The Death of the Compact Disc

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Ha! Yes, constantly doing it, constantly looking.

Yay!

scottmitchell74 wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Ha! Yes, constantly doing it, constantly looking.

Yay!

Back when the new wave of traditional/thrash metal was exploding, i was so happy with it that i almost bought every new release. Then I started realizing how samey most of them were and noticed that i would only spin a cd once before putting it back on the shelves.

Now, my shopping has become much more focused. I prefer to listen to an album very well on YouTube and if am OK with at least 75% of the tracks, maybe I will buy it.

Gilbert wrote:

scottmitchell74 wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Ha! Yes, constantly doing it, constantly looking.

Yay!

Back when the new wave of traditional/thrash metal was exploding, i was so happy with it that i almost bought every new release. Then I started realizing how samey most of them were and noticed that i would only spin a cd once before putting it back on the shelves.

Now, my shopping has become much more focused. I prefer to listen to an album very well on YouTube and if am OK with at least 75% of the tracks, maybe I will buy it.

Whoa! That's almost exactly how I do it, although in my mind I'm shooting for 80%.

I love my CD collection and will continue to buy CDs until they no longer make them, and at that point I'll buy old used CDs, and then soon after I'll probably be dead and my kids will say, "You know, Dad was a dick for leaving us all this bullshit! It's gonna cost like $100 to bring all this garbage to the dump."

I love my digital collection, too, which is bigger than my CD collection thanks to illegal downloading (so much badass hard-to-find music I'd never heard of to be had out there).

But it's probably inevitable that the physical format dies. Music, movies, books, etc. At one time I hated the idea, but when you can have your entire music, movie, and book collection on something smaller than a piece of bread, and backed up to a cloud somewhere in case it dies or you lose it, it's hard not to like that.

I prefer to listen to an album very well on YouTube and if am OK
with at least 75% of the tracks, maybe I will buy it.

I usually listen to two tracks on YouTube. Then I buy or not.
I'm not knocked out by that much anymore....but songs are out there !

Underground, where the city smells
Lives a creature out of hell
Won't see him coming, won't see him go
You're a dead man, and you don't know
He's almost human, he's Satan's pet
His icy hell fire burns your head
He's the prince of hell and fire, oh yeah
Where lights are dim, he rips off your limbs
His evil heart tears you apart
Blood is his one desire
He's the prince of hell and fire !

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Gilbert wrote:

scottmitchell74 wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Ha! Yes, constantly doing it, constantly looking.

Yay!

Back when the new wave of traditional/thrash metal was exploding, i was so happy with it that i almost bought every new release. Then I started realizing how samey most of them were and noticed that i would only spin a cd once before putting it back on the shelves.

Now, my shopping has become much more focused. I prefer to listen to an album very well on YouTube and if am OK with at least 75% of the tracks, maybe I will buy it.

I am similar with respect to 1980's hair/ glam former members team ups on Frontiers. Now, I would rather put my money and listening time toward bands I missed back in the day like Railway, Heavy Load, or Universe. I find 'em on you tube and when I listen more than once, I know I like it and pick it up online.

I have started passing on new releases from older bands like Mr. Big or House of Lords that get the cursory spin and then get shelved. The newly discovered "diamond in the rough" gets more spins and is worth the money.

the sentinel wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

scottmitchell74 wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Ha! Yes, constantly doing it, constantly looking.

Yay!

Back when the new wave of traditional/thrash metal was exploding, i was so happy with it that i almost bought every new release. Then I started realizing how samey most of them were and noticed that i would only spin a cd once before putting it back on the shelves.

Now, my shopping has become much more focused. I prefer to listen to an album very well on YouTube and if am OK with at least 75% of the tracks, maybe I will buy it.

I am similar with respect to 1980's hair/ glam former members team ups on Frontiers. Now, I would rather put my money and listening time toward bands I missed back in the day like Railway, Heavy Load, or Universe. I find 'em on you tube and when I listen more than once, I know I like it and pick it up online.

Fun coincidence. I picked up cds by Railway, Heavy Load and Universe a while ago. They all rock .

I am now much less interested in listening to new bands and/or new material by old bands. I prefer to focus my efforts and money on old bands and albums I had missed back in the day. This is how I came across an amazing band from Denmark called Randy and immediately picked up their Anthology double album.

Check them out if you haven't heard them yet:

Quote :

soon after I'll probably be dead and my kids will say, "You know, Dad was a dick for leaving us all this bullshit! It's gonna cost like $100 to bring all this garbage to the dump."

Haha, I said something very similar in another forum. The topic was "What will happen to your music collection after you're gone?" and I said "My kids will either sell'em for ten cents apiece to some schmuck on Craigslist, or they'll huck'em into a dumpster. Won't really matter to me. I'll be dead."

the sentinel wrote:

The CD seemed to be on an unmitigated ascent since 1990 but has slowed dramatically since 2010. I have a few ideas as to why:

Streaming: I feel as though we are becoming a minimalist society. The excess of the 1980's and '90's bigger is better mentality is long gone. People want everything housed on an Apple watch on their wrist. Plus, it's cheaper to pay for a monthly/ yearly subscription than spending $10-15 a week on discs.

