Anyone find it far more rewarding listening to real physical CDs on a CD player, rather than using FLACs? And why do you find this?

[Frank Dernie]

Having to get up and down to change CD's makes it worst.

I tell myself I need the excercise

 

[Mike-48]

I much prefer using flac files.

• I don't have to re-sort them in storage drawers every time I move.
• I can play one string quartet from a disc of three, then move on easily.
• I can find the one Haydn sonata on a disc of Mozart.
• I can't drop the damn things and break the jewel-case hinges.
• I don't need to maintain a separate catalog of what I own -- the player program does it for me.
• The same music library is accessible from my main system, desktop system, living-room TV system, Chromecast Audio in the kitchen, and my phone when I'm on the exercise bike. No toting CDs around.
• Indeed, I can access my library and catalog anywhere over the Internet. So I can play my own music at an audio dealership, as long as I have my phone with me.
• I can easily find out that I have three versions of a work already, so I don't buy it again.

 

[Robin L]

I've got my CDs ripped to Apple Lossless. They are backed up to a hard drive, a miniature flash drive and a Micro SD drive. The Micro SD drive is in a tiny DAP that happens to sound great with the Philips Fidelio X2HR headphones. The flash drive is in this laptop I'm typing on right now, its files played back via I-Tunes. Access to everything is easier than with the CDs. Sound quality is as good as I have experienced so far. And all my CDs are in storage. As I'm living in a much smaller place these days, CDs are no longer a viable option.

I really don't know what makes a CD realization of a digital file any more "real" than the same data in a much more compact form factor. I don't think having the music source rotate has an advantage over a storage mode with no moving parts. It's not like an LP, where the rainbow shimmer of the rotating disc surface is a minor compensation for the dramatically reduced sound quality of the format. I'd go so far as to suggest that as regards sonics, file-based playback would have an advantage over disc-based playback. Of any sort. I could be wrong. However, I recall that thirty years ago, some audio engineers were going gaga over the possibility of having an entire CD's worth of Redbook files in RAM, seemed like an incredible luxury for mastering engineers at the time. With a fine sounding playback device that set me back $69 and a tiny $80 chip holding half a terabyte's worth of lossless files, I'm living the dream.

 

[Sgt. Ear Ache]

no. Not one little bit.

 

[Purité Audio]

Occasionally I find an inevitably empty case and idly wonder where that particular CD went to, but then I hit play in Roon and my disquiet is instantly dispelled.
Keith

 

[Foxenfurter]

For me this is related to another discussion about dedicated listening rooms. A physical collection of any size takes up a lot of space and frankly makes your home look like a record shop, each to your own, but not for me. I finally removed the racks are out of the lounge last year and it has been re-decorated. Happy wife.

I have been doing a lot more listening in the home office/junk room as I have been working from home. Streaming is a godsend.

 

[sergeauckland]

My LPs and CDs are stored in my study/workshop which is next to my listening room. In the case of LPs, I pick out the three or four I'll listen to in an evening, the CDs are just stored there as I've got to keep them somewhere.

One benefit of LPs as far as I'm concerned is that I do have to get up every 20 minutes or so, thus avoiding DVT! The one problem with streaming CDs from my SBT is that I sit there for two to three hours every evening without getting up. Comfortable recliners have a lot to answer for!

S.

 

[Sal1950]

I tell myself I need the excercise

I tell myself I'm in the physical condition of a marathon runner and don't worry about it.

I'm also one hell of a liar.

 

[RealityCheck18]

I don't really care much but I understand the draw

Some people like records because it gives them something physical to play with, forces them to stop and pay attention to the music because it demands attention. Not my bag but for some people they like the process which makes the end result more rewarding.

I find that with CDs, I tend to actually listen to music and have to shuffle around and find other discs which makes it brew and tunes time. With FLAC etc. I can play tunes when doing other thins so I tend not to be paying much attention.

My concept for that quirk is "The pistaccio complex" Love those nuts, cracking open the shells and attempting to keep my pie hole happy. One time I bought a pound of pistaccios already shelled and ready to eat! Wow! What will they think of next--maybe pre-sliced bread? Alas, I poured a pile of them in my gullet and they didn't taste as good. Granted, I fully understand that they are the same but I did not enjoy them as much. With heavy heart I realized I'm just a stupid fleshbag and it tastes better when you work for it.

