Best Ever Albums

Re: end of the album format?

Richie Hunt — Sat, 30 May 2009 20:35:52 GMT

Author: Richie Hunt

Posted: 05/31/2009 00:35

"When the times get tough, the tough get going." - Lord Harvos

Re: end of the album format?

RFNAPLES — Sat, 30 May 2009 09:28:33 GMT

Author: RFNAPLES

Posted: 05/30/2009 13:28

Perhaps some musicians have received more financial rewards than they deserved. But I'd hate to see the day when we only have amateur musicians. Professional musicians have the ability to develop their craft all day long, without the worry of spending time on another job to make ends meet. We must continue to support our musicians.

Re: end of the album format?

telefunker — Sat, 30 May 2009 09:10:06 GMT

Author: telefunker

Posted: 05/30/2009 13:10

yeah, there's less $ in digital music that's for sure.. but even as musician myself, i think that's a good thing

for instance, it annoyed me to hear lily allen complaining that she'd only made £50,000 off her debut album and that the stones et al in the 70s made a killing.. the crash in the industry will hopefully force would be gravy-train hoppers into considering ruining some other art form for the sake of their bank balances

also, the live music industry is booming, so it may force a greater emphasis on actual musical talent rather than sheer production value

Re: end of the album format?

Richie Hunt — Fri, 29 May 2009 20:59:10 GMT

Author: Richie Hunt

Posted: 05/30/2009 00:59

As the saying goes "the trend is your friend", time will take care of that.

Re: end of the album format?

RFNAPLES — Thu, 28 May 2009 12:52:23 GMT

Author: RFNAPLES

Posted: 05/28/2009 16:52

2008 Manufacturers' Unit Shipments and Retail Dollar Value (In Millions, net after returns) via RIAA:

Physical 401.8 (Units Shipped -26.1% Δ) 5,758.5 (Dollar Value -27.9% Δ)
Digital 1,112.3 (Units Shipped 28.1% Δ) 1,635.4 (Dollar Value 30.1% Δ)

However let's look at the types of units shipped:

CDs 384.7 (Units Shipped -24.7% Δ) 5,471.3 (Dollar Value -26.6% Δ)
Downloaded Albums 56.9 (Units Shipped 33.9% Δ) 568.9 (Dollar Value 33.9% Δ)
Downloaded Singles 1,033.0 (Units Shipped 27.5% Δ) 1,022.7 (Dollar Value 27.6% Δ)

While CD sales have declined for 8 years and Downloaded Singles and Albums have increased for 4 years, the almighty Dollar Value of CDs is still greater than all Digital types combined!

Re: end of the album format?

Richie Hunt — Thu, 28 May 2009 05:01:10 GMT

Author: Richie Hunt

Posted: 05/28/2009 09:01

yea its the end... kinda like where the US$ is heading

Re: end of the album format?

telefunker — Thu, 28 May 2009 03:13:34 GMT

Author: telefunker

Posted: 05/28/2009 07:13

very few humans can distinguish the difference in quality between an mp3 at 256kbps or more from a cd. at 320, you'd have to be a dolphin..

it's digital or bust for the music industry, some of you guys may enjoy cd's or even vinyl, but they're being very quickly superseded

certainly, it IS the end of the CD and vinyl formats.. the beginning of the end at least

Re: end of the album format?

JohnnyRocketFingers — Wed, 20 May 2009 13:08:03 GMT

Author: JohnnyRocketFingers

Posted: 05/20/2009 17:08

I just got a record player and a bunch of LPs for my birthday and I love to just set up a record and listen to it play. Although CDs are more practical, its really nice to have both. And when it comes to mp3 or a hard copy, I much prefer the hard copy.

Re: end of the album format?

RFNAPLES — Wed, 20 May 2009 09:45:30 GMT

Author: RFNAPLES

Posted: 05/20/2009 13:45

I support CDs but was happy to replace my vinyl collection. While mp3s have a theoretical quality loss due to compression, I wonder can it be heard and does it matter. It reminds me of the arguments in favor of tube amps vs. transistors. Personally, I like the jewel cases and booklets that come with CDs but understand that some services provide the booklets digitally with some downloads. Also the price point of mp3 downloads isn't low enough to justify doing the labels’ work.

Re: end of the album format?

Icedog62 — Wed, 20 May 2009 09:25:34 GMT

Author: Icedog62

Posted: 05/20/2009 13:25

Good points Ritchie however here is the thing. First off, my point is that mp3's are inferior in sound quality to hard medias so if you care about the sound and quality you are going to want to avoid mp3's. Secondly, as far as being nowhere near a record store, Amazon has very competitive prices and shipping charges are nominal, especially if you buy at certain quantities. I implore music lovers everywhere to support cd and vinyl sales as much as possible before your options become limited and you wake up to realize what you have lost. Thx,

Icedog62

Re: end of the album format?

