Give it time, 15 years ago I predicted that vinyl would come back because it's cool and retro - and it did.
I'm predicting CD will come back because people will eventually realise the value in owning a hard copy of the mastering they prefer. One that is an exact copy of the recording, not a bastardization, and which doesn't warp, get noisy, need cleaning etc etc.
CD still shifting more units than vinyl, it's just the total revenue for vinyl is higher because of the premium price.
Adjust for inflation from 1985 to present:
A vinyl new release (£5 in 1985) should cost £15 but it's usually £25
For CD a new release (£12 in 1985) should cost £35 but is usually £10
In any case both a still niche formats since the vast majority of people only use 'free' streaming services. The Wetherspoons of music consumption.
Current Lash Up:
TEAC VRDS 701T > Sony TAE1000ESD > Krell KSA50S > JM Labs Focal Electra 926.
Yeah true steaming is the worlds preferred choice of music consumption because its FREE!
There is a small CD revival happening already as folk can pick up true bargains in crate digging stores etc and I have started to read more articles suggesting CD is actually a better medium for digital playback than file based audio or Hi Rez streaming so I can imagine that would be another vindication for you Martin?
Like I have said before I don't listen to vinyl for anything other than its SQ. Yes its inconvenient and has loads of problems and I am not into the retro thing or even the big deal over the "ritual" and album art. Nope, I only listen to vinyl for one reason. For me it simply sounds better than any digital set up I have ever heard.
Main system : VPI Scout 1.1 / JMW 9T / 2M Black / Croft 25R+ / Croft 7 / Heco Celan GT 702
Second System : Goldring Lenco GL75 / AT95EX / Pioneer SX590 / Spendor SP2
still buy cd's here. i copy them for ease of use but i wont get rid. still got loads of vinyl too but no means of play now
Regards,
Grant .... ؠ ......Don't be such a big girl's blouse
I've said it before and I'll say it again: democracy simply-doesn't-work.... ..... ...... ...... ................... ..... ..... ..... ..... .....
FIIO K7 BT, M11 PLUS, BTR7, KA5 - OPPO BDP-103D - PANASONIC UB450 - PANASONIC 4K ULTRA HD TV - PIXEL 6 - AVANTREE LR BLUETOOTH - 2* X600 SOUNDCORE - HEADPHONES INCLUDE, FIIO, NURAPHONES', FOCAL, OPPO, BOSE, CAMBRIDGE, BOWER & WILKINS, DEVIALET, MARSHALL, SONY, MITCHELL & JOHNSTON - 2*ZBOOK'S- MERCURY BD ROM, ROON, QOBUZ, TIDAL, PLEX, CYBERLINK, JRIVER - MULTI HDD'S -
Oh my god! There's nothing wrong with the bidet is there?
“Nothing discloses real character like the use of power. It is easy for the weak to be gentle. Most people can bear adversity. But if you wish to know what a man really is, give him power. This is the supreme test. It is the glory of Lincoln that, having almost absolute power, he never abused it, except on the side of mercy".
“You see these dictators on their pedestals, surrounded by the bayonets of their soldiers and the truncheons of their police ... yet in their hearts there is unspoken fear. They are afraid of words and thoughts: words spoken abroad, thoughts stirring at home -- all the more powerful because forbidden -- terrify them. A little mouse of thought appears in the room, and even the mightiest potentates are thrown into panic.”
"You don't have free will. You have the appearance of free will.”
“There's a war out there, old friend. A world war. And it's not about who's got the most bullets. It's about who controls the information. What we see and hear, how we work, what we think... it's all about the information!”
***SMILE, BE HAPPY***
I just dropped in, to see what condition my condition was in
T/T: Inspire Monarch, X200 tonearm, Ortofon Quintet Blue. Phono: Project Tube Box CD: Marantz CD6006 (UK Edition); Amp: Musical Fidelity A5 Integrated.
Speakers: Zu Omen Def, REL T9i subwoofer. Cables: Atlas Equator interconnects, Atlas Hyper 3.0 speaker cables
T'other system:
Echo Dot, Arcam A75 integrated, Celestion 5's, BK XLS-200 DF
A/V:
LG 55" OLED, Panasonic Blu Ray, Sony a/v amp, MA Radius speakers,
KICKSTARTER: ENABLING SCAMMERS SINCE 2009
A vindication? Well not basing my life around it lol.
No I don't think streaming inherently is worse than CD there's no reason why that would be.
