Will the CD player ever die out?

[professorhat]

Windows PC's. Tried to install recently without a disk?[/quote
Windows PC's. Tried to install recently without a disk?

Can be done (though generally isn't I'll admit!).

But given I work in IT, most of the installs I've done in the last six or seven years have been to virtual machines, which use ISOs rather than physical media. But you're right, in the consumer world, CDs are still mainly used for reinstalls, so I guess I'm not playing fair with my 99% rule :doh:

As I say though, I don't think it will be long before Microsoft catches up with this and follows the OS X reinstall methodology i.e. possibly offering a USB stick, but generally reinstalling from a recovery partition / the internet.

 

[dragon76]

In theory CDs will die very soon. They are less convenient than digital players, and do not offer flexibility of digital reproduction/streaming. For me personally it is obvious that PC + DAC is a much better sounding combo than a similarly priced CD players, so I am in the digital camp 100% and do not oww a CD player for the last 2 years.

What really slows down the death of CDs is that digital transports are not that user friendly and do require some knowledge and skills to set up, play music and troubleshoot, and therefore younger generations will embrace them more strongly than some older folks. The latter group has already accumulated a large library of CDs that will stay for quite a long time.

One another issue with digital is lack of good content in CD (redbook) or higher quality. Hi-Res downloads are available, but more expensive and the selection of them is still pretty poor, but in fact growing.

 

[the record spot]

I think think they will become niche pretty soon. CDs are just an old fashioned way of transporting digital files about, they take up lots of space and offer no quality benefits over downloads. I guess they'll be confined to people that don't like or want change and the odd hi-fi enthusiast who doesn't understand digital.

Or those of us who have substantial CD collections, like having the physical product and want to have the means to play it independently of having to switch on a computer, NAS or other device to do so.

 

[CnoEvil]

Or those of us who have substantial CD collections, like having the physical product and want to have the means to play it independently of having to switch on a computer, NAS or other device to do so.

My fairly large collection of cassettes and VHS tapes didn't stop the demise of both these types of players.

 

[busb]

It's equally a question of when as much as if, IMO. I have a 5yr old Rotel RCD-1072 that I use as a CD transport. When it breaks, I can just carry on using iTunes for convenience with an ATV or maybe some other computer based solution or I'll reduce the number of boxes by one with a decent BR player feeding a DAC.

My gut feeling is that CD quality (or better) downloads will slowly but surely overtake CD production that's quite specialised. IMO, vinyl will outlast CD & although many say that youth are not interested in SQ, some are buying records (& are even beginning to drink beer instead of lager) so trends do change.

If DVD/BR production gets replaced by downloads, all disc-based media will slowly fade as MiniDisc has done. It also depends on how many people insist on having physical media as opposed to virtual - I prefer not to have the clutter of CDs, DVDs etc. When people are convinced that they can re-download music they have purchased if their PC/devices crash or go AWL, this will further reduce the need for physical media. The same applies to books.

CDS will still be around for years to come but new stuff will stop being produced on them before new vinyl production ceases, I suspect.

 

[the record spot]

True, but there were clear advantages to having portable music storage with massive capacity over a Walkman (how many cassettes would I need to carry round that could come remotely close the amount of storage my 32Gb Touch offers me with WAV files thereon? How many more with Spotify fully loading it at 320kbps?), likewise with DVDs, offering a reduced footprint, better picture and sound quality and multichannel capability on top. That "great leap" isn't so clear with CD, or rather so great, although I accept that the major players are probably looking towards internet streaming as the way forward.

With that in mind, I think CD will survive for some time. Blu-ray on the other hand probably came along at the wrong time as its lifespan is already being heavily squeezed by HD streaming online (as anyone who's used - e.g. - Sony's Video Unlimited service, or similar, will probably testify).

 

[CnoEvil]

True, but there were clear advantages to having portable music storage with massive capacity over a Walkman (how many cassettes would I need to carry round that could come remotely close the amount of storage my 32Gb Touch offers me with WAV files thereon? How many more with Spotify fully loading it at 320kbps?), likewise with DVDs, offering a reduced footprint, better picture and sound quality and multichannel capability on top. That "great leap" isn't so clear with CD, or rather so great, although I accept that the major players are probably looking towards internet streaming as the way forward.

With that in mind, I think CD will survive for some time. Blu-ray on the other hand probably came along at the wrong time as its lifespan is already being heavily squeezed by HD streaming online (as anyone who's used - e.g. - Sony's Video Unlimited service, or similar, will probably testify).

I like CD but not the CDP, which I think has been surpassed for both SQ and user convenience. I think the CD itself will be around until the "download generation" are in the majority, which will trigger the stopping of their production.

It will be interesting to see how long car makers will continue fitting CDPs as standard.

