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Can anyone explain the vinyl renaissance?

oh trust me I know all of this. I had almost 1000 vinyl albums up till several years ago.

When younger, I did listen to entire sides. Not sure why I felt more inclined at a younger age, but as I got older, simply felt there was not time to devote to an entire side at one time.

Even though I still have 2 tables, and a small chuck of above collection, I just no longer have the patience or desire to deal with all those issues. They are no longer a good thing to me, but an inconvenience.
I do not despise vinyl, but see it as simply something "that was" and had many good memories, shopping in stores with my friends when I was young and so on, but the current vinyl mini revival, simply has NONE of that to me now. I have gone in stores, and its mostly a bunch of old guys and a few trendy young people, and HIGH prices.
I regularly go to Rainy Day records in Olympia. They have a lot of good CDs for a dollar a pop. They usually don't charge much for used CDs, "The Best of Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac" was something like $4. I always check out the vinyl bins a bit. It seems like LPs go for a lot these days but consider inflation - LPs averaged $ 8.98 in 1984. That's $27.97 in 2025, and that's about average for LP prices these days. The used LPs they're selling go for more than they would of in the past, but one can usually find a few boxes of free records in the parking lot nearby. Those have the usual suspects, Readers Digest collections, "The Sound of Music", various Classical things that weren't in absolutely perfect condition, Perry Como. Haven't seen any outdoor boxes of free CDs - yet.
 
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I find it hilarious that people think or argumented that listening to Vinyl encourage to listen to the whole record (side) not skipping.

I'm 65 did own around hundreds of records do you really think that at the time i listen to the whole record (an with me most of my friends at the time) give me a break off course not maby Abbey Road, Sgt Peper, Of the Wall, David Bowie records i Really like. Regarding Vinyl 80% i skipped tracks a lot close to 60% i listen once or twice a year max. Around 30% twice or less when bought. Yes at that time you got also rubische disepointed filling tracks.

Atleast for me it is exactly the same for CD or high-res files now. Whats new :facepalm:
 
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The one genuine advantage a vinyl deck has over a digital disc player is that you can remove a record from the turntable and replace it with another very quickly. Yes, that does mean a human has to be involved, of course. In practice you can beat that system for changing to the next single because you can be faster than the arm return.

Of course a programmed playlist is faster still, but there's still a pause with most streaming systems built in, while cueing with multiple devices (digital or analogue), what DJs do, creates seamless sound - yes, a programmed system could do all of that as well if designed that way.

In a home listening session, the gap is actually an advantage in the vast majority of cases. I certainly don't plan lots of "exactly the same music" when I'm listening, by whatever method.
 
I regularly go to Rainy Day records in Olympia. They have a lot of good CDs for a dollar a pop. They usually don't charge much for used CDs, "The Best of Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac" was something like $4. I always check out the vinyl bins a bit. It seems like LPs go for a lot these days but consider inflation - LPs averaged $ 8.98 in 1984. That's $27.97, and that's about average for LP prices these days. The used LPs they're selling go for more than they would of in the past, but one can usually find a few boxes of free records in the parking lot nearby. Those have the usual suspects, Readers Digest collections, "The Sound of Music", various Classical things that weren't in absolutely perfect condition, Perry Como. Haven't seen any outdoor boxes of free CDs - yet.
One large library near me has a once a quarter CD sale. I think most are donations but some are sealed never even opened.

I am honestly not sure where they get all the CDs, but most appear new or almost new and many are multi CD sets. They ALL go for ONE dollar each!!
I mean it feels wrong at times, how low the prices are. All are in VERY good to excellent and brand new unopened.
An equal mixture of Rock and Classical.

For some reason, not many buy these deals. Especially the classical.
 
