The end of CD's ????

I could spend hours in Tower Records looking through the racks and not even buy anything (although that was pretty rare).

I don't see cd's going away anytime soon. Consumers still need something tangible and the record companies need a product to sell.

MetalGuy71 wrote:

I could spend hours in Tower Records looking through the racks and not even buy anything (although that was pretty rare).

I don't see cd's going away anytime soon. Consumers still need something tangible and the record companies need a product to sell.

I absolutely hated Tower Records aside from their singles section. Their prices were simply way too high.

[quote="Eyesore"]

MetalGuy71 wrote:

I absolutely hated Tower Records aside from their singles section. Their prices were simply way too high.

That's true, and that's what killed them eventually. But in my home town the only choices I had for CDs/tapes were either Sam Goody (there were three of'em, one in each mall, for cryin' out loud!) or K-mart. Sam Goody's prices were higher than Tower's much of the time, and K-Mart's selection sucked, so I shopped at Tower and at least pretended I had some indie street cred for doing so.

[quote="Fat Freddy"]

Eyesore wrote:

MetalGuy71 wrote:

I absolutely hated Tower Records aside from their singles section. Their prices were simply way too high.

That's true, and that's what killed them eventually. But in my home town the only choices I had for CDs/tapes were either Sam Goody (there were three of'em, one in each mall, for cryin' out loud!) or K-mart. Sam Goody's prices were higher than Tower's much of the time, and K-Mart's selection sucked, so I shopped at Tower and at least pretended I had some indie street cred for doing so.

And Tower had much better selection. I agree that in later years, they were overpriced, but I think that was due more to the changing times and the proliferation of downloading. It's a vicious circle. The less product they sell, the higher the prices go to maintain profits, which causes more people to turn to free downloads.

Music will eventually become a free commodity (maybe not in our lifetime, but its coming) & promotional tool for artists to use to get you to come to thier shows or to buy thier other merch...until they figure out how to download a t-shirt.

Fewer people care about having something "tangible" in thier hands than ever before...the people who like singles far outweigh the people who want/collect whole albums these days.

Neither of these is necessarily a good thing...just how it is.

Fat Freddy wrote:

Eyesore wrote:

I absolutely hated Tower Records aside from their singles section. Their prices were simply way too high.

That's true, and that's what killed them eventually. But in my home town the only choices I had for CDs/tapes were either Sam Goody (there were three of'em, one in each mall, for cryin' out loud!) or K-mart. Sam Goody's prices were higher than Tower's much of the time, and K-Mart's selection sucked, so I shopped at Tower and at least pretended I had some indie street cred for doing so.

Yeah, in that situation I'd probably be of the same opinion. Luckily I have Boston close by, but before that I was in the Air Force—Arkansas, Italy, Korea, and England. Because of this, I had to find ways to buy cheap music, so now I do that online. I've become sort of an expert, I guess. Haha. I was forced to. There's no better motivator than seeing a CD in the used bin in England, but having to pay 15 pounds (i.e. $25–$30) for it—a damn USED CD! Pffft!

kmorg wrote:

mc666 wrote:

kmorg wrote:

and CD's will never sound as good as a vinyl. That is a fact!

really? cuz i ain't hearing it.

If you digitalize anything, you will have to compromise quality. It's the same as with photos. A digital camera will never be as good as "the good old ones". They come close, and the more pixels you have, the better the quality, but it will still not be the same, it is still just zeros and ones.

To an extent. digital files depend in how you shoot the picture, but I shoudln't get into that... To add, with the basic .jpeg file of pictures, everytime you copy/move the .jpeg file/image you lose a little of the image. I'd imagine the same works with mp3. Everytime you copy/move a mp3 file you lose a little bit.

vinyl still has better quality i would say but it is not as versatile as a cd you could argue

I know this is an old thread but I would like to put my 2 cents in:

One of my biggest obsessions with CDs (especially metal) is the artwork. For instance, I need money badly so I am working on selling some of my CDs (I have them on my computer so I can still have the music) but I can't bring myself to sell my albums with great artwork or from bands I love too much too part with the disc even though I would still have the music. I don't remember Tower records too much (mainly I got my CDs from Best Buy and used CD stores) but with all you guys reminiscing about it, it sounds like the experience I have at Virgin Megastore. If you have one in your area, I suggest checking them out because the one I go to I've nicknamed "Metal Mecca" due to the high volume of metal CDs I find there everytime I go.

