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Post by Deleted on Feb 22, 2015 16:11:51 GMT -6
This is a thread to generally discuss the different formats that music is available in.
To get things started off, I'll start with this question: What are your favorite and least favorite formats?
My favorite has to be CD, with digital at a close second. There's something nice about actually holding the physical music, but I love having it digital so I can listen to it through my computer and my iPod. CD is way easier to digitize than cassette and vinyl, so that's why it's my favorite.
Vinyl is my least favorite. It's huge, record players that can digitize can be very expensive, and getting vinyl shipped can cost a lot more than CD or cassette.
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Post by drawnsword on Feb 22, 2015 16:46:27 GMT -6
Vinyl is my favorite because it has the best sound, its a format that forces you to engage with it and it is presented in large visuals which adds to the experience. Cassette followed closely as i'v found is a reliable format if looked after properly, actually sounds better the more its played, forces you to experiance it as an album not singles. CD's the only way to get most things if you frown upon mp3's.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 22, 2015 17:00:48 GMT -6
I don't understand the appeal of being forced to listen to the whole album all the way through thanks to the way that cassettes work. You can listen to the whole album by choice if you have one of the other formats, or you can listen to your favorite song from it.
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Post by drawnsword on Feb 22, 2015 17:22:15 GMT -6
I don't understand the appeal of being forced to listen to the whole album all the way through thanks to the way that cassettes work. You can listen to the whole album by choice if you have one of the other formats, or you can listen to your favorite song from it. The impression i get is that many people shuffle up albums especially in digital format, which is not how they were intended as recorded to be expeiranced together as an album, plus its easier to skip tracks with CD. I like an album to be heard how its meant to be. With cassette deck players theres often a switch that can turn the tape over automaticaly otherwise its a little intermission to go grap a cupa tea.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 22, 2015 17:32:36 GMT -6
It's one's own choice whether they want to skip around or listen to the whole thing entirely through. Forcing that on people is illogical.
It's like when people want there to be no "easy mode" for some video games because they want everyone to experience the harder difficulty. If people want the game to be easier, why stop them? You can always choose to play it on hard if you want.
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Post by drawnsword on Feb 23, 2015 2:27:30 GMT -6
What? 'forces' is a bit of an exaggeration. You can actually drop the needle into the exact tract you want to hear or fast forward or rewind the tape to the track your after if you want to jump up and fart around with it. Some tape decks even had a feature switch to forward you to the next track, stopping exactly in the silent gap just before it. The point i was making is that these formats encourage you to listen to them all the way through, rather than muck about to cue it. And bands that want there albums heard as an album are more likely to get that via those formats.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 23, 2015 7:02:41 GMT -6
I see what you're saying now.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 23, 2015 9:30:21 GMT -6
Vinyl is the best sounding format. No doubt about that. And you get large artwork. So I have to say Vinyl is my favourite. but in practice I use Cd's the most. I really hate mp3s
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Post by Thomas Eversole on Feb 23, 2015 18:18:57 GMT -6
My goal for the next Ankou Awaits release is tape, CD, digital and vinyl releases - cover all mediums, you know? Heck if I wanted to budget it, I'd do 8 track, player piano... music box. Telegram...
My choice would ultimately be digital because I can export that to any of the physical mediums. With modern ID3TAGGING You can embed artwork, lyrics and more - which can be viewed beautifully on a PC, Tablet or Smart phone - each track.
Actually, I would much rather have a tape, CD, vinyl 10 fold, compared to a "basic" MP3... I'm fairly confident in stating that anyone who HATES MP3s and has a device to play them probably just has basic 1st generation artist/album/song data and that's it.
Digital, I literally have 40 albums in my pocket that I can access and play at any time. 40 albums on a physical medium requires a create and you've got to shove stuff into things to switch between them.