When I was a kid, my dad has his audio shrine in the basement. He would fire up the tube amps, let them warm up to temp, on occasion screw around with the tube bias and such---check the heads on the reel-to-reel and in a meer 15 minutes he was jamming. Well, maybe a tweek here and there with the EQ or moving his chair a touch as the blues and big band music played. When he retired, he ditched all that stuff, junked the IB speakers, tube amps, reel-to-reel, record players and such and went CD/cassette/solid state. He did comment that he did miss the song and dance, the screwing around with old tube amps or winding tape reels as an activity--he worked harder to get less fidelity but sometimes it is the journey, not the destination that makes it a hobby.

I get it, sometimes I spend days, weeks or months on a project and once complete--I lose interest. I am my father's son but I have someone else to blame for my oddities, right?

 

[M00ndancer]

The main reasons that I still use a turntable, cassette deck and the tape deck is this:

Some thing in the sound of the turntable and the cassette desk messes with my brain to make sound like something I heard before and have good memories of.

But CD is still a mystery to me. I still once and a while bring out my Pioneer 444 and connect to my DAC with a toslink cable (easiest way) and go thru a few CDs and really liking it. But the sound is exactly that same as just using the DAC with my PC or CCA connected to the same DAC.


I suspect that it's the psychical aspect of it, putting the CD in the tray, listening and replace it.. But one thing is for sure, I tire much sooner listening to that compared to the PC, CCA or the "analogue" gear (tape, vinyl) I have. Must old habits that still rules, but why doesn't I just prefer the new way? Digital files in mass, any artist/music genre at a few clicks with the mouse? Where does tape and vinyl go in that equation?

 

[Sal1950]

Where does tape and vinyl go in that equation?

Into the time machine of 1960-1970s noise and distortion levels. Enjoy if that flips your pancakes.

 

[RealityCheck18]

I suspect that it's the psychical aspect of it, putting the CD in the tray, listening and replace it.. But one thing is for sure, I tire much sooner listening to that compared to the PC, CCA or the "analogue" gear (tape, vinyl) I have. Must old habits that still rules, but why doesn't I just prefer the new way? Digital files in mass, any artist/music genre at a few clicks with the mouse? Where does tape and vinyl go in that equation?

A pondering,

A buddy of mine purchased an old Harley--I went through the motor, repaired replaced things and the distinctive potato, potato, potato sound filled the air. Back in the day, when I was young and invincible I rode a motorcross motorcycle and other various bikes and survived (barely) My buddy told me I could take the old Sportster for a spin if I could start it "manually"--it had an electric start but he pointed at that odd lever tucked away.

So, I turned on the fuel valve, switched on the choke and pushed on the kick start lever as I felt it go past top dead center. Threw my weight at it and nothing. Hmmm, tried again--nothing. Putzed with the choke and it fired--and died. Gave it another go and was able to manipulate the throttle to keep the thing going and soon that two-wheeled vibrator started to move. Took it around the block and gave him his baby back. He took off a few minutes later by using the electric starter and was gone.

It was not the ride I found entertaining, it was getting that beast started that was the real fun. Did not start on the first kick but at least I slipped the clutch correctly and did not kill it so I'll take it as a win. Audio gear can be the same way, think about how it was originally done 60 years ago. Fire up those massive tube driven monoblocks, let them warm up a bit, grab the proper reel-to-reel or record, give it a once over looking for damage and slap it on the machine. Do I want the first song or start with something else? Does the tape run at 3 3/4, 7 1/2 or even 15 inches per second speed? Jeez, am I loading a 78, 45 or whatever speed? Hmmm, get the settings correct, the tubes seem bright enough and press play.

Put it this way, if you have thousands of songs and album collections on your computer--do you listen to them differently than you would if you had to load CDs, tape or records? Say you had a record that really only had one good tune on it, how often would you go through the hassle to listen to that one song you like? No problem by clicking and go--most likely less if you have to physically look for the media, find it, load it, select the correct speed and go knowing full well that in 4 minutes you will be doing it again.