MetalGuy71 wrote:

I could spend hours in Tower Records looking through the racks and not even buy anything (although that was pretty rare).

I don't see cd's going away anytime soon. Consumers still need something tangible and the record companies need a product to sell.

There were 4 Tower Records in and around the L.A. area that I knew about (specially the famous one on Sunset) and was so bummed to see them close because I would walk around for hours looking through everything even if I didn't make a purchase.. Not just them, but 3 other local record shops that have now become coffee shops or little restaurants. I'll predict that the 3 other music shops I know will close by 2010. It's sad. I don't think I've purchased anything from a record shop in 2 years. It's easier to do things online.

I think CD's will still be around regardless of where the industry goes. Like Ult said, many people want to hold something tangible in their hands. I wonder if by 2020 we'll be talking about CD's like we do about vinyl.

I don't think CDs will ever become purely obselete as there will always be a significant demand for the physical representation of the music.

This is just a major company bellyaching. Most of the music I buy is released through smaller labels, and those will probably stay around...

Thanks to the internet we will always know when a great artist rolls around... this might even help guys like us, as not every clone trend band will be able to get away with a contract anymore.

I just worry about bands like Black Sabbath, Judas Priest, Kiss, Metallica, ect. I really don't want to pay for digital downloads.... and those are major label bands.

ultmetal wrote:

I think modern music fans are missing out on an experience. There was nothing like hanging out at you local record/CD store, going through bins of records/CDs while the store was crankin' some tunes. There was an atmosphere and a vibe at the local record store that was very cool. I've always enjoyed doing that.

I've also always enjoyed digging through all those CDs or records and finding that one gem I'd been searching out for months. Ebay makes it a bit too easy to obtain those gems and it's just not as fun. It takes away the hunt.

Also, I've always been one who enjoys albums, as opposed to singles. I seem to latch onto certain bands and just really dig their sound. I don't care as much for the 'hit single' as I do about a solid album of material. The cover art is part of the package and I think the MP3 generation is missing out on that. There is something wrong with downloading that one song you heard on the radio and thought was cool, yet you never hear anything else the artist did. What great music I would have missed out on all these years if all I ever did was purchase a single. Shoot, at least with a single you have a b-side. You don't even have that with an MP3.

I do like going through the CD bins, but man... i live in the middle of nowhere and have to drive an hour to do it... so I end up just using Amazon.

Chairman_Smith wrote:

ultmetal wrote:

I think modern music fans are
missing out on an experience. There was nothing like hanging out at you
local record/CD store, going through bins of records/CDs while the
store was crankin' some tunes. There was an atmosphere and a vibe at
the local record store that was very cool. I've always enjoyed doing
that.

I've also always enjoyed digging through all those CDs
or records and finding that one gem I'd been searching out for months.
Ebay makes it a bit too easy to obtain those gems and it's just not as
fun. It takes away the hunt.

Also, I've always been one who
enjoys albums, as opposed to singles. I seem to latch onto certain
bands and just really dig their sound. I don't care as much for the
'hit single' as I do about a solid album of material. The cover art is
part of the package and I think the MP3 generation is missing out on
that. There is something wrong with downloading that one song you heard
on the radio and thought was cool, yet you never hear anything else the
artist did. What great music I would have missed out on all these years
if all I ever did was purchase a single. Shoot, at least with a single
you have a b-side. You don't even have that with an MP3.

I
do like going through the CD bins, but man... i live in the middle of
nowhere and have to drive an hour to do it... so I end up just using
Amazon.

