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Will streaming kill the vinyl resurgence
My guess is that vinyl records would only appeal to a small portion of the population, despite their rising popularity. All the same, the fact that anyone can go online and stream music, probably eliminates the need for physical music.
Re: Will streaming kill the vinyl resurgence
To me, the two formats address two very different needs. Streaming audio is convenient. It's available without any effort. It's like radio. Vinyl is not particularly convenient, because it requires a lot of "routine maintenance." But it is potentially much better quality.
I completely agree with you. In essence, these two formats will continue to exist since they cater for different portions of the population. Streamed content will most probably be of lower quality. The best bet lies in routinely maintaining the vinyl records. Can the quality of streamed content be improved?
Yes, streaming quality can be improved. But again, I think the radio analogy applies here. Radio content can be made very high quality too. But most times, it is highly compressed. There is little dynamic range in most radio broadcasts.
Streaming is a great way to discover music on the cheap. You can take a chance on '50s, '60, and '70s music and find some new favorites. Streaming leads to more risk taking I believe. Naturally, there was some amazing music created in those decades and if you like what you're hearing on Spotify by that artist, you're more likely to spend some money on their vinyl record for a better listening experience. I don't see streaming as a threat at all.
Wayne Parham wrote on Wed, 09 January 2019 12:36 Yes, streaming quality can be improved. But again, I think the radio analogy applies here. Radio content can be made very high quality too. But most times, it is highly compressed. There is little dynamic range in most radio broadcasts. You definitely get better quality listening to a vinyl record of a 60's recording than when you stream it. I don't think that the vinyl resurgence will die down anytime soon.
musicluvr wrote on Thu, 10 January 2019 23:14 Streaming is a great way to discover music on the cheap. You can take a chance on '50s, '60, and '70s music and find some new favorites. Streaming leads to more risk taking I believe. Naturally, there was some amazing music created in those decades and if you like what you're hearing on Spotify by that artist, you're more likely to spend some money on their vinyl record for a better listening experience. I don't see streaming as a threat at all. Absolutely! No one will mind spending some money on a vinyl record so as to get a listening experience that lasts for a long time. Streaming will be with us for some time, and so will the renewed interest for vinyl. Somehow, it depends on the generation a listener belongs to.
I agree that these are two completely different things that can (and will) co-exist. Streaming music is easy, fast and convenient. Almost like the radio in your car. Just turn it on and go. Vinyl is all about the experience of using the player, taking the record out of its sleeve, putting it in the player and so on. Streaming music is fast food while vinyl is a 12 course meal.
I don't think the vinyl resurgence is a threat to the streaming service. It stands alone just fine with it's core followers. It is a slow growth anyway because of the amount of people who like records more than streaming.
Hi, I agree that they tend to appeal to different listeners. Not that there isn't a goodly group that like both. I fit into that category. My system is primarily analog with tube electronics. Two turntables on line all the time, reel to reel tape recorder and a cassette recorder. Also a Sony HD FM receiver, a FIIO player, an OPPO-SE blue ray, a SMSL DAC, a pair of SIIG ADC-DACs, and a Toshiba laptop etc. So I can stream and play pretty much any kind of media. I won't go into the rabbit hole on which sounds better...they all can sound fine and all sound different. Vinyl playback is a mature format and likely pretty much maxed out for how good it can perform. IMO really nice. All the digital formats including streaming still have room to grow. Some are really quite excellent, some not. The current up swing in vinyl is likely to continue but will never be the media of choice for most folks. Portability and ease of use are against it and favor digital media. There is some satisfaction to be gained by playing vinyl that is missing in most digital formats. It is the sort of satisfaction of both having a physical media and being able to extract a high degree of performance from it. That appeals to many vinyl lovers. Not just a turn it on and let it rip type of experience. Plus I have personal concerns about the ownership and long term viability of music that I don't physically possess. If the web goes down, so does streaming music. If the cloud goes poof or the company letting you use their part of it goes belly up...what happens to your music stored there. True you can download much of it ...but then you are back in the area of keeping physical media (more compactly I will grant though). So I expect vinyl to be around for as long as I care....I'll let the next generation worry about after that.
I will always go with vinyl records any time any day! The noise about streaming is increasing daily, but I feel that nothing beats the feeling of being in total control of what you play, building and following the process to play it and having a feeling of everything that relates to it. This is one aspect that streaming doesn't give. I also strongly believe that there are so many of us who are addicted to playing vinyl records instead of anything that streaming offers. The list is even growing!
I use steaming on Spotify and, believe it or not, You-Tube, mostly to seek out different music to try out. If I really like a song or an artists, I will try and find a vinyl album of it. If not available, I will buy a CD. At least I know I'll always have access to it. You tube has something not available anywhere else. I like listening to recorded jam sessions at folk festivals. I'm a traditional fiddle and banjo player and love listening to those types of jams at campsites (the ones I'm not joining in on.) Sure, the recordings are not audiophile grade, but I can close my eyes and picture the musicians sitting in front of me. I have listened to far more of these on You-Tube than I've ever managed to do at festivals I've attended. Dave