Are people getting sick of streaming services...

[holdingpants01]

When there is only streaming left with no other choice what do you think will happen to subscription costs?

there's always coming back to what I grew up with: piracy

 

[A Surfer]

For me the issue is that most of what I want to hear is simply not available in a physical format. I still have CDs, plenty of them, but my current default is streaming. I'm currently listening to Charles Rosen performing Schubert's 20th piano sonata, A major D959. As far as I can tell this recording never made it to CD. There are other CDs, like the Blandine Verlet series of the Couperins on Astree that are priced far out of my league - Amazon has a Louis Couperin recording for which the vendor is asking $1005.00. I can stream that recording any time I want to. As I really don't have any more room for CDs there's nothing special about having the recording as a physical object.

In theory though, your streaming service could lose, or give up rights to some of the music you like. That isn't super likely though in any significant way.

I like the convenience of streaming services, I won't deny that, but I still miss the good old days.

 

[fatoldgit]

So lets say you are a die hard vinyl or CD collector and think streaming is the work of the Devil.

Your issue is your selection of new albums (I am not talking about the 20th remaster of DSOTM) is limited to:

1- reading some website that might review them
2- trawling through retail stores/op shops/used record stores
3- recommendations from friends

The issue with this:

(1) the website can only review so many albums
(2) maybe the reviewer's tastes arent yours so you buy and get burnt
(3) the retail store will only stock whats generally popular
(4) the op shop/used record store will only stock what is available from persons in the immediate area
(5) one only has so many friends..even virtual ones.


Sure Discogs is good but the interface is clunky PLUS it has information overload.

So if you are into pop stuff, you wont have any issues getting the latest Taylor Swift thing but if your tastes are eclectic or not of your region (say a White Boy Lost In the Blues who lives 10,000 miles from its origins) then you were historically limited to what physical media you could procure locally.

So even if you still think physical media is the way to go, dont ignore streaming.... sign up to Tidal or Qobuz and use it as a discovery mechanism (i.e. find those new artists, plug the gap in your collection for an existing artist etc).

Dont need any fancy hardware, any device with a web browser will do.

Cant get the CD for that newly discovered must have album... download it from Qobuz and burn it to CD.. so you have your cherished physical copy.

Having access to sample millions of albums via a streaming service should be a tool used by every serious music lover.

Peter

 

[Robin L]

In theory though, your streaming service could lose, or give up rights to some of the music you like. That isn't super likely though in any significant way.

I like the convenience of streaming services, I won't deny that, but I still miss the good old days.

I've owned thousands of recordings - before moving to Washington I had to sell (or unload) nearly 2000 LPs and 1000 CDs. And in the years past I've been in situations where I had to sell off most of my collection. Because of streaming I am now able to listen to some of my favorite recordings I sold in the past and some I've always wanted to hear but could never get my hands on. The situation isn't perfect - there's recordings I want to hear that Tidal doesn't stream. Some of those appear on You Tube, but You Tube irritates me with its commercials interrupting large scale classical works, and I don't want to pay an additional fee to You Tube to stop those commercials. In any case, Tidal right now offers me more music than I have ever owned in the past. And that's enough for right now.

 

[pablolie]

To me it's not at all an "either... or.." proposition.

Collecting music and thereby best supporting the artists I follow closely is a no brainer to me. Library stats are 4,165 albums and 43,927 tracks. Not a small library. I spent a lot of time listening and further curating my library... here and there I'll find a cover is missing and I'll try to hunt a copy down in the internet etc etc. Always something to do.

But I still love streaming. I can create very convenient playlists that I can listen to from anywhere, anytime. I also can easily discover new stuff there, Spotify is pretty amazing at doing that. It's a bit like the new equivalent to moving through a record store, listening to stuff and studying covers to discover new stuff.

 

[Mart68]

Sure, no problem to solve THIS problem (though it can get costly).
But how do you know, that you want it? Or that you do not want it?
That are the questions streaming solves for me, I just click and listen.

The old way - People recommending music to me, listening to the radio, watching TV.

For people's recommendations I just check it out on Youtube, very rare it isn't on there.

 

[Mart68]

For me the issue is that most of what I want to hear is simply not available in a physical format.

I get that, but whatever format or streaming service being used, there's titles that are unavailable. There's people who mainly stream but also have a turntable and CD player to access programme only available on those formats.

Personally I'm not into Classical and my taste is mostly mainstream so it's rare I can't get something I want. Can be pricey as I'm fussy about the mastering - I've paid over £30 for a CD a handful of times.

