even though i am selling most of my cd collection, i still buy cds. these are usually classical/opera box sets, which are great value on a per disc basis. the big labels have been releasing a lot of these box sets (based on composer, conductor, orchestra, soloist, era), so there is plenty to choose from. i rip all of these cds to my computer. my other music purchases are downloads, which are usually newer releases. i do not stream. i do not listen to physical media except for the 50 or so sacds i own. not sure it is worth keeping my cd/sacd player just for that and i have definitely been considering selling this unit to simplify my set up. the problem is finding a one-box solution (dac+amp) that is high level (or at least very good) and does not cost a fortune.
I've only actually sold one CD. I sold it because I was selling the now rare poster that came with it when I bought it and it seemed sensible to include the CD.
I am selling my vinyl collection. In fact I've been selling my vinyl collection gradually for a few years now.
Although I have been going through a process of decluttering and selling stuff I've had for years, including a lot of old audio stuff, I haven't been tempted to sell my CDs.
I don't actually have a CD player anymore because I sold my last one. When I want to listen to a CD I just rip it to my Mac Mini using
dBpoweramp and then I listen to it using Audirvana Studio. Sounds great!
Some months ago I started buying second-hand CDs which I never thought I'd be doing. I've already given what I think are the reasons for this above.
I would urge caution about selling CDs because they don't take up much space, especially if you can just put them in a box in the attic or something like that. They look quite good on shelves I think.
Personally I trust having CDs more than having things backed up on multiple hard drives. I do have the files from the ripped CDs backed up of course, but it is still nice to have the CDs.
I first started using computers in the mid 80s (I also started buying CDs in the 80s). The only times I've lost data is when I have accidentally erased it. I have never lost data due to, say, hard drive failure because I've always been aware that the drive is becoming a problem before it fails so I've been able to get the data off it. I've never lost data due to theft or fire I'm glad to say. For me the problem has been just accidentally erasing the data. This is why I am not fully happy about just having digital files on a hard drive. They can be erased, or they can be made inaccessible by some other way. Okay you can still retrieve the files if you realise you have erased them soon after you've done it, but if you erase them without realising you've done it, then months later you are looking for them, that is the problem. So, with CDs you can't erase them. That's a big reason why I like them.
However you know your own situation very much better than I do and of course if you do want to get the CDs again you can probably buy them very cheaply second-hand.