Not me, I like "INSTANT" gratification. I hate
rummaging through cut bins and clearance bins. Although, there is
something exciting when you find something rare you want for a couple
bucks at some used store! But......I'll take it digital any day over cd
hunting. But that's also cuz I listen to my stuff on my Ipod 90% of the
time. When I bought the Ult-PT remastered, I took it to work, uploaded
it to itunes and put the CD in my closet back at home for safe keeping
from the munchkins.

I have to have a tangible item in my hand to feel gratified. Digital music leaves me wanting.

spectrefate wrote:

I have to have a tangible item in my hand to feel
gratified. Digital music leaves me wanting.

MAN, you are so
NEEDY!

T-Roy wrote:

spectrefate wrote:

I have to have a tangible item in my hand to feel
gratified. Digital music leaves me wanting.

MAN, you are so
NEEDY!

I also like to cuddle, YOU GOTTA PROBLEM WITH THAT TOO?????

WOW, THIS ALL FRIGHTENINGLY FAMILIAR!

T-Roy wrote:

Chairman_Smith wrote:

ultmetal wrote:

I think modern music fans are
missing out on an experience. There was nothing like hanging out at you
local record/CD store, going through bins of records/CDs while the
store was crankin' some tunes. There was an atmosphere and a vibe at
the local record store that was very cool. I've always enjoyed doing
that.

I've also always enjoyed digging through all those CDs
or records and finding that one gem I'd been searching out for months.
Ebay makes it a bit too easy to obtain those gems and it's just not as
fun. It takes away the hunt.

Also, I've always been one who
enjoys albums, as opposed to singles. I seem to latch onto certain
bands and just really dig their sound. I don't care as much for the
'hit single' as I do about a solid album of material. The cover art is
part of the package and I think the MP3 generation is missing out on
that. There is something wrong with downloading that one song you heard
on the radio and thought was cool, yet you never hear anything else the
artist did. What great music I would have missed out on all these years
if all I ever did was purchase a single. Shoot, at least with a single
you have a b-side. You don't even have that with an MP3.

I
do like going through the CD bins, but man... i live in the middle of
nowhere and have to drive an hour to do it... so I end up just using
Amazon.

Not me, I like "INSTANT" gratification. I hate
rummaging through cut bins and clearance bins. Although, there is
something exciting when you find something rare you want for a couple
bucks at some used store! But......I'll take it digital any day over cd
hunting. But that's also cuz I listen to my stuff on my Ipod 90% of the
time. When I bought the Ult-PT remastered, I took it to work, uploaded
it to itunes and put the CD in my closet back at home for safe keeping
from the munchkins.

No way i'm paying for digital downloads. Computer crashes and then what? If my computer crashes or my harddrive goes kaptuz then all of my songs are safe on the shelf right next to me.

It's called a CD-R!

Yes I have over 150 CDrs and DVDs with digital music. (That I never listen to )

I lost quite a few mp3s through a computer crash. So I understand that POV.

I also don't want stacks of hundreds of CDs laying around my house.

Solution: digital downloads w/ regular backups

The record company is essentially putting itself out of business. Standard CD prices are to high most places. Regular non-new cds should be about 9.99, new releases 12.99, double discs 14.99, and older less popular stuff about 7.99. Best Buy does pretty good with prices, wal-mart does ok on some stuff (6.88 for most of the Ac/Dc at the one here!) but has poor selection. Sam Goody, FYE and the like put anything that is not new, super popular or old at some ridiculous price like 18.99

Honestly why albums that are 30 years old still priced at close to $15? The record company recouped their money on CCR, Led Zeppelin, The Doors, Ect. many years ago and these albums still sell well, so cut the price and sell twice as many. Pressing a CD particularly is mass quanities costs next to nothing, and i know they pay royalties on each sale but selling higher volume should make for less profit per disc.

CDs will die out at some point but I think it will be awhile. Disc (cdr or dvdr) is still the standard for storage and tranferring media to others. As long as this stays true the CD will remain.

Temple of Blood wrote:

I also don't want stacks of hundreds of CDs laying around my house.

You and my wife would get along grand!

spectrefate wrote:

Yes I have over 150 CDrs and DVDs with digital music. (That I never listen to )

sending you my address now.....