How many albums do you need ?

There will always be new artists and new music. Since we're in it for the music, there will never be an 'end'. It's like asking an avid reader how many books are enough. Having said that, since I discovered Folkalley.com I find myself wanting/needing fewer cd's.

I used to be of the opinion that is was "as many as I could find" but in recent times I have revised that thought. I have simply too many CDs and many went unplayed for years on end and some were never going to get played again. I hated the idea of selling any but a shortage of space and a desire not to have any "dead wood" has led me to believe there is another way. I have placed a load of CDs on Amazon marketplace and already have sold 20 odd in just a week. It feels really good to be able to get rid of the excess and to be able to fine tune the collection to be mostly albums I will want to pull of the shelf.

That said, I have embraced downloading (only of full albums I might add) and of playing via the PC. I do that so much now that it outweighs the length of time I listen via my main system. I will be looking at some sort of device to stream wirelessly from the PC to the main setup so that I can listen using the random mode on my Music Jukebox playlists. I still have something like 500 albums I have downloaded and have yet to listen to, so I can safely assume that my addiction is no nearer it's conclusion.

I rip all my CDs to music server up front now. I only listen to them off teh music server. I often set the playlist to random song, album or artist. This helps assure me that everything I acquire will at least eventually get listened to, but exactly when is determined randomly.

A different way to tackle the problem with some unique benefits.

Records are tougher. Until I get those recorded to digital on the server ( a time consuming and very slow and gradual process for me), they may sit for quite a while unless I finally get around to it.

My father listens from left to right in perfect order and it took him over a decade to listen to around 12,000 or so albums. Is it really worth it?
Its great to have lots of music but he listens to on average 3 albums a day and wont see a title again for over 10yrs? I dont need that many lol.

The answer to the question of how many albums do you need is oddly the same as how many guitars do I need. Answer? Just one more!