 

[JustJones]

I stream everything, streaming service, radio stations and any CD I get I rip to flac and add to the library. I don't even own a CDP anymore, vinyl got rid of 30 years ago.

 

[olieb]

The old way - People recommending music to me, listening to the radio, watching TV.
For people's recommendations I just check it out on Youtube, very rare it isn't on there.

So two out of three of your ways are some kind of "streaming" just with a generic, mainstream "algorithm".
And the third way works with another streaming service (YT). "Access" without streaming is not so simple, it seems, not even for the more mainstream oriented.

Inspired by RobinL I just listened to Rosen's interpretation of D.959. After three movements I was interested how other players would approach the mood of the Scherzo, and listened to Brendel, Pollini, Zimerman, Serkin, Schiff, Ashkenazy, Haebler, Schnabel, Perahia, Badura-Skoda and got stuck (for various reasons) with Kempff. A journey not possible without the possibilities of a streaming service.

 

[MattHooper]

Your issue is your selection of new albums (I am not talking about the 20th remaster of DSOTM) is limited to:

1- reading some website that might review them
2- trawling through retail stores/op shops/used record stores
3- recommendations from friends

And listening to the radio?

If you add that then..,,

The issue with this:

(1) the website can only review so many albums
(2) maybe the reviewer's tastes arent yours so you buy and get burnt
(3) the retail store will only stock whats generally popular
(4) the op shop/used record store will only stock what is available from persons in the immediate area
(5) one only has so many friends..even virtual ones.

This all seem to work fine for previous generations.

But in the end, most people with a physical collection also use streaming.

Many of my records are bought via exploration on YouTube or Discogs, where I can preview and explore different albums before buying.

 

[CapMan]

Exactly. Suddenly you have to learn a new type of software just to navigate music. I’m usually lost for a while and somebody else’s place if they hand me their laptop to navigate their music via whatever streaming service they’re using.



I went even further in an effort to unplug from digital on/line life when using my two channel stereo system, in regards to the remote control.

I had a remote control custom-made out of an exotic wood, ergonomically shaped for use sitting beside me on the sofa while I’m listening, with a nice big volume knob. I prefer operating a knob than little buttons on a remote, or digital sliders, etc.

The volume knob has a number of programmable features; I can mute or dim the sound with the press of the knob, or I can choose to operate different components, different preamps in my rack. I can select sources. And all the commands are indicated via an LED ring around the knob which lights up different colours based on the commands. Hugely satisfied with it.



View attachment 410679View attachment 410680

Oh - it's a kazoo !

 

[Mart68]

So two out of three of your ways are some kind of "streaming" just with a generic, mainstream "algorithm".
And the third way works with another streaming service (YT). "Access" without streaming is not so simple, it seems, not even for the more mainstream oriented.

Inspired by RobinL I just listened to Rosen's interpretation of D.959. After three movements I was interested how other players would approach the mood of the Scherzo, and listened to Brendel, Pollini, Zimerman, Serkin, Schiff, Ashkenazy, Haebler, Schnabel, Perahia, Badura-Skoda and got stuck (for various reasons) with Kempff. A journey not possible without the possibilities of a streaming service.

I'm not suggesting that streaming doesn't suit your purposes, it just doesn't suit mine - for what I think are valid, rational reasons.

And I think you're stretching it a bit to describe other people as 'generic mainstream algorithms'.

Aside from all that I read E.M Forster's short story 'The Machine Stops' at an early age. Written in 1909 he predicts the internet and streaming music...and what happens when it all starts to unravel. So there may be some emotional bias

 

[whataboutmusic]

I used to be frustrated with constantly needing my phone to select music or adjust the volume. The main reason I bought the Wiim Pro Plus was for its Bluetooth remote control, which allows me to select my favorite Spotify playlists with the press of a button. I can even control the volume while the device is tucked away in my closet -no screen needed. I dislike staring at screens when listening to music, so I can empathize with those who are turned off by streaming if that’s their perception of how it works. However, it can be set up in a way that eliminates the need for screens altogether.

That said, I completely agree -how could anyone tire of streaming services when they offer access to virtually all the music in the world?

I can accept that someone prefers to own cd's or to be part of the vinyl process because in the end listening to music is a hobby.

I can also understand that for some screens and digital playlists are a turn off...some may want to own their music because streaming is just renting and albums leave platforms all the time.

What I am focused on and what I cant accept is that somehow streaming is killing the whole music listening situation and that people do not connect with their music because spotify tells them what they want to listen to.

If someone wants to connect with music now its easier than ever...you can even download on the spot cover art and lyrics...and carry all your music with you in the office or walking or in your car.