I'm familiar with the prestige of vinyl, but I've got to go to an antique store or make a special order to find a player? At least (hilarious) cassette players are still available, even at Walmart.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 23, 2015 19:06:38 GMT -6
Walmart sells cassette players?!? wow, I actually thought the only place to buy those nowadays are 2nd hand stores or online, same as with turntables and 8-track players. for me, it's digital all the way. I haven't purchased a CD in about 3 or 4 years, when I lived at home I had prolly 100-200 lps, and 400-500 CDs with still few hundred tapes. Once I moved out, I was like why am I even owning this stuff anymore. So I began selling it all on ebay or tossing it in the dumpster at work (this the late 90s mind you). I hate all physical formats because of how much space they take up, as mp3 I own over 12,600 songs if that was full CDs/LPs I can't even imagine I wouldn't be able to live where I do cause my living room would be floor to ceiling of cds/tapes/lps. And fast forwarding on cassettes to listen to track #3 of 5 on Side B is the suck also. It's like I bought the Demolition cd from R.E.X. off Amazon few weeks ago, can't give it away on ebay even for $12 with free shipping (paid $9 for it). so this will be another cd thrown into the trash. Metalder - Ghost Navigator is the first CD i've purchased since 2010. Heard a song on youtube fell in love with it. sad thing is I know I won't even be able to get $5 for it on ebay (after fees) after I import it to my itunes. but with limited to 200 copies, I'll TRY to break even but I have no faith in that at all. so $18 for a coaster yay me tldr; physical formats all suck imo, digital all the way ;p
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Post by Deleted on Feb 23, 2015 19:24:45 GMT -6
Vinyl is the best sounding format. No doubt about that. And you get large artwork. So I have to say Vinyl is my favourite. but in practice I use Cd's the most. I really hate mp3s I think FLAC digital sounds the best.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 24, 2015 8:01:20 GMT -6
I think every physical format has its own charme; nowadays Vinyl is quite expensive unfortunately, but without a doubt very beautiful. Digital stuff is useful when it comes to taking music with you ('on the go') without carrying bags of cds or tapes, but for my taste 'owning an album' will probably never be 'having some files on my harddisk'; I really love the haptic of physical formats, so to say.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2015 13:23:20 GMT -6
Tapes are charming but noisy, and degrade by ordinary use. Not preferred. Vinyl is charming and awsome in many ways. It has an exclusive feel and has large coverart which is nice. It has warmer but less accurate sound with added charming crackles. It sadly degrades by ordinary use, and is way too expensive. I like to collect these on a bit smaller scale. Cd is also charming and is the most accurate physical medium when it comes to rendering the actual recording without adding noise. It does not degrade by ordinary use, but of course it´s possible to scratch them both on purpose and by accident (the same counts for vinyl). Since the digital realm has destroyed much of the cd market, they can be quite cheap, and sometimes you can even get whole collections for free. It´s the most used medium in the latter years, so there´s a lot of titles avaliable. Digital formats gives you extended portability and possibilities, but the mediums themselves lack the physical charme. mp3 gives you good music with compromised sound and no charme. flac / lossless gives you good music with good sound and no charme. All formats are however dependant on good amps and speakers to be fully translated back to the listener. I mainly prefer collecting cd´s, with some selected releases also on vinyl. I aim for a rich collection from floor to ceiling.
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Post by Deleted on Feb 25, 2015 14:39:18 GMT -6
I aim for a rich collection from floor to ceiling. So be it!
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Post by Deleted on Jul 17, 2015 18:43:29 GMT -6
Honestly, if I can get good quality digital files I am pretty much happy with any physical format, since all I will really listen to will probably be the digital files. That said, the physical item is important though, as without a tactile object to hold / feel / look at, the digital files feel less tangible and I have a much harder time connecting with the music.
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Post by blake on Aug 20, 2015 8:58:37 GMT -6
I can see how many music enthusiasts would prefer cassette or vinyl. Although it is possible to "skip" songs, I would say using one of these formats encourages the listener to take the whole album as one experience. Alot of albums are meant to be taken as a whole and not piecemeal. I personally am one of those people who usually listen to whole albums.
I dont get the urge to listen to 1 song, I get the urge to listen to a particular album. Of course with the way everyone's lives are so busy these days its hard for most people to find to to just sit and tune the world out while you listen to an entire album, completely focused on it. I remember when I used to get a new CD, sit on my bed and listen to it on my portable cd player while following along with the lyrics.
I also used to be diehard on physical media and very against buying digital, because I felt that not having the artwork, etc in hand diminishes the value of the album and takes away from the experience...while I still do feel that way, these days with the cost of buying music for MBR and my limited space in my office, I have begun to switch to 100% mp3. Yes I know its a lossy format, but ripping at 320kpbs isnt so bad. Either way its storage efficient.
I havent seen any talk about mini-cds, I released the debut Amelioration album on mini-cd. Its a neat fun little package. And I personally think mini-cd is perfect for EPs, or for grindcore due to the 24-ish minute capacity. Sure it may destroy your slot loading car stereo, but its less wasted space.
Actually these days alot of the cookie cutter core bands seem to release "full length" albums that are 20 minutes. They shouldve just used a mini-cd.
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Post by tolencual on Aug 29, 2015 10:39:20 GMT -6
I havent seen any talk about mini-cds, I released the debut Amelioration album on mini-cd. Its a neat fun little package. And I personally think mini-cd is perfect for EPs, or for grindcore due to the 24-ish minute capacity. Sure it may destroy your slot loading car stereo, but its less wasted space. Actually these days alot of the cookie cutter core bands seem to release "full length" albums that are 20 minutes. They shouldve just used a mini-cd. I'm with Blake on the mini-CD. I've gotten several releases on mini-CD from Vomit Bucket productions, either in a plastic sleeve, mini jewel case, or even a mini DVD case. It's just a fun format to look at and play around with. I've always enjoyed collecting physical music media. I have grown a healthy vinyl collection (12's and 7's), a small tape collection, and way too many CDs. For some reason, it feels wrong having the MP3's of an album when I know that a physical copy exists out there, somewhere. And since I never go to actual shows or concerts, I feel like that would be my contribution to an artist I like, and the CD is just a cool thing to have. So, I guess you can say CD is my favorite format. I'm not a big fan of shuffling either. Some bands I can do that with, but when a part of a long song (like Dream Theater's Six Degrees of Inner Turbulence) comes on, I almost feel guilty about it, then I try to find the first track and listen to it from start to finish, or I skip it if I don't have the time.
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