When the CD was introduced in 1982, everyone thought the LP's days were numbered, but it's still here. Now it's starting to look like the LP might outlast the CD.
(Credit:
Steve Guttenberg)
Of course "record stores" are also on the endangered species list; here in NYC, Tower, Virgin, and Sam Goody are long-gone, but J & R Music World in lower Manhattan is the last remaining full-size outfit. Smaller shops are hanging in there, too.
You can still buy CDs and LPs online, and vinyl's selection is getting better and better. So if you're a music lover, what should you buy, CD or LP? First, it depends on whether you can get the music you want on vinyl.
Sound quality issues aren't black and white. CD wins in terms of noise-free listening, though clean records, played on a decent turntable can sound amazingly quiet. But even then, there will be occasional clicks and pops. That's a deal breaker for some, but if you've never heard records played on a decent turntable, you don't know how quiet records can be.
LPs can sound warmer, fuller, and more natural than CDs, and way better than low-bit MP3 and AAC variants. LP sound seems to engage listeners in a very different way than digital recordings do. It's not that digital sounds bad, but vinyl is more fun to listen to. Music on LP seems more immediate and realistic than digital. Oh, and it's worth noting that most people who use vinyl actually listen to music, while digital listeners rarely do. Digital makes do as background sound. That's just the way it is. If you can't see yourself ever really listening to music--without talking, reading, working on the computer, etc--sure, CDs and MP3s are perfectly fine.
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The LP3065 is a proud 30-incher that sticks to tradition.
(Credit: Josh P. Miller/CNET)It's rare that I get my hands on a 30-inch monitor these days, as only a handful of vendors actually make them. Not surprising given their usual prices, which can range from $1,000 up to $1,600 in some cases.
The HP LP3065 is a typical 30-inch monitor. A resolution of 2,560x1,600 pixels? Check. A number of useful ergonomic options? Check. A wide viewing angle thanks to its use of high-end panel technology? Checkeroo!
Unfortunately, the LP3065 also inherits the 30-inch monitor trend of only including a brightness setting as the sole video adjustment option. Check out the full review of the LP3065 to see what else HP did or didn't include.
Also, check out our new Monitor Buying Guide and be sure to check here for new monitor reviews.
My second Linn LP12 turntable.
(Credit: Steve Guttenberg)
CNET.com Poll
Audiophiles have been known to develop unnaturally strong bonds with their gear, but civilians also have their faves. It might be a type--a speaker, an MP3 player, a car audio system--or a specific product. For me it was my first Linn LP 12 turntable I bought in 1979. I told my wife I wanted to be buried with it. That 'table rocked my world.
Or are you just hung up on 8-track players, or maybe it was a radio your father gave you? In other words, I want to know if it's a type of gear, or a specific product you've owned. Please tell us about your favorite piece of audio equipment in the comments below, and also be sure to vote in the poll.
Promotional page for iTunes LP, which appeared in the iTunes Music Store on Wednesday.
(Credit: Screenshot by Matt Rosoff/CNET)I'm following Apple's "It's Only Rock and Roll" event along with the CNET staff, but even before the event started, I saw that Apple has revealed its new LP format for iTunes.
It's called iTunes LP, and you can access it by clicking the top item on the "More to Explore" box in the left side of the iTunes Store front page. The new format includes more album art, lyrics, writing about the record, video (such as interviews with band members), and perhaps additional songs.
There are only a handful of albums available in the format right now (see screenshot for the six that are advertised on the iTunes LP page), but I'm sure that more are coming.
So far, I haven't been able to download the iTunes 9 software, but it's available in earlier versions as well.
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(Credit:
Steve Guttenberg)
Vinyl is back, big time, but the fact is most folks, probably close to 99 percent of the under 40-set, haven't heard records.
For them, music is about portability and vinyl is a stay-at-home deal. Vinyl has more of a hands-on work ethic: you've got to cue the tonearm, lower the "needle," and when the side's over, turn it over or play another LP. Digital requires almost nothing from you; no wonder it's dominated the music scene for the last couple of decades.
Me, I'm having something of a vinyl fling right now. I've always owned a turntable, but there were times I played only CDs for months on end. I guess I didn't want to deal with the extra work of playing vinyl. Sad, but true.
As for LP vs. CD comparisons, I didn't do any. Trust me, you don't have to be a golden-eared audiophile to notice the two formats sound very different. Records are "warmer" and sound more like the sound of real instruments and voices; CDs almost always make them more detailed and brighter-sounding than they are in real life.
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You know, there's just something about 2,560x1,600 pixels that makes everything look great! Even goblins.
(Credit: Eric Franklin/CNET)Finally, a 30-incher has come back to C...NET. Yes, I'm a "Rock" fan and yes that is a loooong throwback to a bygone era, but it seemed appropriate.