Can think of a couple of reasons it may be in practice - mastering version may be different - with streaming you get what you're given, CD you can choose your master (usually). Also CD playback system is simple, CD player to amplifier, that's it.
Streaming there are more places to get it wrong, in software settings obviously but also more connections and boxes and so more opportunities to put noise into the signal. But done right, which I'm sure is not hard, and with the same master, I see no reason for there not to be identical results. Especially if a person does not know which one they are listening to.
Current Lash Up:
TEAC VRDS 701T > Sony TAE1000ESD > Krell KSA50S > JM Labs Focal Electra 926.
I do think my vinyl set up sounds better than my CDs, but I don't think the difference is night and day. And considering the vinyl rig cost 15x that of the CD player, there probably isn't a logical reason for keeping on with my records. Good thing my brain doesn't work logically
I'm quite happy to be playing CDs much of the time, and if I thought there was a big discrepancy in SQ I would either have to seriously upgrade the CD player, otherwise the CDs simply wouldn't get played.
I'm not into the retro thing, and certainly not the "ritual" (PITA most of the time), but I do like a bit of album art. Have some of my favourites hanging on the wall
I just dropped in, to see what condition my condition was in
T/T: Inspire Monarch, X200 tonearm, Ortofon Quintet Blue. Phono: Project Tube Box CD: Marantz CD6006 (UK Edition); Amp: Musical Fidelity A5 Integrated.
Speakers: Zu Omen Def, REL T9i subwoofer. Cables: Atlas Equator interconnects, Atlas Hyper 3.0 speaker cables
T'other system:
Echo Dot, Arcam A75 integrated, Celestion 5's, BK XLS-200 DF
A/V:
LG 55" OLED, Panasonic Blu Ray, Sony a/v amp, MA Radius speakers,
KICKSTARTER: ENABLING SCAMMERS SINCE 2009
I just dropped in, to see what condition my condition was in
T/T: Inspire Monarch, X200 tonearm, Ortofon Quintet Blue. Phono: Project Tube Box CD: Marantz CD6006 (UK Edition); Amp: Musical Fidelity A5 Integrated.
Speakers: Zu Omen Def, REL T9i subwoofer. Cables: Atlas Equator interconnects, Atlas Hyper 3.0 speaker cables
T'other system:
Echo Dot, Arcam A75 integrated, Celestion 5's, BK XLS-200 DF
A/V:
LG 55" OLED, Panasonic Blu Ray, Sony a/v amp, MA Radius speakers,
KICKSTARTER: ENABLING SCAMMERS SINCE 2009
I used to prefer the SQ of vinyl but that changed gradually even though I improved the vinyl system over time.
I think what changed was improving the room, amplification and speakers. I started to hear the benefits of a digital source.
It's not that digital is not good enough it's that it's too good. Vinyl is more forgiving. Less top end energy to bounce around a reflective room, less bass and mono bass gives the speaker and the amplifier an easier time, especially with a two way speaker where one driver is being asked to do almost everything. Cut the low bass signal to any small two way and be amazed at the uptick in the quality of what remains.
But just my theory.
Current Lash Up:
TEAC VRDS 701T > Sony TAE1000ESD > Krell KSA50S > JM Labs Focal Electra 926.
Not sure that's going to happen Martin. The wider world (young folk) don't think like us dinosaurs, and will keep on with streaming/file-based, because it's a better fit for their lifestyles. They want the convenience, and have only a passing interest in SQ, where their smartphones and bluetooth earbuds and smart speakers are more than adequate. CDs (and records) are too much of an encumberence.
I predict that the vinyl bubble will burst, and sellers will be forced to stop taking the piss. And I'll be there with cash ready And CDs will continue to be the great VFM that they are.
I just dropped in, to see what condition my condition was in
T/T: Inspire Monarch, X200 tonearm, Ortofon Quintet Blue. Phono: Project Tube Box CD: Marantz CD6006 (UK Edition); Amp: Musical Fidelity A5 Integrated.
Speakers: Zu Omen Def, REL T9i subwoofer. Cables: Atlas Equator interconnects, Atlas Hyper 3.0 speaker cables
T'other system:
Echo Dot, Arcam A75 integrated, Celestion 5's, BK XLS-200 DF
A/V:
LG 55" OLED, Panasonic Blu Ray, Sony a/v amp, MA Radius speakers,
KICKSTARTER: ENABLING SCAMMERS SINCE 2009