 

[SteveR750]

True, but there were clear advantages to having portable music storage with massive capacity over a Walkman (how many cassettes would I need to carry round that could come remotely close the amount of storage my 32Gb Touch offers me with WAV files thereon? How many more with Spotify fully loading it at 320kbps?), likewise with DVDs, offering a reduced footprint, better picture and sound quality and multichannel capability on top. That "great leap" isn't so clear with CD, or rather so great, although I accept that the major players are probably looking towards internet streaming as the way forward.

With that in mind, I think CD will survive for some time. Blu-ray on the other hand probably came along at the wrong time as its lifespan is already being heavily squeezed by HD streaming online (as anyone who's used - e.g. - Sony's Video Unlimited service, or similar, will probably testify).

I like CD but not the CDP, which I think has been surpassed for both SQ and user convenience. I think the CD itself will be around until the "download generation" are in the majority, which will trigger the stopping of their production.

It will be interesting to see how long car makers will continue fitting CDPs as standard.

Good point, that's a good barometer of the popularity of media. Many new cars have some kind of physical ipod connection, though blue tooth and a universal smartphone/pod holder would be a useful addition. Spotify in the car would be perfect.

 

[idc]

Will the CD format ever die out like the cassette and be completely superseded by digital media and streaming audio. Or will it live on like the vinyl?

CDs will continue as long as people are prepared to buy. With cassettes (audio and film) is a little different because they were troublesome (tangling up, iffy quality), whereas cds, generally speaking, still offers good quality repro.

I agree. CDs offer distinct advantages over cassettes and other formats which died out. In any case what about all the car CDPs? Cassettes final death knell was car stereos switching to CDPs.

 

[the record spot]

I like CD but not the CDP, which I think has been surpassed for both SQ and user convenience.

Ah, well, that I would disagree with; simply having a capability to theoretically deliver higher quality sound isn't the same as actually delivering it. You'd need to thank your producer and mastering engineer for that and there's too many instances where that's crippled the potential.

 

[CnoEvil]

I like CD but not the CDP, which I think has been surpassed for both SQ and user convenience.

Ah, well, that I would disagree with; simply having a capability to theoretically deliver higher quality sound isn't the same as actually delivering it. You'd need to thank your producer and mastering engineer for that and there's too many instances where that's crippled the potential.

Sorry, just to be a bit clearer, its the quality of the CDP that has been surpassed rather than the CD itself (though I think a well recorded 24 bit recording sounds better than its 16 bit counterpart)

You are right about mastering though....I was listening to Jacque Loussier on Telarc this evening, and it sounded sublime.

 

[j.63.hi-finutter]

CD Players may be forced into submission, offering different facilities, but the CD format may well be here for sometime.

 

[CnoEvil]

CD Players may be forced into submission, offering different facilities, but the CD format may well be here for sometime.

Hello there, welcome and Happy Easter.

 

[steve_1979]

Since I started streaming from my computer, I've bought more CDs than ever and I don't even have a CD player!

I've been buying more CD's than ever before too since I started streaming from my computer. I never listen to the actual CD's though. I just rip the music and leave the CD's on a shelf never to be touched again.

 

[CnoEvil]

Since I started streaming from my computer, I've bought more CDs than ever and I don't even have a CD player!

I've been buying more CD's than ever before too since I started streaming from my computer. I never listen to the actual CD's though. I just rip the music and leave the CD's on a shelf never to be touched again.

As do I, which prompted my comments above.

 

[manicm]

I like CD but not the CDP, which I think has been surpassed for both SQ and user convenience.

I'd hesitate to say so - too many variables in PC playback e.g. ripping, software e.g. I've found WMP12 not to be as good as previous versions for sq. For ripping I'd personally stick to EAC/WAV or uncompressed FLAC.

Some CD players do sound superb in spite of their inherent 'flaws'. I certainly wouldn't count them out for another 5 years. And anyway no-one's been as brave as Linn. Naim are still sticking with CDP guns, so are Marantz, and others.

Thing is CDs/Vinyl/Streaming are all alternatives which could cater to different tastes, and I don't mean sound quality. And I think to argue the superiority of one format over the other would be pointless.

For me the PC is out - I would want to at least dabble in hi-res audio but the PC is too inconvenient for that. I don't want to point and click a mouse when changing formats. On the other hand I'm not entirely convinced by streaming topology yet, unless I acquire a larger home where I can do decent DIY for ethernet. I'd like to see where streaming goes in 5yrs time. I don't think I'm alone. And if there's no meaningful change, I'd bet you top dollar the CDP will still be around.

 

[CnoEvil]

I'd hesitate to say so - too many variables in PC playback e.g. ripping, software e.g. I've found WMP12 not to be as good as previous versions for sq. For ripping I'd personally stick to EAC/WAV or uncompressed FLAC.

