Is the resurgence of vinyl LP's a fad?

[podknocker]

Must be that time of the month again where podknocker obnoxiously trolls TT users before deactivating his account and skulking off for a bit when called out, only to return to start the cycle all over again..

I'm going nowhere fella. Try and bring something worthwhile to the table and I'll gladly take the piss out of it.

 

[nads]

Is it a resurgence? As far as I am concerned it never went away?

 

[My2Cents]

Is it a resurgence? As far as I am concerned it never went away?

Not what it was in it's heyday but yes, a revival.

Infographic: Despite Comeback, Vinyl Is Still Far From Its Glory Days

This chart shows the rise in LP sales in the United States.

www.statista.com

 

[My2Cents]

Apparently 50% of the folks who are purchasing new vinyl don't even own a turntable. It's about personal ownership of a physical object and helping support the artist (like Taylor Swift needs more supporting). When they want to listen to the album they just stream it.
"... eeeh... there's nowt so queer as folk"

 

[ianrjones]

Take it to the ‘is the resurgence of cassettes a fad?’ thread

I remember saving for an ELCASSETTE, but they just could not find any retailers, to sell them.

 

[Revolutions]

I remember saving for an ELCASSETTE, but they just could not find any retailers, to sell them.

Oh wow, I had never heard of these. Nor the RCA cassette cartridge. Awesome idea, thanks for making me aware. Wish that had landed- seems like a bigger travesty than the death of minidisc 😢

 

[DCarmi]

Not what it was in it's heyday but yes, a revival.

With the advent of streaming, physical media is always going to be a niche market. Most people are not into hifi. They tend use phones with bluetooth devices, smart speakers etc

Even when vinyl was at its peak, people commonly had inexpensive disc players, the likes your Fergussons, ITTs, with BSR platters or worse, which hardly did the formats justice. There was no streaming option, other than radio.

Basically, don't confuse 20th Century vinyl sales, with todays. It's a different world and one that won't return.

 

[nopiano]

I remember saving for an ELCASSETTE, but they just could not find any retailers, to sell them.

I think I saw them at a show once, but can’t recall ever seeing in a regular store. Was that another Sony invention, I can’t remember. (I’ll Google it. Was a rhetorical question)

 

[Al ears]

Haha! People prefer the sound of distortion and the inaccurate reproduction of music, via an old, tired format? I rest my case.

You are correct.

 

[bigfish786]

It will have its time, then probably disappear. (Or shrink to practically nothing) and become even more niche than it already is. I’m trying to wean myself off it but the collector in me keeps buying the damn stuff, then listening to the CD.

 

[speedthing]

The reason why vinyl is no where near the sales it was in the last century is back then it was the best medium and probably the cheapest. It was defo better than Cassette tape not sure if it was better than spool/ Reel to Reel tape but as I remember those machines where not very popular and really expensive well ive never listened to one. Today we have better mediums digital steaming etc etc.

 

[Steve983]

Apparently 50% of the folks who are purchasing new vinyl don't even own a turntable. It's about personal ownership of a physical object and helping support the artist (like Taylor Swift needs more supporting). When they want to listen to the album they just stream it.
"... eeeh... there's nowt so queer as folk"

It's ok, other people do things that we/I wouldn't. Vinyl is a 'nice to have' even if you don't play it. You can always sell it at a later date. There are a few albums that I loved so much that after buying the cd, I bought the Blu Ray for the 24 bit hi res stereo too, then I bought the vinyl 'cos I loved the artwork and it was 'nice to have'. Excessive? Maybe. Silly? Maybe. So is it against the law? No. Did anyone get hurt? No. Surely it's good that there is a resurgence of vinyl even if it's mainly Taylor Swift - I have no idea why she's so popular either but if she's helping to sell physical product surely that is a good thing on the whole. Btw, My2Cents this isn't aimed squarely at you, it's just some general points

 

[Steve983]

It will have its time, then probably disappear. (Or shrink to practically nothing) and become even more niche than it already is. I’m trying to wean myself off it but the collector in me keeps buying the damn stuff, then listening to the CD.

What might ultimately kill it could well be shortage of materials and/or costs, same for cd. Downloads might be the last hurrah and of course streaming will survive - until the internet goes down!

 

[JDL]

It's not a fad but the record companies are behind it and have an interest in pushing Vinyl over CD. I think the reason for this is obvious to everyone.

 

[podknocker]

It's not a fad but the record companies are behind it and have an interest in pushing Vinyl over CD. I think the reason for this is obvious to everyone.

Why would the industry resurrect an old format, when CD has superior sound quality and ease of use and is cheaper? It's shameful of the industry to sell more LPs at elevated prices, just because people have been fooled into thinking this dinosaur has anything to offer over CD, or online sources. Are we all going to be duped into buying black and white TVs again, because new technology is not cool, or rebellious?