Richie Hunt — Wed, 20 May 2009 05:35:09 GMT

Author: Richie Hunt

Posted: 05/20/2009 09:35

Its easy to find good qualities in the cd and vinyl, but thats not going to save them from bing overtaken by online mp3 etc music sales. Literature is still available in book format but I bet alot of reading is done via the internet now and music is no different. Just think, if you are located in a part of the world where there is no music store, how else will you get your music? pay for courier to deliver your cd? download it. When humans start space travel, music wont be played in your 6 stack cd player or via a vinyl record player in your space vehicle...

Re: end of the album format?

Icedog62 — Tue, 19 May 2009 14:13:46 GMT

Author: Icedog62

Posted: 05/19/2009 18:13

Of course all hard media can be scratched however if properly and well cared for CD's seem to be a great investment. Very few of mine have become scratched over the years dating back to my original purchases made over 20 years ago. Vinyl is the best but wears and is vulnerable. When you download you get inferior quality and have nothing interesting to look at and read. I love my music library and its display. Visitors love perusing the collection in my music room. On some of my compilations the booklets have really in depth stories and notes on the music and its history. How can any download ever replace this magic. I still have tons of vinyl that is in great shape and this adds to the interest of the collection. REAL music lovers and collectors must rail against this new generation of downloaders. You are only cheating yourself and the vibrancy of the music industry overall. I am educating my kids not only on the great music and artists of the past but also the virtues of CD and vinyl over any download. There are also issues with downloading and if you are not diligent you can easily lose you 'collection' of virtual nothingness if your hardrive melts down. If you really love music and want to keep the artists thriving and producing I suggest that you continue to purchase CD's and vinyl before they dissappear before our very eyes. Try and find the depth of library on itunes that you can find online or at you favourite music store. Good luck on finding the rare and hard to find.

Re: end of the album format?

Richie Hunt — Thu, 14 May 2009 09:34:38 GMT

Author: Richie Hunt

Posted: 05/14/2009 13:34

Im pretty sure if you try hard enough you can find casettes/tapes. But you do risk being kicked and beaten if you are seen with one fist in the air the other holding your walkman whilst taking a casual waltz through the city. I actually saw this guy on a bus today listening to walkman, he seemed like he had downsyndrome or something like that.

Re: end of the album format?

Charicature — Wed, 13 May 2009 13:31:04 GMT

Author: Charicature

Posted: 05/13/2009 17:31

NowhereMan wrote:

I try and play vinyl whenever - I love the smell of them and the way they crack as they start playing.

Many of mine are passed down from other generations, I love the original Sgt. Pepper's and White Album copies I have. :D

I haven't got much on vinyl myself. Just "Meet the Beatles" (which would probably be worth a mint if the jacket weren't in crappy condition), the first four Monkees albums, Vitalogy by Pearl Jam, and the KISS tribute album called KISS My Ass (on red vinyl). I don't think I still have "If You Can Believe Your Eyes And Ears" by the Mamas and the Papas...it was my father's and I probably didn't take it when I moved out 😉

Re: end of the album format?

NowhereMan — Wed, 13 May 2009 10:38:18 GMT

Author: NowhereMan

Posted: 05/13/2009 14:38

I try and play vinyl whenever - I love the smell of them and the way they crack as they start playing.

Many of mine are passed down from other generations, I love the original Sgt. Pepper's and White Album copies I have. 😁

Re: end of the album format?

Charicature — Mon, 11 May 2009 11:32:27 GMT

Author: Charicature

Posted: 05/11/2009 15:32

Richie Hunt wrote:

Ive moved on, I havent bought a cd for 4 years. Makes sense downloading music to me... saves space, convenient storage, no scratches on cd's, cost of manufacture is less, less environmental impact with production.... but dont worry $'s are more important than being thoughtful so im sure all formats will keep going for sometime yet.

I'm not so sure - can you even find casettes anymore? I think the magnetic tape as a retail format has pretty well become obsolete.

Frankly, no big loss - less magnetic tape hiss on CDs 🙄

Re: end of the album format?

NowhereMan — Mon, 11 May 2009 08:56:10 GMT

Author: NowhereMan

Posted: 05/11/2009 12:56

Occasionally buy vinyl 😁

Re: end of the album format?

telefunker — Mon, 11 May 2009 08:20:23 GMT

Author: telefunker

Posted: 05/11/2009 12:20

i don't buy anything..

Re: end of the album format?

maxxy — Sun, 10 May 2009 16:00:07 GMT

Author: maxxy

Posted: 05/10/2009 20:00

I still buy CDs occasionally, and I even buy vinyl 😁

Re: end of the album format?

Richie Hunt — Sun, 10 May 2009 10:28:41 GMT

Author: Richie Hunt

Posted: 05/10/2009 14:28

Ive moved on, I havent bought a cd for 4 years. Makes sense downloading music to me... saves space, convenient storage, no scratches on cd's, cost of manufacture is less, less environmental impact with production.... but dont worry $'s are more important than being thoughtful so im sure all formats will keep going for sometime yet.