newly-constructed house in one hour.

Just kidding about that last part...it might take two hours!

And about 1200 discs...including 78's with some of the most famous classical musicians of all time: Menuhin, Gieseking, Schnabel, Toscanini, and many others. My 33's include classical, a lot of 60's British Invasion, movie soundtracks including all of the James Bond films in both mono and stereo, and many many others. To top it off, a patient bequeathed to me about 700 discs of varying sizes, (EP, LP, 45) of Eastern European Folk Music, written in languages which are incomprehensible to me.

Good thing I live in a house with room...my wife would disagree, however...

Needless to say, I love my albums...and their artwork!

[Scuba]

73. Similar story here. I'll never give up my vinyl or 15 inch woofers. Love to feel the bass.

[Egalitarian Thug]

21. There's no mystery, corporate music sucks, period.

When you control the whole market you can push out as many manufactured celebrities as you like, digitize their image and fill the hole where their talent should be with $5M of Autotune, and in the end they're still going to have to expose the marketing machine to real people in the real world, and it will be clear to everyone what's been done.

Like so many other industries, it is dying because it is owned and run by people who do it to make money, not music. Flipping the priority kills the creative, and the creative is all music is.

Music is analog, vinyl records record analog. Vinyl is physical and carries no hidden codes, contracts, or licensing schemes, it' just the music.

[hunter]

22. The old music was recorded and mixed to sound good on vinyl.

It was part of the musical art, the vinyl record itself, the turntable, the amplifier, and the speakers essentially another "instrument" in the musical composition.

CDs sounded "off" for a while because the "vinyl sound" was suddenly removed from the process. CDs actually have much greater range, but it took some time before artists learned how to use it. And there are plenty of CD's made from original recordings of older music that sound worse on CD than they did on vinyl because of this.

Musical artists are rediscovering the use of vinyl records and tube amps in their music. It's possible to get close to that "sound" with digital recordings and amplifiers, but it can't be duplicated exactly, and the playback instrument can't be "tuned" or assembled in the same way an audiophile might put together a turntable, amplifier, and speakers.

I have an old library turntable-in-a-box. The sound of it playing an old vinyl LP, 45, or flip-the-needle-over-78 is really difficult to duplicate accurately with digital filters (and I've tried), just as it is difficult to make a picture taken with a digital camera look like it was taken with a film camera.

A practiced ear or eye can often spot the digital "fake." I almost wish I hadn't trained my eye to spot fake film pictures. Faked "film look" pictures have flooded the internet and I now find them irritating.

Please, if you want your photo to look like a Polaroid, buy a Polaroid camera and film. Your iPhone is no substitute. If you want your music to sound like vinyl, put it on vinyl. That way you'll be supporting archaic art forms that might otherwise be lost.

[TheMightyFavog]

23. One word: Hipsters.

That's what's driven by the vinyl boom.

[Tikki]

24. Vinyl and amp…excellent speakers and turntable…a noticeable difference in sound.

And that noticeable difference is a good difference.

The Tikkis

[lumberjack_jeff]

25. I think it's a psychological thing.

Because of the attention and involvement it requires, I don't play my records unless I'm in the mood. If I'm working around the house and just want some background noise, I turn on the cd changer and just play whatever's in the thing, usually on random.

If I'm in the mood to really listen to something, I go through the record-playing ritual. Clean the record, turn on the turntable, lift the cover, synchronize it to the appropriate speed, check the stylus for dust and lint. Place the record on the spindle and lower the stylus onto the disk. Repeat that process every 20 minutes.

If you're going to play records, you have to do it with intent, and the fruits of your effort justifies your attention.

... And there's nothing else like side 2 of Pink Floyd's Meddle on vinyl.

[Arugula Latte]

26. Not long ago I stayed at a vacation house that had a stereo and vinyl from the 70s.

I was excited at first. "Look kids, see how I'm putting the needle on the album!" ... After a couple songs I was thinking, "Wow, this is primitive." The novelty wore off quickly.

Yay, digital music!

[Archae]

27. Vinyl? Heck, I work with stuff older than vinyl!

I record old records to .mp3, then burn them to CD for friends and relatives.

I absolutely freaked out my Mom, I did a job for a friend of hers, a grocery sack full of 78's.

Put all of them, (both sides,) onto 3 CD's.

My Mom grew up changing 78's on the turntable to play a different song.

I grew up doing the same with 45's.

And Internet radio (Pandora) is a real treat for both of us.

[redstatebluegirl]

28. I love my vinyl!

I am in my late 50's and I recently bought a used component system and am replacing my favorite music CDs with vinyl. He sound is SO much better. I am a regular at our used vinyl stores.

[KG]

30. amusing, coz in the 70's, higher fidelity is something I looked forward to. hearing digital music

was a revelation.

not to mention the convenience and ease of use of CDs.

not going back just to be hip.