 

[podknocker]

Who benefits from the resurgence of vinyl... a 100 year old medium, much of which is now being pressed from digital masters that weren't even meant for vinyl pressing?

I say the record companies (and possibly artists) who will increase their profits from a disc that has a retail cost of around 40% more than a CD and will solve the problem of streaming for them (which both artists and the record corporations hate).
The environment surely won't benefit (although servers are not exactly environmentally friendly either).

125 years ago electric (along with steam) was the dominant power for personal vehicles (cars) until the Model T came out. Even after the Model T came out, Henry Ford's wife (Clara) continued to drive a 1914 Detroit Electric.

We're going backwards in every respect... 20 years from now will folks be shunning texting, TikTok'ing, 'X' ing etc. (or perhaps even the entire idea of the internet)? Will corded phones become the new 'thing'?

After all, who wants to e-mail / twitter when you can buy a nice fountain pen, carefully compose a letter to someone (paying attention to spelling and grammar) and place it in a mailbox with a pretty stamp on it? The anticipation and waiting for a reply is so satisfying!

I think people fear change and want to rebel as much as they can, to avoid new things becoming more popular. Many people out there are set in their ways and don't like new things. It is strange.

 

[bp_reid]

For me, it is about the artefact-ness of vinyl, stream for convenience and for new music then buy the stuff I really like on vinyl these days.

In some senses the act of being a fan requires ritual and vinyl is good at that, by the nature of its physical presence and the physical act of dropping the needle.

It’s like a tea ceremony or a coffee aficionado who home roasts literally pulls shots with a la pavoni.

Personally I washappy to see the back of CD which had its day from about 1991-2005 along with Mini-Disc for a while as a portable source but, by the mid 00’s, both became outmoded. After all the main advantage of CD over vinyl was convenience as quality - repeat, shuffle, skip etc. As soon as iTunes and ripped files came along CD & MD lost the advantage of convenience. Streaming at a cost of less than 1 CD/month has now finished it off, for me at least.

 

[Jasonovich]

It will have its time, then probably disappear. (Or shrink to practically nothing) and become even more niche than it already is. I’m trying to wean myself off it but the collector in me keeps buying the damn stuff, then listening to the CD.

Don't open the seal, keep them all pristine; you can make a mint if you decide to sell them in the near future

 

[nopiano]

What might ultimately kill it could well be shortage of materials and/or costs, same for cd. Downloads might be the last hurrah and of course streaming will survive - until the internet goes down!

I was thinking the same recently. Then I remembered hearing about the scale of these so-called cloud storage farms and the millions of kW of electricity used to keep the internet running. Suddenly a record seemed quite eco friendly. Bizarre!

 

[Roog]

FAD, I have a small record collection from my younger days back in the 70's and early 80's. I couldn't afford to buy it then in any numbers when it was the only decent source. I can't afford it now at todays prices!

Sure the theatre of putting a record on is nice, but streaming offers me so much more choice in music at an affordable price, it has opened my world to new music and ultimately that is what its all about for me, experiencing great music.

 

[JDL]

Why would the industry resurrect an old format, when CD has superior sound quality and ease of use and is cheaper? It's shameful of the industry to sell more LPs at elevated prices, just because people have been fooled into thinking this dinosaur has anything to offer over CD, or online sources. Are we all going to be duped into buying black and white TVs again, because new technology is not cool, or rebellious?

What might ultimately kill it could well be shortage of materials and/or costs, same for cd. Downloads might be the last hurrah and of course streaming will survive - until the internet goes down!

Is the internet gonna go down?

 

[DougK1]

Is the internet gonna go down?

Mine does on a regular basis

 

[daveh75]

I was thinking the same recently. Then I remembered hearing about the scale of these so-called cloud storage farms and the millions of kW of electricity used to keep the internet running. Suddenly a record seemed quite eco friendly. Bizarre!

If you completely ignore the huge amount of energy used to extract, refine and process the raw materials, etc, etc, then theres manufacturing, packaging and transportation of the finished product....

 

[JDL]

Mine does on a regular basis

I'm surprised. I'd have thought it'd be reliable there, where you are.
It's been pretty reliable here since we switched to a different provider and got the fiber optic hooked up even though we're out in the sticks.
Anyway, apart from that, I thought, when I replied to Steve 983's comment that he meant by "...when the internet goes down", everyone's internet. Ha ha, a thought ....

 

[andybebbs]

all about choice if you like cd`s buy cd`s if you like records buy those if you stream then enjoy. I use all three to be honest and the one i dislike the most is streamimg only because i like to own the physical music be it cd or record. everyone to there own just enjoy your music.