Back 30 years ago, I didn't have reel-to-reel but I did have a HiFi VCR with noise reduction encode/decode from my Panasonic Industrial AG1960. I could even record over the audio tracks without disturbing the video on the tapes! Oddly enough, I made very high fidelity "mix tapes" or 2 hour tapes of various music from CDs to get the party going. This way I didn't have to mess around with the gear and it gave me time to imbibe in spirits and potential dates....wine, women and song you could say. Yes, I had two CD players, one of them being a top loader multi-disc so keeping the party going all afternoon and deep into the night was not a problem. However, that becomes a hassle after awhile so I would grab my HiFi VHS tapes that were pre-mixed after the first hour or two. The sound quality was outstanding as it did spec out to 20 to 20KHz and sounded great---it sounded even better the more drinks I had!

In my garage, I have an audio system. It is a garage so you can't get too OCD about it, cement floors and BBQ grills, riding mowers, metal tool chests and other materials don't lend well to great sound. I go for SPL, if it can't be perfect sound it had better be loud! The club mixer accepts everything from phono, tape to USB as it has a soundcard built in. I do have a dual tray club CD player so I can "scratch" with it, play music backwards, sample and so on. The most common use is to grab that 1/8th inch plug, cram it into my tablet and play FLAC or Toutube videos if need be. Generally speaking, when I use the sound system in the garage it means I'm working on something or having a few brews to enjoy the weather. Oddly enough, in my house is the HT system that measures better, sounds better and IS better! However, I tend to go to the garage when I'm in the mood to listen to music. I listen to CDs in the garage (where they are stored) but generally not in the house. My usage is different, then again I don't drink beer in the house when watching movies but I do in the garage.

In my youth, my sound system was a boombox but I don't have any nostalgia for cassette tapes. I missed out (dodged the bullet) of records because their popularity was dying quickly by the time I procurred my first boom box. CD was what the cool kids used so I never owned a record player or records--and still don't. OK, I found a few records like "Top Ten Polkas" and "Banjo Hits" (including dualing banjos!) but they are a decoration in the garage. I don't have a record player but do own an old laser disc player and Tascam Mini-Disc machine--I get maximum WTF points with those. They sit on a shelf in the garage, a testimony of obsolete technology gone by. Yes, I still own my first real tape deck from 32 years ago, the old Onkyo still works although it needs the channels balanced--some of the kids with man buns think it is cool.

In summation, sometimes just the hassle of the format can make it more enjoyable in a weird way. FLAC files are like electric start motorcycles, automatic transmissions, fuel injection and anti-lock brakes. You are still putting down the road but it just don't feel the same. Personally, I'd like to find one of those old Victrolas--the kind you wind up to play 78's with including the big rams horn--it will sound like utter butt in fidelity, be a pain in the butt to keep running and sure take up a bunch of space but would be cool. Get some Cotton Club music from the 20's--as in 1920, have the women dress up like flappers and stay sober enough to keep hand cranking the Victrola.

At the end of the day, you post on an audio forum so rather the odd duck anyway--embrace the weirdness.

 

[M00ndancer]

Put it this way, if you have thousands of songs and album collections on your computer--do you listen to them differently than you would if you had to load CDs, tape or records? Say you had a record that really only had one good tune on it, how often would you go through the hassle to listen to that one song you like? No problem by clicking and go--most likely less if you have to physically look for the media, find it, load it, select the correct speed and go knowing full well that in 4 minutes you will be doing it again.

I think it's the physicality of it. I don't listen differently on streamed media or cassette/vinyl. Whole albums (Vinyl/streaming) or mixed songs (cassette/streaming) . Except for the same type of HIFI VHS recorder that you used for parties and long recordings/mixed tapes. Got the "Producing music and composing music bug" and the only cheap enough (not cassette) that had good enough sound quality was the HIFI WHS. Totally superior for the price than the best Nakamichi Dragons. I think it was an JVC or a Pioneer. Sadly all those item are lost in all my relocations since then... I have one or two tapes left... but no player.

Around 1984, JVC added Hi-Fi audio to VHS (model HR-D725U, in response to Betamax's introduction of Beta Hi-Fi.) Both VHS Hi-Fi and Betamax Hi-Fi delivered flat full-range frequency response (20 Hz to 20 kHz), excellent 70 dB SNR (in consumer space, second only to the CD), DR of 90 dB, and channel separation more than 70 dB.

