Pros & Cons of buying MP3’s vs. CD’s

[Bob the Builder]

I’ve only bought a hand full of MP3’s (AAC, or what ever digital format) off the internet. All the rest of my collation is in CD format.
To be honest, I will take a lot of change for me to start to seriously think about buying my music in Digital file format. The main reason is that there are very little liner notes in any of MP3 online shops and I also love to have an original CD. Other reasons are, much of the recordings I’m looking for are not available on MP3 format, some aren’t even on CD and also, we in Australia, don’t have access to as many online MP3 stores.


Do you prefer to buy original Cds or digital music file (MP3). Do you ever think that MP3 stores will ever have full liner notes on their sites?

Brian

[julius]

I always buy CDs. I don't think I've ever bought an mp3.

I think liner notes are a good argument for buying CDs, and also it saves you the trouble of backing up your music to disc, because, well, it's right there on the disc already.

Also, I'm a neo-luddite.

[JesseMiner]

Do you prefer to buy original Cds or digital music file (MP3).

I prefer to buy CDs. I've only bought a handful of mp3s as well, and that was only because I needed a few songs immediately.

Do you ever think that MP3 stores will ever have full liner notes on their sites?

I would imagine they would be made available sooner or later if the demand is there. And I certainly hope that there is be a demand for them.

Jesse

[Nate Dogg]

MP3s are good if you don't want to buy the whole album. Using the MP3s allows me to have the songs I want, while giving me the luxury of waiting for the album to turn up used at a good price. For some albums, a dollar or two spent on iTunes may be all I ever need.

There is also the whole eMusic thing. Even with their new plan, it is a cheap way of getting songs.

Aside from the liner notes, another drawback with MP3s is the DRM used by MP3 vendors.

Nathan

[Zot]

Yeah, I'm a born again eMusic subscriber (subscribed, unsubscribed, subscribed again) and I've found the service to be useful to fill out my collection in new ways. I find that eMusic has a lot of small label stuff that's hard to find. You can also use it to sample a lot more music more quickly than you can by roaming the streets and taking the occasional new CD home.

I've also used Apple's iTMS quite a bit now. The quality is better, the labels are more mainstream, and yes, DRM sucks, but it hasn't interfered that much yet.

I do prefer to own things on CD, but I'll say this: owning something on CD does not guarantee that you will get liner notes, and it certainly doesn't guarantee quality of recording. If can buy something in the shop and get home and realise it sucks, you've lost your $20. At least buying online you usually know what you are paying for. I also agree that buying just one song from an album is very handy -- it stretches your budget further and means you can satisfy more curiosity. It has also meant, for me, that I might come back to an artist after having used just one of their songs and look for other stuff.

[gatorgal]

I still prefer buying CDs over MP3s, but I do buy digitally, for all the reasons said earlier. I would have to say my buying split is about 70% CDs/30% MP3s.

Edited to add:

I'm considering jumping on the eMusic bandwagon. We'll see how it goes.

Quality of liner notes is not a consideration for me. I read them, but I rarely retain the info.

Tina

[mousethief]

I can't break the CD habit - I need liner notes, rare pics, etc.

Kalman

[Swifty]

Plus MP3's don't look cool on your shelf.

[mousethief]

You can't use MP3s as coasters or anti-cat disciplinary weapons either.

Kalman

[Nima]

I buy CD's....then convert them to MP3's....I never tried downloading from itunes et al.

Nima

[GemZombie]

I had an eMusic account for a while... downloaded a buttload of music. Only grabbed stuff that had been converted to the highest quailty MP3s (they were still transitioning). They changed from unlimited downloads to a quota... so I dropped them.

Got a good 50 - 75 albums from them before that happened. Otherwise I've *only* bought CDs. The rest of the services don't offer in high enough quality and good enough price to make it worthwhile. $15 for 15 songs is just not good when you consider the songs I'm downloading are going to almost always be non-royalty songs, and I can get 100 songs for almost the same price by buying a proper box set, or something like the Duke Ellington Big Box set (700+ songs for $40 after shipping).

[Nate Dogg]

I had an eMusic account for a while... downloaded a buttload of music. Only grabbed stuff that had been converted to the highest quailty MP3s (they were still transitioning). They changed from unlimited downloads to a quota... so I dropped them.

Got a good 50 - 75 albums from them before that happened. Otherwise I've *only* bought CDs. The rest of the services don't offer in high enough quality and good enough price to make it worthwhile. $15 for 15 songs is just not good when you consider the songs I'm downloading are going to almost always be non-royalty songs, and I can get 100 songs for almost the same price by buying a proper box set, or something like the Duke Ellington Big Box set (700+ songs for $40 after shipping).

Yeah, taste in music probably is a factor. If you are primarily into classic swing, you will get much better deals with the labels you mentioned.

If you are into later music from labels like Pablo, Verve, recent independent labels, major label stuff, than you will find a lot more music of interest with digital downloads.

As I said earlier, I still prefer CDs and I am very selective with my iTunes purchases. As for eMusic, I am still a member and a good many of my purchases are not swing. But, they still have a deep inventory of music for around 25 to 29 cents a song. I should probably update my eMusic thread with some new recomendations. Basically, these days (post switching to their new plan) the majority of the stuff I buy off eMusic these are albums/songs I would not buy otherwise, at least not at full price, maybe a pawn shop. In the good ole days of eMusic, I would just grab lots of music and filter it later. Heck, I still have eMusic albums that have hardly listened to for years ago.

[Lawrence]

It depends on what you want the song for. If for casual listening, then MP3s suffice. But if you want it for top-notch, audiophile sound quality, MP3s are inadequate.

Although I'm starting to bend and realize how useful MP3s can be, especially for organizing a huge collection so that it all is readily available at your fingertips instead of hidden away in giant binders or on massive shelves, MP3s don't measure up in terms of sound quality. Much better to have the original source.

For audiophiles, CDs are a step down in sound quality from records and reel-to-reel tapes. (The digital recording breaks the sound waves up into microsecond increments and then plays them side by side like movie film so that the human ear does not readily notice the difference.) MP3s reflect a step down in sound quality from CD recordings. For most casual listening, the difference is not noticeable, but for those moments when I want a top-quality sonic experience, I want the best source possible.

I also agree that the liner notes are an added bonus.

[CafeSavoy]

Although I'm starting to bend and realize how useful MP3s can be, especially for organizing a huge collection so that it all is readily available at your fingertips instead of hidden away in giant binders or on massive shelves, MP3s don't measure up in terms of sound quality. Much better to have the original source.

Have you looked at Ogg as an alternative to mp3s or at some of the lossless formats?

[julius]

I want the best source possible too: live music.

heh heh heh.