Collections: It seems like people don't want to build a music collection anymore. We here at HoM are a dying breed. The public has already upgraded from cassette to CD and for most a greatest hits package in a budget price point works well.

Price Point: I recall going into an FYE around 2006 and looking at Metal Church's Light in the Dark disc and putting it back cuz the price tag was $21.99! Eventually, a few weeks later, I got it on line far cheaper. I remember thinking that the technology had been around for well over two decades at this point, so why are discs still super expensive.

Vinyl Resurgence: With the advent of Record Store Day in 2008, vinyl started it's comeback and took dollars away from the sale of CD's. Also, the few cassette new releases took additional money away from the CD.

Other: Ancillary factors that I feel contributed to a small degree would be the poor re releasing of things like the VH, JP, and Megadeth remasters being brick walled and terrible sounding as well as the cheapness of digi packs. An excuse by the greedy record companies to get cheap and hide behind the mantra of going green.

Anywhoo, just a few of my theories. What do you think?

I think everyone else kind of hit the big points here.

The only bit that's left out as far as I'm concerned is that it's been a lot more self-fulfilling as prophecies go. The CD is supposed to be "dying," but the CDs released are often put out in crap packaging, contain terrible mastering, and give no real value for money. Arguably, quality control is crap across the board. I'm not a vinyl collector, but I hear all the time about manufacturing flaws and the use of the same digital masters that get burned to CD being used in pressing them. The industry is just happier to rake in the higher markup for vinyl platters than shiny plastic, I guess, so they're not singing its impending doom.

The part I like the least about the present landscape of people not "wanting" to own stuff is that they're being sold a false bill of goods when it comes to streaming. Streaming isn't a replacement for a music collection - unless all you want is noise in the background and aren't particular about what that noise happens to be. Streaming companies drop artists, albums, songs, etc. all the time because licensing agreements expire or just because they feel like it. It would suck if one day your favorite artist or album got dumped down the memory hole, regardless of the reason, if you had nothing else as a "back up."

So, to start off with, streaming is being pushed as something it can't really ever be. Not a great foundation there.

Add to that, this is really the record industry's wet dream and has been since they were talking about home taping destroying the industry. Now, they've got full control of what you hear, when you hear it, and know that the rental fees will keep rolling in. We already know artists are basically getting boned sideways from a royalties perspective in the streaming landscape, so it's not like the labels have to worry about profit sharing. Once there's no physical media left, it'll be a choice between buying second-hand discs or dealing with what the streaming overlords consent to offer.

Kind of weird, honestly. We've gone from "f*** the man" to the younger generation gleefully slopping up whatever "the man" is offering them with no thought about personal control or exploration. Bigger issues there, I guess, but specific to music, I really don't get it.

That's not to say streaming is total crap. I buy CDs like they're essential for doomsday prepping, but I also rip them for use on a portable player AND throw them on a Plex server so I can stream in the house or anywhere I've got cell reception. Seems the best of all possible worlds, really. Stuff like Spotify and the like are probably great for checking out new music without splashing out cash (or space) on a physical copy first, but it's a poor replacement for ownership as far as I'm concerned. I just think the industry keeps singing this song because they've always hated things like taping, downloads, torrenting, and the second-hand market. They want every sale to be a first sale they can profit from and a streaming-only setup is the best deal they could ask for in that regard - especially when it's got enough of a monopoly that those rock-bottom prices can go away.

Some bands I just gotta have on CD. Others, not so much, I am fine with downloads from either iTunes or Amazon. The only Apple product I have is a Gen 4 iPod and I am getting to where I don't use that much at all and Amazon Prime has a ton of albums for free. And classic artists, like Hendrix or something I always opt to pick it up on vinyl.

If it is a band I have a collection of, I'll probably spring for the CD (something like Rush, since I have most of theirs on CD). But some newer releases I have been fine with a download. I wanted Priest "Firepower" on CD but couldn't find it anywhere after trips to multiple stores (we no longer have FYe since Hurricane Michael destroyed our mall but I wouldn't pay 22.99 anyway for it even if they had it). So I was forced to buy the album from iTunes (which by the way is now on Amazon Prime as a free download). Same with Night Demon. I knew I would not be able to find the CD's anywhere so I opted for the downloads without even bothering to look for CD's.

Best Buy was always good for finding new metal releases but since they have dumped music they can buzz off, I don't go there any more.

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three this past weekend, and four the week before that.

I've been switching to downloads not just due to space, but due to availability. The only store we have in town that sells cds is Wal-Mart, who look to be phasing them out anyway, so most stuff I want to purchase isnt there. That said, I do buy cds that I find "in the wild" at thrift stores, but again, finding anything good is hit-and-miss. I guess I could mail order, but I'm impatient and want the music now.