[madamesilverspurs]

31. Gotta lotta vinyl.

My old shelf stereo system has a turntable that still works. Tape deck quit years ago, and I've bought two CD players and each died before they were a year old. But the turntable still plays my albums and the 45s from my late cousin's band; also plays the paper "talking letter" my dad recorded at a USO venue during WWII. Hope the turntable lasts a while, because the new ones out there are way beyond my budget.

Meanwhile, I occasionally spend a whole day with Peter, Paul and Mary and Chad and Jeremy and Moody Blues. Heck, even the scratches have memories attached . . .

[Tikki]

46. Needle on vinyl…Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers' first album...

Very excellent sound through the speakers..


Weird Al Yankovic sounds ok on CD…

Tikki too old to be a hipster...

[reddread]

33. Compact discs are a huge ripoff

not only was the end result harsh, the prices were doubled over records that had much longer lifespans than CD's.
Gouged, shortchanged and left with sonic results you wouldnt wish on a dog.
if you cant tell the difference, you havent been listening. it was only in the last several years that improvements in the CD domain reached vinyl's longterm accomplishments.
It aint hipsters doing this, its music lovers.
the record industry deserves to wither and die for the price scam they pulled with CD's and their pittance of a settlement.

[Jesus Malverde]

40. People like the album art, liner notes etc.

Album art became less important with CD's and is irrelevant on a computer. With an album you likely look at the album art while it's playing. It's in a more appealing format. Sometimes it came with a poster or other cool insert.

CD's as a format are stupid when they are just digital files. You copy your CD's to a hard disk and sell or toss out the disk.

Steve Jobs killed the CD.

Albums are something you take care of and that is a ritual in itself.

[LadyHawkAZ]

42. It's easy to buy into the nostalgia craze

when you have the option of using much better formats at any time.

I grew up with 8-tracks, vinyl and cassettes. I have no desire to balance a penny on a phonograph arm ever again.

I do miss the album art though.

[Warpy]

44. Vinyl pressings are cheaper than CD

and a lot of indie groups start out with them, especially in Europe.

Most of the really off the wall stuff in my collection is vinyl produced post 1990, the year CDs really took off as the main recorded music format for mainstream music. MP3 players came later.

The two ways weird music comes out are MP3 sales online and vinyl.

[Paladin]

45. I've always felt that vinyl sounded better than more modern technologies. (nt)

[AgingAmerican]

48. A lot of people collect vinyl records

Not many CDs that are worth money but my brother has a record collection worth a fortune.

[Mojo Electro]

51. "And we puttin it on wax"

"It's the new style"

[Orrex]

54. It's true. I installed an RCA turntable in my car

Sounds great if I drive really slowly over really smooth roads.

[kentuck]

56. I have a Pioneer turntable...

with a couple of 100W Bose speakers and the vinyl sounds like it fills the room. You can feel the musician playing the music.

Stravinsky and Bach sound very good.

My wife found a stack of LPs in the back of the closet the other day and it is like a treasure hunt - going thru them.

[kentuck]

58. Does anyone have the last Lynyrd Skynyrd LP with the flames?

They took it off the market immediately after the plane crash killed some of their members. "That Smell", I Know A Little, etc...

[RoverSuswade]

59. I play my old records all the time.

If they are just "playing copies" I enjoy stacking five of them on my 1956 RCA Orthophonic phonograph (which still works). I don't mind the pops & cracks.
I still have the first 3 LPs I ever bought.
1. The Carousel soundtrack
2. Mantovani: Film Encores
3. Julie London: Julie Is Her Name

[indie9197]

61. The double albums are great for de-seeding your herb.

Plus, the free posters were cool too. I wish I still had those two posters that were in the "dark side of the moon" album.

[DisgustipatedinCA]

81. Those were the days

Now we have mp3 streaming (while looking at Google Images of the band as a surrogate for getting a poster) and seedless indoor weed--I haven't even seen a seed in several years. By the way, I had the DSOM posters too, along with my separately-purchased screaming head/Wall poster.

[left on green only]

62. I solved one of the problems of vinyl reproduction when I spent......

$500 on a machine that was designed to vacuum and clean the surface of LP records. The idea is to vacuum and clean each LP every time before you play it. It works very well, as long as there is not too much static electricity in the environment.

To combat the problem of recording engineers with a tendency to "gain ride" for the purpose of creating extended playing times, I have a user adjustable dynamic range expander (Phase Linear) that I can easily switch in place between my pre amp and my amplifier.

Finally, during the late '70's when I sensed that the vinyl era was coming to a close, I bought a quantity of replacement styli (6ea) for my Sure V15, Type 4 phono cartridge, as well as a bunch of spare rubber belts for my Dual turntable. It's hard to say for sure, but I believe they will last me for as long, or longer, then I will have use for them.

