CDs are pretty much dead... Long Live USB?

[garp]

I still buy CDs.

+1.

Never owned an iPod or any of its progeny. Don't believe in the necessity of an Internet connection to be able to listen to recorded music. Plus the liner notes on most of my store-bought CDs promise "a lifetime of enjoyment" from their contents...and, well, last time I checked, I ain't dead yet.

 

[CapnSev]

iTunes will be moving to a paid streaming format and get out of the business of selling individual digital files. IOW, you won't be in possession of an individual copy anymore. Will other follow suit? Who knows.

If this is true, I desperately hope someone comes in and picks up the album download format. I would actually like to own the album, and there are actually many places where streaming just isn’t gong to work. For example, all over the place around here.

 

[bound'n'blocked]

I have an SD card in my phone with about 475 songs on it. Since my phone is with me all the time that's how I decided to carry my music.

As far as my line of work (I'm a radio DJ), artists stopped sending out physical copies of music years ago. I have a password to a music service and I download it all. The packaging is usually included in the download. I would rather have a hard copy of the stuff personally. But since it all gets dumped down into a computer anyway for on air use, it seems six of one, half dozen of the other. I know radio guys who refuse to use the download stuff, demanding a physical copy. i dont know what they are going to do in a few years.

I got a turntable for Christmas a couple of years ago, and a CD player. I actually use them both. The turntable even has a CASSETTE player in it, along with an SD card and USB access, for both listening and backing up to. The speakers I got for it have bluetooth capabilities, so a lot of times I just bluetooth and listen to music on the phone. I even have a reel to reel machine too. I guess I have all formats, covered, except 8 track.

BnB

 

[tpaul]

My car takes CDs and cassettes. That's right, cassettes.

 

[JimmyM]

The format is unimportant. The music is.

 

[BOOG]

Reel to Reel is dead. Long Live 8 Track!
8 Track is dead. Long Live Cassettes!
Cassettes are dead. Long Live CDs!
CDs are dead. Long Live USB!
Next.

...usb is dead
Long live streaming
Streaming is _________
Long live ________

 

[arbiterusa]

Downloads. Physical media is done. In my experience with USB drives, people just take them, copy the music onto their machine and then use the drive for other stuff, usually at work.

 

[SactoBass]

I buy CDs..I like listening to them at home and in my car..I like to be able to see the covers..and the information printed on the inside..and CDs are a lot quicker..just pick it up and your there..

+1

 

[toprekoms]

They're not dead to me.

 

[osv]

Never saw the point for music. Plus the "install virus" scare attached to it.

For me, publishing on bandcamp is stage 1, distribution on all the major online platforms is stage 2. Stage 3, whether or not to print cds is an afterthought. I'll have 100-200 made for a project if the members think it matters and willing to pay for it. (just had 160 cds made for a a duo with the other member in Europe, where cds are valued a bit more more than in the US)

A really cool alternative i have seen a few examples of recently is Biophilia Records | Official Website who use the (patented) Biopholio packaging: a 20 panel sheet that folds origami-style into a cd-size package with a download code in it. I think it's brilliant: you sell something that looks beautiful and is tactile, without dealing with actual cds. See also Glace BIOPHOLIO™ from Desmond White for an example

Interesting idea. I don't see too much difference between this and a regular square folded (map like) cd insert, which I hate. Too many creases and just not as easy to look at and read through as a regular stapled cd booklet.
The demo video seems to be edited in a way that cuts out parts where folding the origami booklet didn't go as planned. The whole origami thing is neat, but I think in practice that it's just a gimmick that is not as usable as the standard booklet.

 

[N. Kentucky Bass]

I'm a believer that you only own music when you have it on a physical medium that's relatively non-perishable.

And the experts say CD-Rs will degrade over time, so they are not a non-perishable medium. They're probably "relatively" so, which means you archivists will need to physically transfer the 1's and 0's to newer media as time wears on and the music is forgotten. Which begs the question: will all the music we send into the "cloud" have eternal life? If so, maybe that's the way to go, even if the 500-year old tunes are never listened to again.
4. How Long Can You Store CDs and DVDs and Use Them Again? • CLIR

 

[MultiScaleMale]

+1.

Never owned an iPod or any of its progeny. Don't believe in the necessity of an Internet connection to be able to listen to recorded music. Plus the liner notes on most of my store-bought CDs promise "a lifetime of enjoyment" from their contents...and, well, last time I checked, I ain't dead yet.

