It doesn't matter what medium you listen to, as long as you enjoy the music. Car radios have been great sources of joy. However, if I sat you down in front of my turntable and speakers right now, and put your favorite record on, I guarantee you would cry and recant and delete this post immediately.
I have a Sony turntable with a preamp. I have several Mosaic boxes. How often have I listened to them on this turntable? Once. Back in April of 2020, when there was just nothing else to do.
I worked in record stores through the 80s--my high school and college years. Almost every paycheck was spent in the bins, and I still have all my vinyl. I switched to CDs when they showed up--they were clearly superior in every way, and they are still the best format for listening to music.
These days, all these albums on the shelves behind me are worth more than I would have ever imagined. But for the life of me, I can't be bothered. A good $15 CD of Dark Side of the Moon sounds better than the most refined, remastered, 180-gram virgin vinyl limited release album you can find.
I'm with you 100 percent, Tom. Vinyl is a fetish object, which is fine by me - I don't judge other peoples' fetishes. But if you're a music lover vinyl is a very inferior technology.
I think I'm a bit more of an audio nerd than you Tom, though on the spectrum of audiophiles I'm a long way from the true believers who maintain that the type of speaker cable matters. I'm willing to accept that there are audio advantages to vinyl if (1) you have a very expensive and well-designed audio system and (2) the LPs you're spinning are pristine. Otherwise, no.
I'm waiting for your next post Tom where you will sing the praises of the golden age we are currently in, with high-quality streaming available at a shockingly low price. My high-res Tidal subscription has changed my listening life, since I can now sample a vast array of music at no extra cost, unlike the not-very-old days when I had to invest a significant chunk of change in a CD if I wanted to expand my horizons.
Not only have I found numerous jazz musicians who I now cherish who I never would have heard before, I have developed a taste for an entirely new-to-me genre: "new music" or "contemporary classical" string quartets, percussion ensembles, vocalists and the like. You might like Attaca, Aizuri, Brooklyn Rider, and Telegraph among other string quartets, as well as the ensembles So Percussion and Third Coast Percussion and Roomful of Teeth. Composers like Carolyn Shaw, Arvo Part, and Max Richter are now in my regular rotation.
I know that streaming is not a good deal for musicians, and I am frankly mystified why musicians continue to make recordings and upload them to streaming services given the near-zero payments they get in return. But it is a bonanza for listeners.
Yes, there is the problem of "rewarding" streaming platforms, Spotify in particular, when they are so brutally cynical. But since I do also spend money on CDs, downloads, and live performances, I allow myself the sin of a subscription, for the breadth of access to so much music I wouldn't otherwise be able to sample. All the AI-generated bullshit, needless to say, i don't go near.
Thanks, Frosty. I listen to CDs, I stream, I purchase downloads. All this on either a sound system, a Bluetooth speaker, or whatever devices are handy.
yup. Though I gotta admit that, some months back I fired up my turntable and I did find some of my old records had a more appealing sound than CDs. Has to do, likely, with conversion stages. But the difference wasn't enough to justify the trouble and expense.
I love vinyl, but it is obviously a romantic pursuit not a rational one
It doesn't matter what medium you listen to, as long as you enjoy the music. Car radios have been great sources of joy. However, if I sat you down in front of my turntable and speakers right now, and put your favorite record on, I guarantee you would cry and recant and delete this post immediately.
Why, I'll match my cognitive bias against yours or anyone's! 😉
I have a Sony turntable with a preamp. I have several Mosaic boxes. How often have I listened to them on this turntable? Once. Back in April of 2020, when there was just nothing else to do.
hahaha, I love vinyl but I love the article. It's pretty spot on with my teenage memories. Merry Christmas to you and Maggie.
I worked in record stores through the 80s--my high school and college years. Almost every paycheck was spent in the bins, and I still have all my vinyl. I switched to CDs when they showed up--they were clearly superior in every way, and they are still the best format for listening to music.
These days, all these albums on the shelves behind me are worth more than I would have ever imagined. But for the life of me, I can't be bothered. A good $15 CD of Dark Side of the Moon sounds better than the most refined, remastered, 180-gram virgin vinyl limited release album you can find.
Today's vinyl junkies are nuts.
I'm with you 100 percent, Tom. Vinyl is a fetish object, which is fine by me - I don't judge other peoples' fetishes. But if you're a music lover vinyl is a very inferior technology.
I think I'm a bit more of an audio nerd than you Tom, though on the spectrum of audiophiles I'm a long way from the true believers who maintain that the type of speaker cable matters. I'm willing to accept that there are audio advantages to vinyl if (1) you have a very expensive and well-designed audio system and (2) the LPs you're spinning are pristine. Otherwise, no.
I'm waiting for your next post Tom where you will sing the praises of the golden age we are currently in, with high-quality streaming available at a shockingly low price. My high-res Tidal subscription has changed my listening life, since I can now sample a vast array of music at no extra cost, unlike the not-very-old days when I had to invest a significant chunk of change in a CD if I wanted to expand my horizons.
Not only have I found numerous jazz musicians who I now cherish who I never would have heard before, I have developed a taste for an entirely new-to-me genre: "new music" or "contemporary classical" string quartets, percussion ensembles, vocalists and the like. You might like Attaca, Aizuri, Brooklyn Rider, and Telegraph among other string quartets, as well as the ensembles So Percussion and Third Coast Percussion and Roomful of Teeth. Composers like Carolyn Shaw, Arvo Part, and Max Richter are now in my regular rotation.
I know that streaming is not a good deal for musicians, and I am frankly mystified why musicians continue to make recordings and upload them to streaming services given the near-zero payments they get in return. But it is a bonanza for listeners.
Yes, there is the problem of "rewarding" streaming platforms, Spotify in particular, when they are so brutally cynical. But since I do also spend money on CDs, downloads, and live performances, I allow myself the sin of a subscription, for the breadth of access to so much music I wouldn't otherwise be able to sample. All the AI-generated bullshit, needless to say, i don't go near.
Another excellent article by Tom! So.... what is your preferred method of musical delivery?
Randy
Thanks, Frosty. I listen to CDs, I stream, I purchase downloads. All this on either a sound system, a Bluetooth speaker, or whatever devices are handy.
You're welcome! You blow us all away with your writing ability.
You do know that it was YOU who introduced me to some incredible vinyl, right?
The Allman Brothers -- Eat A Peach and Live at the Fillmore East
Mose Allison -- I don't remember the name of the album, but it had Seventh Son and Room to Move on it
Chick Corea -- Light As A Feather
The Climax Blues Band
And a variety of others....
For which I'll always be thankful.
Flattery will get you nowhere, Frosty. I'm just a hack.
Damn. Fine. I take it all back!
Well, Tom, you don't need hate. There's too much of it in this world. All you need is love, love is all you need (and good music).
yup. Though I gotta admit that, some months back I fired up my turntable and I did find some of my old records had a more appealing sound than CDs. Has to do, likely, with conversion stages. But the difference wasn't enough to justify the trouble and expense.