The Rapid Rise (& Fall) of the CD

An interesting piece appeared recently in Stereophile about this topic. It concedes the statistical decline in CD (and vinyl) sales in favor of streaming, but then argues for keeping one's physical media for a variety of excellent reasons. Here's a link: https://www.stereophile.com/content/it-isnt-just-music

Reasons to keep physical media (from the Stereophile piece just posted):

1. Control. Streaming services may not exist forever. The financial health of even Qobuz and Tidal "is largely unknown." 

2. Control. Streaming services often don't provide information about which version or mastering of a given "song" is being played. 

3. Control. Searching on streaming services, even using Roon, is often difficult or even impossible. If you keep your CDs in a sensible order, you can find what you're looking for very easily.

4. Control. With so-called classical music, there's a lot of information one wants to know that streaming services rarely provide. The Strereophile essay indicates that, with a given symphony, it was impossible to determine from the stream which orchestra was performing it! But what about when the recording was made? (Von Karajan recorded Beethoven's Ninth at least four times, three times with the BPO, but streaming services rarely reveal this kind of information.) How about where it was recorded? Audiophiles speak of hearing the venue's ambiance on a superlative recording. But streamed recordings will rarely, if ever, identify what that venue was. And streaming services identify "songs," as mentioned above, which can be movements in a larger orchestral or instrumental piece. That fact can be obscured or even effaced.

I always enjoy these dialogues. I'm probably in the "upper age range" of participants on this forum.  As a youngster growing up in the fifties (baby boomer) my parents had a large collection of records they played on a Zenith console.  That was my first exposure to recorded music.  I loved it.  One uncle was into reel to reel tape recorders and I loved that sound.  Time marched on and another uncle had his Caddy with the optional record player.  Sounded good as long as the car was not moving:)  Then 8 tracks (invented by Bill Lear of Lear Jet fame in conjunction with FMC) came in the mid 60s and went into oblivion less than 20 years later. It was the only viable recorded media solution for automobiles at the time.  That was followed by tape cassettes which are still around but mainly for non musical use.  Then CDs came into the fray.  I was married to vinyl and it took me a while appreciate the CD format.  To my ears Cds sounded "different" and it took me a while to warm up to the new format.  My first player was a Kyocera DA-610CX.  Now fast forward to the present.  I'm getting into streaming to "sample" different musical genres but it is not my primary listening source,  I am fortunate enough to have TTs, Cd players,etc that allow me to enjoy any type of media any any time. IMO vinyl and CD will always be viable formats and will fluctuate in popularity.  The pleasure will always be in the playing, the listening and the our enjoyment of music regardless of format, genre or generation.

Well if you look you will find mint cds for Cheap...but you have to search.I found a antique store that had lps they were 10,20,30 bucks used in very good condition  .while searching I found a  Cd Gold mine, cds were sealed or in mint condition, for $5 bucks each ,OK I have found them as cheap as a buck....But these cds were sealed Japanese with OBIs,Sealed cd double sets,triple set ,even4 ,5,cd set Sealed for $ 5 bucks....I bought 12 loo Grateful Dead Rhino reissue HCCD mult tracks on each .Plus Doors Strange Days and LA woman Japanese OBI sealed.I ended up buying 25 cds....Well I went back the next day and bought every Japanese sealed obi cds,Pink Floyd, Beatles, Thin Lizzy, John Mayall,Kinks,Rolling Stones..and others.Well I bought all they had another 25...This place had Hundreds to look through. I hadn't been there in like a year,they never had a cd collection like this,one of the guys told me he was getting alot more in ....this is a,big place with lots of aisles to go through but ,I will be going back...these Japanese obi cds, sell for 20 to 50 bucks apiece...Oh ,it's on Long Island......

I have no doubt that streaming offers better SQ than I can get from my vinyl and CD's. So many very experienced people have attested to that. However, I can not stream due to where I live.I get very unreliable and poor quality land line DSL service. I haven't saved money by not having to invest in streaming gear because I upgrade CD equipment along with the rest of the gear.  I am even toying with a TT upgrade from my VPI. Oh well, it never ends. I do like being able to go to my fave place, Music Millenium, in Portland,OR and perusing the vast wall of used CD's. And walking out with a pile of new to me stuff. Life is good.