[bergman2]

Given the recent slew of posts regarding vinyl/turntables, and RIAA figures noting a marked uptick in vinyl sales at the expense of cd's, could we be on the cusp of a resurgence in vinyl? And, could vinyl perhaps, if not stand shoulder to shoulder with digital downloads/cd's, at least enjoy a renaissance of sorts.

 

[Suntory_Times]

^ I think it has been for quite some time know,

 

[Twoguns]

I think the renaissance is also due to the fact that you can find great bargains on vinyl.. great for recession, so ppl are bringing up their vinyl-rigs from storage. My wonderful Pro-ject rig is retired in the basement though. Once you have experienced the ease of use and the great sound quality of a Squeezebox system, it's really hard to go back..

 

[Currawong]

I was reading an article about this the other day. My only regret about moving to Japan now is not being able to take my vinyl rig with me. Maybe if I'm living back in Australia in the future I'll revive it. I don't have the space for one where I'm living now.

 

[apatN]

What I am really hoping for is that sound engineers will take benefit out of the more newer storage possibilities. Think of all the information that can be placed on a DVD but not on a CD. Guess it will never happen though. Needledrops ftw.

 

[ozz]

It may make them all rethink about the lost art of mastering for sound quality versus
loudness wars if they want to continue making high profits.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Suntory_Times /img/forum/go_quote.gif ^ I think it has been for quite some time know,

Yes, the past three or four years, especially. I knew it was going mainstream when I saw records for sale at Barnes & Noble.

Or maybe vinyl has become too trendy for the cool kids to want to play it any more.

Admittedly, most of my music budget over the past few months has been going to SACD. A lot of titles are going out of production and prices are zooming - my collection is worth considerably more than it was a year ago. So I'm picking up what I can at reasonable prices.

Also, I've been finding $2 and $3 used CDs all over.

So maybe it's time for a bit of a digital renaissance.

(No way I'll ever stop spinning the black discs, though.)

 

[NightOwl]

The interest in vinyl has been building for the last few years. My generation adopted digital because of the convenience and promise of the new technology. It was almost a complete switchover when new releases became available only on cd.

A new generation has discovered the vast amount of music available cheaply on vinyl, a lot of it with better mastering or unavailable on cd. Since there were a lot of analogue rigs and vinyl collections out there in basements and storage, the renaissance snowballed quickly. Thanks to spreading the word on the internet and the cheap and easy acquisition of turntables and vinyl (less so now due to demand) it's continued to grow.

Analogue is a different sound and experience that some prefer (a lot of people also prefer manual transmissions to automatic). I don't believe that it will ever equal or come close to the popularity of digital. In my personal experience, a cheap digital rig is more listenable than a cheap vinyl one. Aside from any technical arguments, digital is just too convenient. As the cost of analogue continues to rise and the novelty wears off, there will be a leveling of growth.

People have a need for music and there will always be a place for all methods of reproduction. There are those who still play tape cassettes and there's a surge of interest building in tuners. Analogue will always have an important place (and my preference), but digital is still the future.

 

[bergman2]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Uncle Erik /img/forum/go_quote.gif Admittedly, most of my music budget over the past few months has been going to SACD. A lot of titles are going out of production and prices are zooming - my collection is worth considerably more than it was a year ago. So I'm picking up what I can at reasonable prices.

I've never been satisfied with SACD adoption and title availability

 

[ADD]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bergman2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif Given the recent slew of posts regarding vinyl/turntables, and RIAA figures noting a marked uptick in vinyl sales at the expense of cd's, could we be on the cusp of a resurgence in vinyl?

What you state above is only true in terms of percentage changes in media sales over 2007-2008. Vinyl LP sales still represent a trifling 2.9% of total physical media sales in 2008 according to the RIAA.

Also, you neglect to mention that it is downloads which are ever-increasingly taking sales from the physical formats, plus the fact that analogue cassette practically died between 2007 and 2008.

Of the total commercial music sales in units including downloads, vinyl of all descriptions constitutes a mere 0.7% of total music sales in 2008.

Back in 2004, that same percentage was 0.31%. Do you really think a percentage change of 0.39% over 4 years represents a resurgence?

Sure, there is anecdotal evidence of a return to the vinyl hobby and it is not hard to imagine people buying turntables to play existing record collections (plus the second hand market) but in my view you simply can't use the RIAA figures to justify anything at all, except how incredibly insignficant vinyl is compared to the other formats.

 

[bergman2]

this is all true and, admittedly, the numbers are small, yet anecdotal evidence and interest within "our" community suggests something more tangible that statistics alone do not reflect...nor do stats reflect the people who are just dusting off their old turntable and records

wasn't it Disraeli who said: "...there are lies, damn lies, and there are statistics" ?

 

[ADD]

In my view so long as there are high quality pressings existing within existing collections, vinyl will remain a viable if only fringe pursuit.

I think we also need to temper this enthusiastic pursuit of vinyl with those who tried it and couldn't wait to get back to digital. Myself included. Please check all the posts from people across the net who have all but given up on new pressings because of their abysmal quality - Classic Records being by far the worst offender of the lot (and completely incapable of resolving the endless complaints).

Sadly, i think new vinyl sales will struggle even more in this economic climate and perhapds companies may go belly-up. I could not believe it when I looked at the latest prices for vinyl in my country. It really is the domain now for people who have more money than they can figure out what to so with).

After I heard what digital was capable of (I literally had not listened to a CD player for about 16 years!), I wish I had just invested in a CD player rather spending so much lost money on a vinyl setup.

I just as much as anyone appreciates that sublime experience of a great pressing and mastering on a good (or better system). Yes, it is incredibly hard to beat with the digital formats. But, a experience like that only happened to me about 1 in every 40 listening experiences.

 

[BigTony]

Vinyl is now trendy again, but commercially its nowhere.
And the cost of a good vinyl rig + getting hold of decent vinyl is many more times expensive than a digital setup.
I stopped buying vinyl 20 years ago, but I've inherited a few collections from friends, and I still have a rig setup - but its more for the abscure and obsurd than for regular listening. For example I ripped 'Pinky and Perky's Hit Parade' 1968 LP at the weekend - hifi its not - but full of childhood memories!

 

[grawk]

There are lots of reasons why people are getting back into vinyl. I think it'll maintain a small but profitable following for a LONG time. Given how cheap it is to press LPs on a small scale, there's no reason for small labels to stop putting out vinyl, and as long as the loudness wars continue, people who care about fidelity will still get pushed to the more sanely produced vinyl copies. And that doesn't even take into account the people that think vinyl sounds better even with the same masters.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Quote:

Originally Posted by bergman2 /img/forum/go_quote.gif I've never been satisfied with SACD adoption and title availability

A valid point, I wish there were more, too. But I'm happy with the classical catalog and have been able to pick up quite a few classic jazz discs, too.