Ruminations On CD Players

Personally I would not drop a dime on any high end CD player these days before giving ripping and streaming a try. That’s really the way to go these days for anyone willing to tackle the initial learning curve.

@mapman 

+1 

A CD player is a transport + streamer + DAC. In todays world it really only makes sense to invest in the Streamer + DAC… beyond that music is essentially free ($12.99 / month for access to nearly infinite music with hundreds of thousands of high resolution albums. 

mahler123

"Perhaps Audio Fanaticism is an outlet for this kind of aggression, much the way that sports channels aggression into less dangerous areas."

I think it is very poignant observation.

Soix, is spot on. The amount of hi-res music out on Qobuz and other platforms is impressive. Like many other Agon members, I enjoy listening to new artists and music by utilizing Qobuz. It will be interesting to watch how the use of CDs changes over time. With a good streamer, you can already obtain CD quality music. With the advancements in audio/digital technology, we will see continued improvements in the future. 

As far as supporting artists, one can still stream and continue to buy physical media.
 

If you are willing to sell a car, you can attend a concert.  My kids like KPop and attend Korean pop concerts in Dallas.  A good, but not great seat is $300 and they fill baseball stadiums.  Front row center and back stage passes are beyond expensive.