Exactly that, hence my comment that "not skipping" would be a good reason to turn to vinyl is not valid per-se, it is and has been available many decades with CD's, that's all i meant.
That’s not what those students were saying though; you’re looking at it backwards: it’s not that they like that it’s possible to listen all the way through — that’s a feature of every format — they like that it’s inconvenient not to. Every CD player I’ve ever owned (including the one I bought last week — I still buy CDs about as often as I buy records), on the other hand, made skipping tracks virtually effortless.
The idea that there's some "digital cult" is crazy. Again, people like what they like. One calling such things a cult is going to a paranoic extreme. One can just as easily talk about a "vinyl cult".
I suspect that the “digital cult” accusation is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek response to the messages commonly found in vinyl- or turntable-focused threads enumerating the reasons one has happily moved on from vinyl, and the absence of similar messages from vinyl fans in digital-focused threads. Read any DAC or streamer thread and you’re unlikely to come across “Man, when I got my RT83 in ’18 I stopped worrying about bitrates and neurotically skipping tracks, and I haven’t looked back.”
 
I find it hilarious that people think or argumented that listening to Vinyl encourage to listen to the whole record (side) not skipping.

I'm 65 did own around hundreds of records do you really think that at the time i listen to the whole record (an with me most of my friends at the time) give me a break off course not maby Abbey Road, Sgt Peper, Of the Wall, David Bowie records i Really like. Regarding Vinyl 80% i skipped tracks a lot close to 60% i listen once or twice a year max. Around 30% twice or less when bought. Yes at that time you got also rubische disepointed filling tracks.

Atleast for me it is exactly the same for CD or high-res files now. Whats new :facepalm:

Well, it’s the personal experience of plenty of people playing records these days that they are much more likely to listen to a whole album on vinyl and they are from streaming.
If that’s not your experience, that’s cool.

In terms of the past, I think most of us who grew up with records remember playing whole records, and having the experience where tracks that you didn’t think much of the first time gradually became your favourite traction the record over time. I think that’s at least partially due to the nature of playing that format.

Whereas today, in this Internet-encouraged
“ immediate gratification,” it’s very common to create playlists rather than listen to whole albums. Which encourages people to make judgements more quickly as to which songs they want to hear again on a playlist, and leaving out the tracks that don’t grab them.

This is something that many young people getting into vinyl have reported as well - the difference between the playlist approach versus committing to buying a full album in physical form, and listening to the whole thing.
 
I suspect that the “digital cult” accusation is a somewhat tongue-in-cheek response to the messages commonly found in vinyl- or turntable-focused threads enumerating the reasons one has happily moved on from vinyl, and the absence of similar messages from vinyl fans in digital-focused threads. Read any DAC or streamer thread and you’re unlikely to come across “Man, when I got my RT83 in ’18 I stopped worrying about bitrates and neurotically skipping tracks, and I haven’t looked back.”
But that's exactly what some people are saying about vinyl, in whole or in part. And why shouldn't they? That is not a claim about sound quality.

The times we "digital cultists" have a right to complain about vinyl, in effect, are:
  • When people insist on some kind of magic objective superiority of vinyl that just isn't there
  • When people act on that insistence, for example telling newcomers to audiophilia that they should only listen to vinyl/insist that owning a turntable is "necessary" for listening to music

As far as I can see, pretty much everything else - including preference - is up for grabs, or at least for making a convincing case. There are a few other things that seem to be incontrovertible as well:

The continuing use of vinyl is not a fad seems to be the main one: it never really went away in the 1990s, and the growth in the sales market for new vinyl has been running for the best part of 20 years now

I'm sure we can add some other points that are borne out by facts, measurements and such.

How people choose to listen to music is up to them. I don't really understand this dependence on vinyl for listening to a complete album when that is how music is actually categorised on streaming services and the CD exists, but I have to accept it because it comes up so often from so many quarters.

I'd just say that vinyl is hardly compulsory for the purpose, and that it's really about the person not the medium.
 
One large library near me has a once a quarter CD sale. I think most are donations but some are sealed never even opened.

I am honestly not sure where they get all the CDs, but most appear new or almost new and many are multi CD sets. They ALL go for ONE dollar each!!
I mean it feels wrong at times, how low the prices are. All are in VERY good to excellent and brand new unopened.
An equal mixture of Rock and Classical.

