[Naga]

this is quite amazing

somehow they spun " cardboard slever" into "digi"pak implying that it is?? digital?

 

[Riordan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Naga this is quite amazing somehow they spun " cardboard slever" into "digi"pak implying that it is?? digital?

yes, this is the digital age of marketing lingo...
i saw an "electronic insect killer" yesterday... apparently killing flies with bits and bytes instead of electricity.

on topic:
those hybrid digipaks are even worse than jewel cases when it comes to broken retaining tabs. in my modest opinion, the persons responsible for inventing and producing those patented "broken on arrival" retaining tabs should um.... *mumble grumble* held and *grumble mumble* swallow *mumble grumble* orifice *grumble mumble* and the scratched discs too, afterwards.

 

[PSmith08]

Deutsche Grammophon is releasing their mono rereleases "Musik...Sprache der Welt!" in digipak form. They are most obviously intending to emulate LP sleeves. I am not happy about it.

Whenever I hear "digipak" I see a Gordon Gekko-type executive say, "Yeah! We can save five mil a year if we give 'em cardboard sleeves. The suckers'll love it! Get me London, we need to do this now!"

I'll take my jewel cases, thank-you-very-much.

 

[viator122]

Well at least some of the companies are giving you the CD trays inside the digipack. I have several albums that don't have that, they only have a cardboard pocket for the disc. Now that really saves space but it seems like the disc would get scratched easily.

 

[Oliver :)]

Quote:

Originally Posted by viator122 I have several albums that don't have that, they only have a cardboard pocket for the disc. Now that really saves space but it seems like the disc would get scratched easily.

Bah, those are the worst, often give me a very hard time getting the disc out, not to speak of the booklet. Cat Power's "You are free" is a prime example. It might be part of the product concept, but this CD gets less playtime than it deserves just due to the mere fact that it is hard to take the disc out, and the chosen cardboard is as disgusting as it gets regarding tactile enjoyment. I have a positive example though: Katja Riemann Oktett "Favourites" (Very nice music btw.). The digipack is made up like a hardcover book. Really thick and well made, bookstyle booklet hardglued to the *spine* of the pack, several translucent pages, plastic tray for the disc. It is more as if you bought a small book and the CD comes as an extra. One still cannot replace the tray, but this is a specimen where I see that someone made a packaging decision in order to make the product nicer. And it was definitly more costly than a jewelcase.

 

[DarkAngel]

Quote:

Originally Posted by viator122 Well at least some of the companies are giving you the CD trays inside the digipack. I have several albums that don't have that, they only have a cardboard pocket for the disc. Now that really saves space but it seems like the disc would get scratched easily.

Majority of digipacks use plastic tray to hold CD, important to prevent scratching. I do like the look of digipacks since they are more like mini albums and you can see artwork better, I don't handle mine roughly or take away from home so digipak wear/tear is not an issue for me.

I do not like digipacks that have paper/cardboard slot or pocket to hold CD since this will always eventually scratch CD surface.

 

[White Fox]

The digipaks I've seen make it easier to see the cover art than through jewel cases, especially if you're in an area/room with uneven light distribution and glare. Although, there is something to be said about the somewhat shinny look of cover art in a jewel case for certain types of music - ie., music that would be comparable to the content of certain glossy magazines.

I've never bought a new CD with a broken digipak tray, however, some spindles in one of the trays for my Herbie Hancock The Complete Blue Note Sixties Sessions were broken when I bought it used - not a single CD digipak, though. But I would say all of the digipaks I've bought were externally imperfect in some way, to some degree, usually a slightly dented corner - this is before I've even handled the CD or transported it. The only consistant exception has been the JVC XRCD cases, which are little hard cover books and are very pricey. But even with jewel cases, I've never bought a perfect case without some minor sratches if you look closely. And sometimes you'll get a case of a CD you ordered online with an obvious crack(s), although this has been rare with me.

I don't have much experience with digipaks with cardboard/paper slots or mini-LP cases, but I will give some props to the mini-LP case that comes with the Coltrane Giant Steps Rhino re-issue (I think there are the same/ similar presentations in other Rhino Jazz re-issues): The cardboard case that is supposed to resemble an LP cover is rigid and with the slot angled so that the CD has not become very scratched for me. I've had this CD for about five years, and have played it many times, but the CD plays and looks fine, even in comparison to similarly old/handled jewel case CDs I have. The mini-LP case is also a clear facsimile of the original LP cover, although with an album as relatively popular as Giant Steps, I'm sure they had many samples to choose from (some of the RVG re-issues, for example, look like straight transfers of aged Blue Note LP covers without any digital manipulation). The original liner notes on the back of the Giant Steps mini-LP case are readable, although it might be easier to read them in the booklet (bigger print), but you wouldn't have as much of the old-school effect of seeing the back of an LP cover. But, in the end, it is kind of awkward to remove the CD from the case.

In general (from my experience), I think the jewel case wins in durability and practicality (including easier to open and remove the CD), but is not as aesthetically pleasing, but, as always, this is not always the case between any two albums/compilations you could find, or any two people. The meaning of the Digipak should be contemplated by all music lovers! - more so than a thread that says: 'Amp X has landed.' IMO, of course.

 

[PMC]

There are good and bad digipaks IMO. The thing the Arcade Fire CD came in sucked hard. Just paper folded over, and the CD slides too snugly into one of the sleeves.

But Tosca's Dehli9 CD comes in the sweetest case I've ever seen for a CD.

 

[elsfane]

The Di portion of the word Dijipak means that there some addition digital info on the CD that can only be viewed on a computer such as a video or lyrics or some other information while music portion can be played in any CD, DVD or Blue-Ray player.

 

[Erik Andersen]

Digipaks typically consist of a gatefold (book-style) paperboard or card stock outer binding, with one or more plastic trays capable of holding a CD or DVD attached to the inside. Digipak-style cases grew in popularity among record labels and recording artists in the early 2000s.