Favorite Music format?

[sodascouts]

This topic was brought up and it got me to thinking. Which music format do you most prefer?

[sodascouts]

LPs have great artwork, but the music sounds all scratchy, they're ungainly to carry/store, and you can't play them in the car or take them anywhere. They're easily damaged as well.

The cassette tapes are more durable up to a point, but then they start to lose sound quality as they age and that tape gets run across those heads time and time again.

CDs are portable, have the artwork (although smaller), have high sound quality, and give you a physical object to hold onto. You can rip them to MP3 without too much effort if you want to do that. They're easily scratched and damaged, however.

MP3s are highly convenient but artwork is pathetic (yeah, you can download some, but what do you do with it? Load it onto an ipod where it's not displayed, or displayed very tiny). Plus, there's something to be said for hearing the song in the context of the album. However, I love that I can download one song from an album and not have to shell out $15+ unless I really do like it all. Also, nothing beats the portability and convenience of immediate downloads and mp3 players. I can listen to a vast array of music any time, anywhere, by just pulling my iPod out of my purse. On the other hand, said mp3 players don't really allow you to hear the sound in all its glory, nor do your average computer speakers. Finally, if you download from iTunes, you only get to put the song on five different machines before it becomes unplayable and you have to buy it again. UNCOOL. (nowadays, 5 machines is nothing... desktop, iphone, laptop, ipod... inevitably they will need to be replaced and then you're out of luck. I have recently subscribed to a music service so I don't have to use iTunes for just that reason.) Storing them on your computer can start taking up a lot of space unless you lower the quality so the file is smaller.

hmmm!

ETA: I think I'll go with CD, but still burn 'em all to MP3 for my iPod. lol

[Annabel]

I must admit I still have some albums on vinyl that I just won't get rid of even though I don't play them anymore. (I do still have an old stereo with turntable in the atic. ) I like the way I can see the words of the songs on LPs. They are a decent size unlike on CD's where I need a magnifying glass sometimes. Also like having the bigger art work there.
Still have a few cassettes too but likewise they never get played.

I tend to buy most of my stuff on CD but pretty much always add to it my I-tunes library and my I-pod. I have got the odd track I have bought just as a download, but they are very few in number.

I think I'll have to go CD.

[WalshFan88]

CD although I'd LOVE to have a vinyl collection and a turntable to hook into my stereo (maybe for Christmas I could get a turntable! ) But for me MP3/digital cannot come close to the quality of a CD or an LP through a big stereo. But then again I'm an audiophile and I'm sure for most people iTunes is fine. Not for me. I use the iPod in travel and that's it.

[sodascouts]

I also find that I don't buy CDs anymore unless it's a proven artist that I already like a lot. If it's new music, I'll almost always just buy one or two songs... For instance, I own music by artists like Adele, Alicia Keys, Amy Winehouse, The Black-Eyed Peas, Bruno Mars, Christina Aguilera, Coldplay, Daniel Powter, Daughtry, David Cook, Edwin McCain, Enrique Iglesias, The Fray, Jason Mraz, Lady GaGa, Ne-Yo, Nickelback, OneRepublic, Paolo Nutini, Plain White Ts, Rihanna, Shakira, Usher, 3 Doors Down, 30 Seconds to Mars, etc., but only a few songs each. The last time I bought a CD of a "new" artist was Keith Urban, and that was only because he was opening for the Eagles and was getting such high recs from my fellow Borderers! I just don't want to spend $15+ dollars unless I know I'm going to like the majority of it, and I don't know that with new artists. I will say that I have bought so many Beyonce, John Mayer, and Maroon 5 songs at this point that it about adds up to one album each.

It's all about the numbers. If I budget myself $35 to spend on music a month, I can either buy two albums from two artists with about 26 songs, some of which I may not like... or I can buy about 30 songs I know I like from a variety of artists. That's why the "You must buy the album to get this song" marketing crap pisses me off so much.

ETA: I should note that for me, "new" artist is anyone who came on the scene in the last decade, lol.

[TimothyBFan]

LOVE my vinyl!!!!!! Nothing beats the artwork in an album and the sound is freakin' awesome with the right speakers and equipment.

And anyone who has seen our garage and the wall of music that holds 900+ albums could figure that out. We also have several stereo systems and a pair of out of this world speakers that have gotten us into a bit of trouble with the law. Oops!! But I also have a friend who has a turntable that I can download my albums from into my Itunes and then onto my Ipod.

OK--let's face it.... I love them all and purchase them all. It just depends on what it is and the format I want it in. Lately, for my favorite artist, it's been a purchase of cd AND vinyl and if there was a pre-release couple of tracks you could purchase, I've done that. LROOE and Move Like This by The Cars are 2 examples of all of the above.

[The Disco Strangler]

ETA: I think I'll go with CD, but still burn 'em all to MP3 for my iPod. lol

Argh, I voted for MP3 for my iPod but realised that's what I do--burn my CDs to MP3 LOL.

[Prettymaid]

MP3 has become my format of choice, basically because when we bought our iPod several years ago we went all out and got a Bose wireless docking station to go with it. It's so convenient to carry out to the deck or into the kitchen while I'm cooking or into the bathroom while I'm showering and it's got great sound. Since I only live three minutes from work I do not bother with CD's in the car. Heck, I don't even turn the radio on during my short commute because I usually have an awesome song going through my head from listening to my iPod whle getting ready for work!

[whitcap]

I like having CDs but my favorite way to listen to music is on my ipod. All of my CDs are ripped to my ipod.

[Victim of Love]

I enjoy having my favorite music on CD but seldom play them. I load up my iPod then burn a CD as a backup.