For some reason, not many buy these deals. Especially the classical.
I'm a volunteer for "Friends of the Lacey Library", we get lots of donations of books, CDs, DVDs, audio books. Sometimes we have a lot of CDs. One time we had so many classical titles, they were 10¢ a pop, I got over 30. Most of the time, CDs are $1 per with box sets for $3. I'm pretty much in charge of audio/visual items. Have to make sure that the disc carriers have discs inside, or that the disc isn't an unauthorized burn.
 
Well, it’s the personal experience of plenty of people playing records these days that they are much more likely to listen to a whole album on vinyl and they are from streaming.
If that’s not your experience, that’s cool.

In terms of the past, I think most of us who grew up with records remember playing whole records, and having the experience where tracks that you didn’t think much of the first time gradually became your favourite traction the record over time. I think that’s at least partially due to the nature of playing that format.

Whereas today, in this Internet-encouraged
“ immediate gratification,” it’s very common to create playlists rather than listen to whole albums. Which encourages people to make judgements more quickly as to which songs they want to hear again on a playlist, and leaving out the tracks that don’t grab them.

This is something that many young people getting into vinyl have reported as well - the difference between the playlist approach versus committing to buying a full album in physical form, and listening to the whole thing.
IMO the renewed popularity of vinyl appears to be based on a romanticized perception that does not reflect the reality of the past.

Vinyl is often portrayed today as a medium that promotes more intentional and focused listening partly because it makes skipping tracks less convenient. It is also sometimes seen as a way to stand out, reinforced by the higher cost of equipment and the perceived (subjective) superiority in sound quality.

In reality, however, vinyl in the 1960s and 1970s was a mass-market product, widely available at a broad range of price points (like discount record shops) . Music listeners were just as selective then as they are now:
less favored tracks were frequently skipped, popular songs were played repeatedly, and favourble tracks or entire albums were often recorded onto relatively inexpensive cassette tapes analogous to ripping vinyl or CDs today and curating personal playlists at the time. There were/are countless compilation vinyl albums:facepalm:
The frequently cited notion of “experiencing a full album” was not an inherent characteristic of the vinyl format, but rather a matter of individual preference. The supposed superiority of vinyl whether in terms of listening experience or sound quality is therefore debatable and largely dependent on subjective impressions and technical variables like countless cartridges who sound all different far from transparent.
In short, it is historically inaccurate to position vinyl as an exceptional or inherently superior listening medium, considering it was originally a commonplace, accessible mass-produced format produced in the hunderd of millions. At least that is my recolaction of the past compared with today.
 
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Well, it’s the personal experience of plenty of people playing records these days that they are much more likely to listen to a whole album on vinyl and they are from streaming.
If that’s not your experience, that’s cool.

In terms of the past, I think most of us who grew up with records remember playing whole records, and having the experience where tracks that you didn’t think much of the first time gradually became your favourite traction the record over time. I think that’s at least partially due to the nature of playing that format.

Whereas today, in this Internet-encouraged
“ immediate gratification,” it’s very common to create playlists rather than listen to whole albums. Which encourages people to make judgements more quickly as to which songs they want to hear again on a playlist, and leaving out the tracks that don’t grab them.

This is something that many young people getting into vinyl have reported as well - the difference between the playlist approach versus committing to buying a full album in physical form, and listening to the whole thing.
I agree mostly but had plenty of albums with clicks and pops at the beginnings and endings of songs I either skipped over or played a lot. Also now I have come to believe that back in the day when I was hot over a band, I thought a whole album was great but in retrospect recognize there was lots of substandard material being released that wouldn’t have seen the light of day if that time didn’t have to be filled. It got worse when cd came around. Expanded reissues can make matters worse, but not always.
In a way, 45s and now streaming up the ante for artists and bring better quality to the work. Not that I’m a “hits” guy either.
 