 

[welsh]

I've spent the last couple of years ripping a lot more of my CDs (around another 1000 classical and jazz CDs) to FLAC. However, I sometimes wonder why I bother.

I've re-discovered in the last months that is it far more enjoyable to just play the original CDs on a CD player, than sending them through a separate DAC.

1. Having a real physical CD, allows the album to be objectified in the mind as a real object. This allows your mind to categorize your music, including where and when you bought the album (thereby associating the music to a specific time and place in your life).

The picture on the album cover also adds to this and helps to remind you of when you first bought the album.

2. Physically putting the CD in a CD player, allows you to pause and focus your intentions on what you are actually going to do - which is: listening seriously to music. Convenience can be a negative thing in this context, as it causes a loss of focus.

Listening to music seriously is like a meditative practice and you should focus on what you are doing.

The CD (or vinyl) format encourages you to focus on what you are doing, while playing on a computer encourages the opposite mentality. The "inconvenience" of the CD (or vinyl) format is also at least a little more similar to the constraints in listening to a live concert, and prevents you from rapidly switching between different genres or albums. Therefore it is more similar to the intentions of the composer, who would expect the audience to wait patiently in a concert hall before the performance.

This is important because music is better listened to distinctly - switching too much between different albums, can be like blurring together paint, creating a muddy mix of colours in your mind.

3. Having and reading the physical liner notes, is one of the great joys of a (at least classical) music collection. Why would anyone not see the loss of them as a huge minus? While the quality of liner notes varies, a lot of them contain excellent and informative writing, which can't be found anywhere else. For example, I particularly enjoy reading the liner notes in Colombia Jazz Albums. While I often enjoy Deutsche Grammophon liner notes for their focus on writing about the particular performance and performers (I can read about the composition in a book, but not about the particular performance).

4. One of the benefits of serious listening is to escape from the distractions of modern life, including the computer screen. A traditional hi-fi system experience can contribute to this, while playing FLACs forcing you back to interacting with a screen.

When I play physical CDs, I find that I'm encouraged to sit down and listen, or even to read a book. On the other hand, with FLACs - I often browse the internet while listening, distracting one's attention.

-------- ------------

Anyone else agree or have other observations, or is this just me?

My father recently died, and I inherited his enormous CD collection. Somehow, I experience a connection with him using physical media.

 

[welsh]

Hell does not exist. I always thought it existed, but not any more.
If it does, how is it that so many said so much about those horrible flames while none warned us about no Wi-fi coverage there ?

Hell is (mostly melted) vinyl.

 

[welsh]

Listening in the dark is always great, if you can get the room dark. A plea to audio equipment manufacturers: stop with the bright blue LEDs!

I have pack of Metamark stick-on filters that tame overly bright LEDs. Especially useful if you have Schiit gear with the piercing white variety.

 

[Robin L]

I went into the storage unit, seeing if I could pull out my paintings. Some luck [still looking for that box of 12" x 12" Sri yantras], but this also re-acquainted me with my DVDs And Blu-Ray discs. There were CDs in that box too, but there was no point in pulling them out, they've been ripped to Apple lossless. But my Orson Welles DVDs [and the Blu-Ray of "Touch of Evil} are movies I'd have to pay for [again] if I wanted to stream. I know that my complete Beethoven on Brilliant Classics has not been ripped, yet. There's lots of good stuff in there I'm going to extract, once I have the space. But once they're ripped, back to storage. I hear no advantage when I play back the lossless file compared to playing the CD.

 

[welsh]

Late to the party, but, since someone invoked classical music hell...

View attachment 65780

 

[welsh]

That’s, like, nothing, man! I once, in Newcastle-upon-Tyne, experienced a FORTY-STRONG ukulele ’orchestra’. Playing Metallica. I still haven’t fully recovered.

 

[MJR]

I sold my CD player...does that answer the question? I was really baffled that I got more for it than I paid for it new, so I guess some people really want to play CDs manually. There isn't an discernible difference in audio quality to me so I prefer the convenience of playing my entire library from my phone or ipad on multiple systems. I rip all my new CDs to FLAC and store them in the basement. Reminds me of when I used to do the same with vinyl onto cassettes so as to preserve the "master" copy...