Last week we got in the HP LP3065 30-incher. Now I know it's been out for a while, but I've gotten a few recent requests to review it. After the Samsung 305T, the Gateway XHD3000 and the Dell UltraSharp 3008WFP it's one of the only 30-inchers I haven't reviewed.
Check out the pics and video below to get a glimpse and look for a review of this monstrosity soon.
CNET poll
What, you don't have a turntable? What's wrong with you?
When the CD was unveiled to the world in 1982 with the "Perfect Sound Forever" motto, everyone assumed the LP's days were numbered. Well, nearly three decades later, vinyl's hanging in there and the CD's future looks uncertain.
Vinyl appeals to oldsters who still covet their LP collections, and kids who are just now getting into the groove. To some vinyl sounds better, more musical than digital, and some just dig the more physical connection to the music vinyl provides.
(Credit:
Steve Guttenberg)
Best Buy may be known for selling the latest in technology, but it seems the retailer hasn't forgotten about people who still love the old-school way of getting their music.
Recently I remembered that big-box retailer Best Buy had an exclusive on last year's long-awaited Guns 'n' Roses release, "Chinese Democracy," and that the release included vinyl. And I read last month that the chain is running a pilot program to stock vinyl in 100 stores. (Eight whole square feet!)
(Credit:
Best Buy)
But until a friend pointed me to the site today, I had no idea that you could order more than 5,000 titles on vinyl from Best Buy's online store. Amazon's been offering vinyl for some time now, but its 190,000-plus results include a lot of used records and stock from third-party affiliates. Best Buy is actually selling these titles new and sealed in cellophane. Even though about half of them appear to be on back order, it's still great news for the small but growing minority of music fans who prefer listening to music the old-fashioned way.
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To celebrate Earth day, Seagate announced Wednesday the availability of its new, extra-low-power desktop hard drive, the Barracuda LP (LP stands for low power).
(Credit:
Seagate)
If Western Digital's new WD RE4-GP desktop hard drive has no spinning rpm specification, Seagate's Barracuda LP has a rather unconventional spinning speed of 5,900rpm.
Generally, the spinning speed is associated with the performance of hard drives. For example, drives with 5,400rpm tend to have a lower performance than those with 7,200rpm, which is the current spinning speed of most desktop hard drives.
However, the faster the hard drive spins, the more energy it uses. It's almost impossible to increase the power efficiency of a hard drive without changing its spinning speed.
With that said, the new Barracuda LP is more suitable for applications that don't require a high level of performance, but rather stability and power efficiency.
Example of these applications are low-power personal computers, external PC storage and multiple-drive home networking systems, such as NAS servers. And these are exactly the market that Seagate is targeting with its new hard drive.
The company claims that the Barracuda LP helps reduce system power costs, runs more quietly than traditional drives, operates at lower temperatures and, most importantly, uses as much as 25 percent less electricity than competing "green" hard drives.
The new Barracuda LB comes in 3.5-inch form factor and uses SATA standard. It's available in 1TB, 1.5TB, and 2TB version that costs $118, $156, and $358, respectively.
(Credit:
Steve Guttenberg)
I'm not sure why, but there's a never-ending stream of articles cheering on vinyl's comeback. I guess if it's a slow news day, editors can't resist plugging in yet another story about booming LP sales, and they always claim something along the lines of "Kids are digging the grooves, they've seen the light, and now crave analog sound!"
Puh-leeze!
Don't get me wrong; I wish it were true. Maybe in some alternative universe, vinyl is flying off the shelves, and kids are ditching their iPods and buying turntables.
Back here on the Earth we know and love, 2008 sales of LPs were up 89 percent, from 990,000 in '07 to 1.88 million in '08. That's hardly a boom, now that CD sales are in the hundreds of millions. The best-selling LP of 2008 was Radiohead's "In Rainbows," which sold a piddling 28,800 platters. Second-place honors went to another British band, The Beatles, which sold 16,500 "Abbey Road" LPs. If those numbers are accurate, and Radiohead's Thom Yorke and company were trying to live off LP sales, they'd have to get day jobs.
So sure, there's more and more new and reissue vinyl, and that's great, but only a teensy-weensy number of people buy new vinyl. Most of my vinyl-loving buddies regularly score free records on the street, or pay a buck or two for used vinyl to play on their megabucks high-end turntables. Again, no problem there, but it's not the same as a true vinyl resurgence. That's just media hype.
I love vinyl because it looks cool and sounds great. I own around 4,000 LPs. And I'm hoping that the vinyl revival keeps growing. But the market for physical media--CDs and LPs--has nowhere to go but down. More than anything else, people want cheap or free music, playable anywhere they want.
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