IMO the renewed popularity of vinyl appears to be based on a romanticized perception that does not reflect the reality of the past.
If that were true, one might expect that popularity to flatten or decrease relatively quickly once people realized their mistake, not steadily increase for close to 20 years now.
The frequently cited notion of “experiencing a full album” was not an inherent characteristic of the vinyl format, but rather a matter of individual preference.
So if data were to show that people were more likely to listen to full albums in the ‘70s and ‘80s than they are now, you’d argue that it was solely personal preference, and not at all related to the effort required to listen to individual tracks?
The supposed superiority of vinyl whether in terms of listening experience or sound quality is therefore debatable
I don’t see how the listening experience is debatable? That strikes me as a purely subjective judgement; one either prefers it or doesn’t — how do you debate that? In terms of sound quality, outside of a few audiophile forums and publications, that just doesn’t appear to be a major factor. Surveys linked earlier in this thread (and anecdotal evidence from more general/non-audiophile forums) suggest that sound quality is not a primary consideration driving vinyl sales.
In short, it is historically inaccurate to position vinyl as an exceptional or inherently superior listening medium,
True, but again there’s no real evidence that that attitude is driving the revival.
 
Well, it’s the personal experience of plenty of people playing records these days that they are much more likely to listen to a whole album on vinyl and they are from streaming.
Personally I think it is just one of the things a vinyl fan is supposed to say. Vinyl fandom is very much self congatulatory, keen to present itself as deeper level music appreciation.
 
If that were true, one might expect that popularity to flatten or decrease relatively quickly once people realized their mistake, not steadily increase for close to 20 years now.

So if data were to show that people were more likely to listen to full albums in the ‘70s and ‘80s than they are now, you’d argue that it was solely personal preference, and not at all related to the effort required to listen to individual tracks?

I don’t see how the listening experience is debatable? That strikes me as a purely subjective judgement; one either prefers it or doesn’t — how do you debate that? In terms of sound quality, outside of a few audiophile forums and publications, that just doesn’t appear to be a major factor. Surveys linked earlier in this thread (and anecdotal evidence from more general/non-audiophile forums) suggest that sound quality is not a primary consideration driving vinyl sales.

True, but again there’s no real evidence that that attitude is driving the revival.
My take: demand for LPs went down when CDs showed up. We all know that. For a while, LP buying was a cheapskate's paradise, with first rate LPs being dumped into used LP stores as first adopters bought the equivalent CD. Those audiophiles with CD players dumping their LPs kept their records in good condition. I was working in a couple of LP/CD stores while this was happening, showing up at Amoeba or Rasputin's practically every other day. But there were still plenty of folks that continued playing records. And in addition to all them Boomers who still spun vinyl, youngens found attractions they didn't find in streaming or CDs. Eventually the market caught up. Like I said before, LPs are way more tangible than streaming, and CDs aren't all that visually attractive. In addition, jewel cases are a major PIA. 12" x 12" is a pretty good format for visual art. I'm sure there's plenty of people who don't hear enough of a difference between LPs and some digital format to care - God help pro-audio types who have to track down every sonic defect in their massive Front of House speakers right down to low-level glitches in recordings. But in any case, lots of people get sound from their LPs that ranges from at least good enough to a whole lot better than you'd expect. So, I'd say there's an art factor if nothing else, along with replacing worn copies of favorites with newly pressed copies or finding some quality merch at their favorite band's show.
 
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Personally I think it is just one of the things a vinyl fan is supposed to say. Vinyl fandom is very much self congatulatory…
Not sure how admitting that one doesn’t have the patience or self-discipline to listen to a full album side unless the format makes it inconvenient not to could be considered self-congratulatory.
 
Saturday with Chopin.

 
For me it's like having 2 mixes of the same item, CD & LP. Many but not the majority of vinyl sound better to me. Mostly favorite albums before CDs or at least before CDs dominated. One example is Roxy Music's Avalon. The LP is a haunting wall of sound, the CD sounds way to surgical and loses the haunting spiritual feeling of the LP.

Considering I heard the LP 20 times at least before I owed the CD. So nostalgia may play a heavy role. If I heard the CD 20 times before the LP I may well be calling the LP muddy now.

Bottom line, some albums sound noticeably better than CDs TO MY Ears. I refuse to play the CD for the most part if I prefer the sound of the album. Why would I play a version that does not sound near as good to MY ears.

Still 95 percent of 2 channel playback for me is FLAC from CD.

And I am one that tries to play a full CD but often I skip around. With LPs I listen to the whole thing, spent 5 minutes cleaning and such a waste of time for one track. I prefer listening to a full CD, on that one I just need to start exercising some self control.

