Another reason to download files instead of buying CD / Vinyl

[Gibson]

From my recent experience in listening to the 1st edition CDs (see my thread under Music), there is another good reason for music lovers to change their habit of buying physical CDs to downloading files. The CDs are not perfect in terms of pressing, with every new edition, the sound will move further and further away from the original. Even if we can afford the money and have the luck to collect the 1st edition CDs that we want, the physical CD will worn out (oxidized, scratched etc) and can't play anymore sooner or later. To buy the same CD (if it is still available in the market) years after it was released means you need more luck to have the same edition.

Downloading should be quite different. I believe the albums offered by the Records companies, i.e. Linn, for downloading will have the same source through the passage of time since there is no need to re-master to dub another "master" tape for the mold of pressing CDs. There is a warranty of consistency no matter when you download the album. Further, the files we download will be immortal (if you backup your files). Even if it dies, you can resurrect them by paying and downloading again, you have the clone and unlike physical CDs, you might only get a similar but NOT identical one.

[Geoff P]

I agree...unfortunately right now the amount of downloadable HQ music and the limited genres available makes CD purchase for music still a fact of life.

Roll on pervasive music mastering for HQ download AND here's hoping some of the HQ download services currently limited to US address credit payment make it across the pond to us poor undernourished Europeans.

Geoff

[katylied Expert Linn Retailer]

(2010-09-07 11:11)Geoff P Wrote:  Roll on pervasive music mastering for HQ download AND here's hoping some of the HQ download services currently limited to US address credit payment make it across the pond to us poor undernourished Europeans.
Geoff

If you use PayPal instead of the credit card there is no problem in buying from HDTracks from all over the world. I'm doing so from China as many of my customers.

Cheers

[Geoff P]

(2010-09-07 11:46)katylied Wrote:  

(2010-09-07 11:11)Geoff P Wrote:  Roll on pervasive music mastering for HQ download AND here's hoping some of the HQ download services currently limited to US address credit payment make it across the pond to us poor undernourished Europeans.
Geoff

If you use PayPal instead of the credit card there is no problem in buying from HDTracks from all over the world. I'm doing so from China as many of my customers.

Cheers

Thanks...I will check that out.

[Gibson]

(2010-09-07 14:45)Geoff P Wrote:  

(2010-09-07 11:46)katylied Wrote:  

(2010-09-07 11:11)Geoff P Wrote:  Roll on pervasive music mastering for HQ download AND here's hoping some of the HQ download services currently limited to US address credit payment make it across the pond to us poor undernourished Europeans.
Geoff

If you use PayPal instead of the credit card there is no problem in buying from HDTracks from all over the world. I'm doing so from China as many of my customers.

Cheers

Thanks...I will check that out.

Agreed that currently not much records company willing to offer downloading of the high resolutions album. However, the European produces better recordings than the Americans, so you can have more choices than the US and in particular the classical.

[Mudcrutch]

Trouble with China is? there is no copyright law over there so you dont know what you are getting most of the time.
CDs are so cheap now to buy.Its still worth buying them imo.
Mud

[Gibson]

(2010-09-07 19:49)Mudcrutch Wrote:  Trouble with China is? there is no copyright law over there so you dont know what you are getting most of the time.
CDs are so cheap now to buy.Its still worth buying them imo.
Mud

I am sorry to say that China has copyright law and in fact the law there was drafted pretty well and detailed just like any developed countries. The problem there is the enforcement not the lack of legislation. Moreover, most of the population in China are not interested in those music/artists we like. Infringement of music copyright there is not as serious as alleged.

Copyright cannot be protected in a better way by offering a physical CD since we can rip as many times as we want and the files so ripped can be transferred to other machines. So this is not an excuse of not offering downloading.

[Geoff P]

Yep HD tracks was happy with Paypal. I bought a couple of 96/24 FLAC Jazz albums. They sound excellent.

Thanks for the guidance.
Geoff

[katylied Expert Linn Retailer]

(2010-09-08 10:06)Geoff P Wrote:  Yep HD tracks was happy with Paypal. I bought a couple of 96/24 FLAC Jazz albums. They sound excellent.

Thanks for the guidance.
Geoff

You are welcome!
Just read the news that a local movie distribution company suited a local website because they posted the download of a movie 4 days after the appearance in the theater. Something is changing here, it will takes time (or maybe not considering how fast are developing a lot of other things!).

[billzab]

(2010-09-07 02:05)Gibson Wrote:  From my recent experience in listening to the 1st edition CDs (see my thread under Music), there is another good reason for music lovers to change their habit of buying physical CDs to downloading files. The CDs are not perfect in terms of pressing, with every new edition, the sound will move further and further away from the original. Even if we can afford the money and have the luck to collect the 1st edition CDs that we want, the physical CD will worn out (oxidized, scratched etc) and can't play anymore sooner or later. To buy the same CD (if it is still available in the market) years after it was released means you need more luck to have the same edition.

Downloading should be quite different. I believe the albums offered by the Records companies, i.e. Linn, for downloading will have the same source through the passage of time since there is no need to re-master to dub another "master" tape for the mold of pressing CDs. There is a warranty of consistency no matter when you download the album. Further, the files we download will be immortal (if you backup your files). Even if it dies, you can resurrect them by paying and downloading again, you have the clone and unlike physical CDs, you might only get a similar but NOT identical one.

Hi, just reading this thread for the first time and I am wondering how many CD's people have that no longer play. I bought my first CD player in 1986 and the first CD I purchased was Paul Simon's Gracelands. This album became my test album for all upgrades that followed and I would say that in the past 24 years it has been 'Played to death'. Not just on Hi-Fi, it has been in the car and in many portable players. It physically looks as good as the day I got it and still plays perfectly. When I got my sneakyDS, it was the first album I ripped and I have just looked back at the EAC log and every track ripped at 100%. Is this unusual or, as I suspect, the norm? I should add that I have no CD in my collection that has deterioted in any way that I have noticed.

On the subject of downloading, I have no problem going down this line and think it is the way forward but there are still plenty of limitations to this way of purchasing. The main problem as I see it, is unlimited downloading bandwidth being offered by ISP's. My home account with BT does not give me enough GB's to download all my music this way. Unlimited downloading is still too expensive for many, especially if you need lossless files. This will hopefully get better but is still way off for many. This is the main reason that MP3's and whatever itunes use, are still the most popular file types.

Cheers, Bill.