 

[Rja4000]

I HATE subscription services.
I switched away from Photoshop -while I was using it intensively- when Adobe was one of the first to try and force me into subscription.

But the only one I'm glad to pay for is Qobuz.
I'm using it for more than 10 years now, and never regretted a penny.

 

[Chrispy]

Still find one convenient for quick research, especially someone I haven't heard of or am interested in, etc. Not much better than streaming for such....that's way better even than asking the guys at Tower Records to play something you're interested in over the store's system (that was pretty much the only way other than phoning in a request to a radio station).

 

[fatoldgit]

And listening to the radio?

If you add that then..,,



This all seem to work fine for previous generations.

But in the end, most people with a physical collection also use streaming.

Many of my records are bought via exploration on YouTube or Discogs, where I can preview and explore different albums before buying.

Sure but radio only works if they play stuff in genres you are interested in. Maybe in the US or other large countries you get some diversity but in small countries you essentially get only mainstream stuff on the airwaves.

So radio/trawling record shops etc worked (back in the day)... up to a point...but certainly not as well as today with the resources the internet provides.

Just referencing my own collecting.. it reached a plateau maybe early 2000's simply because I had run out of places/sources to expand it (i.e. you only know what's next if you can research)

Then Qobuz popped out in 2007 and I gained a whole new way of finding obscure stuff/artists that would be impossible to discover/source in the "old" days.

I respect people who stick to physical media*** but as per my post, streaming is a very valid resource even for those folks.

Peter

*** unlike some, I count computer files (which is what I play now) as "physical media" so I don't stream remotely from a service in my room.... just in my office to find new stuff then source a CD/download (which Qobuz provides).

I also aren't that much of an obsessive person (at least in regard to this) that I must keep searching for "The One" golden mastering... if it is sounds good on Qobuz that's good enough... life is too short to spend cycles on researching which mastering is the best.

 

[MattHooper]

I also aren't that much of an obsessive person (at least in regard to this) that I must keep searching for "The One" golden mastering... if it is sounds good on Qobuz that's good enough... life is too short to spend cycles on researching which mastering is the best.

I hear you on that. I like a good mastering job like anybody else, but I’m not going to go to great lengths to track down the best master of everything I own.

Admittedly when it comes to buying records, I do often enough seek out the best mastering.
But that is because I often buy from Discogs, which makes it really easy to quickly discern a good master from the reviews on that site. So it takes very little time to decide which copy I’m going to buy.

When it comes to laboriously going through threads on places like Steve Hoffman forum or whatever, either for CD or LPs, that’s something I occasionally do but rarely.

 

[Axo1989]

Same here. I’m on my desktop computer working all day and when I take a break, I don’t wanna have to keep using computers.

For me the most repulsive way of interacting with music is a laptop. I don’t like laptops to begin with, but whenever I go to a friend who streams, controlling via his laptop and I use it, it’s just…yuck! Sort of like the ugliest remote of all time.

I can certainly understand getting away from the screen/computer (or the digital world altogether) to relax.

When you say "repulsive" and "ugly" do you mean the laptop itself, or the software, or both? I mean I like my MacBook (which is the primary music source for now, with an overpriced but also nicely engineered Thunderbolt cable powering it and running to the DAC and TV). It's a really elegant piece of industrial design. But I wouldn't necessarily hand it to you if you dropped by. Visitors can AirPlay (to the MacBook) from their phone (or use the remote to play from the AppleTV box when I get another one). Or grab one of the iPads. They are also pretty elegant. Unless you hate the Music software I suppose. Or simply want a rest from screens.

Not taking away anything from your custom remote, which is very nice.

 

[chervokas]

Same here. I’m on my desktop computer working all day and when I take a break, I don’t wanna have to keep using computers.

For me the most repulsive way of interacting with music is a laptop. I don’t like laptops to begin with, but whenever I go to a friend who streams, controlling via his laptop and I use it, it’s just…yuck! Sort of like the ugliest remote of all time.

I just control my streaming bridge with a phone or old tablet, cue up the album I want to listen to from Qobuz -- last night the Ensemble Modern's recording of Steve Reich's Music for 18 Musicians -- and press play, put the device down and listen. It's really no different, no more difficult, and no more intrusive than using a using a remote control to choose a show to watch on television.

 

[Ismapics]

I se the comments and yes these services are great. But I still believe that instead of battling for every large sample and bit rates, why not stick with simple 44.1/16b. I n my personal experience I prefer a solid CD hard copy of the file which I can serve in my house from place to place with ease.