Comments on: Do you still buy CDs?

Sales of music downloads won't surpass silver discs for a while--a report projects the year 2012. So fess up: a lot of you are still buying discs, and I want to know who you are.

[couverS]

I prefer CD's to downloads frankly. In my collection when i see a physical CD in all its glory, with beautiful, well thought out cover art it reminds me what is on that CD. I can look at a CD and remember oh, yeah that entire CD rocked. With the downloads, they seem to get lost or just lay there with their digital name without any image association. For me its all about the work that was put into the piece musically, esthetically, artistically and so on. There are some interesting reads in the inserts as well - we get so wrapped up in speed and convenience that we lose sight of what the artists these days are trying to evoke - most CD's have a theme or story to tell - download one song and you miss all that completely.

[Loli1995]

But most of the people that buy MP3's, buy mainstream pop music. Most of mainstream pop music does not have a story to tell.

I would never buy a classic song (Queen, Michael Jackson etc) in MP3 format. But Britney Spears, yes. I don't want her CD..... even if someone gave it to me brand new.

[NYCgoalie]

One other thing to add to the discussion....this whole article would be moot if the record labels were to ever move thier catalogs to the high-definition sound that's available on Blu-Ray discs.

The audio quality avaialble to be placed on Blu-Ray discs trumps the older SACD and Audio-DVD disc standards. You can easily put an albumn on Blu-Ray disc that has 3 different sections on it: The first section is the complete albumn in two-channel stereo High Def audio, a second section with the albumn in multichannel surround sound, and a third section with the album in a compressed format (MP3, WMA, AAC, whatever). And you'd probably have enough room to put in things like videos, lyrics and enhanced liner notes.

If priced right and there was support from portable audio players for the enhanced audio section, these Blu-Ray CD's would blow anything everything else out of the water!! People would buy these without a problem. Of course, this just makes too much sense...that's why the record companies would never go for this.

[dorianjf]

I sitll buy CD's because I like to have control over my music. I own several devices that allow me to store or stream music, so I need the flexibility to play my music on multiple devices; music downloads with DRM protection limit my options.

[drummer49]

i still buy cd's.i have limited myself to buying two "forms of music a month"this could be cd vinyl or itunes.as i type i am listening to my copy of "todd" on vinyl and sounds great.through cambridge audio amp and grado SR225 headphones.
i have purchased about 35 albums from itunes,and don't feel connected to the music.i regret having bought some of it not so much for sonic clarity but for the fact that i can't hold it.
i believe that music and it's enjoyment is largely subjective.some of the greatest music i ever heard was as a child through a crummy car radio.
anyhow yah i still buy cd's

[jc364]

It is nice to own a physical version of an album. Albums play better in older stereos when they are bought from the store, rather than burned onto a cd-r. Plus, I can rip the music to my computer and have true DRM-free music with quality and format of my choice. Its also nice to have all of the included album art.

However, it comes down to price. If I can find a DRM-free album significantly cheaper online, then that is where I will get it.

[poisonedragon]

of course. although i concentrate on used cd's now. i even look for dvd-a and sacd.

[lacykemp]

I still buy CDs.. Probably at least 2 a month. I tend to purchase them used from Amazon, but occasionally, if I'm desperate, I'll plop down the 15 bucks for a new disc. I only recently got my iPhone hooked up to my car. I still prefer to the quality of a CD to a download, any day. And as long as CDs are still being sold, I will continue to buy them.

[brinker123]

I buy physical SACDs and Dualdiscs to keep the surround formats alive. If the release is only in stereo, then I will download it first (from various sources). The download must be a minimum of 192k or VBR without DRM or I won't even try it. THEN if I love the ENTIRE album, I WILL buy the physical CD for the best sound quality.

[guitarified]

I still buy CDs. I don't buy as many as I used to. I used to go out on 'New Release Tuesday' and buy at least two. I still buy remastered/bonus versions. I download some music but, to me, there is nothing like having the original CD. I love the packaging, the sound quality, the fact that I always have an original hard copy. Also, I'm a bit of a collector, so there's no greater feeling than adding something new to my CD (or DVD) collection. Being a musician, I also feel good about spending my money on the artist's creation in the way it was created to be obtained...as a whole album.

[ddpinkard]

My CD collection is now 1906 and counting... yes, I've ripped them all for personal iPod/MP3 uses, but I still want my CDs, although Sony's root-kit debacle ALMOST changed my mind. But until just recently, digital downloads were wrapped in aggravating DRM, and I've been burned on THAT scene since WMA's early days, so CDs have remained the choice for purchases. I don't choose to download music I'm not entitled to use on my current device, which have varied throughout the years, and I don't believe in downloading music I HAVEN'T purchased.

[Loli1995]

Since I am an artist, I do not see what is so amazing about CD album art.

But it is nice to have lyrics in your hands.

[Loli1995]

When CD's become outdated, I'll buy them. lol They will be like 2 or 3 dollars, like cassetes.

[coulterboyz]

Um... Am I the only one to think that most of the people who would BUY downloads would also buy CD's? I mean the people that I know that buy all their songs are like me; those who want high quality music, not the trash recordings that flow around on the 'net. And to get the best quality music, there is no substitute for a CD. And after a quick rip into a lossless format I can take it with me and have the CD at home so it never gets scratched. Just my way of doing things.

[research1st]

Your trying to apply logic to the music buying public.... Unfortunately it doesn't work. Actually I think you will find just the opposite. Those that will pay for downloads will generally not buy CD's. And those that buy CD's probably don't do much downloading.
I took an informal poll at my office. Computer Professionals ranging in age from 25 - 50. A tolal of 25 people. The under 40 folks could care less about CD's or sound quality. They are content to download from iTunes onto their iPhone and/or iPod. These are the same folks that go through 3 or 4 cell phones a year to "keep up" with the latest technology. Most of this group cited the fact that they could care less about the artists but more about individual songs. I heard this many times... "Why buy a CD to get only 1 or 2 good songs?"
For those over 40, very few bought CD's or did any downloading. They said they had, "grown out of their music buying phase". Those that did buy CD's however, considered themselves modest audiophiles with modest sound systems at home.
Almost every person in the department had what they considered a "home theater" setup. And it was mainly used for movie watching, not music listening.
I'm one of the over 40, with a modest home audio system that has grown to be modest home theater system. And yes, I buy CD's, but do not download.

[skorpiius]

I'm curious where people are finding that "cd's can barely be given away", everywhere I look cd's are the same prices they've always been ($8 and up). For me the free downloading of music has been a huge blessing, but believe it or not I still buy cd's. I basically now can reward artists as I see fit. If they have a single song that I'll be bored of in a week then I'll probably just download it, but if they have an album that is through and through quality, I"ll go buy it. Also I'd like to see more artists do interesting packaging, like Pet Shop Boys and NIN did in the past (or for example in the movie realm I bought a Reservoir Dogs DVD that came in a giant matchbook which was inside a cd case sized metal jerry can), making cd's have a collectable version would open my wallet.

[vincents1278]

I still buy cds. Maybe it's because I'm 30 and when I was a kid everything seemed tangible, but I think it's good to have a physical copy of something you love.

What happens to those files on the computer if the thing dies before you had a chance to burn a copy?

What does it cost to download an album? $10 bucks...plus a buck or so per blank disc if you want to burn your music. CDs have come down to about 10 or 12 bucks per copy now, so what's the difference?