But where do you buy CDs now? I’m old and I don’t even have a place to play CDs. My car doesn’t have a CD player, laptops are slotless, DVDs and BluRays long gone to Goodwill. But I do have 20 million albums available at voice command.

 

[SactoBass]

My wife and I couldn't find the USB port on our music player. Maybe it's bluetooth.

 

[gln1955]

And the experts say CD-Rs will degrade over time, so they are not a non-perishable medium. They're probably "relatively" so, which means you archivists will need to physically transfer the 1's and 0's to newer media as time wears on and the music is forgotten. Which begs the question: will all the music we send into the "cloud" have eternal life? If so, maybe that's the way to go, even if the 500-year old tunes are never listened to again.
4. How Long Can You Store CDs and DVDs and Use Them Again? • CLIR

Soon we'll all have chips implanted in our brains so we only have to think about a song and it will play in our heads. All of these formats and devices will seem so quaint.

 

[gln1955]

But where do you buy CDs now? I’m old and I don’t even have a place to play CDs. My car doesn’t have a CD player, laptops are slotless, DVDs and BluRays long gone to Goodwill. But I do have 20 million albums available at voice command.

Yep. I still have a peripheral disc player to use at home or work when I have to deal with a CD or DVD. I'm not a fan of that format any more.

 

[sigterm]

I have an SD card in my phone with about 475 songs on it. Since my phone is with me all the time that's how I decided to carry my music.

As far as my line of work (I'm a radio DJ), artists stopped sending out physical copies of music years ago. I have a password to a music service and I download it all. The packaging is usually included in the download. I would rather have a hard copy of the stuff personally. But since it all gets dumped down into a computer anyway for on air use, it seems six of one, half dozen of the other. I know radio guys who refuse to use the download stuff, demanding a physical copy. i dont know what they are going to do in a few years.

I got a turntable for Christmas a couple of years ago, and a CD player. I actually use them both. The turntable even has a CASSETTE player in it, along with an SD card and USB access, for both listening and backing up to. The speakers I got for it have bluetooth capabilities, so a lot of times I just bluetooth and listen to music on the phone. I even have a reel to reel machine too. I guess I have all formats, covered, except 8 track.

BnB

Between making money as a musician and as a radio dj... Hopefully the stations have settled down on the buying and selling of each other and the gigs are steady. Is your station format and bands format the same?

 

[dxb]

Digital streaming is certainly convenient but the problem is any of that content could (and often does) disappear suddenly on the whim of whoever owns the rights. Just think of all the movies and TV shows that used to be on Netflix and now they're gone. Because of this uncertainty, I like to make sure I have my own copy of any music I really enjoy, whether its a physical CD or digital files.

 

[Coolhandjjl]

If this is true, I desperately hope someone comes in and picks up the album download format. I would actually like to own the album, and there are actually many places where streaming just isn’t gong to work. For example, all over the place around here.

Amazon sells music as digital files, I'm sure there are others. But I get you. Streaming doesn't work whether it's Netflix or music in many rural areas in my state.

 

[Pilgrim]

And the experts say CD-Rs will degrade over time, so they are not a non-perishable medium. They're probably "relatively" so, which means you archivists will need to physically transfer the 1's and 0's to newer media as time wears on and the music is forgotten. Which begs the question: will all the music we send into the "cloud" have eternal life? If so, maybe that's the way to go, even if the 500-year old tunes are never listened to again.
4. How Long Can You Store CDs and DVDs and Use Them Again? • CLIR

True! I know they're "relatively" non-perishable, as I have CDs that are 30+ years old and still work fine. In the article, CD-ROM and DVD-ROM life expectancy estimates are quoted as varying from 20-100 years. Environmental conditions are also cited as having an impact, and all my CDs are kept in climate controlled conditions in plastic cases, minimizing their exposure to heat and humidity. I also don't treat them roughly so scratching or potential for cracking due to rough handling are both minimized. I think I can expect longevity of the CDs to be substantial. People who throw un-cased CDs on the floor of their car and let them slide around in dirt can expect a lot shorter service life from them.

Great article, BTW, and very interesting to read!!

And transferring CDs to cloud storage is a trivial process that only requires a minute or so; the most valuable material can easily be transferred. This is probably most important if you have CDs of family photos.

 

[Son of Wobble]

Soon we'll all have chips implanted in our brains so we only have to think about a song and it will play in our heads.

I already have this technology implanted. Unfortunately, the only song that has been released thus far in the new format is "Judy In Disguise"