With a great cartridge and great table it's near CD quailty other than dynamic range.

I don't mind all the cleaning and so forth, it's not a downside for me.
BUT on my take on vinyl vs CD on some mixes I have no issue with comments I am wrong or missing something.
 
That’s not what those students were saying though; you’re looking at it backwards: it’s not that they like that it’s possible to listen all the way through — that’s a feature of every format — they like that it’s inconvenient not to.
:)
 
IMO the renewed popularity of vinyl appears to be based on a romanticized perception that does not reflect the reality of the past.

When I’m talking about, reflects the reality of the present. I’m talking about what I and other vinyl enthusiast experience today.

The fact is, my tendency to listen to a whole side of an album or an entire album occurs far more often when listening to vinyl, then listening to streaming. And as I said, that is an experience described by countless modern vinyl enthusiasts. Nobody needs to go back in the past to talk about their experience now.

Remember, this is no dig at all on the digital or streaming experience. I stream music all the time. And to say that I happen to find records have a certain value in how I listen says nothing at all about your experience, which may be entirely different. There is no “ one person is more virtuous about this than another” - it’s simply trying to explain my experience and others who share similar experiences.

In reality, however, vinyl in the 1960s and 1970s was a mass-market product, widely available at a broad range of price points (like discount record shops) . Music listeners were just as selective then as they are now:

As somebody who grew up with records that wasn’t my experience.

I mean, of course it wasn’t the case that every time somebody put on a record, they listened to every single track. Obviously there were times where people were all playing only select tracks at a time.

But it wasn’t until cassettes came on the scene when my friends and I started doing mixed tapes, which introduced another level of a selectivity, similar to playlists.

You can’t ignore the way the medium affects an experience. It’s not for nothing many people, certainly many ASR members, talk about how streaming has positively affected their music listening - the amount of exploring they do now musically, how it is the breath of music they’ve exposed themselves to etc. Why? Because streaming made access to music far easier for people. If you make it easier to skip tracks If you make it easier to skip tracks, more people are likely to skip tracks. If you make it easier to select individual tracks people like, they are more likely to create playlists rather than listen to full albums. This is human nature.

And the evolving nature of how people are listening to music has been studied, for instance:


According to a global study conducted in January 2020, just nine percent of surveyed adults in selected countries around the world preferred listening to albums, with 40 percent expressing a preference for playlists instead. Only 36 percent of adults listened to albums in chronological order, which means that many listeners fail to appreciate the full experience of listening to an album carefully constructed by the artist to create meaning, tell a story, or convey a certain style.


WHILE STREAMING MUSIC MAKES LISTENING EASIER THAN EVER BEFORE, A NEW STUDY SHOWS THAT “OVER HALF OF US LISTEN TO FEWER ALBUMS THAN 5-10 YEARS AGO.”​


So the idea that new technology has not impacted how people choose to listen to music and a significant way is fairy naive.

And that is what many people, even especially a lot of younger people getting into vinyl, have picked up on.

Remember, experience happens in context.
When the only game in town was vinyl records, yeah perhaps people more often got up to change songs. But the current context for many people is having grown up with music available ubiquitously streaming.
When some of these folks discover vinyl, it’s a new experience, a whole different workload than just streaming playlists on their phone or whatever, and so this gives a sort of
“ special” quality to vinyl then the digital world they have inhabited. So it’s not surprising that they find themselves attending more to the vinyl experience, and it shouldn’t be surprising why so many people report it changes how they listen.

This is very typical:


Listening to records changed the way I listen to music​


Again… for anybody who feels their hackles getting up about this talk…NONE of this means your digital or streaming experience isn’t just as rich and just as authentic. This is simply trying to understand what SOME people find valuable in vinyl records in this “digital world.”
 
Saturday with Chopin.

Maurizio Pollini, Chopin Preludes op. 28, #6 in B minor. The transfer is good. There is excellent steadiness of piano tone. All the off-noises are very low in level, a few clicks here and there, a little rumble in the space before the B minor prelude commences.
 
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