My vinyl LP record library, when stacked front surface to back surface, extends past 25', and almost all of the albums consist of music from the medieval and renaissance periods (also baroque). Many of the albums were recorded and pressed in Europe (Argo, DG, Etc).

The part that pains me is that upon the event of my demise (I am now an older dude), I would like to pass all of these things along to someone who has great appreciation for this genre of music, and alas I have not found that person as of yet.

Are any of you into that type of thing? Bonus points if you are affiliated with some type of an educational institution.

logo

[Sognefjord]

63. That's the period of music I like also. I have some but not as many as you.

My problem is being older also but if I can come up with a school or college that needs these I will pass along the information.

[left on green only]

64. Many Thanks For Your Coming Foward And Offering To Keep An Eye Out For Me. N/t

[left on green only]

65. I May Have Not Been Clear, But I Meant The Library As Well As The System

It was not my intention to brag when I described it.

[Sognefjord]

82. Thanks for the clarification.

[kentauros]

66. My ears still prefer digital.

And when I can't download in FLAC format (which is most of the time) then I'll buy the CD and rip to FLAC. Eventually, I'll go through my vinyl collection to determine what I want to listen to again and get the digital version.

Sure, some of my download collection came from vinyl, but I don't own those albums. Most were found through such sites as All Music Blogs, Weirdomusic, and We Love Music. I recommend them all, whether you want to find out of print music, albums from other parts of the world not available here, or just to educate yourself about what is out there

[Gravitycollapse]

68. I'm an audiophile in my mid 20s. I have tried vinyl presses in the past.

Owned a mid-level belt driven, unfortunately, record player as well. The listening experience was unique. It sounds warmer and more alive in some instances. But it was inconsistent. Even the cleanest records contained negative artifacts.

Now, digital formats can be indiscernible from analog formats; even superior in real world situation. And the level of manipulation afforded to the digital format is vastly superior.

[dionysus]

69. 2 years a go i bought a record player\cassette\cd\radio combo and it's awesome. been buying old

records for dirt cheap.

it's fun to hear the old background noise of a record, reminds me of when I was little.

I saw a (new) nirvana record in the store and it was 45 bucks, I laughed my ass off...
edit: and I'm a huge nirvana fan, but 45 bucks for the incesticide LP is ridiculous!

[JI7]

70. most people who grew up with vinyl seem to prefer it

to all the things that came out after. not sure if it's just nostalgia or what

[Warren DeMontague]

71. It's easier to understand than the shit with Pabst Blue Ribbon

that's just Hipsters posing.

[Violet_Crumble]

72. Spin the black circle!

Vinyl is the best! I have Vitalogy on vinyl!

And I've always wanted to post this clip from 1995 here in Canberra...

[sendero]

74. This debate..

.... started with the advent of the CD. Many even then decried its poor sonic qualities.

I still have a turntable connected to a pretty high-end amp and speakers. I have several hundred LPs from the 70s and 80s mostly. I listen to LPs from time to time, but most of the time I just listen digital.

Personally, I do not believe that LPs actually sound "better" than CDs. I believe that their limitations (mostly high frequency rolloff) make a sound that is more pleasing, not more accurate.

But I would never criticize anyone for buying vinyl, there are lots of reasons to do so.

[Atman]

76. It harder to roll a joint on a CD case.

[Atman]

77. There is good vinyl and bad, good digital and bad.

Remember Columbia House record club? They pressed their own versions, and they always seemed to be of inferior quality than the genuine LP pressed by the major labels. They often arrived warped, to.

Likewise, many/most early CD's were just 1/1 transfers of the old masters, and they sounded horrible compared to newer CD's -- part of why you see so many re-issues and re-mastered discs. I started replacing my old LP collection as soon as I could afford a CD player, and several of those old CD's I've purchased again because the first issue sucked. They often even transferred the tape hiss to the CD.

I loved vinyl for the cover art and liner notes, but not for the b.s. "warmth." You had to handle them like a delicate piece of jewelry...I often wore gloves and most of my record collection was only played one time...the day I bought it and immediately transferred it to tape. Of course, you needed a high-end (expensive) cassette deck with variable speed recording, and high-end blank cassettes that would provide the length needed for recording at faster speeds (less hiss), while also not jamming in your car stereo. And I've tended to live in older houses...wood floors and turntables didn't get along well, and I usually kept my turntable suspended from the ceiling to avoid skipping.

Nope, I can't say I miss it. I'm still pretty obsessed with music, discovering new artists and really sitting back and listening to a whole "album." But now most of my CDs are in boxes downstairs, and the music is stored on a hard drive and beamed throughout the house from my Mac. Works for me.