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These days I don't usually buy as many CDs or full albums because I just get an album off of iTunes, or even better a single song if I want. Do you still buy CDs or records for new songs? Is there a reason to continue buying it in the physical form, or is it just for collectors? I'm curious, I should I be buying them in CD form?
I buy the CD version for my grandparents who refuse to go to digital formats only. It is also the only way to snag many instrumental CDs.
Hi, I buy CDs and LPs as not everything is in the cloud yet. Some will never be. I also like to own my copies. The ownership of downloads is a bit fuzzy at present. Plus if you store the music on the cloud...what happens if the server company fails or gets hacked? Do you really suppose they will fix or replace everything?
Yes, I've had problems in the past in terms of reliability of digital downloads, however I sometimes just use a streaming service like Spotify instead of just relying on my purchased music. But you do bring up great points for obtaining physical music.
I don't think that's a really great argument for physical music. I mean, in the same way that the server could encounter problems leading to a loss of your music, your home could get burgled and you could lose your CDs anyway... I guess it all comes down to personal choice.
Hi, I disagree. With the numerous cloud issues and internet problems (ours craps out about once a month for hours) I see the cloud as less reliable and more prone to losses than the possibility of my home being broken into. Besides, The number of disks I have would be hard to run off with unless you brought lots of help. Same for vinyl. My particular insurance covers them as well. I don't know of any that covers the cloud at present. There still is the issue of ownership. Do you own the digits or are you actually leasing them? Now at the same time I am not nixing digital. It is often quite excellent and clearly has a place. For portability it can't be beat and with the newer formats it is really impossible to tell from the masters it was made from (they are often digital as well).
I have CDs but I can't for the life of me remember when I last went into a store and bought one. I get sort of surprised when I see them in stores because I sort of forget there might actually still be a viable market for them.
Gofar99, I highly doubt they would do anything to fix the situation. I'm not even sure what they could do. Personally, I like CDs because I think they just straight up sound better. Also, if I'm looking for an older album, CDs tend to be cheaper. It's also sort of a habit at this point, honestly. I like digital music for its portability and easy access to all kinds of music at my fingertips. It's just not the same though.
I rarely buy CDs anymore because I enjoy instant gratification too much. You just can't beat how easy it is to buy digital music. Sometimes I'll make the effort if I think the digital version's quality is really inferior, but I usually just make do with what I can get on iTunes or Spotify, Pandora, etc.
I cannot remember the last time I bought a CD that wasn't blank. I didn't really know people still bought them until I read this thread. There are some good arguments here that make me kind of wish I hadn't thrown mine all out years ago. Then again, I pretty much had to throw them out because they were all scratched or had something else wrong with them.
The only reason that I buy CDs nowadays is as presents for my parents, aunts, and uncles who do not use downloaded music or the cloud. They enjoy their collection of music and the ability to easily lend the CDs to each other.
I buy CDs and then rip them and place the music on my smartphone. That way, if anything ever happens to the music on my phone or my phone dies, I still have the original source.
I buy them occasionally because they're relatively cheap now. Like records were when the format was supposedly obsolete. I use them in the car and workshop. Vinyl's my mainstay, always has.