Some CD players do sound superb in spite of their inherent 'flaws'. I certainly wouldn't count them out for another 5 years. And anyway no-one's been as brave as Linn. Naim are still sticking with CDP guns, so are Marantz, and others.

Thing is CDs/Vinyl/Streaming are all alternatives which could cater to different tastes, and I don't mean sound quality. And I think to argue the superiority of one format over the other would be pointless.

For me the PC is out - I would want to at least dabble in hi-res audio but the PC is too inconvenient for that. I don't want to point and click a mouse when changing formats. On the other hand I'm not entirely convinced by streaming topology yet, unless I acquire a larger home where I can do decent DIY for ethernet. I'd like to see where streaming goes in 5yrs time. I don't think I'm alone.

I think that's fair enough. For me, the answer is NAS -> Streamer.

I believe logic dictates others will follow Linns example, unless they have a CDP as part of "the box". IMO. A well sorted Streamer can knock the equivalent CDP into touch.

 

[landzw]

I currently buy a mixture, I buy CDs so I can listen to the album on my hifi and then I rip the songs I want to either to the gym or when I'm on walks. Though I like listening to absolute radio 90s and it's easy to purchase the odd 90s song through iTunes instead of buying the album.

I can still see a need for the cd for a good few years yet it's just some company's are trying to kill it of before it's time to make more money for themselves.

 

[gregvet]

it's just some company's are trying to kill it of before it's time to make more money for themselves.

That doesn't seem very fair. To my knowledge linn are the only uk company who have moved wholesale to streamers, and they simply say they can't make a cd player as good as a streamer. That seems remarkably honest to me (I'm sure plenty of other companies would quite happily continue to sell substandard cd players if people were buying them!).

All the rest are merely offering streaming in addition to cd. Some in one unit and others in separate units. How is that trying to kill off the cd? choice is a good thing, no?

Streaming is the current fad for sure, but any company has to either be early to market, or be the best/cheapest in an existing market, to stand any chance in an economy like ours.

Hang on, a minute, did you mean apple. Doh!

 

[Anonymous]

I think if there were some higher end Blu Ray players in the last magazine test that didn't support DVD-Audio, SACD or both, then the basic CD format is safe for now.

What will kill it are too many repeated re-issues every decade of the same CDs and waiting a year before releasing once-brand-new albums with extra tracks on another disc.

I got so fed up with the latter that I just wait a year after an album is out to buy it unless it's a soundtrack. For example the three extra tracks Radiohead released that would have made King Of Limbs longer than 40 minutes - still no reissue, but I want everything from that time on the disc, without there being three stray downloads.

 

[Anonymous]

people will probably succumb to the conveniance of downloads but i think people will burn music onto cds. Thats what i currently do since i dont have any streaming equipment, although i think i can buy a little adapter for my onkyo but i will have to look into that

 

[Anonymous]

The CD is on borrowed time.

Music shops are vanishing, even the big ones are doing a Blockbusters. I still have an HMV in my town, but the town used to have two.

 

[professorhat]

I still have an HMV in my town, but the town used to have two.

So an extremely sensible business decision to shut one down then.

 

[chebby]

I still have an HMV in my town, but the town used to have two.

Yeah, we got yours. We used to have one HMV and now we have two. (And a thriving s/h record store.)

 

[Anonymous]

I can't see the CD player dying out that quickly to be honest, and I think that at the very least there will always be some sort of transport available so that people can play discs with external DACs. Despite being very happy with the Squeezebox Touch and my Rega turntable, CD is still my most used format, currently being enjoyed on my resurrected NAD C521BEE player. For me it is about more than the CD simply being a carrier of digital files. I still like the physical aspect - the liner notes, the artwork, and browsing through a physical collection to choose something to play.

On the second hand market or budget end of the market is where the story will eventually end I think. Just like with NICAM VHS, CRT, and DVD. Look at the non-bluray DVD players you can buy new now - all of them are ****! Every CD player I have seen also offers capability to play MP3's and many are sporting USB connectivity. I think this trend will go the way of those curious little VHS/DVD hybrids that appeared when VHS handed over to DVD. I think the CD playback portion of such machines will start becoming more of an afterthough or lesser consideration and then poof, it will be gone. I also think they will all essentially end up using what amounts to a DVD Rom whilst they still do exist.

Who still buys CD's? Even HMV seems mostly geared towards gameplayers.

I thought long and hard about the source to use for my humble little bedroom system (system 1 in my sig). I deliberately steered away from USB connectivity and such because I didn't want bewildering choice for that system. I keep a big collection of CD's with that system and that's what I listen to. Often with a computer or Ipod type arrangement you can't resist fiddling, and you stop listening. A bit like trying to choose something to watch when you have dozens of channels.