Physical Formats

[renegadefm]

Without going too far back in the dark ages, wax, 8 track, etc. 

I'd like to focus this topic on the relatively modern formats for music such as Vinyl Cassette , CD, Mini Disc. 

 

But here comes the question. Out of all the formats in our generation and in terms of physical formats, nothing has really superseded CD's.

So we have USB, or memory cards which can play music in the newer cars, and vehicles, or indeed USB boomboxes etc, even soundbars. 

But USB never took off commercially, by that I mean artists never as far as I know have ever sold their album's on a USB stick, when you think in terms of portability USB's would be perfect to buy new albums on, and could be fairly priced.

 

Ok streaming has killed any chance of the physical format to be king again, but something tells me streaming won't be the leader in music forever.

 

In some cases consumers have actually ditched their Spotify accounts for a more wholesome relationship between the artist and the music, and ditched Netflix for Bluray. 

 

We have to remember not all areas in the UK and other countries have great Internet speeds, certainly not good enough to stream a movie, so there is still a place for the physical format. 

 

Its hard to believe are CD'S really the last physical format of our time?

 

Some would argue vinyls actually last longer, as in time CD'S naturally deteriorate, I have a few already that has done that, and they are now unplayable. But I have vinyls that are over 50 years old and still play.  Which would argue vinyl is still the most robust if looked after correctly. 

 

When I first discovered USB's I actually thought this is going to be the next format we see artists releasing their album's on, but the internet had other ideas and streaming took over.

 

So is that it? Is streaming really the future, or will something attractive and portable actually reign again one day? 

[Buenchico]

>>> We have to remember not all areas in the UK and other countries have great Internet speeds, certainly not good enough to stream a movie

Only one in 500 homes have download speeds below 10 Mbps.  As only 3 Mbps is required to view Netflix in HD quality, the number of homes unable to access Netflix will therefore only be one in several thousand.

I like browsing through world music CDs on Oxfam, et al, simply because it's easier to choose from a limited selection of music than it is to trawl through the millions of tracks that are available on the internet.  However I fully understand why many physical stores are no longer selling CDs or DVDs and why many music publishers and movie distributors are no longer using those formats.

[barry1010]

Isn't the album/LP dead? These days if people buy music, they buy the tracks they want to listen to, not the entire album.

Today's youngsters don't buy music. They stream it for free or subscribe to a subscription service.

Vinyl sales are increasing, it is true, but it is still niche.

[renegadefm]

barry1010, 

I don't think thats necessarily true barry, as each time I visit my local HMV its always youngsters trawling through the vinyl albums section.  I almost felt out of place, its quite bizarre really.

I sometimes think people find trawling their way through millions of choices on Spotify or other streaming platforms can be quite bewildering. Almost like there's too many choices. 

I'm like that with television, I sit here sometimes spending most of the evening trying to find something to actually be interesting enough to watch. 

Its as if we got hundreds of channels with nothing to watch. Ironically I think there is a song with a title simular to that. 

But it must be like that with music on Spotify. Compared to just going out and buying an album that you know your going to like. 

 

I will say one thing Spotify is useful for is checking out an album first to see if you like it or not, then go and buy the album. I do that all the time, as the audio quality isn't always great on Spotify when paired to my HIFI system. Hence why I still buy the album. 

[Canary42]

Nobody has addressed the USB stick option, I too wonder why it hasn't been taken up. Is it perhaps because the streaming onto your own USB stick dilutes the potential market too much?

[barry1010]

I've got several USB sticks full of music in my car, why would I buy a USB stick with only one album or a single track?

Much more fun to compile my own complications.

[barry1010]

What was the last album you bought, Rene? In what format?

[Canary42]

Very good point Barry - I've got loads of vinyl LPs with some little-played tracks.

[Prudie]

I still buy and listen to all my music on CDs, that's what I like in the car - full but easy control of switching between tracks. Some of it is streamed from itunes and burnt onto CDs admittedly.

I know it's niche in UK (but very popular globally) but K-pop albums are still always sold primarily as CDs - in fact they make a big deal of packaging and included lyric books and photos etc. so the physical format is critical. I cannot see CDs as a format ever becoming obsolete.

[renegadefm]

barry1010, 

Well for myself I recently bought 1987 from the Now yearbook series, and Now 18 which compliments the current Now 118.

And I bought on vinyl for my partner Sia's new album on vinyl.

But the new Sia album we both checked out on Spotify first to see if its worth buying it. 

 

[renegadefm]

Prudie, 

Me too, I hate new cars as they dont even have a cd player, so I attach my cd walkman to the auxiliary on the car stereo. 

USB is useful for putting thousands of songs on there, but comber some to trawl through. 

[Canary42]

Cumbersome at present, but loads of room for adding navigating or menu software (on a commercial basis that is - perhaps I should patent the idea 😁)

[Prudie]

Yes but not while you're driving...

[renegadefm]

I have just discovered Black Sabbath has actually released a box set of their first 10 years on a usb stick. 

 

Here is a snippet of the hype sticker:

The box set comes with a Crucifix shaped Black Sabbath USB stick, exclusive to this box set, with MQA high definition audio of the first eight Black Sabbath albums......

 

So there we have it, music has been sold commercially on a USB stick. 

 

I have to maintain my idea that a USB stick is so portable it can fit in your pocket, or even be clipped to your car keys, I can't understand how  this hasn't revolutionised the music market and superseded CD's. 

[barry1010]

That was released in 2017.

[Khandro]

What could beat the cassette ? You could make your own mix to listen to at home or in the car and send them as presents to friends.

[renegadefm]

barry1010, 

Must have slipped under my radar. 

 

But then I just had a thought, if Spotify can be a library of most artists discographies. I think it would be a great idea if more artists followed Black Sabbath and release all their albums as a box set on a designer USB stick? 

[renegadefm]

Khandro, 

I've been doing that with CD's for years. 

[barry1010]

As far as I know Black Sabbath included the crucifix shaped USB in a box set of 8 vinyl albums and a book.  The USB was not released on its own, although there were plenty of copies on eBay and the like.

[barry1010]

Khandro, I've been listening to my ripped CDs in the car on USB for nearly 15 years. Easy to post, too 

[renegadefm]

I've also been ripping music to usb for years but, its only recently with better interfaces in newer cars that its become usable really. Before I had to flick through hundreds of tracks before I could get to the song I wanted to play. Not ideal. 

 

But I really thought there is or was a market missed opportunity to start releasing albums on a usb stick. The portability speaks volumes, no pun intended 😉