Ten years from now, will more people be listening to vinyl or CDs?

CDs will be so passe' in ten years. The engineers will figure out a way to fill the audio spectrum with something we are not aware of yet,but I certainly dont feel it will be a tangable medium.
Most likely something that will be downloaded to some gizmo we have yet to see that Apple will no doubt produce.
Vinyl is an elitist medium now and I would think will remain so. It is the function of playing a vinyl record to facilitate the music that sets it apart as much as the sound.
Even if they were to produce something that sounds better than the best vinyl record by any standards,vinyl will still be here while CDs will be some quaint little disc from the past.
The only question is. How will they package it ?

 

agreed! +1

 

CD's, more likely. As far as I know, you can't play vinyl in a DVD player.

 

A: I continue to be shocked at how many people I run into are now collecting vinyl (mostly in their 20's-early 30's). The Goodwills in L.A. are now so competitive because of the increased demand many have raised the prices on used vinyl up to $2.99. (still cheap but a hefty jump from .99 cents)

B: Records continue to gain value-if you're lucky enough to own some original 50's Bluenotes they sell for as much as $2500! Try getting that for a CD. Even a rare one...

C: when I play my vinyl records for younger musicians that grew up on CD's exclusively the overwhelming reaction from virgin ears is a stunned smile. "I can't believe how great this sounds!", or "It sounds so real".
No mention of the so-called pops and scratches-just amazement at what's coming out of the speakers. Besides, most noise issues from vinyl are a result of a set-up issue, not the medium itself. My records don't snap, crackle or pop!

D: I imagine about the same percentage of people will still be seeking out these older formats that are now. The vast majority of music consumers will opt for the easiest, cheapest way to get the song-regardless of quality. The audiophiles will continue to collect ALL the so called obsolete formats-but rare vinyl records will always be sought out by the next generation of romantics who appreciate the sound, and feel, and aesthetics that only a 12" vinyl record can provide.

 

The mighty CD of course, it will be even less of a contest than it is now.

 

My gut feeling is that when the baby boomers go, they'll be taking vinyl with them.

 

Vinyl, for a couple of reasons.

1. CDs are way more convenient for lossless transfers to computers/servers.

2. Vinyl records have the huge advantage of so many releases throughout our musical history unavailable on the CD format.

 

My 24 year old sister-in-law came to me yesterday and said she wants a turntable for xmas... Her reasoning: She downloads all of her music, and hasn't bought a CD in 5 or 6 years - and if she's going to "actually buy music", she wants it on vinyl, not CD. Her 1st LP is going to be DSOTM.

That's encouraging.

 

Aren't CDs still outselling downloads substantially for albums? No doubt MP3 is the king of singles, but some of us probably don't see that - or want to see that - as the whole music business.

And while the whole business is in rapid freefall, downloads have hardly begun to compensate for the revenue lost by declining overall sales. Let's face it, in the world of disposable income, something has to give to pay for that cell phone account.

 

I'm 31 and have 1500 LP's and 2000 7-inches (45's for you boomers). I don't think records are going anywhere after the boomers are gone. If anything, I'll be the lucky recipient of their collections!

 

I don't think hardly anyone will have a DVD player in ten years...Blu-Ray maybe (but most people will be downloading/streaming movies).

 

PC-audio is the hot and growing playback format and redbook CDs are a technically inferior way to source the digital music which ideally would be well mastered from original tapes and made available in HiRez digital. Part of me thinks vinyl with a HiRez download is the ideal combo of physical and digital but the more I get interested in PC-audio the less I really want new releases on vinyl at high prices just to ge the digital bits. I would rather pay less and just get the 24/96. I certainly don't want a redbook CD if I could get the same master in 24/96.

I feel comfortable with a continued interest in collectible vinyl as artifacts of past classic releases but I'm not sure the resurgence of vinyl will continue for new issues...especially if hi-rez digital dowload (well mastered) is available a lower prices. I agree there is a desire have a physical item for collectibility and resale but I'm not sure new release vinyl is the future.

 

CDs, for the same reason that more people were playing 33 1/3 LPs in 1970 than shellac 78s. The newer technology wins.

Have you seen the market share for vinyl vs CD? What on earth makes you think it will overtake CDs?

 

I like how some bands will give you a free digital copy of the album when you buy the vinyl.

I would love for this to be the standard in ten years, but it just wont work.

Also, can you imagine how hard it will be then hunting down original lp's and hot pressings in 10 years?

 

In ten years, digital will be the most popular format, but not CD. LP's will still survive as they provide a unique experience. There will be no need for CD's when you can download all music in CD quality or better, listen to it instantly, and not have to store it in anything larger than a hard drive.

Does this mean that every household will have a turntable? No, certainly not, relatively few will. But turntables will exist long after CD players are extinct.

 

Man this is a tough one...I would like to say vinyl, but cd still has a decent following.

 

VINYL!

 

CD.

 

CDs by far. Digital will greatly outnumber analog.

I suspect there are far more CD capable playback devices in active service than there are turntables.

I have two turntables, but there are 3 computers with CD capacity, 2 DVRs, 2 cars with CD, plus a standalone cd player and a portable cd player *just* in my house.

My kids have their own houses, they don't have turntables, but CD devices are everywhere.

Ten years from now, even if turntables double worldwide, there will still be many more cd players in service than vinyl players. Probably hundreds of times more.

 

But your avatar suggests otherwise.

 

But how are CD player sales faring? People are likely buying Blu-Ray players for movies, but are many people really buying digital players just to play music on little silver discs?

Fact: Even today, you could easily rip your entire CD collection to FLAC, store it on a portable drive and back it up on an online backup system, and stream it using a Squeezebox, and never actually have to play a CD ever again. Couple this with the reality that this technology is only going forward at a rapid pace, and you can see that the future does not bode well for physical media. The current technological trend may finally kill the LP, but it will certainly kill the CD. It seems unavoidable to me. If there is an alternative scenario, I'd be interested to hear it.

 

Pretty sure I'd still be listening to vinyl in ten years, as I was before it got up off the mat again at the count of 9. But I also still play 78's, so I'm not really the best example of market trends.

 

David that is exectly how I feel down to the last word. I just wasn't able to articulate it as well. Vinyl offers a unique listening experience that cannot be duplicated by new technology... a cd is physical media that can be swapped out easily for other digital files that offer the exact same sound. I love cd's but it won't be long before I just switch to a hard drive-based system. It can offer the same (if not better with high-res) sound and the technology will continue to improve.

Maybe not in ten years but it seems inevitable that at some point vinyl will overtake cd's

 

Wow, you really nailed it, dkmonroe! I couldn't have put it any better.

 

Added a poll for fun.