Fat Freddy wrote:

Quote :

soon after I'll probably be dead and my kids will say, "You know, Dad was a dick for leaving us all this bullshit! It's gonna cost like $100 to bring all this garbage to the dump."

Haha, I said something very similar in another forum. The topic was "What will happen to your music collection after you're gone?" and I said "My kids will either sell'em for ten cents apiece to some schmuck on Craigslist, or they'll huck'em into a dumpster. Won't really matter to me. I'll be dead."

My wife clearly stated that she will immediately sell my cd collection, right after my funeral has ended. I hope i will be able to haunt the living room, long after I am gone, to prevent her from doing something that evil.

Gilbert wrote:

I hope i will be able to haunt the living room, long after I am gone, to prevent her from doing something that evil.

My wife talks about selling too! She thinks she's going to make a lot of money. I've tried to explain to her that that bubble has burst. Maybe there will be a resurgence in the decades to come like there has been with vinyl.

Quote :

My wife clearly stated that she will immediately sell my cd collection, right after my funeral has ended. I hope i will be able to haunt the living room, long after I am gone, to prevent her from doing something that evil.

Fat Freddy wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three this past weekend, and four the week before that.

I just ordered The Skull’s latest cd a few days ago.

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

scottmitchell74 wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Ha! Yes, constantly doing it, constantly looking.

Yay!

Back when the new wave of traditional/thrash metal was exploding, i was so happy with it that i almost bought every new release. Then I started realizing how samey most of them were and noticed that i would only spin a cd once before putting it back on the shelves.

Now, my shopping has become much more focused. I prefer to listen to an album very well on YouTube and if am OK with at least 75% of the tracks, maybe I will buy it.

I am similar with respect to 1980's hair/ glam former members team ups on Frontiers. Now, I would rather put my money and listening time toward bands I missed back in the day like Railway, Heavy Load, or Universe. I find 'em on you tube and when I listen more than once, I know I like it and pick it up online.

Fun coincidence. I picked up cds by Railway, Heavy Load and Universe a while ago. They all rock .

I am now much less interested in listening to new bands and/or new material by old bands. I prefer to focus my efforts and money on old bands and albums I had missed back in the day. This is how I came across an amazing band from Denmark called Randy and immediately picked up their Anthology double album.

Check them out if you haven't heard them yet:

I have. That one pops up a lot due to the algorithm youtube uses. We have a very similar musical palate my friend
I will probably head over to youtube for some Universe or Spitfire when the wife and daughter get home. Until they do, I am enjoying my Helloween vinyl box on the turn table loud and proud!!!

corplhicks wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

I hope i will be able to haunt the living room, long after I am gone, to prevent her from doing something that evil.

I almost spit out my IPA!

the sentinel wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

scottmitchell74 wrote:

Gilbert wrote:

the sentinel wrote:

Btw, I bought a CD two hours ago.

I bought three .

Ha! Yes, constantly doing it, constantly looking.

Yay!

Back when the new wave of traditional/thrash metal was exploding, i was so happy with it that i almost bought every new release. Then I started realizing how samey most of them were and noticed that i would only spin a cd once before putting it back on the shelves.

Now, my shopping has become much more focused. I prefer to listen to an album very well on YouTube and if am OK with at least 75% of the tracks, maybe I will buy it.

I am similar with respect to 1980's hair/ glam former members team ups on Frontiers. Now, I would rather put my money and listening time toward bands I missed back in the day like Railway, Heavy Load, or Universe. I find 'em on you tube and when I listen more than once, I know I like it and pick it up online.

Fun coincidence. I picked up cds by Railway, Heavy Load and Universe a while ago. They all rock .

I am now much less interested in listening to new bands and/or new material by old bands. I prefer to focus my efforts and money on old bands and albums I had missed back in the day. This is how I came across an amazing band from Denmark called Randy and immediately picked up their Anthology double album.

Check them out if you haven't heard them yet:

I have. That one pops up a lot due to the algorithm youtube uses. We have a very similar musical palate my friend
I will probably head over to youtube for some Universe or Spitfire when the wife and daughter get home. Until they do, I am enjoying my Helloween vinyl box on the turn table loud and proud!!!

Greek label No Remorse has released a special RANDY double cd anthology. Amazing material. Highly recommended. I got my copy last Monday and have been spinning it non stop since.

Here is another excellent track:

Fat Freddy wrote:

Quote :

soon after I'll probably be dead and my kids will say, "You know, Dad was a dick for leaving us all this bullshit! It's gonna cost like $100 to bring all this garbage to the dump."

Haha, I said something very similar in another forum. The topic was "What will happen to your music collection after you're gone?" and I said "My kids will either sell'em for ten cents apiece to some schmuck on Craigslist, or they'll huck'em into a dumpster. Won't really matter to me. I'll be dead."

Yup. I won't care. Haha.